Burns Supper and Ceilidh

Traditionally a Burns Supper would be celebrated on the anniversary of the Bard's birth, 25th January 1759. The official Burns site warns one should 'Be prepared to enjoy yourself beyond all expectation', and I have to say I did tonight!

In the hall there were 10 tables with 8 guests to a table. We all stood and recited the Selkirk Grace:

Some hae meat and canna eat
Some hae nane that want it
But we hae meat
And we can eat
Sae let the Lord be thank it

then clapped to the beat as the piper in full traditional scottish dress led the chef carrying the haggis into the hall and up to where our lady Chairman waited to address the haggis. (You can find the words on the Burns' site - follow this link )

The event was hosted by a local church. I went along with one of my neighbours and a couple of friends. Nary a man amongst us, but we didn't let that hold us back when it came to joining in the Scottish country dancing, adding much confusion and consequent fun and merriment! "I had four sex changes in that dance" Barbara giggled as we reclaimed our seats after one particularly energetic reel.

The evening began fairly early - 6.30 - and ended at 10 pm after a full and enjoyable programme of entertainment. The meal consisted of the traditional haggis, neeps and tatties (haggis, mashed swede and mashed potato) followed by trifle and shortbread. There was a small jug of whisky on every table. Hector Gilchrist gave a little talk about Robert Burns' life, singing some of the songs the Bard composed and accompanying himself on the guitar. We sang along to some traditional Scottish ballads - Mairi's Wedding, the Skye Boat Song and Westering Home amongst them. Altogether much fun and frivolity.

Spring has sprung!

Here are the crocuses blooming beautifully in the garden. Over the allotment I did a bit of weeding and helped unload a delivery of organic compost. The bags were suprisingly warm.

Have a nice day y'all

The day didn't get off to a great start - somewhat overcast, and the meter reader knocked at the door whilst I was still swanning about in my nightclothes. After he'd left I had a bath and refocused, and the day got better.

The mild, dry weather tempted me over the allotment where I had a nice chat with one of the regulars. I'd heard he'd been very poorly, and it was good to see him looking fit and well. I pulled some leeks, picked some sprouts and some gorgeous purple sprouting broccoli, did a little weeding and then began to walk home for lunch. In town I found a debit card lying in the street, took it into the issuing bank and approached a young man in a suit. "Do you work here?" I asked him. "I try to" he said. Smiling at his disarmingly modest response, I handed him the card, explained how I'd come by it and asked if he could contact the cardholder to let her know it was safe. He thanked me and assured me he would be very glad to do so. I carried on my way feeling in a very mellow, peaceful mood, glad when I resisted the temptation to pick up a KFC.

Further along my way, a little out of town a lady stopped me and asked about the Spiritualist Church - she had seen a sign pointing to it and had walked down the road but not found it, and wondered what it was. I explained that the Spiritualist Church is about speaking with those who have 'passed over' via a medium. Was that what she was looking for? From her expression I could clearly see it wasn't, so I spoke about being a christian and hearing from God in church, and that we'd love to have her in our church. She asked about the church - she works in the local nursing home on Sundays and was wondering if there were church meetings at other times. I told her about our midweek meetings in each other's houses and gave her my phone number. She explained she is church of England and I was able to tell her where the local C of E church is. As we parted she said, "You've made my day!" I felt really good after the encounter - it made my day, too! My only regret was that I hadn't done the obvious: I had neither asked her name nor asked for her telephone number.

I walked on and as I was about to enter the street where I live, a car drew up alongside me and the young lady driving asked me for directions to the local doctor's surgery. Again I was able to help. Doesn't that feel good, when we are in the right place at the right time with the right information to be able to help someone!

Pyrex Bowls - Design Fault

I began buying stuff for my 'bottom drawer' when I was 15. One of the items purchased was a set of Pyrex dishes: - a Pyrex mixing bowl and three pudding basins, variously 2 pint, 1½ pint and 1 pint. This set accompanied me to college and through various moves, and it is hard to imagine cooking without them. The large mixing bowl and the 1 pint basin have survived 38 years, but recently I've had to replace the other 2 sizes with their nearest metric equivalent. On the original bowls, the Pyrex trademark in the bottom of the bowl is detectable to your fingers only on the outside, leaving the inside of the bowl smooth. This sensible design has been abandoned - on the newest bowl, Pyrex is embossed in the bottom of the basin. I have to ask - what were they thinking? Whisking or stirring with a metal implement now provides a percussion accompaniment to the task and sounds like it may adversely affect the working life of the electric whisk. Then with the risk of sticky substances adhering to the letters, you have to pay particular attention to ensuring that the bowl is fully cleaned after use.

I'm not usually one to stand in the way of progress, but in this instance I have to say that the new design is significantly inferior to the old.