GETTING INTO A PICKLE

This particular Monday is never a favourite in our house as it means that the holiday week is over and we are all back on the treadmill again. Last night as I drifted off to sleep the morning loomed like a dark cloud, I cuddled even further down amongst the covers and slept at last.
Even in my troubled dreams I could not have imagined the trouble that was to come went I awoke. Having made the bread and baked it once again in my kind neighbours oven I prepared breakfast for us as we waited for the washing machine repair man to call, he did not call, so we called him. He told us that he had called earlier at ten and that there had been no one at home and that he had put a card through our letter box to appraise us of the fact. There had been three people in the house all waiting and there was no cards on the mat.

The controlled said that by now he was out of the area and it was with difficulty that we persuaded her to get him to return. After much argument she agreed and at one O clock he arrived and by now he realised that he had been to the wrong address, a fact of which we were already aware. Although he was inclined for some reason to be rather cross with us he did manage to fix the machine to loud cheers from us all. We were down to our last tea towel and the underpants situation was reaching critical!

Next came a panicky call from a friend who had found and injured hedgehog and could she put it in my garden while [it recovered, I said that of course she could while wondering just what its injuries could be. Time passed, she did not arrive.
#mean while I received an email from My landlords P.P.S the gist of which made it plain that she had not read my letter as she informed me that she had passed it on to the land agent. Had she read my letter she would have known that not only was he largely responsible for the problem in the first place but that he had just left on a two week holiday and would therefore be unable to read it. I replied with a curt e mail advising her of this fact ...again and suggesting that she read the whole letter and take a casual glance at the attachments. I am still awaiting her reply.

By one thirty I had begun to wish that I too was on two weeks leave as the chores remained undone while I wrote yet another batch of e mails in an attempt to get the cooker fixed, hope I might add.

Soup was on the menu for dinner and to refresh myself I headed for the garden to cut some courgettes and sorrel for the soup and decided to make the damson pickle to pass the time.
With my hands looking very gory with damson juice I was obliged to answer the door some one had come to look at the cooker, they looked, they left, and I went back to my gut bucket.

Pa had been dispatched to the village for a quart of malt vinegar and was gone for some time. On his return it was evident that the pickle would have to wait for another day as he had brought only two small bottles which amounted together to about a pint. Hey ho, damson jam then, what a good thing that I had not peeled the onions. I could not be cross with Pa even had I wanted to as he had brought for me a lovely box of chocolates, my favourite sort too , he is such a dear.

One man who came to look at the cooker this morning called me a few minutes ago and told me that the estate required me to do a cookery demonstration to prove that my oven does not work. Do they seriously think that I would be giving myself the trouble on cooking t my neighbours house of there was no need. What a bunch of ..*** !!!!!...**..*!

SWEET AND SOUR SUNDAY

My son and I were to have gone on a bat walk last night, we had been looking forward to it for some time but by six yesterday day evening we were both so tired that we decided not to go. The bat walk was due to start at nine , by seven thirty we were both fast asleep. I woke at twelve thirty and not realising that my son was asleep knocked on his door and unfortunately woke him.
I was worried about Pa because I never go to sleep unlit he is bathed and safe for the night,I need not have been concerned, he had got himself ready for bed and all was well. I made us all a hot drink and then went back to bed full expecting that I would not sleep again but fell asleep almost immediately,I did not wake until seven in the morning.

I cannot say why we were both so exhausted but that good long sleep did the trick and this morning we both felt better. We chatted over our morning coffee and I went on line to order a him shirt while he was around to choose the colour he liked.

In the middle of the oven saga I have to report that yesterday evening the washing machine conked out, it has been quite a week as my food mixer gave up the ghost a few days ago My Grandmother always said that things went in threes so I am hoping this third breakdown will be the last for a time. The repair man is coming tomorrow and since the washing machine does not belong to the estate I shall be able to have it repaired properly thank providence.

The garden smelled sweet after last nights rain and I sniffed and sniffed when I went into the orchard after breakfast, the wind had brought down a few leaves and seeds and there was the unmistakable spicy smell of Autumn redolent of spiced apple pie.

