Piggy Wiggy

My lovely SIL adores pigs and when this dear little video came up on my book of the face feed I couldn't resist sharing it to her wall.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=834900936530983&fref=nf

M also collects pig related items and has many examples of porcine loveliness sprinkled throughout her home. On the occasion of a notable birthday she approached Mr GBT [her brother] and asked him if he would make a special commission for her from her husband. Under normal circumstances he wouldn't undertake this kind of request but obviously it's different for your sister and there was kindly no time constraints put in place due to his other orders for this business that he needed to fulfil. Over time he drew the design for the said item discussing possible tweaks and progress with his sibling at various points during the making. Having worked in miniature for the past decade it proved quite a challenge for him to have to work to a larger scale but in the end he successfully overcame all the hurdles and this was the end result.  Voila one pig box. She was delighted. However, it is definitely a one off!

Arilx

A Frugal Gluten Free Tip.

Dear chum who I housesparkled for yesterday was diagnosed as gluten intolerant last year. On top of being a vegetarian and needing to follow a low fat diet it has presented a few problems as you might imagine. She's a brilliant cook and loves to entertain so food is a big part of her life.

We were talking around it yesterday once I'd finished over a cuppa. I'd taken over half of an enormous pumpkin [we both abhor waste and swap all sorts!] that another chum had grown on her lottie that I'd been keeping in the garage since Halloween. I'd made soup from my half and she mentioned that she had a lovely recipe for a pumpkin cake that she's made in previous years.

Knowing that she now bakes both ordinary and gluten free cakes I was curious to know what flour she uses for her ones. Various types it turns out but one of them is rice flour. She has found the cheapest place to get it by far is the Asian cash and carry in the next town which I introduced her to a couple of years ago. It's well worth the fuel as she tops up on all her beans and pulses and other regular items she uses. I appreciate not everyone has access to such places but thought it worth a mention. Pray what use is a money saving tip if it's not shared...keeps those frugal wheels turning I'd say.

Arilx

Certificates Evening.

We have been along to our son's GCSE certificates evening tonight at his old school as they bid farewell to the class of 2014. It was a far more emotional experience than I  had anticipated. Much guffawing as they ran a VT of our children's time at the school...quick flashes of the small person reminding of who he was through to now. Starting when he was a cute 11 year old loving school and ridiculously eager through to the long haired sometimes reticent chap around the 13-14 mark at times struggling to fit in with his Aspergers  to the tall trendy young man with the immaculate quiff that I have today who's once again enthusiastic with loads of friends and rarely at home except to study or eat! He still gives his Muvva a darn good hug though.

It was really moving to see the young people receive prizes for all their achievements. Naturally some were for academic achievement, but others were recognised for the sheer effort they had made and where they had exceeded expectations. Some had fought extended periods of illness and personal tragedy to come through with good sets of results whilst others had contributed hugely to charity work, sport, music and other initiatives. My son got a mention for his set of results which made me immensely proud.

The headmaster closed his speech with some quotes and then these three pieces of advice to this former students as they embark upon their adult lives:

1. Be honest.

2. Have integrity.

3. And most important of all was - Be kind.

True, so true.

Arilx

The Shakespeare Effect.

This is, as I'm sure many will recognise, the rebuilt Globe theatre in London. We saw it a few years back on a walk along the South Bank

Fast forward to this week and I was completing a crossword [this is in the vain attempt to keep my brain sharpish although why I bother having found out many moons ago that our brain cells start dying off when we're 16 I have no idea really. Pure vanity I suspect!] for which the clue was "mongrel" and the answer was three letters long. Simples I thought...obviously must be "dog" except none of the other bleedin' clues tallied...erm back to the drawing board. After about ooh thirty seconds of thinking about it I resorted to my usual tactic....cheating and looked it up in the back. The answer was "cur" a word familiar to my from my days of studying Shakespeare for my degree but somehow I had never actually ever known was it meant other than garnering it was an insult.

I was amused by this little gem that a friend sent me last week- it simply appealed to my sense of humour

I in turn emailed it to my dear chum J who is currently studying for her English Masters as I knew she would appreciate the humour of it. Rather marvellously she replied with these links so you can now invent your very own Shakespearean insults if anyone puts your back up this week!

http://www.pangloss.com/seidel/Shaker/index.html?

http://www.pangloss.com/seidel/shake_rule.html

Personally I favour "Thou tottering tardy-gaited strumpet" as my insult of choice for thecoming week!

Arilx

Pegged Out.

