The Year Round Nigel Slater Discussion Thread - Part 5

[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 on Mumsnet 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!

That sounds very bittersweet @piscofrisco Sending you gentle hugs my lovely x

Also sending hugs @piscofrisco and hope that your lovely memories carry you through this hard day.

Ah I'm glad you can still hear him @piscofrisco - more hugs from me.

It's not dressing gown weather here - rained overnight but it's just made it very humid.

Had an in-person meeting for work this morning, which is very unusual, but was with my lovely boss so all good. I'm very out of practice at sitting in busy coffee shops though, was quite wobbly. But I had a nice tram journey home and have just made a salad with parma ham, artichokes and a topping thing from a packet which is dried broad beans with a caesar salad sort of flavouring. You can tell the Ocado man came yesterday!

Lots of hugs @piscofrisco xx

Ds is away with his girlfriend, visiting my auntie and also travelling. He is seeing the most spectacular things and I’m so happy for him.

The tarantulas all over the stones after sunset, not so much though!!!

Thankyou all x

I say! Its raining! I mean, light drizzle but still. dull skies and a comfortable ish temperature. Lovely. I’ve had a slow morning and now up, laundry on, about to make some soup and then a walk into town as I need to purchase some bronzer-mine is down to the metal bit of the pallette. DH is wfh today, unusual for a Wednesday, and whilst I love having him here it’s also regrettable as I was planning an afternoon of binge watching this French programme Ive read about-The Line-about life in Vichy France during the war. When he is here working I feel guilty about loafing around all day. We are going to see The Oddyssey this evening (6pm as anything later and I will be asleep by the end).

where is DS @Bimblesalong? It looks stunning (less the spiders obvs)

Wow, that looks amazing @Bimblesalong

Glad you've got some rain @piscofrisco

Sunny but cooler here. I have broadband again, thanks to the lovely chap who had to do an awful lot of drilling, hammering and climbing out of the window, and was off to do four jobs that involved climbing up poles next... rather him than me!

Cooler and cloudy here, we had a short sharp rain shower about 10 and got all excited but it didn't last.

No, nor here. Sun is now blazing and it’s hot again.

Ds1 and his gf are travelling out for a few days after visiting my aunt in Vegas. Those piccies were from places in Arizona- one of which I recognise as the same place on a Microsoft wallpaper! I’m waiting for an update as they were horse trekking through monument valley yesterday (dream!!). On the way they hoped to go to see dinosaur footprints (another dream!!).

We’ve also had a little rain @piscofrisco It’s cool and blowy here. I hope the sunshine at least keeps for the few days at the end of the hols when I’m taking mum to Cornwall. It almost feels like it will be our Nigel read along time any day!

I know exactly what you mean re loafing. DH’s car is taking longer at the mechanic’s. He can borrow mine but is around the house, so I don’t feel like I can have a binge watch either!

Great part of the world to explore @Bimblesalong I went through the selection process for Trailfinders and had to give examples of itineraries for that area in my final interview. Got the job, but couldn't make it work with DD's needs, sadly.

We have had a fairly productive day here. DD changed the toilet seat, we dropped off a consignment of honey at the local gym, and did some foraging - DD calls it Harassing Trees - in the local woods as we found a wild plum tree.

Crazy winds here. All the darned apples are being whipped off my trees.

I'm binge watching Gilmore Girls as well as rewatching Castaway 2000 on YouTube. Thankfully I have no need to feel guilty for loafing.

Dad has excelled himself this year with the beef tomato crop and also grown some excellent cantaloupe melons. All despite being rather poorly having around six hospital appointments a week. I don't know how he's done it. He is a warrior and an inspiration, but I appreciate more and more that this cannot be sustainable much longer for him.

Good news, the two week pathway app't arrived just before 5:00pm so did not breech... it's next Friday afternoon.

And, I have decided I need to sort out my sock drawer, as I realised this morning that some of the socks in there are in double figures... while I am at it, I will also do my knicker drawer... nothing quite so aged in that drawer! I also have another confession to make, I have been lusting after a Kate Barton dress
Gingham Dress, I cound not justify the full price but have been checking out e-Bay and Vinted and found it for less than 50% of the full price... I have been watching it for three weeks and hit the buy button at lunch time, I am mitigating this by telling myself my pension drops on Friday of this week.

Currently, I am experiencing a glut of tomatoes (what did I expect with nine plants) and blackberries, I shall be consulting Nigel for suitable way to use them up... tonight I am going with simplicity, chopped toms, cucumber, spring onions and the herb planter... I might also go hunting for another herb chopper and board, although I still pull out my mum's breadboard, turn it over and run my fingers over the marks left by her knife from when she chopped parsley from the garden, she died in 2000... sentimental, moi? Jamais!

That dress is gorgeous @LatteLady! I bagged an orange merino sweater BNWT on vinted today. Orange is my best accent colour so I am thrilled. We won't mention the jeans, blouse, cardigan and jacket that are also on their way...oops.

I ran a skills session for some young people at risk of becoming NEETs today. I was really pleased with how it went. I got them engaging in a discussion and sharing ideas for volunteering. The organisation is action is amazing, over 150 young people attend daily in the holidays and parents pay a maximum of £7 a day for the sessions and breakfast and lunch. The woman who runs it is an absolute powerhouse of enthusiasm. She asked me to run a session on CVs and interviews for her young leaders which ai happily agreed to. If I ever came into money I would do this as my vocational as I love doing this.

