Advent Calendar XX

 

Tomorrow I fly off to warmer climes for a few days, I don't know why but when ever I go away it seems to come as a surprise to me and I'm never prepared. This time I have actually thought about what I will want to wear while I'm away, and I've tried to make sure that it is all clean! That for me is a major achievement! On the other hand I find that I still have a well stocked fridge and just generally too much food. I hate waste, but at the same time there is no way I can eat all of what I have before leaving at silly O'clock tomorrow morning. I know I can put the bread in the freezer, the milk will have to go but the cheese should be OK until I get home. My next job is to try to find out if I can freeze eggs (not mine! unfertilised hens eggs), I've already frozen some home made soup and some sausages and had an interesting breakfast of mixed fried mushrooms, spring onions and bacon with toast.

After that the next challenge will be trying to get everything in my case, I know I will still forget something but I do want to take what I have remembered I want. As this holiday is a little different to others we have taken in Malta (we are staying in an hotel rather than self catering) I suspect I will want more outfits per day and definitely a couple more presentable outfits. I usually only take one nice dress as we will go out for a nice dinner at our favourite restaurant at least once - but this time I anticipate a few more "posh nosh" meals. I also suspect this may hit the old credit card a little harder. Then I will water my plants! Last time I went away I forgot and spent too much of my time away worrying about my plants, especially the asparagus fern, of course they were all OK, but I don't want to put myself through that again.

Then, and only then will I allow myself to start thinking about tonight's concert. It is a bit of a strange one in so many ways, we (Croydon Brass) are only one of a few "Community Groups" performing', we start the second half, and provide the main musical backbone of the communal finale. That musical finale is Mariah Carey's "All I want for Christmas" I have had to create an arrangement of this just for tonight, my starting point was a very poorly arranged Brass Quintet that would actually be impossible to play. I have spent so much time on this that I now plan to expand it into a full band arrangement, hopefully ready for next Christmas!

Advent Calendar XII

 

I have often made mention of my almost constant battle with my weight, well lets be honest it's not so much the weight as the fat round the middle! I know that it is the result of three weaknesses, lack of exercise, too much booze, and a love of food. I know we all like to eat (well nearly all) I also like to cook. I do sometimes find it difficult to get excited about cooking just for one, it can sometimes feel like a lot of faff then to just sit down and eat on my own. But, when I retired I told myself I should cut down on the processed food and cook more from scratch. I am also trying to buy my meat from a butcher, my fish from a fish monger etc. rather than just get everything from the supermarket. It certainly makes life more interesting.

This week I have made my own lentil soup, a Coq au Vin, and a couple of vegetable gratins. I find that I will still cook the same quantities as I would for more people, but then I will have the same thing a couple of times or freeze a few portions (I will always do this with a bolognaise sauce, and often with casseroles). All this does mean I am eating better, but I can only do it because I have the time, it simple wasn't possible most of the time when I was working full time. It's one of the things I am finding, that activities expand to fill the available time!

Tonight I am actually at home so I will clear the table, wrap some presents, open a bottle of minervoise (my favourite) and then tuck into some of the Coq au Vin with a couple of mince pies to follow.

I marinated the chicken for nearly two days, then cooked it yesterday, left it to rest and will warm a portion up for tonight. The rest will be reserved for Sunday evening to follow on from the afternoon CSB concert!

I know none of this has much to do with Christmas, or Advent, but one of the reasons I am so happy to be cooing up a storm now is the knowledge that I haven't got to do it for Christmas, somebody else will have all that to do as once again I will be going away for Christmas, just as soon as I get through the last of my five remaining Christmas performances!

Advent Calendar IV

 Advent Calendars come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, I note that increasingly few seem to have any sort of relationship with Christmas! I was quite pleased to find this picture of an advent calendar on line as it is very much the sort of thing that I grew up with in the 1960s. Of course my blog advent calendar is a bit different, although I do hope that there will be some small treats behind each day's "door" it is primarily about posting every day in the build up to Christmas.

This is largely about making some sort of commitment to writing, to you my readers, and to myself ~ as a form of self discipline, not one of my greater qualities!