During the last week I have begun to harvest the pumpkins and so far Two large crown prince and two pretty winter festival squashes are decorating my kitchen. The tomato harvest is in full swing and every day I pick a bowl full, cherry tomatoes in red and yellow, huge plum tomatoes, tiny pink ones, large red ones and some wonderfully sweet large yellow tomatoes that taste like a mouthful of sunshine. I have in the green house a large pot of Greek basil and I use this to make Pa's favourite tomato dish,

FRESH TOMATO SALAD.
6 large tomatoes
A good hand full of basil
half a cup of olive oil
salt and pepper.

Slice the tomatoes in to a bowl and add the chopped basil. Sprinkle on half a teaspoon of sea salt, cover and leave for fifteen minutes then add the olive oil and season with as much pepper as you like. If you make this an hour or two before you need to use it you will have a lovely dish of tomato salad and also a really nice dressing, two for the price of one.

I had some ironing to do but after that I did a little prep for dinner and then out again in to the garden where the air was cool and fresh, I picked a large bunch of sweet peas all in shades of purple and put them in to four small vases in Pa's room, he loves sweet peas and I I grow them for him each year. Damsons are ripe and I picked six pounds of these to make our delectable damson chutney,thank goodness that the cooker rings still work. Although with the oven out of action sterilising the jars is difficult.

Later in the afternoon the heavens opened and the rains came, one moment I was picking ripe damsons on and idyllic Sunday afternoon the next moment the cat and I were marooned in the greenhouse while the storm raged around us, Twiggy was most seriously displeased as she was very wet, poor love. During a lull I grabbed the cat and leaving the bucket of damsons in the greenhouse I managed to get the pair of us indoors before and even heavier shower made the gutters overflow and the ground appear to boil. We went upstairs,I to find a dry shirt and the cat to roost on the furry rug in my room,poor old puss, how she hates to get wet.


Without the use of an oven I am having to get very inventive about the cooking. We have not been able to cook a roast dinner for over two weeks and are all getting bored with Pasta and stir fry.
To day I took three large pork chops and browned then added a can of cider, a tablespoon of apple and thyme jelly and then covered the pan and simmered gently for twenty minutes,. I served the chops and the delicious onion gravy with mashed potatoes, runner beans and carrot and courgettes strips which I tossed in a little hot oil for about three minutes. I made some apple sauce and as the boys both like stuffing with their pork I mixed together equal parts of suet, bread crumbs a and flour with some chopped sage and thyme, salt and pepper and a little of the fried onion saved when I made the pork dish. Ten minutes in a pan of simmering water was all the cooking they required. The meal was well received, not quite a Sunday roast but almost.

Looking back over the weeks blogs I feel that I am in danger of becoming rather strident and yet when I began I promised myself that my blogs would be a truthful representation of my daily doings and of things that were important to me and which had an effect upon my life. I little thought when I began that just over a year down the line that I would be fighting on all fronts for the survival of our village, our garden and our whole way of life. Nor did I expect to be writing about the shiftless doings in the world of my sons work , yet all these things have coloured my life and therefore I shall continue to document these events,hoping that in the not too far distant future I can return to more peaceful pursuits than constantly trying to prove that the pen is indeed mightier than the sword!




What next? Who can say? My e mail to His Lordship goes off tonight and that will certainly set the cat among the pigeons. The Estate should by now be aware of our objection to their plans for the garden which will set the ferret among the rabbits and the Estate manager will have to answer for the list of untruths on the planning application so that will set the fox among the chickens. What a pity I do not have an oven in which to cook all this game.....one way or another before I am done I shall with any luck have cooked someone's goose!

THE MUSINGS OF AN OLD BATTLE AXE

The above epithet is apparently how I am perceived in certain quarters, I expect that those on the receiving end of my pen or my verbal sharp shooting find a certain relief in name calling and who can blame them, poor souls?
Our maintenance manager thinks himself terribly hard done by because I asked him most politely to do his job.
These days it seems to me that people actually resent being asked to do the job for which they are paid, it is very odd. Even more often we find that those in positions of authority are actually unable to carry out their duties. This makes me cross and I know that I have a tendency to go on about things like this but when I am affected badly by the inefficiency, or sheer bone laziness of others I speak as I find.

I can see no reason why my life should be messed up by another's lack of ability or activity.
Having requested that our maintenance manager did his job and sort out our cooker he complained to his superior that I had hurt his feelings......well excuse me! I note that he made no mention of the insults which he hurled at me and which I refused to return in kind.....and that went against the grain believe me.

