One week later

Whew, can't believe a whole week has gone by so fast.

A momentous day today as I have put my little box-type house on the market after 22 and a half years here. I said I would stay a couple of years and then find something bigger. Events always conspired to thwart it. Now however, the time has come and the deed is done. The first ad is due next week. Seems strange so close to Christmas but the HIPS fiasco has made it timely now and I get to save about £700 in the process.

Round the corner and the scaffolders have finally come so we can press on upwards again. A quick site meeting with WH confirms that we *should* have a roof on the extension by Christmas and on the kitchen by New Year. The weather continues to wage war on the brickies so the build is much slower than it would have been had we started on schedule in June. As it is we're not doing badly coming to the end of the seventh week, particularly as the building inspector doubled the size of the foundations at a stroke and delayed us a full week.

I wanted to be in for Christmas, Easter looks much more likely now!

Meatloaf and Barbecued cabbage

In recognition of yesterday's Thanksgiving celebrations I made an American style dinner last night, Meatloaf. A recipe given to me about 30 years ago which I adored but have not made in the last 20 for some reason. It seemed as good a time as any to resurrect it.

It was every bit as yummy as I remembered. WH loved it too although for the stated reason that it tasted like faggots! I served it with barbecued cabbage and mashed potatoes and the whole combo was divine although WH wasn't so keen on the cabbage which comes in a tomato laden sauce that is just perfect over the meatloaf.

They're both a cinch to make.

Meatloaf

500g minced beef
1 small onion very finely chopped
1 packet stuffing mix made up with water and allowed to cool
1 tablespoon brown sauce
1 large or 2 small eggs

Mix all ingredients together and push into a 2lb loaf tin well greased and lined with paper.

Barbecued Cabbage

Slice white cabbage into 30 cm wedges.

Place in a baking dish
Pour over a 400ml tin of chopped tomatoes mixed with 1 teaspoon made mustard, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1 tablespoon tomato puree and 1 tablespoon tomato ketchup.

Cover the dish with foil.

Place both dishes in the centre of a preheated oven and cook at 180 degrees C for 90 minutes.

Serve with mashed potatoes; comfort food at it's best.

Oh and the meatloaf is good cold too, just how WH likes faggots.

Happy Thanksgiving

Seeing as my real family lives across the pond, I wish all readers a Happy Thanksgiving and the realisation that it is only a few weeks now to our own bunfight on Christmas Day.

Help, it's about time I got myself organised.

The Wilder Network

A big hug and thanks to Terri for sending me the link for this brilliant Lyme Disease site, The Wilder Network. I can see already that it's going to take me ages to read all the info on there but it looks most comprehensive. My lovely doctor trained with one of the main names on there so I'm in good company I guess.

It's essential reading for anyone who lives in an area where deer ticks are prevalent. As you can see from the image they're not that big but boy do they cause some trouble if undetected. Get reading folks.

A forgotten way of life

© James Ravilious; Beaford Archive/CORBIS

Last night we watched the BBC4 programme on the life of James Ravilious, a little known Devon based photographer who spent 17 years of his life photographing rural Devon for the Beaford Archive. I first saw some of his work several years ago at an exhibition and have loved it ever since. The picture above I have as a print in my offfice.

James Ravilious trained in fine arts and it shows in his photos, they are superb as well as being a record of a farming way of life that has all but disappeared.

Have a look at these and enjoy them too.

Excitement, Excitement

In the cold of November I am already thinking about the spring and the news that Hayseed Dixie will be back touring in the UK in March is just what I wanted to hear. C'mon guys, update your website!

Oh, a little bird told me that the new album will be out just prior to that.

I'm warming up already.

My Virtual Family

Funny in this cyber world we live in we seem to get all sorts of friends and families around us. Yesterday I spent some time on my family tree, something I have not been able to do for months. I really enjoy genealogy and even 7 years down the line find new things to dig about in. Anyway I digress. I had been contacted by a chap who proves to be a very distant relative, we share the same Great Great Great Grandparents. We had an email conversation and he shared some information with me and I returned the favour. I get the feeling we will be in touch again. This has happened before and I have a small catalogue of distantly related people that I share stuff with occasionally.

I have also built a small but close group of people with whom I share symptoms and ailments. Originally I met these on a message board which supported people with similar diagnoses. The group evolved and moved elsewhere and then eventually split up. Some people I am still in contact with 6 years later, some I have met in real life, have spoken to on the phone and some remain a daily support and network, there in an instant when you need them and happy to be in the background when you don't. Notably when I had surgery recently these were the friends who sent cards, flowers and general cheer up messages unlike my local friends who stayed away.

My real family is spread thinly and wide. My closest relatives live in the USA and I see them rarely, a source of great disappointment to me as I have missed the best part of my nephew's and niece's formative years. I say the best part, because 2 weeks a year is nothing. The main reason for this is my inability to travel long distances. We go to Greece, sure, but a less than 4 hour flight is no comparison with an 8 hour, then change to another for an hour. I did this once 11 years ago and it almost killed me. When I arrived home it took me 6 weeks to recover. I was in bed solidly for 2 of those. Hence my reluctance to go again. The whole experience was made worse by my catching Parvo Virus whilst there and this affected my heart and then I got arthritis as well so the effects were devastating to say the least. Understandably I am loath to repeat that experience. My other close relative lives abroad too for most of the year and I see her almost as infrequently.

My lack of actual blood relatives was brought home to me recently when I underwent a General Anaesthetic and had to give the name of my next of kin. In the UK. I don't have one! WH may be my nearest and dearest be he's no next of kin. So I put him anyway. It did make me think maybe we ought to make this a more permanant arrangement after over 16 years together, somehow I don't think he's too keen.

Work in Progress

After weeks and weeks of destruction, things are starting to take shape. We are actually building, hence my being away from the internet and having to get out and do stuff. OK, OK, it's only delivering breakfasts, keeping the tea stocked up and fetching sundry parts and supplies but it's all in a good cause.

The top pic is of the rear extension and the other one is the living room, now without the kitchen sticking out and with the fab new glass doors which will eventually open onto the dining area and to another set of glass doors leading to the wonderful south facing rear garden. Already I just LOVE it. Not least for the sun which streams on the back of the house even on a cold November morning.

The best news of all? My fig tree is surviving and has loads of figs developing for next year. Roll on Summer.

Music was my first love

And it still is.

Since my relative recovery from Lyme I have rediscovered a mis-spent youth of concerts, gigs and playing loud music in my car. At the moment on the CD player is the Kerosene Brothers (the alter-ego of Hayseed Dixie) Choose Your Own Title along with everything Hayseed Dixie ever released. Intersperse this with UB40's Greatest Hits, all sorts of Notis Sfakianakis and some vintage Christopher Cross and you get a really weird mixture. As Barley Scotch says you need more than one kind of music in your machine.

Last week we went to see The Treefrogs at Combe St Nicholas, a brilliant night made even better by the lunatic dancer who managed to stay on his feet against all the odds. I'll never look at our plasterer the same way again! Rock on Danny! This week we're hoping to see the Lost Boys, another one of Danny's collaborations, at the George in Uffculme. Having seen Hayseed Dixie 4 times this year along with an abortive visit to Status Quo at Dudley Castle, we're now off to see Madness and UB40 5 days apart in Plymouth in December. There are rumours too of a Mad Dog McCrea gig sometime soon too.

Meanwhile if I get to wondering what my muso relative is doing across the pond, I can always watch The Old Southern Bluegrass Riverside Boxwap Family Band.