Year Round Nigel Slater discussion thread - Part 4

[RainbowZebraWarrior]

Hello all and welcome to this lovely space for our continued chats.

A bit of background for anyone not familiar with this topic:

The Nigel Slater Christmas Chronicles readalong usually takes place here between November and February each year - the Christmas Chronicles being a book written by Nigel Slater full of winter recipes and anecdotes - It has been running for a few years, and the contributors collectively decided it would be nice to have it running all year round.

So here it is. It is a place to appreciate all things Nigel-esque. Think seasonal food and recipes, enjoyment of nature, gardening, appreciation of the weather, and sharing of news and small moments of joy. It's a calm, cosy space for gentle chat and merriment so pull up a chair, grab a drink and relax.

A very hearty welcome to friends new and old!

Yes, that's literally right next door to the gallery I was at today. An old watchtower. There are so many amazing old buildings that were left to rot / overlooked for years here which are now being given a new lease of life. It's wonderful to see.

Pleased to hear you have a week off coming up and hope you can get a good balance between doing some nice bits and having some treats 😊

Yes. That was the interview I listened to after dropping DD at school. He sounded like an utterly fascinating (and really down to earth) chap. Loved his story about being left with cinema staff whilst his mum was studying. Certainly didn't do him any harm, and obviously fed his love for his art. Cannot wait to see Mando and Grogu!

I do love Pedro Pascal….
Those buildings are amazing @RZW.Especially the windscreen one. So glad you had a lovely day.

What a nice little reading nook @LillianGish. I had a similar chair which I bought with the small amount of inheritance I got from my Granpa when he died. Unfortunately middle dog ate it (literally-I can home to find she has gnawed through all the leather and ripped the stuffing out) during her chewy puppy phase. It was insane actually. She was this minute dog and she destroyed a whole armchair in the space of about 2 hours!

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Mulberry either in the wild or in a shop @Bimblesalong. Can you eat them raw? What do they taste like?

I Do love a corporate jolly-for two reasons-copious free refreshments and the chance to observe corporate types schmoozing about. Totally the opposite to my sort of work and whilst some of them are so lovely, some of them could actually be on The Office so it can be very amusing. I will be like @Celiathebansheeon the free Pimms but without the baby to keep the brakes on! (I think I also thought Pimms was a sort of vaguely alcoholic squash when I was younger until I had a gallon of it at a wedding and was promptly very unwell! )
Whoo hats are expensivo aren’t they? Even to hire. I think I will scour the charity shops and see if any have been donated that I could maybe pimp up a bit. If not it will be a hatinator I would think, probably from Etsy. Though if money were no object I would love a HUGE hat. And I would like to bring short cotton or lace day gloves back-though DH would take the piss royally.

Up and off to work. Taking my shorts today in case of the promised 23 degrees! But starting in my jeans as it’s more like 12 and grey at the minute
Have a lovely Thursday all

Thank you so much for the Chelsea FS link @RainbowZebraWarrior, glad you had a great day of it yesterday.

Like a few here I am champing at the bit for my week off next week, and dare we trust the weather forecast? It's unusually good...

@piscofrisco I got a very reasonable mahoosive monochrome hat from M&S the last time I went to the races. Might be worth a punt. Worn with white cotton lace gloves would actually be vair vair stylish in a classic vintage way. I have some gorgeous antique grey lace gloves that I adore, but don't go anywhere to wear them!

Very grey and wet here too. Will be interested to also see if this forecasted heatwave appears from nowhere tomorrow @leporello Wish I could go to the cinema today instead of tomorrow. Might have a look see what's on.

Also wondering if the heatwave is going to appear - I've just hung some washing out because it's meant to be dry and up to 21C today but it's really not feeling like it right now.

The garden is all about the purples this morning...

Ooh how lovely, @martha79 . I love a scabious. There were loads growing wild yesterday on our walk in the nature park.

How is doggy doing today @piscofrisco ? Re the mulberry, it was a lot sweeter than I expected. I thought it would be bitter, like wild blackberries but it was soft, sweet, a bit like a cross between a raspberry and a plum in flavour. Yummy.
Nigel is serving us some lovely garden stuff online. For a moment, I thought he had whizzed out to Japan.
@Celiathebanshee I think Tatton RHS show now does not exist. I used to love going with DS and DH for a visit and to trial all the food stalls. I think it’s moved up to one of the RHS gardens now, which is frustrating distance-wise for travelling.
I’m hoping the forecast warmth happens to coincide with my return to DH and home. Last year I wondered about buying a small portable air conditioning unit to switch between bedroom and office. Maybe this year will be the year!

Beautiful weather here, warm and sunny. Might have to get my toes out, eek!
Belated birthday wishes @RainbowZebraWarrior

Meeting a friend for coffee soon then work then waving DD off as she goes to get ready with her friends for her Prom. Hoping for lots of photos and no dramas of the alcoholic variety.

Scabious are one of my favourites too. Lovely little things. Remind me a bit of candytuft which was a childhood favourite. I saw a lady cutting some cow parsley by the side of the road yesterday. If I had been walking rather than driving I'd have asked if she was putting together a tasteful posy to go on a zinc table for an al fresco supper. (I've been on Instagram too much i think)

Hope your DDs prom goes well @RipplePlease and there are indeed no dramas of the alcoholic variety.

Its very stuffy here. Thankfully I am somewhere with air con; I am at the cinema about to watch The Christopher's and I have fizzy sweets! I also have a birthday reward of a free large Popcorn, but I am saving that to share with DD when we see Mando.

@Bimblesalong I believe it is moving about - so not at tatton this year but planned to return again in the future. To be honest the last couple of years at tatton it was much smaller and a bit tired so hopefully a trip round the north of England will refresh it a bit!

Summer dress and sandals here today! I don't know whether to laugh or cry at your dog eating the armchair @piscofrisco. Slightly off topic, but I wondered if you were a fan of The Archers, as there's a story on there at the moment about the possibility of setting up a scheme whereby people with mental health issues could go to work on a regular farm to heal through nature. There's a big debate on The Archers thread about how feasible this would be - ie from a health and safety point of view you can't just have random people wandering about unsupervised and it seemed to me you might be just the person to answer this question!