Thread 10 - TalkLair: “The candle flame gutters. Its little pool of light trembles.”

[Kucinghitam]

Continuation of previous threads (thread 9).

Although the nights are gradually drawing in, the new lair of JTT escapees is all cosy and homey inside. The hearth is glowing, the walls covered in dubious artwork, books by non-approved authors line the shelves, rugs are down on the floors (and assorted pets curled up on them).

We just won’t mention the gnawed bones of our prey over there in the corner of the cave…

Ugh, shrews.
Yay, toys.
Ouch, drawing pin.

When we were teens my brother and I were sitting in front of the gas fire, warming up before breakfast and getting ready for school, when he showed me a big darning needle. We were both sitting on the floor. I stood up and he pushed the needle, with some force, into my shin. That smarted.

MouseMinge, what a bad brother! Just reading the description made me squirm in my seat.

Ugh and ew to treading on dead shrews.

Argh to everything!

When MaBint was small, her slightly older brother promised her sixpence if she stuck her finger in a light socket. Being a skeptical child, her response was 'You first.', but she did do it after he'd demonstrated (not realising that he'd been very careful to not touch both terminals).

She was only slightly cross about the electrocution - putting it down to 'hazards of brothers - but 70 years on still holds a grudge about his failure to pony up the sixpence.

Heh!

For anyone who likes chicken liver pate and doesn't want to make it themselves this company's CLP is very nice indeed:

findlatersfinefoods.co.uk

Waitrose seems it.

I wish I knew where I could buy chicken's livers.

Waitrose sell them, either fresh on the top shelf of the chicken display, or frozen from the freezer section. (Be careful, I accidentally bought frozen kidneys once because the packets were identical.) Dunno if they have Waitrose in Ireland, but maybe other supermarkets sell them.

I have another supermarket gripe - why are chicken breast fillets always sold without the skin on? The skin adds flavour! They manage to keep the skin on legs and thighs, why do they strip it off the breast fillets? Idiots.

Also, supermarkets often sell chickens “without giblets” on the label… but they never have any chickens for sale “with giblets”, so why specify they’re without?

(I went to Tesco yesterday. Supermarkets are on my mind.)

No Waitrose here - one of the independent supermarkets in our town used to be prepared to order them in - I must ask (they've joined a new franchise). If not, I could try a butcher.

One of the local Tesco sell chicken livers, but they are a bugger to find on the shelves because they don't carry many packs and they seem to hide behind other things. Also people who raw feed their dogs seem to buy them a lot.

Our local butcher sells them, but you have to ask for them because they're lurking in the freezer.

We used to buy from the local Higher Hacknell Farm (organic free-range meats, just sadly closed down after about 30 years because of ill-health) and their chickens came with giblets which I used to make the gravy.

I'm watching my wife getting to the boil on a phone call to Curry's. I think she's on the third robot menu by now. It's a joke. These automations, just like self-serve tills, are not for anything other than profits to shareholders, and in fulfilling that tawdry objective they have destroyed 000s of jobs and made everyone's life a little bit worse, every day.

I just say “Operator” loudly and firmly at every single request, seems to get me through to a human quicker than anything else.

If this makes Angelica feel any better (it won't), please bear with me while I rant! I've been "having dealings with" the local independent electrical shop over a washing machine that broke down irreparably (no parts, thank you Brexiteers) on 4th September, one year into its 5-year warranty. When the manufacturer finally agreed and issued a code for a replacement, it took the boss (owner) of the shop 10 days to even call them.

They finally delivered it (last Friday, coincidentally the 13th) but couldn't get the old one - which they had installed - out! Okay, shit happens, so we agreed to get Steve-the-joiner in and the boss told me - in front of two witnesses - that he would call him and arrange it. I know Steve, because (at my expense) he replaced the kickboard and two cupboard doors they destroyed.

