Thread 16 - TalkLair: "Well, I'm not exactly quaking in my stylish-yet-affordable boots, but there's definitely something unnatural going on here."

[Kucinghitam]

(Previous thread 15).

Another year over, a new one just begun...

In the TalkLair, the hearth is glowing, the walls festooned with tinsel, books by non-approved authors line the shelves, rugs are down on the floors, the tree is twinkling with fairy lights (and possibly being clambered on by cats). The denizens of the lair are a welcoming bunch though, always eager for general chit-chat on all manner of topics.

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

Argh! Pandan, not pandas! Damn you autocorrect!

Season 7 Episode 20 'Touched' for Spike's epic speech to Buffy... (he was sooooo much better than Angel IMO )
Also liked S7 E2 'Beneath you' 'Is there anyone here who hasn't had sex together?'
Most of season 7 wasn't great... and I HATED Giles by the end. Loved it when Spike battered Wood.

Oh dear now I need to watch the whole of Buffy again....

Don't blame me, I only got two and I didn't buy them!

I liked Storyteller in season 7, and Him (the enchanted jacket one). And also I’d watch Spike do basically anything so always happy with his scenes

@claudiawinklemansfringetrimmer I love your name!

Re a good person in Hollywood. We'll always have Keanu. Always.

I have never seen a full episode of Buffy and I'm not really sure why that is. It's not something I avoided, it's something I think I would have liked, I've seen bits of it and it looked good but it just never happened. I also like the pictures in books and on the radio but I do like to have the screen doing my imagination for me as well. I have become really bad at seeing a series through to the end. I think my last one was The Good Place. I've given up or stopped semi-way through things like Breaking Bad, because I hate Walter so much and been really enjoying stuff like Nobody Wants This and then stopped because I'm enjoying it so much and want to take time to enjoy it and not binge like a madwoman. And then over a month has passed and when am I going to get back to it!

Lychees...mmmm...<drools>

I've now finished wrapping and gift-tagging the presents, and sent Christmas e-cards and emails (I gave up sending actual cards a few years ago). AIBU to be slightly pissed off with DH, who has done nothing towards Christmas prep except be very occupied with finishing off the mantelpiece we've been building in the living rpom, and some built-in bookshelves he's been making that will enable me to get a large pile of oversize books off the dining room floor before Christmas? I know that everybody will be oohing and aahing over his efforts, and meanwhile thank both of us for the gifts (all of which I bought and wrapped) and meal (which I will have made unassisted while he bumbles around and doesn't offer drinks unless I prompt him?

He's lovely really, but is very much like an oil tanker or a steam train - only capable of travelling in a straight line and takes forever to turn around.

I could just happily watch a compilation of Spike from all the seasons on a constant loop. Shirt optional.

I'm on the sofa next to you, kuc.

Budge up. I've brought snacks.

I've wrapped all the presents I have. I'm expecting the last two, well part of the last two, on Christmas Eve so I'll wrap those then along with the other parts of them (ground coffee, trying to figure out what coffee to get for each of the people involved, oh the excitement). I've not done many cards this year but they're done so it feels as though I'm up to date with everything. That's an odd feeling for me because I'm rarely up to date with anything!

It's weirdly enjoyable to read about everybody's progress in Christmas preparations on this thread.

We're basically done, I think. Our lovely grocer guy ensured we had plenty of sprouts and spuds in the weekly veg box. Even picked up a huge toprump of beef, half price, in Sainsbury's yesterday morning - I had some concern it is too large to fit in the slow cooker, but DH says it will fit in the air-fryer-oven Christmas Eve we will brave Sainsbury's again to pick up any last bits, hopefully reduced - haven't got pigs in blankets yet, nor brandy cream for the pudding.

Oh, and FiL rang last night to say that, on reflection, the GCSE revision cards should be given to DDs immediately so they can crack on with their studies. So please could we buy something for them and wrap it up from him (I resisted the urge to say, "Well ahead of you there, Dad!" ).

We've had our cheese delivery (MrBint forgot it was coming, so greeted the woman handing it over with a very Wallace-like 'Ooh - cheese!l). Today we pick up the box from the greengrocer, the main food delivery is tomorrow, and one last pickup of some pies and bits on Xmas eve.

Presents were almost all done by the start of December, with having to drop them off at MaBint's, so half went under the tree as soon as it went up and there's are in a box just waiting for wrapping.

Feels odd to be this organised. The only thing we've mot done this year is the usual wine order, but there's plenty in the rack.

Most of our food is in, my wife is collecting the beef rib tomorrow. I may buy another cauliflower today, as I'm thinking of making cauliflower cheese. I should probably do that on Christmas Eve, as the oven will be taken over by meat and roast potatoes.

We've had Mr Veg's mum here for a couple of days to have a combo Mr Veg's birthday and pre-Christmas dinner. The usual veg and trimmings and the meat was a half leg of pannage pork, which went down very well indeed. It has a different flavour to regular pork and Veg Mum said if she hadn't known it was pork she wouldn't have been sure what she was eating. She's gone home with a vast plated dinner for later, with tubs of gravy and apple sauce, so she'll be well catered for this evening.

We've done all the bits of shopping needed, only a couple of cards to deliver locally and that's that. Christmas will be spent with Mr Veg's cousin and various guests which should be jolly.

Pandan-infused syrup sounds divine, @Kucinghitam. How much pandan do you use?

@Vegemiteandhoneyontoast I've just googled pannage pork and it sounds incredibly delicious!

The syrup is just a regular 50:50 sugar syrup, simmered with 1-2 pandan leaves (depends on the size of the leaves) bruised and tied in a knot. I get pandan leaves in the freezer section of the larger oriental supermarkets; they're usually an inconveniently large pack.

@Kucinghitam it is incredibly delicious! The complexity of the flavour is hard to describe but there's a sweetish nuttiness, you can taste and smell the forest in it. The meat is also quite lean and very tender.

The pandan syrup does sound tempting, I shall have to try making some for us to have with lychee. We actually have an oriental shop just around the corner and they stock pandan leaves, along with many other delights we previously had to travel miles to get hold of. When a Cambodian woman opened it about ten years ago I feared it wouldn't last but I'm glad to say she does good business. I asked her once what to do with pandan leaf and she said to put some pieces in with rice while it's steaming to give a freshness to the flavour and it's a very good addition.

I must have a look in our local oriental shop to see if they have pandan leaves. It's usually easier to buy stuff from Vietnam and Malaysia (and the Middle East) around here than it is to buy Indian stuff.

When I lived in Hampshire, one of the pleasures of autumn was going to the New Forest and occasionally coming across cheery groups of pigs rootling around in the bits that are mostly beech and oak woods. I think if you live in the NF you have automatic rights of pannage, or at least you used to.

We stayed in the New Forest one autumn and did a lot of exploring in the forest. I had no idea that pannage existed in those days so it was a delightful surprise to come across a group of pigs happily rummaging about under the trees.

I think you have to be a Commoner to be able to use pannage, don't you?

There's a website (with a photo of a very fine pig) that explains all the New Forest rules here: https://www.thenewforest.co.uk/explore/new-forest-heritage/commoning/

I seem to remember it hinges on which side of the cattle grids you live

A farmer talks about pannage.

I hope you don't have a cat, @NoBinturongsHereMate - that would be too tempting!

I meant to post this one

We don't. And the cat who was trying to have us seems to have given up (don't blame him - it's not the weather to be out meowing at random doors)