I pointed out, when asked that I had said nothing that was untrue and had made my remarks with a good deal more politeness than the circumstances warranted and told him that all I required was a professional approach to the problem, he had nothing to say to that as he knew that I was right.

The problem with the cooker is now so bad as to be causing actual danger if it is used. I have now written my Noble Landlords P.P.S and appraised her of our problems and I have pulled no punches. I have been forthright and stated the case exactly as it is. I am aware that this will not go down at all well in high places but you see without a working cooker I have been unable to manufacture the sugar coating necessary to make these home truths palatable.

I have no doubt that the lady will not like what I have to say and yet it is the truth and if it were not then I should not be fool enough to write it down .

Any little old lady, no matter how gentle and serene can be turned in to a virago if sufficiently provoked. The quietest little old dear can become venomous if threatened sad but true.

I try to be just I may not always succeed but I do try. I endeavour to remain calm, this can be tricky.
Above all I try to be fair, I will always give some one the benefit of the doubt......once, to do more would not be in the interest of survival, anyone who disagrees should read The Darwin Awards, I believe there is also a web site. The book is quite an eye opener, and remember the girls of St Trinian's motto “She who draws the sword last always come off worst.” Though hardly a school girl myself this still applies for you see when you are young your views are dismissed as childish and when you get older your views are dismissed as geriatric ramblings, so what's the difference...think about it folks.

GOSSIP AND BLACKBERRIES

Seven in the morning found me making cups of coffee for the boys , Pa had a taxi booked for nine and an eleven O' clock appointment at St Tommy's so it was every man for himself until Pa was safely dressed and away. Things went quit well as Pa is so much more alert these days.

I waved Pa off to the station and went indoors to bake the bread. I did attempt to use the wooden cooker knobs but they still did not work and so it was off next door to used the neighbours oven. Both the boys were at home and so as the bread baked I joined them in a cup of tea, then as soon as the bread was cooked we went back to my kitchen where we all sat down to a breakfast of hot buttered crumpets and muffins with strawberry jam.

We had just poured our second cups of tea when we were joined by another friend who of course was invited to join us for breakfast. There was a great deal of hilarity over the wooden knobs on my electric cooker and much discussion as to what I should do about it. There was also a lot of interesting gossip about estate matters and we all enjoyed ourselves immensely. Our last visitor brought with him a huge basket of blackberries and as soon as they had all left I mixed these with an equal amount of apples and some water and set them to boil after which I put the mixture in to a jelly bag ready to be turned in to apple and blackberry jelly tomorrow.

While Pa was out my son and I vacuum the house and steamed all the floors and carpets and by three we had finished, the chores were all done. Pa returned soon afterwards and his news was good, his consultant at Tommy's was pleased and the new medication regimen seems to but a huge improvement on anything tried before.

I celebrated by buying us a set of garden quoits from the garden centre, such a nice gentle game fit even for old crocks such as myself to play. Actually I am quite good at the game as in my youth all the village children practised for months every year before the village fête in the hope of winning prizes, in fact most were quite accomplished at these and other rural skills such as trout tickling
pheasant poaching and scrumping. Illegal ...yes but not in the same league as the childish pranks of today such as mugging, stabbing and gang war, no I am not going off on another rant, I simply state the case.

There is another piece of good news, a friend arrived with a leg brace which she had made after a skiing accident in the eighties and asked if Pa would like to try it, He did and it works wonderfully supporting his leg much more efficiently and comfortably that the hospital ones. What is most amazing is that he can walk with his knee straight and not buckled and bending to the side. It needs a little adjustment but we are hoping that his consultant will agree to make it fit, oh yes it does not rub his skin off either which is a plus
For a while this afternoon I sat beside the river under the drooping willow branches listening tho the water lapp against the riverbank each time a small boat passed by. What a life the river has and what a history. It is easy to imagine Thomas More hurrying home the his beloved family after a stormy time at Hampton Court.
. Elizabeth the first in her royal barge with Leicester, Essex or Raliegh leaving London for Richmond on a hot summers day. The pomp of Royalty, the furtive plotter the lighterman, the bargee, all have used this river, it has seen so much.

