Damp but Determined

Sarah - that is awesome news!!! So glad that you are getting out there. I'm really looking forward to reading your book A Necessary Blessing  

I'm still having issues with the writing stuff because I'm struggling with some things that I'm not comfortable blogging about. Bear is fine. Bear is completely bear. He managed to get elected onto the school council. I should say that there were two places and only two volunteers so he now has a shiny badge that he has to wear. All I can say is that it's never too early to learn to manage a committee.

No purple food today, but I really need to get the purple potatoes used up soon. I'm wondering about a soup. I would start with the basics - lentils, onion, lots of garlic, tumeric, cumin, possibly some paprika or chili. Then I could add the purple potatoes, plus some other sweet root, like a sweet potato, parsnips or some carrots. I could even add an apple. If I do make soup, that will be Tuesday, as I will have to have it ready to go before I leave to pick up bear later than usual. 

I am trying to plot my week. Bear will be later than normal on Tuesday and Thursday for drama, if people are back from self isolation. This doesn't leave me much time to make dinner, so soup is a good choice as I can do all the work before I leave and then just heat up when I get back. The trouble is, every time I think that I have a plan in place, something happens. I shall see how things go.

I admit to feeling very low. So I am determined to keep blogging and looking for the silver lining in life. There is always a silver lining. Blogging encourages me to look. The weather is currently extremely rainy, but there is still lots of good stuff around. And speaking of good stuff...

Writing stuff - Sarah Head has her novel, A Necessary Blessing, out on 19th November. She gives awesome advice in her comments to me and I am proud that I know her. You may have seen her posts on Tales of a Kitchen Herbwife. I can't wait to read her book. 

Image taken from Amazon

Hugs and good health to all.

Quiet Day

Fifitr - I remember watching bear doing an experiment with red cabbage water, turning it different colours depending on how alkali or acidic the addition was. It was wonderful fun.

Sharon - it tasted fine!

Bless - I have some purple potatoes to have tomorrow. I think I will just roast them.

Tonight I only had the energy for basic chicken with korma sauce. But I did find a photo of a meal I had a few weeks ago with purple potatoes.

 The pic shows gluten free breaded chicken (if you are going to get breaded chicken, I really recommend getting the gluten free stuff. It's nothing to do with the gluten. But because it's more fiddly and isn't as mass produced, you get some really nice chicken like that). With that was multicoloured carrots and purple potatoes. 

I am planning on getting a new TV. We relocated the one in the living room to DH's room as his monitor went and he needed the screen for work. I recently checked my Tesco Clubcard balance and I have over £150 of clubcard vouchers plus a recent receipt also spat out a coupon for £50 off electricals (including TVs) if I spend over £150 on an item before 22 November. Tesco sells TVs. DH had a quick look over the selection (I took photos of what was on offer when I was grocery shopping) and decided that the Toshiba 32 inch for £199 was probably the best bet. I don't know if I can use the vouchers and the coupon together, but if I can, I could effectively get a TV free. I consider this a good thing.

This means that the space where the TV is going needs to be cleared, and it's a great chance to clear out all of the junk in that corner. Which means that this afternoon was spent sorting through DVDs. It was sort of sad as a lot of them had belonged to father and some were still in the shrink wrap. It brought back some great memories, though. I shall start looking for homes.

Hugs and good health to all.

Dinner Was Purple

This is what happens when you add purple carrots to red (purple) onions, a couple of chicken breasts and some mushrooms.

There were absolutely no artificial colourings added, but I wouldn't blame anyone for doubting that. Purple carrots are not only PURPLE but they are generous sharing that PURPLE with the rest of the food. I was considering serving some yellow sweetcorn with it, and I'm glad that I did't. Also, purple carrots are tough - but PURPLE.

Today was quite dull. I did some writing stuff, a small amount of housewifery and a lot of driving for the school run. I also booked the Tesco slot - eventually! I'm still not sure it's right for me to have it, as we can get out and about. I think I will make a list from it and stock up over the next few weeks. Any fresh stuff I can almost certainly get from places like Deliveroo and Uber Eats (who do stuff like grocery delivery these days as well as pizza) if we have to isolate. So far bear hasn't had the call to leave, but who can tell.

And speaking of bear, one of his teachers ran 15 miles and arrived at the start of school wearing a multicoloured tutu, some elderly curtains altered to be a cloak and some Pudsey Bear ears. Apparently it was for Children in Need and not his usual style for school. Cloaks get caught in things, and are not suitable for a busy classroom environment, so I was glad to hear it, especially after I saw the pics on the school website. 

Hugs and good health to all.

Weird Times

I managed a walk today, though just a little one. The geese weren't blocking the path this morning. Instead they were having some sort of war all by themselves and travelling in flotillas on the lake.

