13.09.2022 Hard labour.

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 Tuesday 13th 56F/13C, clear and bright. No sun yet. [7.00] Up at 6.0am. I have to be half an hour away in the car for my Tuesday cooking class. So I am going for an early walk. 

 The new window was steamed up outside again. I opened it and gave it a wipe from inside. The rectangular label patches are still there. 

 Giant agricultural spraying machine based on a combine harvester chassis.

 Walking 10,000 steps per day keeps the doctor away. I thought it was apples. Luckily I enjoy both. Our steep stairs and living upstairs in our last two cottages has always been my excuse for my fitness. Then there was the cycling. The years of hard labour... I have landscaped all of our gardens using only a pickaxe, shovel and wheelbarrows. 

 The cottage in Wales was buried up to the eaves in an ice age moraine. Every teaspoonful had to be picked out of the solid, iron hard bank. I moved the bank for the entire length of the house. 10m by 6 meters x up to my own height in that material. Wearing out several navvy's wheelbarrows, a pickaxe and two shovels in the process. We had no money to hire a digger and operator. There were sheep on the roof of the house when we went for a viewing. They just walked off the adjoining field. 

 8.30 Walk and morning coffee over. I've had my shower. The sunlight is streaming the entire length of the attic. Which is badly in need of further tidying! 

 13.30 63F. Just returned from the cooking class. The "men's cooking class" turned into equal number of men and women! Three of us from the Thursday's group. I asked for a refund but only got half a laugh. After cutting up a side of beef into tiny cubes I made about 3 gallons of goulash in a stainless steel cauldron. Pointy hat optional. We all had a running competition to make the most presentable poached egg. At which I did rather well. Despite their personal coach being Danish and accusing me of cribbing off YouTube. 😉

 The practical class was finished off with perfect sandwich assembly. Rye bread with lettuce, rounds of luncheon meat, poached egg, bacon, cress and spinach. Mayonnaise to taste. It was supposed to be artistically arranged to look like nouvelle cuisine. But artists are born. Not made.

 Finally, we sat down to consume our hands-on sandwiches. Which I enjoyed despite not liking any of the ingredients! Followed by a bowl of goulash. Which I was not really too keen on. Too many herbs for my liking but it slowly grew on me. It tasted okay according to those in the know. I gave it 6/10 in my head but kept it to myself. I did not take any home. 

 Despite this, there will be no lunch required at home. A thoroughly enjoyable morning. I have been invited back. They are all so cheerful it [almost] hurts. 😊

  I opened the doors out to the greenhouse when I came home. To share the 80+F warmth out there with the 68F downstairs indoors. It actually worked. The temperature immediately dropped to 76F in the greenhouse and went up to 70F indoors downstairs. I have set all the windows, enclosed by the greenhouse, on the catch. A little excess heat may trickle in.

 14.10. 60F/15C. The sky has suddenly turned dark. Bands of showers are crossing from the NW on the DMI radar. Rain on the front [southern] dormer window but short lived.

 16.25. Sunshine and heavy showers. I was going to cut the grass. Until we had a cloudburst. Not a single blade of new grass on my new, parking place "lawn" yet. So I checked online. 10-14 days until germination from seed. Though up to a month is possible. I wouldn't mind the dandelions waiting a month. Just to leave room for some grass!

 18.45 I have been tidying the living room of too many tools. 

 Something simple for dinner. Mackerel on toast with beans and tomatoes? Or something else fishy with beans and tomatoes? Cod in batter. I added some pasta to soak up the tomato juice. Still looking for more saucepans.

 

 

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