1st obligatory Betty Boop picture

About a month ago I wrote about trying to get a bit fitter, well I have just got back from the gym, a phrase that is still uneasy on my lips, and I can report that there have been some improvements, I'm not going to share measurements as my vital statistics don't make particularly happy reading, but I will share that according to the scales in the ladies changing room I have now lost a whopping five kilograms! In the last few weeks as well as my excursions to the gym I have also been trying to drink a bit less and to eat a bit better, nothing too drastic, small adjustments rather than massive changes, and they appear to be paying off. As well as the story of the scales I must say I am feeling better for it as well.

So, as well as making a commitment to writing more, and more regularly I am also making a commitment to getting fitter and losing some of my still considerable excess weight.

Advent Calendar III

 

What can I say, last night was fabulous! The setting is wonderful, the company was fun and glittering, the wines excellent, and surprisingly for this type of event the food was good as well! 

A nice setting for dinner!

The occasion was a City of London Livery Company, a proper white tie banquet in the Egyptian room in the Mansion House (the official residence of the Lord Mayor of London). The Lord Mayor himself was not present as he had another pressing engagement round the corner at the Guildhall with the Prime Minister. 

We did have speeches from the retiring Master and the new Master (a bit like Doctor Who they get a new Master every year), and from the guest of honour, not me, but Dame Mary Berry! Since this is the Worshipful Company of Bakers I couldn't imagine a more appropriate guest!

Although I still have several concerts to go this year, this was by far and away my most glamorous event of the year. In the end I opted for the red dress with gold jewellery and a lovely black shawl to cover my shoulders. I didn't need the shawl for warmth but it definitely stopped me feeling self conscious about my shoulders. I am happy that I didn't let down my host and his other guests, and knowing that I looked OK did wonders for my self confidence and helped with the enjoyment of the evening.

I think that everything else I will be doing this "festive season" calls for all black, so maybe I will still get some more wear out of at least another couple of my other "posh frocks"!

Advent Calendar II

 

Today is the second of December 2024, this evening I am going to a white tie banquet, and as yet (11:00 a.m.) I don't know what I am going to wear. The dress code is "Evening Gowns and Badges" (whatever that means). I am fortunate in as much as that since I am a musician at least I do have Evening Gowns, indeed I have rather more than is probably good for me, the question is which one to wear? I have asked some friends for help and they have been pretty much useless as at the moment the vote is equal between three of my "Posh Frocks" with one other also getting a vote.

It is rather fun to have a reason to dress up, get out my jewellery and put on a bit of a show, although just at the moment I'm not taking quite as much joy in it as I might, largely because I know I am over weight, and am feeling a bit porky. I am finally trying to do something about that, I have been going to the gym regularly, and I am aware that I feel a bit better for it, but I didn't start early enough for it to have had any serious impact yet.

I have managed to narrow it down to these four, I do have other "Posh Frocks" but they are either too summery, or show too much back and shoulders, displaying a bit too much of the old tight head prop in me.

I will have to decide soon, if only so I can "do" my nails in the appropriate colour!

While it is very rare for me to go to anything like this, it is not quite so rare for me to have to wear a gown, one of the advantages of being an orchestral musician! Each of these (and my others) were bought for a specific concert, I have just held on to them all in the hope of getting another opportunity to wear them, indeed one of the black velvet dresses will be worn again next weekend for the LGSO Christmas Concert. 

In the course of trying to make this decision, and write this post I have also managed to find out how the timer on my new camera works!

More stuff, too much stuff?

The other day I talked about my efforts at getting a bit fitter, and hopefully losing some excess fat in the process, this is not the only aspect of my life that I am trying to sort out a bit. In some ways I am over committed and need to make decisions about what I really want to do with the rest of my life, Now that "other" activities do not have to revolve around "work" I need a reset. I hope to have another 20 or so active years, I certainly don't want to waste them.

