It may be old, but we love it!

It has been in the loft while the children were young, then put on show when they got older, then put in the loft again because we had no-where for it to go, then we moved and it has been in the loft for the last nineteen years we thought it was about time it saw the light of day again. I hope it can be restored so we can hear a sound of music from it. We have had this radio for about 35 years.


(Technical bit from Alex - its a Ekco AC76 from 1936 designed by Wells Coates - it sits on a purpose built stand which was an optional extra at the time and are now very hard to find - unfortunately it's got a crack in the top which reduces the value considerably, in mint condition they go for around £600)

Those Roses Again!

The Roses I bought exactly one week ago.

Two bunches, £1 per bunch, didn't look like would survive!

The secret is to strip all the leaves off.

Rose leaves are parasites on cut roses, that is why the heads

curl over and droop, the leaves take all the water that is

being sucked up the stems

This morning I cut the Roses short

I have to confess I did leave a few leaves on.
Not the large leaves but the new shoots that were
growing from the leaf joints.

These were trimmed both ends and just put in water.
Either the leaves will get bigger or they will die.
When the cuttings look strong enough pot on into soil
and just see if they grow.
Sometimes it is successful, and sometimes it fails but fun trying
(See 9th August 2008 - under heading "gardening")

These bits are for the compost!

A Bad Day at the Computer Desk!

I blame the Gods! I can only imagine what actually happened after my husband spent and hour and half typing something he needed for that afternoon on the computer only for it to CRASH! Apparently in a rather big way, and to say the air was purple was an understatement, I was quite glad I was at work when all this happened. He regaled the whole scenario when he came to pick me up. He ended up doing what he needed to do with good old fashioned pen and paper! I came to do my blog yesterday afternoon to have it happen again, perhaps a coincidence I don't know but at the same time we were in the middle of a Thunderstorm - the gods must have been really angry with one another! The thunderstorm started about 3pm in the afternoon and going on for about 12 hours.

My roses are still going strong, I bought them last Saturday.

This photo was taken yesterday

but nothing has really change with them

I shall have to look out for some more flowers

at that price £1.00 per bunch and on their last stalks!!!!

One of the bright red Anemones taken early

yesterday morning while still perfect!

Strawberries in a giants bowl..........?

No Alpine Strawberries in a normal size bowl!

Boot Fairs & Roses

This morning was the first of our Boot Fair season. It was a bit of a fiasco for all concerned. Why.........no-one read the small print! In past years the 20 Acre Boot Fair started at 9am, but if you got there at say 8.30 or before, there were always sellers there and the gates were open. This year things have changed. You set up at 9am and the buyers were allowed in 9.30. There were lots of cars parked in the road leading up to the field and cars passing because they thought the cars waiting were parked. The cars passing were being sent back by Boot Fairs Sellers taking on the roll as policemen! The Boot Fair organisers somehow sorted the sellers from the buyers and allowed them through first then they let the buyers in about ten minutes later. All ended OK. I did not buy much, a recipe book and Book Ends.

My Roses from yesterday - they seem to be improving,

they are in a sunny room so they have opened up more.

This sweet smelling Rose is called

Silver Jubilee, it was given to us

four years ago by our good friends

David and Jane for our 25th Anniversary

today is our 29th!

Tomatoes & Roses

Please bear with me on this, it's a bit convoluted but typyical of how complicated doing something simple can be these days! Our shopping trip to Tescos this morning started out calmly, but by the time we left I think even the computer was confused! There were a few offers in the fruit and vegetables, and it was everything I wanted. Potatoes, tomatoes and cucumber. Offer one was buy two items for a £1.00, chose cucumber, cherry tomatoes and pepper, I wanted tomatoes and cucumber. Alex said the tomatoes didn't look like the right ones, so asked the young lad who was restocking the shelves, reply they are on the end madam, well I looked could not see cherry tomatoes. Offer two was On the Vine Tomatoes and new potatoes, buy one get, one free. I managed to get both of that offer just about, few bags of new potatoes left on shelf. Offer three buy one get one free on tomatoes. We asked the supervisor who was a bit puzzled so she summond the Fruit and Vegetable supervisor, yes he said there are no cherry tomatoes left and took the ones which were wrong that were on the shelf from shelf off. By the time I had gone through the till I checked my receipt before I left the store and I somehow ended up with two packets of tomatoes free! (The answer is that the vine tomatoes were where the cherry tomatoes should have been, but you'd guessed that anyway hadn't you!)

