stew 9 November 2008
ARGH – lost the last blog cos the internet was playing silly buggers and the copy yoke didn’t do what it said it was doing… The gist is this – my culinary adventures with the microwave continue. Poached eggs for brekkers this morning. I used one of those plasticky things I got in the supermarket and there were a few eggsplosions (sorry) and because I was on full power (I have an 850 watt jobby) the eggs were a tad overcooked BUT tasty for all that. As the machine is living on the floor of the landing at the moment under my foxy tea and coffee station it’s hard to read the control knobs but when I was cooking the beef stew tonight I saw I could regulate temperature and I THINK I did…the veggies were a tad chewy but twas tasty (again) so all in all not a bad day’s effort from the P. Does anyone know if I could’ve done the eggs in a bowl with some water as I quite dislike using plastic especially when zapping it with intense heat…
the G, in the meantime, is less snuffly and delighted with the meats she is being treated to (tablets stuck within but say nothing)
Next week in the house – WINDOWS!!!!!
microwave 8 November 2008
Right – now it’s a challenge…we won’t have a cooker, really and truly, till mid December cos the lil old gas lad is disconnected and not likely to be reconnected. SO, as you all know, I have begun my adventures in microwave cuisine. The whole chicken was a total success. Tonight I got took out to a lovely Asian meal = fab. BUT that can’t continue – for example, I could have bought a very nice kitchen unit/cupboard with trendy handles for what we paid for our delicious dinner. Rich wasn’t here for the chicken triumph so I have decided to AMAZE him with poached eggs on toast tomorrow (no, won’t attempt the toast in the microwave – but if it’s possible to do youse lot better let me know). Later, when he has just about recovered from his amazement, I have ready-made ribs for a snackerel (a cheat, yes, but tasty) and a nice beef stew/casserole planned for the evening. Economics rule here coupled with the fact that it’s Winter and we need hot meals. Quite exciting really – bit like our War years here in the house…
Incidentally, the ‘patient’ is doing VERY well…
victim 7 November 2008
The first real victim of the build here in Dublin i snow named – tis the G! she’s been sneezing the last two days and has had a bit of a bark/cough from time to time over the past weeks (nothing that couldn’t be put down to a hair-ball travelling back to the world, till today). Turns out (after an extremely expensive trip to the vet where she got a few sundries checked and looked after) she MAY have a mild upper respiratory infection BUT more than likely she has an allergy to all the dust in the house at present. Poor puss. Me? I take an anti-histamine – cat? Pauline whisks her off to the vet.
My musings must be more powerful than I had previously thought because the bump of which I wrote yesterday (and who was not due till the 12th or so) decided to join us this morning in an entry his Mum said was fast and furious. Haven’t told her about the Christmas plans yet – will keep my powder dry awhile but NO doubt she’ll be at least stunned if not…em, moved by my ideas. Congrats to all involved – if he is anything like his parents he will be tall and VERY good looking – indeed, they are very delighted with him already.
Microwaved a chicken tonight cos the cooker is disconnected (probably till the new one arrives mid december). I wanted to give the G a treat and hide a tablet in her dinner so it had to be irresistible = roast chicken. Looked it up on the interweb and hey presto tis a sinch. Ain’t nuthin we can’t do when we put our minds to it…
My brother Ian and, his lovely bride of 25 years, Curly are off on their celebratory trip to Las Vegas tomorrow where I know they will have a wonderful time. They’re gonna gamble on the one-armed bandits, take a gondola ride through the venetian style hotel and go to Tom Jones for starters. It does sound like the most incredible place, on all levels. Apparently even a saunter through a shopping mall needn’t mean you leave your hotel and will probably take two days.
the C word 7 November 2008
Did a few radio ads today for a show I’m in in the New Year in Dublin – it’s called OCTOBER (but not as vehemently as that…) and I have a feeling it’s going to be a GREAT night out (I do stand by that total emphasis). Ah look, it’s by Fiona Looney, how could it be bad. NOW, because one of us doing the ads is about to pop out a lovely baby (boy, we believe) over the next few days we decided to do a whole load of the ads today rather than have her in again squirting breast milk over sensitive recoding equipment after the event. When I asked her about Christmas she confessed that, like myself and many others of us, there’d be rellies coming to her house to have dinner on The Day (I don’t think she truly got that me and mine are going to hers now but we’ll deal with that anon). There is always ‘advice’, isn’t there, about how you’re doing it WRONGLY but this year all she has to do is say ‘sure the gravy will be fine, I put a drop of the placenta into that and it’s delicious’…probably not a good enough reason to have a kid (and, while I’m on the subject, I have probably left that too late this year/life/whatever but VEH VEH good all by itself as an idea) and do you know, I’m looking forward to the meal all over again now – as are my mother, brother, sister in law, nephew and his girlfriend, The G (she’ll have to travel in a box, but if there’s top grub that won’t be a problem, ultimately) and Rich – so, Vic, if you’re reading this put our names in the pot! As they say in thee A Team, ‘I love when a plan comes together’
heat 6 November 2008
I write in praise of plumbers, or one particular one – the lad in charge of our pipes (oooh MATRON). We were to be without heat and water for three days and when we got home this evening, having fled to the theatre to be warm and use a loo that flushed, the heating was on! ‘tis done, well the first phase of it anyhow. What a great fellow he is. I won’t give out his name ‘cos he’s MINE, do you hear, all mine! Now, if only all the rest was coming in on, or ahead of, time I would be laughing my silly head off.