Stuff, I'm unlikely to use this trombone "in anger"

As I live in a studio flat every bit of space I have is precious, and all too much of that precious space is filled with instruments, at the current count I have two trombones (a Bb/F tenor and a double plug orchestral bass) two tubas (Besson 984 EEb and a B&S five rotor CC) two electric basses (one five string and one four string) an electric keyboard, assorted percussion "toys" and a Euphonium ~ and they are just the ones I actually play! I have decided that instruments I don't play should have no place in my flat. I have recently passed on my P Bone, a three quarter size violin, and a baritone horn. That now leaves a trumpet and a cornet to move on, I also have a large CC/BBb tuba gig bag that is surplus to requirements and taking up valuable space and will shortly be going on ebay. In that case I do have to ask myself why I have just ordered a marching euphonium!

It's not just instruments that I have acquired that need to be sorted, I also have lots of books and sheet music (I refuse to use the term "too much" as in both these cases it is an oxymoron), lots of paper records and, well, "stuff". Stuff that would be perfectly fine if I still lived in a three bedroom house, or even had a garage. I am slowly getting rid of a lot of my larger gardening tools, but still have a large roller cabinet of mechanics tools I am reluctant to get rid of until I decide on my next car. 

More "stuff"

Occasionally I have to ask myself how many house plants is enough? Do I really need enough cutlery, china and glass ware to hold a five course dinner party for eight people when I only have two dinning chairs? Is having four overcoats excessive? and, just how long should I keep those bank statements?

It is currently anything but spring but I am making a serious effort at sorting my life out ~ anybody want some spider plants?

Paris!

The outside of the Church

My last post left you all a little bit up in the air, for the really perspicacious of you yes I was in Paris. The Church we played in on the Friday was Saint-Etienne-du-Mont a church with a fascinating history dating back to the 6th Century, the current building is largely Gothic with large windows and flying buttresses, but as I was only there after dark it was the interior stone work that I really appreciated. As I was only involved in one piece in the concert I had plenty of time to appreciate the setting as well as the music ~ I also had plenty of time to get freezing cold! Not quite what I had in mind for a trip to Paris in the Springtime!

The interior of St Etienne as I never saw it ~ in daylight!

Right next to the Pantheon and close by the Sorbonne the setting is a notable as the Church itself, and right in the cultural heart of the city. Despite being so close to such big tourist draws we still managed to find some good traditional French food for our pre concert dinner, and then afterwards adjourned to a local bar, where we enjoyed some of the local  beverage!

Notra Dame du Liban with
the Paris Rainbow Symphony Orchestra

For our Saturday concert we moved venue to Notre Dame du Liban, built in the 19th Century it was a lot more comfortable and certainly less cold. Still in Gothic revival even though less spectacular much more accommodating! A large and imposing interior with a strangely unassuming entrance, we could have easily walked past without noticing. 

A bit like my own London Gay Symphony Orchestra one thing that is really noticeable about the Rainbow Symphony is that the average age is quite young ~ especially for an amateur orchestra. These days I've got to an age where I don't want to be part of a group where I don't raise the average age! From preference I certainly want to spend more time with people younger than me than with others around my own age, so this helped make the week a lot of fun.

There are still plenty of things I want to see and do in Paris, I do have a bit of a thing for ecclesiastical architecture, so I would still like to visit Saint-Denis and Sainte-Chapellle. Notra Dame is still shut after the 2019 fire ~ I have been there but would love to go back now I'm older. But the great thing about this visit wasn't being a tourist and visiting the historic sites, it was about sharing the joy of making music, making new friends and renewing some old friendships.

The delightful Mathilde and Corinne
A tuba section I'm not pretty enough to get in! 

Advent Calendar II

Christmas is great fun, and Advent calendars were created to heighten the excitement as we approach the celebration itself. Tiffany's have introduced an Advent calendar costing $112,000 this is the extreme but there are plenty of others that are extraordinarily extravagant, conspicuous consumption at its worst.

Maybe this is a good time to pause and think about Advent and Christmas, use Advent as a period of preparation not just for celebrations but for life, to think about what Christmas means to each of us, and how we can live up to it's message. That message may be different for each one of us ~ for me when asked about the meaning of Christmas I will usual say that "It is when we celebrate the transcendent become manifest" ~ but then I am a poser!

