Friday Faff

Spring has been sprung upon us, although I think this may be summer now, and rain has fallen constantly since yesterday.  As it begins to ease up I notice the other half of the country is in sunshine all the while!  I may consider moving.

The weather men tell us it has been 20% wetter than usual, less sunny but with less frosts.  As if we had not noticed.  On the other hand it has been slightly warmer than usual, but not much good when it is wet also!   Summer may well be warmer, as the seas are much warmer than usual.  Watch out for more disaster headlines in the days and years to come folks.

I may consider stopping Twitter for a while, nothing but lies and counter lies from politicians and their lackeys.  So many fill the screen that there is little room for football or other important happenings.  The only other major story is of course Donald Trump being found guilty, such a surprise, and hopefully being jailed soon.  

On the other hand, the more the electioneering continues the less I like Keir.  Lying about GBEnergy, which was all Scotland's energy anyway, each day he appears more under the control of Big Business.  The cuts will continue, by people taking thousands in backhanders from big business, and the nation as a whole has yet to be informed re Freeports, why?  Goodbye Tory gangsters, hello Labour ones.

BBC

'Mothers Pride' was always one of the notable items in any shop when I grew up.  Though I remember always being sent for a 'sliced loaf' when required.   Sales are falling as there are so many better tasting breads to be found these days.  They may not be any more healthy, and they are certainly more expensive, and these type of loaves have lost their fame.  Possibly because mum was dealing with kids sliced white bread, the cheapest, was sought.  Her potato soup and slices of bread kept us alive as kids, and I have never been able to make soup like hers.  None of the woman have ever succeeded either.  

The problem here is the packaging, they say, not the bread.  The weeks without the loves may mean people forget about it altogether.  Maybe this was the plan?

Bread

 

What a good day.  Much of it has been taken up with stuffing my face with my 'Stonebaked, white, crusty, bloomer' that I was overcharged for at Tesco.  Very nice bread indeed, meaningless name for a loaf made by the thousand and then priced higher than the rest to make it appear special.  However, I enjoyed it, and will enjoy the leftovers tomorrow, before it suddenly dies.

The poor lassie pictured above is creating bread, probably a 'sourdough' bread, apparently first discovered in Egypt.  They say they liked bread there, and by 3000 BC there was plenty of variety of wheats and other crops with which to make it.  I am not sure I would wish to be a woman rolling it back and forward there for much of the day.  She would also have to crush grain before this to create the flour to use also.  The bones of such women show years of hard work.  Of course the men, who died earlier, also show the effect of the hard work they endured, but being men are ignored, they do not sell papers. 

As far as I remember early wheats were not very good, and the bread did not actually make you very healthy.  It took some time before such grains were worth while.  By Jesus time Barley Bread was for the poor, and Wheat Bread was for the rich.  Jesus prayer, 'Give us our daily bread,' meant just that, give us the barley bread that keeps us alive, the very basic of life.  Note he did not mention the better bread.  

I like trying the differing breads on offer, though all here are found in Tesco or Sainsburys and therefore not exactly the best options, but they have to do.  I suspect the health food shop sells their own or 'fancy' bread but the price will be fancy also, they can keep that. 

It used to be small bakers kept Edinburgh going for bread.  Walking home late at night I passed one at Stockbridge, door open because of the heat, and the fabulous aroma of baking bread filling the area around.  On Sunday morning someone was sent down the road to get the 'rolls and papers' so we could eat and work our way through the mass of papers we once bought.  The family on the top floor used to change the papers they bought for the ones we bought so together we got through the whole Sunday output of the press during the day.   

How different now.

The only media then during the 50s and early 60s was the wireless and the papers on a Sunday morning.  And usually full scale papers at that.  Not the tabloid things of later.  Even the 'Scottish Sunday Express' had things worth reading at that time, while today it is a dreadful dying rag.  I understand the journalists that remain are not allowed back into the office, it is cheaper for them to 'work from home' while writing items telling people not to 'work from home.'

At least back then, after lunch eventually arrived, we could sit near the gramaphone and listen to the 'Goons' or 'Hancock' making us laugh.  The 'Goons' offered a strange world of sound that nobody has touched since, or at least, not so successfully.  The 'Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy' the nearest thing on radio I can think of similar in output.

 

After I left Tesco I ventured into the museum as I wanted a couple of postcards.  I have four second class stamps to use up before they are out of date, so I must send something to someone to get the benefit!

Here, I encountered two of my women, women I have not seen since Covid began.  How long ago that appears.  Avoiding buying anything but what I wanted was difficult, I almost bought a book I do not require but still found myself arguing in my mind about buying it.  Anyway I wasted around 30 minutes there, including having a quick look at the latest exhibition, 'Ladybird Books,' before heading home to my bread.  Since then I did nothing.  I filled my face and look forward to the weight increase happily.

 

 

 

Bank Holiday Bread, by Tube

Having decided on a quiet Bank Holiday Monday, I foolishly read 'The Venomous Bead.'  This, as you possibly will find when reading, led to a desperate and urgent desire for lots of white bread.  At least this began the day with a laugh, though while laughing at others efforts, made worse by the man in the house being helpful, is of course wrong, I still managed to enjoy reading this stuff as I always do.  