Inspired by this post last year http://mymakedoandmendyear.wordpress.com/2012/12/19/twinkle-twinkle-little-star/ my chum E and I decided to give it a whirl. What thrifty fun it was...only my stars are for my American folk art bedroom so I haven't made them festive. An easy but effective make using only what you've got lying around. I now find you can make stars using the leftover clips too but haven't done as yet.

Arilx

A Winter Woodland Walk.

In years gone past I have to be honest I've struggled with certain months of the year...November's always been a hard one but for the first time ever despite the odd small blip I've had a ball this year. Originally I wasn't a superfan of January or February either but these days I really enjoy the peace after the frenetic pace of the run up to Christmas and the small signs of Spring peeping out all over the place which are there for me to see when I open my eyes and look properly. The beauty of blogging is that having derived pleasure from these small things which make me so content I get to extend the enjoyment by taking the photos and reliving the moment. Keeps the old happy tank topped up for longer.

Today we were beetling about running errands in the car, so as to make best use of the fuel, I thought it a good idea to take a stroll along one of the waymarked walks in one of the local woods which is on the same side of town. This particular wood is an ancient one with mixed deciduous trees and is called Leechpool. It does what it says on the box so to speak...literally at one time people collected leeches from the pools in the wood and sold them to medical practitioners for use in surgical procedures. A practice I gather is once again being used.

Weatherwise it was cloudy with the sun breaking through. Virtually all the leaves were down and it was a bit of quagmire in places. Enjoyable but not a lot to see or so it appeared until I started to look properly. For once both of us had our cameras with us so it's been interesting to compare photos to see what the other one noticed....it was all about fungi for Mr GBT and all about shape and form for me today. With the trees backlit against the sky you could really appreciate the different textures and colours of their trunks which are normally hidden away under the canopy. Anyway a few shots to give you an idea of what I'm wittering about!

Firstly Mr GBT's fungi shots:

These are my shots of the textures and patterns I saw which rather took my fancy!

And how about this one- the fence surrounding the picnic area. I'm not entirely sure what's caused the white patches but we think it might be something to do with the fungi not growing where the wire fence behind it comes into contact with the wood.

I was really most taken with how the foresters have reused the materials lying around to build a path boundary. Once upon a time they'd have just bunged a fence up but this is so much more eco friendly and provides a haven for wildlife.

Perhaps not the most exciting photo granted but this style of rail and post fencing is very common throughout West Sussex. It's cut with the pointed end facing up so the rain runs off and doesn't rot the wood as fast as other types.

As we were heading back to the car I passed a Mum and her two young daughters who were chattering excitedly about finding fairy holes...I really must take my middle aged dame head off next time I go and put my enchanted one back on so that I can join in the hunt!

Arilx

Chocolate Marshmallows

Rarely does a week go past when I don't swap goodies with chums...sometimes it's me giving others things other weeks vice versa and more often than not it's a two way street. It's exciting because you never know what might cross the threshold! A few weeks back dear chum S gave me several back copies of the Waitrose magazine- I looked through them and found several recipes that caught my eye. Having ended up with a small pile of ripped out pages I am now gradually working my way through them...any that match up to their promise and meet my strict criteria for recipes see here http://gnatbottomedtowers.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/the-diva-in-kitchen.html will be written into my notebook I keep [I don't embrace scraps of paper...it's that tidy gene again. This is how this particular keeper came to be in my possession.

Dear chum J texted me a few weeks back asking when we could get together and make something "weird". I should explain that she and I have tried many craft and culinary based experiments over the years [it's a good 'un if you've got small kidlets to spend your evening doing something fun and productive to give you a breather...ours are all now towering above us and earning their own wonga these days]. It took me about a nanosecond to remember this and suggest it!
http://www.waitrose.com/content/waitrose/en/home/recipes/recipe_directory/c/Giantchocolatemarshmallows.html

We coordinated our purchase of the ingredients as the initial outlay is a little more than normal and set to work on Monday night. I wasn't entirely confident that they would be a success if our previous sweet making attempts were anything to go by they have been a bit mixed... rabbit shaped peppermint creams worked a treat, the rose and orange water flavoured Turkish Delight was fine if a tad on the slighty soggy side but ewww to the parsnip fudge! I am pleased to report that the marshmallows are a roaring success. They taste gorgeous and before my lot demolished their share, I took a photo to prove it. Definitely one to try again methinks....am most tempted to try more sweetie recipes. I shall have a ponder as to what catches my eye and report back in due course!

Arilx