Surely if Christmas has a unifying message then it is very much just that! A message of unity, of giving without expectation of receiving, of (as the angels put it) peace among men!

Somehow at a time like this conspicuous consumption feels particularly gross, so how about instead of the fizz calendar, the jewellery calendar, or even the grown up chocolate calendar, try something different.

How about trying the Food Bank Advent Calendar?

I only heard about this yesterday morning on the radio, each day lists an item of food needed by food banks, instead of consuming it you donate it!

Now I am enraged that here in the UK we need food banks because people in work can't afford food, because of the delays in paying benefits, because successive governments have chosen to victimise people for being poor rather than supporting them ~ but that is the situation we have so this year as well as writing my own advent calendar I will be donating to my local food bank.

For more information look here a good article from last year in the i or go to the Trussle Trust

New Year; New Starts; New...........

I'm feeling rather annoyed, I had drafted most of this post the other day and was just tidying it up when my computer crashed, it appears that I hadn't saved it so now I have to start all over again!

Waiting with my friend "Stripes"

As promised I am looking forward. I'm looking forward to getting back to work ~ it'll still be a while before I will be able to, or will need to be throwing lawn mowers in and out of the back of the van. I'm looking forward to making music, and I'm looking forward to finding out how life feels following my recent surgery. I suspect that it will be both very different and very much the same at the same time.

Prior to actually going into hospital I will now admit to being very worried, both about the sheer scale of the procedure and whether I had made the right decision. I had weighed up my options, taking into account my age, any anticipated future relationships, and what I still hope to get out of life. I felt I had made a rational logical decision, but that didn't stop me worrying.

Also the only surgery I had had before was for peritonitis when my appendix ruptured at the age of eight or nine. I am a total wuss when it comes to these things so the very idea of surgery was more than a little scary.

Typical Hospital food

My wife and daughter came into hospital with me that morning and stayed with me till I got taken down to theatre. I was, and of course am, so grateful for their support and love, especially at what must have been a very difficult time for both of them as well as for me. As usually happens none of the things I was worried about happened, and despite a moment where I thought "OH MY GOD WHAT HAVE I DONE" (pardon my shouting) which quickly passed I have to say I am very content with the outcome.

As I know not all of you are interested in the clinical details I will pass over them, and leave it at, I will need more time to recover physically, but it is also taking a bit of time working out where everything is, as some of the nerve ends are now in different places and it is taking a bit of time working it all out. I will observe, however, just how well I was looked after, all the staff were wonderful, and the food was excellent.

Breakfast

It's not really that surprising that between eating rather well, and almost total inactivity, I have put on rather a lot of weight, just over a stone (14 pounds or about 7 Kg) in the last month. Given that I have another 5 weeks to go before I can go back to work it's not going to be easy to shift.

So my first aim for 2019 is to shift that extra weight I've put on.

The next is to deal with my blood pressure problem, It was quite high before but I was just concentrating on being OK for surgery, it was fine all the time I was in hospital, but I will have to keep an eye on it. Indeed I have been called into the local Hospital to have a monitor fitted for a day.

A more enjoyable ambition is to go to more concerts that I'm not playing in. At least I can get off to a good start on that, tonight I will be going to a clarinet recital given by a good friend of mine. Jay is an excellent clarinetist and a fine musician so it should be a very good evening.

Pretty simple, but maybe not too easy.

Fast Action

So two days into my Lenten fast and I'm already getting innovative, last night I had failed to plan what I was going to eat, and of course I know that failing to plan equals planning to fail; but I had laid in a decent stock of supplies appropriate for my new meat free diet.

I have some frozen vegetable lasagnes, cauliflower cheese grills (I really like these!) mushrooms leeks onions and of course a good stock of rice, pasta, couscous and all sorts.   I had also bought myself some oats to make some flapjacks when I get a chance.   Having had a late lunch it was a bit late when I realised that I needed to get myself something and I had little inclination to spend much time. I looked at what I had and started wondering ~~~~~ wondering about mushroom porridge!