Just below the spot where I sat today there remain the posts and staves of an old pier and a little further down the even older wooden remains of a Saxon fish trap. Some times I can almost see them emptying their catch. I can almost hear the sound of lutes drifting across the water or the lightermen calling to one another, and I am now a tiny part of the rivers history, I have seen what they saw, the gulls, the geese and the waving willow boughs as eternal as the river itself.

I came away with a feeling of perspective, a feeling of how small my troubles are compared to others past whom this river has flowed. It is all to easy to become bound by the chains of daily cares .we are all prey to this, yet all things pass and tomorrow anything may happen. I may well become stressed again as I battle on ,but I know where to go for the cure. The lovely old Thames, grand, gentle cheap and tawdry regal and rustic, all things to all who look and wonder at all she has beeen and all that she has seen.

A STICKY SITUATION

The delightful sound of rain on the large flat leaves of the old fig tree was music to my ears last night. The temperature dropped and at around five thirty I fell in to a deep sleep, my first for days.
Not until nine thirty did I open my eyes and my telephone was ringing,it was good news, the electrician had his new thermostat and would be arriving after lunch.

There was a good deal of bustle as first my son and then Pa awoke to discover the lateness of the hour. With breakfast to make, a grocery delivery arriving and the electrician after lunch we got a wriggle on and in half and hour we were sitting at the breakfast table eating our buttered crumpets and congratulating ourselves on the fact that we would have plenty of time. Half an hour ;later the electrician arrived.........early..... and accompanied by a couple of mates. I put the kettle on again, cracked another pack of crumpets and the second sitting for breakfast began.

At this point I should tell you that this electrician is the on who procured and installed our oven in January and who has also already had a go at fixing the blasted thing, unsuccessfully I might add.
He proceeded to do exactly what he did last time switched it on , left it for a few minutes and said “There you are its getting hot.” I explained has I had before that one needed a little more than that if one was to bake with any success and he replied that the temperature fluctuation was only about twenty five degrees. That I informed him was enough to burn a sponge cake and sufficient to cause quite a lot of trouble when cooking a roast.

I then asked him to sort out the fact that the cooker would not switch off and to deal with the fact that it was actually impossible to tell at what temperature the oven is firing at.......he could not do either to my satisfaction. He took the knobs off the control panel and with a pair of pliers turned the metal rod beneath, he seemed pleased and said that that was the trouble …....no comment from me.
He was very defensive about the whole thing as indeed he had been the last time he came to look at the problem. Since I had said nor done anything to cause this I was at a loss to understand his aggressive stance. He insisted that there was nothing wrong with the oven and practically accused me of imagining the whole thing.

I said that surely in the twenty first century it was not unreasonable to expect to know the exact temperature at which the oven was operating and he replied that it was after all “only a domestic appliance.” What I wonder did he mean by that? Then he said something that made me realise why he was so worried, he claimed that the oven was an expensive model and that he had the receipt for over four hundred pounds to prove it.

All the this receipt proves is that either the man is a fool of worse he is a crook. After the cooker was installed I checked to manufactures recommended price and the price at a variety of outlets and the highest price that I could find it on sale at was two hundred and thirty pounds. Most places such as Dixon ,Comet etc. retail the model at two hundred and nine pounds.
Now if as we know trade prices are much cheaper that hight street prices there is some thing badly wrong and it is not just the cookers function. I merely mentioned that I could have brought it for much less and the whole mood changed, I wasn't to worry he would sort it out.

Now there are two things that make me seriously cross, one is being called a liar and the other, which I really resent is being taken for a fool. This man has it would seem scammed the estate out of a couple of hundred pounds and convinced them that the oven is fine and that I am a trouble maker. All I can say is that if he fixes it I shall take the matter no further, if the maintenance manager is fool enough too get rooked by such a childish ploy that is nothing whatever to do with me.

The miscreant returned having been unable to locate any replacement knobs and precoded to screw in to place two wooden cupboard handles , I kid you not! He then, with the aid of his thermometer spent the best part of an hour trying to write the various temperatures on to the knob, it was enough to make the cat laugh. He was forced to give up at length and very apologetic promised to apprise me of any progress on the knobs which he had ordered from the manufacturer.

