The Sturdy Soapbox

You party, I'll sleep...

New year's eve poll

Drunk again

All it took was a couple of sniffs of the sherry trifle and the welder is anybody's.

Nice days aren't planned, they happen

My brother did me a favour in a way.  We were supposed to get together today and I was cooking a Chinese banquet which he gave me the money for.

It was effort enough to cook the Indian stuff I did for PMG and Linds (but we had a lovely evening by the way).

Bro rang me and said that he had to take  his kids who were all home from university and the older lad the Air Force.  ?  Kids have full social lives, but still "need" chauffeurs".

We're going to do the Chinese meal in a couple of weeks and then, another meal around my birthday, which Anita reminded him they had not yet been invited to, but that's my brother...

Whilst I was chatting, the Skype made a noise and it was Dean in NYC.  The voice quality was awful, because he was routing it through a blackberry device, a food processor and a lap top before interfacing withthe internet, so, we went to text chat.

Little Channie is recovering from her paw surgery, but can't do anything, I mean anything.  Can't work a remote for the telly, nothing !  Dean is having to do it all for her.

Just hearing from my cool Manhattanites made my day.  Then OBC called and cried his lot.  He's so tired or turkey, he's had to demand fish and chips for tea.

The Cristmas period, it's hell isn't it ?

Wait till I post the Wally the Welder pics !!!

There's a lot of it about

Saw Bob the Butcher this morning briefly.  He was a miserable as sin, having spend his Christmas in bed with "the bug", then later I spoke to someone who works with OBC and both he and his wife had spent a lot more time under the covers than they'd planned (well, at least they'd got each other).

As I write, I feel a lot better than I did two or even one day ago.  I had to pop out for some bits and pieces for when PMG and Linds come over on Friday, making the most of my last but one day with a car.  I am really going to be pissed off come Saturday onwards.

I still need to go get some samosas tomorrow, but as I write, there's chicken tikka cooking in the oven, I bought some little bhajias this morning, I've par cooked potatoes for dry potato curry with methi leaf.  My, I just tasted a bit of the tikka, it's bloody gorgeous.  I marinated it for three days this time.

Fortunately, when I bought the chicken, I bought two extra pieces.  One for Bob the Butcher and one for me, leaving enough for the meal I am setting up for tomorrow.  Good thinking eh ?

That vile Mr. Quilp

ITV have put on a superb adaptation of The Olde Curiosity Shop and boy what a good job they did, especially putting Derek Jacobi in one of the lead roles.

Dickens can be portrayed really well, like the BBC did with Bleak House and then you can have the Muppet versions (and bloody well keep em).

In fact the only bad thing about this latest adventure was the fact it was on commercial telly and so, interrupted by those annoying sofa / kitchen / bed adverts.

I read up a bit on Wikipedia and discovered that Little Nell and her grandfather fled north to the Midlands and into Shropshire, the village of Tong is mentioned.  Of course, Charles Dickens was a well travelled man and in the 1830's visited America.  I was amazed some years back to learn that several of the places I visited had already been visited by Mr. Dickens, Roosevelt Island for example, where he sought the asylum (lunatic not political).  It's still there, minus residents (they all live now on Manhattan).

It was also fun to see Zoe Wanamaker tonight as Mrs. Jarley, the owner of the waxworks (oddly reminded me of Darlo Sue).  I wonder if it could have been the gin, delicately drunk from a china cup served from a china teapot ?

So what did you get ?

Spare a thought for Channie

Whilst many of us are nursing hangovers or just chillin with turkey sandwiches, poor Channie is having surgery on her paw today.

She fell over some months back and since then has had a lot of trouble just carrying out the simplest of tasks, like clutching a hot dog, squeezing the ketchup bottle.  She picks her time though, Boxing day for surgery.  She won't be doing much boxing afterwards.  Someone give her something sweet to take her mind of things.

The Christmas that wasn't

All the preparation for one day and I woke up feeling rough.  OBC threw in his pearls of wisdom this evening suggesting maybe I'd mixed too  much grape and grain last night.  I wish it had been that simple, but I had a bottle of Soave and about 4 cans of Stella.

I cooked me lunch, but didn't have it.  Went back to bed at 3:30 after I'd watched HM the Queen on telly so provided I feel a bit perkier tomorrow, I shall make some more roasties and repeat the operation hopefully sitting down  to a proper meal.

The Dr. Who Christmas special was pretty good and Kylie played a really good part.  Sadly there were no Daleks.

I'm going to have an early night and hopefully sleep off this grog.

What's your favourite carol ?

And don't say Santa Claus is coming to town like Wally the Welder would.

I didn't have a particularly religious Christian upbringing and I would not count myself as a religious person today, but I was always dragged in to perform at carol services, ascension day services, Easter concerts etc.

I do genuinely like Christmas carols except for Away in a manger.  I always had problems with that line "to live with thee there".  Thee there ??? 

The most beautiful and tragic carol of all I think is Lully Lullay and because I think it is so beautiful, here's the lyrics:

Lullay Lully The Covenant Carol 16th Century English

Lullay, Thou little tiny Child, By, by, lully, lullay. Lullay, Thou little tiny Child, By, by, lully, lullay. O sisters too, how may we do, For to preserve this day. This poor youngling for whom we sing By, by, lully, lullay. Herod the king, in his raging, Charged he hath this day. His men of might, in his own sight, All young children to slay. That woe is me, poor Child for Thee! And ever morn and day, For thy parting neither say nor sing, By, by, lully, lullay.