The oats were left on the work surface next to the mushrooms and sort of thought, if Heston can do snail porridge why not mushroom porridge!   At first I thought I was going mad but the more I thought about it the better I thought the idea, a little research and I came up with this recipe from The Food Medic

SAVOURY LEEK AND MUSHROOM PORRIDGE

Serves: 1 Prep Time: 5 minutes Cooking Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

·         40g of porridge oats

·         175-200ml of water or milk*

·         1 free range egg

·         handful of kale, washed

·         handful of mushrooms, sliced

·         1/2 leek, sliced

·         30g of feta (optional)

·         ½ teaspoon dried thyme

·         Pinch of salt and pepper

·         Splash of olive oil or 1/2 TBSP of butter

Instructions

1.      Fry the mushrooms and the leek in olive oil or butter in a small frying pan over medium heat for 5 minutes until soft. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

2.     Place the oats and the milk or water in a pan over a medium heat. Add a tiny pinch of salt and stir with a wooden spoon. Bring to a steady simmer for 3-5 minutes, stirring every so often to prevent it from cooking too quickly.

3.     Reduce the heat and crack the egg into the oats, stirring until combined. Add the kale, mushrooms, leek, and thyme, and continue to cook for 2-3 minutes.  If you like your porridge runnier, simply add a splash more milk or water until you’ve got the consistency you like.

4.     Spoon the mixture into a bowl and crumble feta on top if using. Serve immediately.

Well I actually used half and half milk and water, cheddar instead of feta and I didn't have any Kale or anything to use instead, I still went ahead and gave it a whirl.

I'm not at all sure that it was a total success, indeed I don't think I will be repeating the exercise I felt it lacked piquancy and could have benefited from more contrast in texture, but I'm glad I tried.   I will be looking forward to a mushroom pasta tonight and leek risotto tomorrow. Maybe I'm missing some of the point and shouldn't really be enjoying my fast ~ after all it is meant to be sacrificial.

Advent Calendar XVII

Last night I went out for a very nice dinner at a local carvery with some good friends, we had a lovely time, with lots to talk about as we hadn't had a chance to get together for a while.   We had such a nice evening that we have decided to make sure we do it more often, so if we haven't met up again by the end of January I give full permission to you all to nag me!

I may have been a little over dressed for the occasion, but hey! it's Christmas, and I was only taking your advise!

Advent Calendar VIII

The Banquet of Henry VIII in York Place (Whitehall Palace) (1832) ~ James Stephanhoff

Whenever I see the number eight in roman numerals VIII I always think of Henry VIII, so I had a little Google of "Henry VIII Christmas" and found this

A Tudor Christmas was starting to resemble something we in the C21st might recognise even if there were some parts to a Christmas we would not!

The first record of a turkey being brought to Europe was in 1519. It was to be many years before this bird had reason to fear the Festive season. For the rich, the traditional meat on Christmas Day remained swan, goose etc as in a Medieval Christmas feast. In fact, in 1588, Elizabeth I ordered that everybody should have goose for their Xmas dinner as it was the first meal she had after the victory of the Spanish Armada and she believed that this gesture would be a fitting tribute to the English sailors who fought off the Spanish. However, it is not known how many of the poor of the land could carry out this order as goose remained an expensive luxury – though Christmas was seen as a special celebration.

More of that here.

At the moment I don't know what I will be eating at Christmas, or indeed who with or where.  I am quite certain that I will be sharing my Christmas with friends or family, I am also quite sure that I won't be eating swan or peacock

You are what you eat?

I have often heard this platitude trotted out, and it certainly comes to mind has I munch my way through a pork pie for my Sunday lunch, after having a very nice vegetarian meal with my Daughter last night.   In theory I want to only eat good food, organically grown ingredients prepared with love and presented with style.   Unfortunately time and finance do tend to impose some limits, I would love to be able to afford to be as fussy as I would like to be, but alas it is not to be.

I can however make some simple choice, I have been making a point of buying organic eggs recently, and I'm sure they taste better as well as providing the hens with a better life.   I like a tuna salad but at least I can be selective about the fish I buy and go for line caught.