He was so polite, so conciliatory where as this morning he was rude and accusatory,He now understands that I have cottoned on to his scam and is afraid of what I might do. He is safe for I am not vindictive, as long as I get the cooked fixed I do not care but this I guarantee, he will be straight in his dealings with me in the future and a more polite too.

I have a motto to which I always adhere and it is this. Never start an argument unless you know that you are in the right and never even start a fight that you cannot Finnish. This is why I almost always win.

This wretched business was not allowed to spoil our day and we all enjoyed the stir fry at dinner, it has been a while since I used the old wok and I think I shall used it again very soon.
Later I spent some time with Pa teaching him how to use Open Office and his e mail account, he is so much better at the moment and remembers things too. I showed him how to cut and paste and soon , when he has mastered that little lot I intend to set him up with a blog site so look out world Pa is on the loose!

THE HEAT IS ON BUT THE OVEN IS STILL COLD

Pheeeeew! Last night was a scorcher and I spent a large part of it drinking iced water as I watched this years young fox cubs learning the skills they will need in adult life. One of the adult foxes had acquired a dead rat and after a little teasing dropped it on the garden path where three youngsters awaited dinner, the tussle that followed was comical as first one and then another of the youngsters grabbed the prize and then lost it to one of its brothers . For half an hour the battle raged and then all at once the vixen strolled casually amongst the scrappers and proceeded to eat the rat, the young protested, the vixen snarled and ran off in to the dark garden. I suppose that the lesson they leaned last not was not to play with their food. Oh well it kept me amused for a while.

Lunch time arrived and I had still received no word as to when my oven was to be repaired, I dashed of a quick e mail to our illustrious maintenance manager asking for an up-date and asking if the estate would be prepared to pay for our take away dinners as they had done nothing to fix the oven. I also asked that things be speeded up as I was aware that he was going on a fortnights holiday on Saturday. I should tell you that a friend reported to us that on hearing of our plight that we would have to eat take away for a week or two. This does suggest that he has no intention of sorting things out for some time.

I got rather a shirty reply , telling me that their contract electrician had been obliged to order a thermometer to check our oven temperature.....some electrician. He added that the date of his holiday was as yet undisclosed but that some one had been designated to function for him in his absence. I must tell you that the date of his holiday has been common knowledge on the estate for months and that all who have dealings with him are have been looking forward to his fortnight off every bit as much as he has, perhaps more!

Meanwhile we must manage as best we may, salads are fine at the moment but I need the oven in order to bake so they had better remove digit from orifice or there will be trouble, that I guarantee!
Of course we realised long ago that the estate would like us to leave our cottage and even entered in to discussion with some charity for disabled gardeners in order to try to get us out. We still have friends on the estate and we have ways of finding things out. The upshot seems to have been that at least until Pa reaches retiring age they can only get us out if they pay us a considerable amount of money and of course they have no intention of doing so. That is why we have been on the receiving end of so many dirty tricks but as I said yesterday I gave up letting bullies get the better of me when I was seven years old and I do not intend to begin again now.

So far we have won every battle and of course this has not exactly endeared us the the estate management...tough! They can jolly well lump it!

Thank heavens for the griddle on which I made lots of lovely pancakes for breakfast and upon which cooked an omelette for my son's dinner. Pa and had had salad Pa's with corned beef and I had mine with tinned crab, hardly cordon bleu but with some new potatoes and lots of olives it was quite nice. In the absence of any cake or cookies we had iced cream for afters. The trouble is that the longer this goes on the more difficult it becomes to vary what we eat. My son loves pasta ans will eat it every day, Pa dislikes it and eats it once a week under protest. Pa loves rice dishes, my son hates rice and refuses to eat it under any circumstances, as you see it can be tricky. Ho hum!

I have decided to make a stir fry tomorrow and any one who does not like it can lump it, I am the cook and I like stir fry so that as they say is that!

Although I confess that I like many others find the heat a bit of a trial it is lovely to see the sun so bright and I love the smell of summer heat,so evocative of childhood pleasures, I am tempted to put up the wigwam in the garden again and sleep outside. It is so much cooler in the garden at night and now that we have mosquito nets we would not be at the mercy of these merciless little devils. Mmmmmmmm! I think I shall sleep on that one .Good night all.