My Dad’s father was a plumber, so it’s clear to me now that I have an affinity with them, and am inclined to be fond…though I never met said Grandad, it must be admitted, and he had shuffled off his mortal coil before my entrance to the world…
Tomorrow tile shopping, very VERY early. That’ll be as satisfying as ordinary retail therapy, right?
So glad with the news from America – I take my hat off to ALL the voters who turned out in such numbers – you all know how passionate I am about people exercising their democratic right (no pun intended). I wish Mr Obama luck as he faces into the tough job ahead. I hope he will make as good a President as everyone feels he can be. (Plus, he’s gorgeous. Lovely combo.)
lesson 5 November 2008
I had my first Russian lesson tonight – face to face with Alina who is going to be TOUGH. I floated the ‘surely an accent or intention will carry me’ thing but, no, ‘tis unforgiving and full of rules as a language. It’s a different way of thinking about words and sentences, really. And remarkably passive though, perhaps. that’s inevitable because of history – there is no truly individualistic streak to it – I have told her it makes Russian a very young language but she’s not entirely taken with that…
anyhow, have discovered that when Sarah Palin tells Russians in her backyard to shoo that’s only a part of many words so they may well ignore her…as the world might from tomorrow (see? I am still an old romantic at heart)
porn 3 November 2008
Most of you know by now that I am almost entirely untechnically-minded. Computers are a boon but a mystery to me and the interweb is a miracle of magic both bright and dark. Well, I noticed a week or so ago that I seemed to have a little downloads division on my toolbar (I know, I know, it sounds too ‘ooh matron!’ for words, eh?) and so I checked it. Imagine my surprise that it was 5 Red Tube things which I know I never asked for willingly. I happen to know that’s a porn site ‘cos I have toured with young, male actors and they tell you all if you just ask the right questions. In fairness, I am not much against that class of lark but, as it happens, I don’t bother looking it myself – believe me it’s hard enough (no pun intended) to write sex in a novel without having to watch other people do it, if you know what I mean. Now what I’d like to know is HOW DID I DOWNLOAD THIS without ever meaning to? And can I expect the heavy hand of the Law on my door some day (yup, as opposed to a warm hand on my entrance any night at the theatre – the old ones are still best, it’s true). Seriously, though…
sunday 2 November 2008
I can’t understand how anyone who has a choice would want to get up early on a Sunday. Perhaps that’s also because, given the chance, I am the most slothful woman in the world and see no need to get up early any morning unless there’s paid work involved. As you all know, my premium amount of sleep is currently a tight ten hours…But above all of this is the fact that Sunday is a lazy day. Even if you have religious observances there is still time for relaxing. And so it was with myself, Himself and The G today – aside from the religious observance bit (although the cat was missing in pursuit of her own action/inaction most of the day so who knows what she was up to, and Richard is a strict observer of sport and that most foolish of all of them was on today…a Grand Prix – seventh heaven for him). And yet I know people who will have been ‘up n at em’ from cock crow. Actually, come to think of it, they’re probably right to make the most of their day, especially in their way as, it should be respected, I did in mine. I am VERY good at just lolling, reading, emailing, and rustling up a few meals…after that precious 10 hours (necessary) sleep. Bliss. Long live sundays.
Next week, since you ask, the water and heating are off tues – thurs inclusive – yippee…As for tomorrow, no word yet of the delights – I’ll keep ye informed…
cold 2 November 2008
Well, November has struck and there’s still no window in the bathroom we shower (etc) in – still the wooden plank in place of glass with wind and associated gusting howling around the edges of that when the weather gets feisty. I have a feeling things are about to get a whole lot colder in general for us too. The heating system is going under the builders’ gaze over the next while so I am glad I bought my new padded duvet of a coat – it’s white which ain’t the most practical of colours, but it is cosy. Tonight (and this is with the heating on, but plenty of walls missing in the house in general) I wore my normal clothes, a fleece, the duvet coat and had a long knit over the legs as I watched the telly. Toasty, but for the poor fingers reaching bravely out for my glass of red wine…What we could really do with now is a bit of the Summer that never was. The G, who is back to rights after a notice went up not to close the bedroom doors on her, is helping by rendering the bed duvet cover into mohair with the shedding of her own fur. It’s funny to watch the tussle – the one thing Richard is consistently great for around the house is that he’ll always change the duvet cover and now that’s a ‘thing’ between the two of them. He replaces the cover, she redoubles her efforts to make it acceptably hairy to her. She’s just doing her bit to insulate us all, I’d guess, just as we have upset her world by lagging the roof (and having to take the top of the house off to do so and thereby ruin her sleepy solitude by having noisy men stomping around the house).
accident 31 October 2008
I sing the praises of the most cruelly treated/neglected cat in Dublin. Yesterday the brave little hairy was TRAPPED in the bedroom she now calls her own when careless humans closed the door and blocked her way to her own personal, gravelly loo. She did what she had to do under the circumstances – yep, she shat in the room. In fairness to the mog, she did choose a newspaper for this act, so she was trying her best to keep things contained, as twere. Richard, who found it, said there were two logs and they were fine and healthy so we’re not worried about her wellbeing, only that she may have enjoyed the incident and the praise she received for her choice of dumpsite and may feel it’s ok to repeat this process now at will…