Now I just need to start thinking about the calories I take on, maybe a few less cream cakes, maybe a little less beer and I might start to lose a bit of fat around the old tummy. I don't expect to be wearing a bikini any time soon, but if I do manage any holiday it might be nice to lie out on a beach and not get Green Peace coming along to push me back into the sea!

Advent Calendar XXIII

Well we only have two sleeps to go before Christmas!   So I hope you are all better prepared than I am, I haven't bought all of my presents yet, and the ones I have bought aren't wrapped.  I have cards still to deliver, and bizarrely work still to get done.   I am so glad that once again I don't have to worry about catering this year, I will be spending Christmas day with a good friend so can put aside all concerns about turkey, puddings and mince pies.

Worrying about what to wear?

It does seem as though whatever my situation, occupation, or state of transition this is always a busy time of year when I struggle to get everything done that needs to be done.

It has been a very rare year when I have not been wrapping presents after Midnight Communion!   So my plan is to devote myself tonight and tomorrow to buying wrapping and delivering.   Only then can I start to worry about what I'm going to wear and do my nails.

Advent Calendar XIV

Arghhh, Busy, Busy, Busy

Just too much on all of a sudden, I am out every night this week, been turning gigs down as I'm already doing too much, and, then the van broke down.

I have managed a few days work using my car but now I have to shell out hundreds of pounds to get the van back, hopefully fully working and reliable again.

And just to add to my troubles now I have to go out for a curry!

Weighty Issues

I have put on weight! Well to be honest that's not so unusual for me at this time of year, as the weather cools down and work slows down I tend to eat more and do less, the trouble is that this year I didn't lose any over the summer, indeed I put a little on. So now I'm very much over my preferred weight.   Of course there is the simple vanity issue that I think I look nicer a little lighter, but there are also the two very practical issues.

I have so many clothes that I simply cannot afford to replace them with larger sizes.   Replacing a complete wardrobe is an expensive business, besides I like a my clothes and want to get more wear out of all of them, preferably without splitting the seams!  But of course most important is that I feel fat! I know from how I feel that a lot of things are taking a little more effort. I am finding it harder to get started and when I do I am finding it all a little more tiring. I am also constantly conscious of the growing size of my tummy!   

The strange thing is that having said all this I don't now how much I weight! Since getting back from holiday a few weeks ago my scales haven't been working.   I used them to check my suitcase before leaving but since getting home they seem to have given up the ghost!   This makes it a bit more difficult to set myself a goal, or to measure how I am progressing towards it, but I do know that I need to lose some, and had better start now, otherwise I will be the Christmas pudding!

Maybe I should be asking Santa to bring some new bathroom scales.

Absinthe Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

With one thing and another I have been having a rather difficult time recently ~ actually challenging might be a better term. Not least amongst my issues are some medical ones, one where I am not getting the treatment I think any patient deserves i.e. prompt and polite, and one which could be described as self inflicted.   A couple of weeks ago I had quite a lot of back pain, to a certain extent this could be considered to be an occupational problem ~ the worry came when I was told that being rather rundown, and drinking too much were delaying my soft tissues healing themselves.

Since then I have been trying to cut down on my boozing, I am now trying (but not always succeeding)  to have at least two alcohol free days each week, and when I do drink to not feel obliged to finish the bottle!   I do not always succeed but at least I am trying, this week I have not had a drink since Sunday; I can't say I feel any better for my abstinence, I haven't been sleeping, or indeed waking up any better, and I haven't got any more or less energy, ~ but I will stick to my guns and keep an eye on my intake.

Another event that is proving a bit challenging is that my Daughter has now turned eighteen, for any parent this gives mixed feelings, joy that your child has made it and is such a wonderful person, and fear that she is now an adult with all that means, add in to the mix a reminder of just how old that means you are and it is clear where the challenges lie.   To take my mind off all that my Daughter is distracting me by having a party here over the weekend, and I have had instructions to make myself scarce.