I've been into the shop (which is local) every day since, and been repeatedly assured by the bloke who works on the counter that the boss confirms he's rung Steve and it's all in hand. Yesterday I had a bit of a rant and he rang me this morning to say - er - the boss says you were going to call Steve. I said well, the boss is lying, but I suspect you already know that? And he said yes, I know. He didn't sound surprised.

So now Steve is booked for tomorrow and then we have to wait for them to deign to come and install the machine. Will they manage this without incident? I insisted that they left it here, because if they'd taken it back to the shop he'd probably have sold it someone else. As it is, he'll probably charge me to take away the broken one (which doesn't work at all) and then re-sell it!

When we were younger the thing you had to be careful of when you bought a chicken or a turkey was that the giblets were often in a plastic bag inside the bird so you had to remember to take them out. I haven't seen a bird with its giblets for ages and it's a real shame because they were great for the gravy.

But, yes @DeanElderberry I'd try your local butcher, if they don't have them they'll likely be able to get them in for you.

I am bloody craving chicken liver right now and I should be in bed because I have to be up at 4.30 and yet here I am. I can't possibly go to sleep this early.

Btw, I'm going to a Halloween party, costume not mandatory but she'd like it if we all did try to dress up. I've been trying to come up with what I want to go as and last night it came to me. I've bought a cheap wig, some face crayons and acrylic paint for a dress that I'm getting in the sales ... I'm going as Weird Barbie!

I haven't seen giblets in a supermarket chicken in forever. Our local butcher offers them, when you buy a chicken; they once gave me half a dozen, for the dog, as most people don't want them.

As a vegetarian my main contact with chicken is in the form of chicken breast fillets for my mum. For these, I appreciate the lack of skin as mum doesn’t like it and I’m all about just shoving a bit of meat or fish into the air fryer for her. The giblet talk here made me check though and whole chickens from Abel and Cole all seem to come with their giblets.

My main response to this thread today though is a great big ew to standing on a dead shrew.

On the rare occasion that I get a chicken with giblets in it, I stew them up to make chicken stock for gravy.

DH and I were woken at 4am by torrential rain hammering on the windows. Staggered downstairs, heard desperate yowls at the front door. Poor CB, drenched and bedraggled. When we let her in she shouted her thanks so loudly that she woke DD in the room above!

Does this mean she's sleeping outdoors even as winter approaches? We've already had some very cold nights in recent weeks. I am worried about her. Should we buy a cat shelter? Or just take her in overnight?

Also: Just looked at the weather forecast. The rain is going to get heavier during the day 😩Is this Storm Babette?

My wife said it was horrific last night. I'm across the water in the Netherlands, we were on site at 11 am yesterday and legged it at 01:00 today. We may be alongside for 2 days.

@Kucinghitam Should we buy a cat shelter? Or just take her in overnight?

I think the time may have come to admit defeat and take her in permanently. You know you want to ...

She owns you Kuci, give in and furnish a suite for her. Cats repay you care in so many ways.

Speaking of which, I want to reassure the traumatised that I paused as soon as I felt something underfoot yesterday, so didn't actually squash anything flat . . .

I've already scanned the bedroom floor this morning, and it seems be Soricidae free. (I had to look that up, I did know they aren't rodents but wasn't sure what they were.)

I won't try for the chickens livers just yet, because although shop-bought pate is okay with lettuce or celery, the real thing would demand toast, and I'm limiting my carb intake atm. I had thought I might be able to let up by Halloween, but the blouse that is my current target is still saying 'nah'. I can button it if I'm wearing squashy restrictive bra, but look like a cross between the Horniman walrus and a button-back armchair, and there's no hope at all in comfy bra, so no toast (or crackers, or pasta) yet awhile.

Oh, poor Catburglar. I think you may now have a cat.

Absolutely torrential here, too, last night. Half expected to see an ark floating past when I opened the curtains this morning.

Agree with the others, you're going to have to accept the cat's decision to move in with you.