DOWN THE AGES NOTHING CHANGES

The lot of the estate worker has change very little over the years. We are told that the day of the feudal system is past, I have news, in this neck of the woods it is alive and well. Serfdom is alive and well and the rich man in his castle is still crapping on the head of the poor man at his gate.

The house in which I live is part of a large estate which is in turn a part of an even larger estate which encompasses land in the far north and in the south of England. The estate upon which I live has had the misfortune to be disliked by the owner and has for many years been used as a cash cow to furnish improvements elsewhere. Most of the estate workers houses are in the same state of disrepair as the rented properties with dreadful damp and leaky roofs, let me give you an example.

Seven years ago on a stormy night two tiles were blown from my roof, Of course I reported the damage, nothing happened. During the following weeks I reported the damage several times and at last the estates maintenance manager called, took a cursory look and declared that there had been no damage that he could see. The fallen tiles were produced but nothing would budge the man, there had been no damage. Well of course I told him that his saying so did not make it so and that it made no sense to leave the roof so compromised all to no avail.

Time passed and the weather began to penetrate the roof, A large damp patch appeared upstairs and it spread over the next two years. During this time I call the maintenance department many time, we now had a new maintenance manager but the result was the same, the damp patch was nothing to do with the hole in the roof, a slight improvement since they were at least admitting that there was a hole.

Five years had now passed and the upstairs ceilings were covered in a thick black mould, I was taken ill with respiratory problems and for four months I was very ill. During this time I had test after test after test and at last the mould was reported to be the most likely cause of my health problems. Again we reported the problem and explained that by now the whole family was becoming unwell. The estates first answer was that the mould was my fault and that I should clean the house more often. Incensed by this slur I rose from my bed of pain and ill as I was wrote a couple of very forthright letters, one to the Estate Manager and another to the personal assistant of the Lord in question. I will leave you to imagine the tenner of my remarks, you know my style well enough by now. The e mails were sent at four on a Thursday afternoon, By eleven on Friday morning the scaffolders had been and gone, and on the Monday work began on the roof.

There was much more to it by now than replacing a couple of tiles, the whole gable had to be removed, the timbers replaced and it took several weeks. Two window frames which had rotted through had to be replaced and the upstairs treated for the toxic mould which had made me so ill and the whole redecorated with special paint. It had taken a total of six years to achieve this result and it cost the estate a fortune. There is no use looking for any logic in the situation, there is none and although it would be pleasant to believe that the estate had learned form this I have to report that this is not the case.

There as still homes on this estate with leaky roofs and black mould and this is largely because the people who live in them are too afraid to speak out, the threat of eviction or dismissal is always used in these cases, I know, they tried it with me. To illustrate this point I discovered today that the neighbours had not yet received their contract renewal on their leases for this year, they are quite late, could this be something to do with the planning proposals i.e. complain and we will not renew you can bet your boots it is and further more it is working, these people are too intimidated to join our cause and I do not blame them, they have cause to fear.

I gave up being bullied when I was seven years old and I refuse to be intimidated by these people

Here is the punch line, the people responsible for the mess when asked denied all knowledge of our difficulties,even the Estate Manager who's job it is to know all swore that this was the first he had heard of the matter the maintenance manger took the same stance in spite of the fact that he had threatened us on several occasions as to what would occur if we persisted in”making trouble”..
For over a year I have been for quite long periods of time with out and oven or a grill, during this period I have when I requested some action been told that this was not an emergency …....so we lived on fry ups and stews . I am at the present time reduced to baking my bread in next doors oven and roasting our meat on a home made barbecue in the garden...let us pray for fine weather!

By now you may have guessed that I am just a trifle narked by what has occurred and you are right, I am bloody incandescent. Last night I received from the estate manager a letter which implied that it was my fault that the oven was still faulty and that the electrician who came several weeks ago had reported back that there was nothing wrong with the appliance and that some one will come to look at the problem in due course.........I did of course reply with far more politeness that the situation warranted but now the gloves are off..

We have been plagued by rats for months , the estate knows this and does very little about it, they have implied that I have imagined these large rodents......yesterday I shot one of these monsters, we shoot about eight a week at the moment. It is my intention to parcel up the big game and send it to the Estate Manager some trick since they are imaginary don;t you think.

I always feel the better for a good rant thanks for listening.X