I don't know what was going on, but it sounded like a right scrap! 

The days are getting shorter. I saw this - the sun was so low even after dropping bear off at school, that half the tree is in shadow and the rest in sulight.

It was getting dark on the way home. Bear had something something something drama something which meant I didn't pick him up until after 4pm. Whatever it was, it was less than successful as half the group had been sent home to self isolate. I am waiting for the call for bear to come home now. Tomorrow I'll pick up some fresh stuff and look into booking a delivery. I'll keep it on the back burner, and cancel it if I don't need it. I think that it's only a matter of time.

I sort of miss giving a lift to bear's pal, but I am enjoying the chance to spend mum and son time with him on the drives. It isn't quite the same when it's just him and I at home. There are too many distractions.

Hugs and good health to all. 

Very Autumn

At least the fog has gone. It was a relatively straightforward drive to drop off this morning. I'm quite relieved as I have decided that I don't like driving in fog. 

In fact, it's been a fairly straightforward drive on all school runs today, and long may that continue. I'm treasuring the wait for bear. I park in the corner at Morrisons car park, get out my knitting and relax. Today I watched a magpie chase a squirrel away from a morsel of food. Most of the car park is barren concrete but the corner I head to is a little more interesting.

It's definitely autumn. And it's now raining.

I didn't get a walk today as my knee was acting up. It's been okay this evening, so fingers crossed for a walk tomorrow.

Writing stuff - the sequel to Out of the London Mist, Under the Bright Saharan Sky, is available on pre-order. It's a lot less expensive now. As I type, Under the Bright Saharan Sky is available at 77p for the ebook. Out of the London Mist was around the same for pre-order but is now £3.13 for the ebook. If you are going to buy it, now is a good time. 

And I have an article published on the gorgeous blog of Jeyran Main here. I feel quite grown up having articles published.

Hugs and good health to all. 

Still Foggy!

I'm so sorry for causing concern. I apologise. Fifitr - still neck deep and sinking, but editors are awesome.

It was another really foggy morning today - in places. There would be a beautiful clear patch and then really thick mist where I was crawling along trying to see a hundred yards ahead. The drop off run was 'interesting'.

I managed to get another walk, with a few doggy cuddles thrown in.

I wasn't sure I would get past this lot, but I did. They are very assertive.

And it was such a gorgeous morning.

I thought that this would turn out a little more mysterious as there is mist beyond the trees. 

And before we even got into the car, I thought I would try and capture the delicacy of the dew on the cobwebs. It was a little hit and miss. 

It is great having a chance to get some doggy cuddles. When I am walking in the park, I know that, on the whole, the dogs there are the ones likely to have owners who care enough to exercise them and so are likely to train them. I am nervous of dogs as I was bitten when I was little, and I worry that I'll upset one because I don't know how to act. Fortunately most dogs recognise that I am a complete soft touch and good for as many cuddles as they want. I am a complete sucker for them. I'm hoping that if I keep going at the same time, I'll get to know the regulars and be in for extra cuddles.

Hugs and good health to all.

Many Many Apologies

I am so sorry that I disappeared. I sincerely apologise for causing any concern. I've been busy with a deadline and other stuff has been happening, but I am fine and so is bear.

Bear is actually doing quite well. He got an early report (the school must be worried about further lockdowns) and he got some good remarks on 'attitude to learning' which was all at 'at expected level' or 'above expected level'. I'm really pleased about that. There have been some extremely tense moments over homework, so I'm glad that he is still showing well. His predicted grades (in just under three years time!) are reasonably awesome, but I'm more worried about how he's approaching his work. So far, so good. 

I've managed to get a walk or two in, as you can see above. And I've called in a few shops, as it's allowed during lockdown. Unfortunately, Aldi sell yarn as well as groceries and I fell for this.

True to form, I've abandoned the current blanket and started this, although I'm continuing with the blanket at home and just knitting the hat while waiting for bear at pick up time. The pattern is very straightforward so far. It's cast on 132 stitches, rib for 8cm, then broken rib for 17cm giving a total of 25cm, then purl two together all along. Then you cut a long length of yarn, run it along the stitches and gather together, before attaching the pompom. I'm cautiously optimistic of finishing it, so I'll share when I do.

In other, random, news, I found that not all coloured pencils are vegan. In fact, apparently hardly any are. I am not against veganism, or vegetarianism, but I'm not sure I could manage it 100%. You have to be so careful, and I get distracted easily. Gluten free is tough enough. 

Writing stuff - You can catch up with any of the short story stuff I did for Halloween here, I shall no doubt revisit a few old favourites next Halloween.

Hugs and good health to all, and sorry if I've upset anyone.