My rising early, and shops don't open until 10 am on Bank Holidays, I was forced to wait until the did before dragging myself slowly out the door.  Early had by now become after 10:35 and traffic was rushing too fast to be first into the supermarkets before the crowd.  The crowd were already in the car park!  

I walked to Tesco down the splendid Avenue, the best road in town, home of some lovely homes all built about 1881, I know this as they missed the census of that year but houses appear in 1891.  The chill in the air noticeable after the warm weather of the summer.  Suddenly the east wind, coming originally from the north, disturbs the warmth in the air and reminds us of a normal UK summers day.  The beaches and the sewage filled sea will be packed of course.  Interesting that Tory 'Environmental spokesmen' are now saying the nation ought to 'rough it a bit' instead of complaining about sewage in the drinking water!  Tory Britain!  Poison the water to save money for the shareholders and expect the nation to drink it and shut up!  

I passed the retired solicitor filling his Jaguar with kids seats, clearly the grandchildren have forced him out for the day, elsewhere blinds were still drawn, and as we neared the store an occasional mum holding hands with a son passed by.  Quite a few were out and about in fact, kids do not like lying about indoors. 

Shopping only for bread I paid my £21:95 into the self-service machine, the young lass only having to aid me twice, and left with my heavier than expected bag.  Who put that whisky in my basket?  

Talking of London Underground, I have been enjoying 'Fun'  as she wanders the Jubilee Line, though I still think of it as the Metropolitan, though it became the Bakerloo in 1939 and the Jubilee in 1979.  Quite why I think this way I know not.  However, she ends this line with a grand tour of the rich at the outskirts of London, well worth a read.  

The 'Tube' was always a place of adventure.  Some packed stations, Oxford Circus and Piccadilly for instance, some interesting designs both outside and in, and often interesting people.  The word 'interesting' there can be read in many ways.  The aroma of burning air as the train approached deep underground was always memorable.  The aroma of some passengers similarly.   A strange job driving underground all day.  While most trains find some light occasionally the Circle has limited opportunities so see the sun.  Boarding at Royal Oak, while HSTs departing Paddington belched diesel fumes over us all, and being crushed, if indeed we could get on, is always memorable, especially as we always had to stand and wait while the Paddington train got through to Edgeware Road before us.  Joy I call it, but the young ladies I often accidentally were forced up against may have felt differently.  Who can tell?  Well, apart from the creaming and hitting with their shoe I mean.  I miss this in many ways, the Underground I mean, not the screaming... 

Market Drizzle

As it is wet, drizzly and not so hot the market has a special day.  Once again the wide variety of grossly overpriced foodstuffs bring out the crowds (Where do they get the money?) and as a special treat this month there are a few stalls selling the kind of overpriced hand made items women buy, whatever they are.  

I am always tempted to the bread but the price £3 or so a loaf puts me off.  It looks good and probably is good stuff but expensive being twice and more the price in Tesco's.  I suspect the variety of cakes available are also good but to fattening for my calorie controlled diet (with chips).  

   
Once again the car folks brought out their pride and joy into the drizzle.  A different crowd from last time and I suspect that when the sun shines regularly there will be more of these on show.  I am not clear as to why that guy has his bonnet up, possibly he broke down, possibly he is showing off his clean well tended engine.

Somehow I managed to spend nothing but a few quid on mealworm pellets for the Starlings that are breeding just now.  The brutes have emptied the feeders already this morning and trying to empty them again this afternoon.  A single Blue Tit has been spotted there but few other wee birds.
Guarding my money carefully I came limping slowly home and have spent the day watching football!
What more can a man want?
Oh yes, a woman to iron a shirt for tomorrow...

The Longest Day Once More

The middle of the year comes round again and all that was missing was the sun.  The mist so deep and cloud cover all day until now meant it spoiled the day somewhat.  That will not please these Italian chaps who have been set in the town centre in what the council call a 'Solstice Special.'  Usually there are more stall like these but I suspect there are many such events this weekend.

Items like this grab my attention until I notice the price!  I know Italy is a long way but I'm not paying for your petrol mate!  Still I could eat those quite easily.  I wonder if any fall off during the night?

Kids are well catered for, although they appear in short supply at the moment.  I suspect tonight there will be more action, certainly tomorrow this man will make some money.  The one at the back ties the kids in and bounces them up to a height.  She would not let me on claiming I was to big even though I am merely 8 stone.

How I wanted that Candy Floss, sadly no-one was in the stall and my money was in the bank.  Several folks were attempting to Hook-a-Duck and at least one brat had himself a prize.

The usual things abounded here, Bouncy Castles who also banned me, Puppet Theatre, A man on stilts with a small bike, and a Town Crier who I heard but luckily avoided.  There was also a man with balloons.  He was twisting a Poodle around until it became a balloon and sold it to the children.  I hope it doesn't burst!

On my way back I was fascinated by the wee plants growing on this wall.  Sadly I could not get a proper picture of them.  Nice mind.

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