Forgot to add, if you are 85 years old and had some (as yet undiagnosed ) cardiac episode last week requiring a night in hospital do you a) take it easy and wait for the doctors to work out what is going on or b) book a coach holiday 600 miles from home for next week? Answers on a postcard....

Mother in law strikes again...

Busy couple of days here.

Dp isn’t due back home properly till Friday but is back in port so came home last night. So was lovely to see him and we went out to the pub.

nothing like a do coming home to butt into gear to sort the house out. The cooler weather with a bit of rain helped. Didn’t feel as obliged to be in the garden

went to the hairdressers today and popped into work to water plants and feed fish.

That’s a my mother type move @petitpastaI feel your pain.

welcome home Mr Crushing -has he been away long? It must be lovely to have him home safe

love That frock @LatteLady
DS is really living the dream there @Bimblesalonghow fabulous!

Gilmour girls for the pre autumn win @RainbowZebraWarrioralthough I could never decided if I liked or loathed Lorelai.

we went to see The Oddyssey last night. Enjoyed it but as I’ve no idea about Greek Mythology I don’t know if it was actually good in terms of content or not. What I will say without spoilers however is that the character that ends up as the King is a massive wet bag and I don’t believe he would have been able to hold the kingdom for longer than 5 minutes.

cooler but sunny this morning. I slept SO poorly that I feel incredibly groggy. A very active co farmer today so it may not be the greatest combination but I will give it a go.

have a lovely day all

She will end up probably missing an appointment when she's away. She's bound to get asked to go for further tests / bloods / scans.

I have the other end of the scale problem here. Mum won't leave the house (she won't even go in the garden)

Either way, exhausting

Gorgeous dress @LatteLady and pleased the appointment came through. We also have our usual glut of tomatoes. For now it is all Greek salads, but there will come a point when the tomatoes become chilli jam fodder. I refuse to 'waste' them on ratatouille as I hate the stuff* Don't mind making a tomato soup or pasta sauce from them although that's usually Mum's job. I love the late glut in September time as, paired with the chillies we grow, gives me an almost free 12 jars of chilli jam which last until next Autumn. Whereby the process begins again.

*This is Dad's 45th year of having an allotment and 45 years of tomato and courgette gluts mean I haven't wanted to see another dish of ratatouille since I was about 25 years old!

We shall be going to the woods again this afternoon and hoping for more plums. Also going to check on the progress of the sloes on the bushes. I am going to keep sloe gin making to a minimum this year having realised it costs me a fortune in gin to just give it away I shall make one bottle for Dad and instead make sloe and apple jam, sloe jelly and sloe curd.

Anyway, waffle waffle. Have a good day, all.

Morning all, impressed with all the crops. I am reduced to a basil and a rosemary on the kitchen windowsill (and an orchid, but not going to eat that). Sympathies to those dealing with difficult parents/ in laws.

Gorgeous dress @LatteLady

My blinds arrived yesterday (just stick-on ones, but they'll do for a while until I decide what I want to do curtain-wise and then get someone to do it because the windows are very tall and I am not) and I think helped me sleep better/ not wake up quite so early.

It's apparently only getting up to 18C today - how lovely!

I have only seen the first season @piscofrisco I suppose Lorelai is meant to be a rebellious product of her strict upbringing. I mostly like her as a character, although she's a little too 'cookie' at times. The one thing that grates on me that all 'romance' films / series / books do is the 'these two people are made for each other but they can't see it even though everyone else can so we will stretch out the "will they, won't they" for all eternity'. It doesn't really happen in real life. Or maybe it does and I am just clueless, as my Mother always says everyone still holds a candle for someone frok their past and I just go "Nah"

Amazing produce @RainbowZebraWarrior Here, we have many blackberries and a glut of courgettes. Otherwise, the tomatoes are green. The dahlias are late, having been badly scorched by the sun. I need to think ahead for spring and shop for tulip bulbs.

Hoping to get some time to pick and freeze some blackberries today. My gran used to make blackberry vinegar ahead of colds season - if I get time between things, I’ll get some made.

I have realised that the season is just too short here and that I need to totally rethink my garden. The dahlias don't start growing until June and start to flower (usually) late July early August. I have one flowering prolifcally - this M&S Labyrinth which I would buy again in a heartbeat - and another just starting to bloom. All of the remaining ones (ten) are yet to flower. When (if) they do, it will be getting to late / wet / cold. My only other alternative is to grow in the polytunnel and use as cut flowers.

Definitely having a total rethink as the sweet peas have mostly died too.

The sandalwood oil is out here for some experimental autumnal blending. Today I am going for Cinnamon & Sandalwood and Frankincense & Sandalwood. I need to start candle making again in earnest. It is 27 days until back to school and 37 days until our biggest money making event of the year; the annual Scarecrow Festival.

@piscofriscoMr Crushing has been away since before Easter. He came back about 5 weeks ago for a couple of weekends but they were fleeting unplanned weekends. Hopefully back more till Christmas now. Still away during the week but around more

Gorgeous daliah @RainbowZebraWarrior

We have tons of tomatoes, green gages and plums. The apples are looking woeful however. Too late a frost here and then too hot and dry. The trees have given up.
Im officially out of candles! This had never happened before. I intend to get myself to a home sense this weekend to replenish.

That’s such a long time to be away @CrushingOnRubiesid it easy to adjust when he comes home or do you have to have a settling in period?

After a cooler start it’s now hot again and im
about to change into my shorts and get all the co farmers to apply sun cream. Painful.