Two packs of tomatoes £3.56

Savings Produce/buy one get any free £3.56

While I was in the store the reduced flowers

Roses £1 so I bought two rather limp bunches

In the vase with the special Rose liquid that comes free

and water

Five hours later

All my own work!

I now have a

"Little Shop on the Corner"

just here, please come in and have a look round

http://kcscourtyard.blogspot.com/

there will be new stock added all the time

Sunday Afternoon

We do many exciting things, or should I say not so exciting things on a Sunday. We cut the grass and make an outing of taking it to the recycling centre for disposal. We stop at the station, and although it is a actually a "Mixed Traffic" weekend, i.e. the diesels are in town I think we missed the trains and the hustle of the people stepping on to and stepping off the train.

Even the beach was quiet for 3pm on a Sunday afternoon!

I found these books on the station book stall

Now perhaps I can get my garden to grow properly!

These books looked interesting

I saw these books on the book stall

and thought of my son

he is trying to be an actor!

I grew this!

Oak Leaf Lettuce

Somehow I managed to keep the slugs and snails at bay. Well I did cheat a bit! I bought copper sticky tape from the garden centre and wrapped it around the pot. It was well worth the effort to do so because it is a vicious circle, I buy the vegetables and plant them, the slugs and snails are watching from their hidey holes and think he he! more food for us. Well not this time!

Coronation Chicken

We enjoyed it with our Coronation Chicken.
There are many versions of this 1953 dish ~ here's mine (this can be made either the day before or the on the day)
Thoroughly cook (poach or steam) some chicken (I had two chicken breasts from the freezer), at the same time in a pan cook an onion in a little oil try not to caramelise the onions, when cooked add some finely chopped dried apple, pear and apricots (or whatever you fancy) and two large spoons of curry paste (Patak's Korma we found this particular brand works best for us). Keep stirring and cook the paste, try not to let it caramelise, if it looks like it is a bit dry add a few spoonfuls of the stock the chicken was cooked in. Drain and throw the stock away and break the cooked chicken into pieces and put back into the bowl it was cooked in and add the curry mixture and thoroughly cover the chicken pieces, cover and put into fridge to get cold. Just before serving add two to four tablespoons of Mayonnaise.

Ingredients :: Chicken, (any thing, pieces, breasts or left overs from a whole chicken) - Three tablespoon Oil - Onion - Dried Fruit (your choice) - Curry Paste (Patak's) - Mayonnaise.

If using left over cooked chicken let the curry mixture get cold before putting it with the chicken then follow the rest of the recipe.

Hot and Sunny

How things can change in a week.

Last weekend through to this Friday

it was hot and sunny then the

heavens opened all day yesterday and today

Last week I wondered round the garden with my camera

and just clicked and clicked

here are some of my pictures

This rose bush always reminds me of the

rose bush in Lewis Caroll's

Adventures of Alice in Wonderland

where the cards are painting the roses white

(or is it the other way round?)

The Alliums turning to seed

This noisy Blackbird hunting for the family tea


Jenson (next door's cat) on the prowl

Elderflower

The honey bee hunting for nectar

Culinary Lavender

Not sure what this flower is called

but I'm sure one of you kind people will

tell me what it is

Lovely bright red Geum

My lettuces which I am proud of

because the slugs and snails have usually

got to them first!

And......... this is what happens when you

leave the wax crayon in a very hot conservatory!

The tube is the cover of the crayon

The weather may be sunny...........

.............but we have a TORNADO here in Minehead!

- continued................

Here are some of the photographs we took

yesterday lunch time.

Tornado arriving at Minehead Station
Tornado being filled with coal
Well it was lunchtime!

We saw some strange sights too...............


Someone worshipping the engine!
Actually he is a professional cameraman!



Someone giving the coal a drink because it was thirsty!
(to keep the coal dust from flying everywhere)


This attractive signpost is outside the station

The weather may be sunny..........

.........But we have a TORNADO here in Minehead!