I will be taking a short holiday (well a night away anyway), I plan to visit a friend, spend some time at Wisley ~ my favorite garden ~ and maybe visit the Brooklands Museum.   Since I will be away at the weekend I am going through my fridge to see what needs eating or freezing before I go away.   Having had a look tonight I will be dining on eggs, mushrooms and some salad.   Elizabeth David comes to mind, so tonight I will end my abstinence and have an omelette and a glass of wine.

Diet?

For for some strange reason that I suspect has passed me by my diet seems to have changed rather over the last week or so.   I would normally consider myself to be pretty omnivorous but somehow meat seems to be making up a smaller than usual portion of my diet.

Over the last few days I have had mushroom risotto, spinach and mung bean casserole, lentil soup, pasta with pesto and a cheese omelet.   I have not planned anything of this other finishing up a few jars from the store cupboard.   I can't say I have missed meat much, so I am now thinking about deliberately cutting down on my meat intake.   Eat less but ensure that what I do eat is good quality.

The only draw back is that there can be digestive consequences to increasing the intake of nutritional fiber. Don't stand behind the gorilla.

Look who's coming to dinner.

We have a well worn phrase for the big clean up, when we go through the whole house cleaning and tidying up, we call it spring cleaning, I suppose this goes back to the days when our lives were ruled by the seasons.   It seems to me that lots of my friends are doing a major midwinter clean, as they prepare to entertain friends and relations over Christmas.   Spare rooms are aired and beds made, furniture polished and floors washed.   We would hate for people to see how we actually live!

I trust the friend who is coming to dinner tonight is a good enough friend to forgive a bit of dust and untidiness.

Well I have now settled on my menu for this evening, (however I will not reveal it just yet unless there have to be any last minute changes) I hope it goes down OK, I have had to invest in some lactose free cream and cheese, so I also have to hope that they respond in pretty much the same way as "normal" cream and cheese.   I enjoy cooking so it will be fun finding out, I enjoy cooking but I enjoy cooking for other people more, for me it is a way of saying "I love you", cooking a meal is a form of hug, especially from someone like me who finds it rather difficult to express emotions.

I am still left with the rather vain problem of what to wear, I had settled on my mauve body con dress, but then I thought about my matronly green dress, to help me make up my mind I opened up my wardrobe to take a look at them both and then saw the white cocktail dress that needs to be worn, and then a nice black and silver sparkly knitted tunic that looks great with leggings...............

Maybe I should just stop thinking about it and stick to jeans and sweater, but should I wear the skinny jeans or boot leg? black or blue? I can be decisive, but not often.

Dinner Decisions

I have just been watching Saturday Kitchen on BBC2 hoping to get some inspiration for the meals I'll be cooking over the next couple of weeks.   In particular I have a particular friend coming to dinner on Tuesday.   When I say she is particular I mean that she is special to me (we have been friends for more years than either of us would be happy to admit) and also that she has to be particular about what she can eat.   I should stress not from choice but from necessity, being both lactose and gluten intolerant can be quite limiting on diet.   I should be used to all this as my daughter is also lactose and gluten intolerant, but she is even worse to cater for as she is also vegetarian, but I am still having a lot of difficulty trying to decide what to cook.

Trying hard to not look like trying

I want to stress that this is not because my friend is a problem, rather it is a reflection of my repertoire as a cook, it seems that every time I think of something I find that it will include double cream, butter, croutons, flour, or something that could upset my friends digestion.   Maybe I should stop thinking about trying to show off my culinary skills and embrace the KISS principle (Keep It Simple, Stupid).   Now all I need to decide is what simple dish I am going to not be showing off with.

The other decision is the perennial T-Girl issue of what to wear, my friend is one of those really annoying women you come across every now and then who is naturally elegant whatever she wears.   I am sure that you all know one of these women, they never seem to make much apparent effort, I don't understand it but these girls can just put on a pair of jeans and a sweater and look great, while the rest of us spend ages glamourising ourselves and putting on our best clothes, just so as not to frighten the horses.   I did think about one of the other two dresses, but maybe that would be trying too hard.