Now We Wait....
Busy day today. Saw the doctor late morning, he asked me if I'd ever fallen as my knee looked as thought I'd broken it in the past.. Said that during my (long) life I have had a few falls, not that many, and none that caused me enough pain to think I'd done any harm.
Anyway, he has prescribed me some pills to help remove the pain. Normally they are prescribed for depression (and bed-wetting), but said in my case they were for pain relief and he was giving me a stronger dose. One pill to be taken at night for the first few days, then two a night after. Tomorrow I expect to wake up a very happy bunny, and not have had to get up in the night a couple of times to go to the loo!!! (that in itself would be a bonus).
When taking the pills, mustn't drink or drive (do neither) or use any machinery (does that include an electric hand mixer?), and so it could be I end up hitting the wrong keys on this keyboard when I next do my blog. Have to wait and see.
The doctor is phoning me on 1st September to see if the pills have helped. If they don't work he says he can give me a steroid injection into my knee but can only give these 3 times a year.
He also sent me to the hospital next to the surgery to have my knees X-rayed, so that was done before we returned home - in time for the Fire Service to come and fit a new smoke alarm. This one should last 10 years.
Then B went out to the sailing club where he now spends most of his time helping to put up shelves and no doubt being a general nuisance. I prepared is supper (duck confit with roasted veg) but only half-roasted the veg as he did not come home at the time he said he would (he never does), and left these - and the duck - for B to finish off in the oven on his return. As I'd just that minute turned the oven out, he was able to heat up the duck etc immediately, leaving me to retire to my chair in the living room and put my feet up (well one foot, if I put up my left leg it hurts my knee when I try to put it down).
Anyway, feel loads better now that my problem is in the hands (almost literally) of my doctor - who is a really lovely man and it is worth being poorly just to go and see him. Can now get on with planning my culinary cooking for the autumn and freezing away what I can when I can.
That's a good idea of yours Jane to use a loose pastry lid (as mentioned in yesterday's recipe) as a covering for other dishes. My B does not like pastry that has a 'soggy bottom', and by this I don't mean the base (normally avoided by blind-baking), but when the pastry covers a pie (steak and kidney for example), crimped to the base pastry at the edges. The steam as the filling cooks stops the underside of the lid crisping up. So I often cut the pastry the same size as the topping, and cook that separately on a baking sheet, covering the pie with foil, then assemble together when serving.
You had a real bonus Jane when your garden had a real apple tree rather than a flowering cherry. Crab apples are very sour and limited to their use. As to using apples whole (without peeling and coring), all I can suggest is cutting them into quarters and cooking them down - with a very little water - until softened, then removing the flesh and discarding the peel and seeds. This way it might be possible to cook them until just tender and keep the flesh intact to use in pies. Otherwise mash up and use for apple sauce (which in itself has many uses).
Larger apples can have the peel left on, but scored round the centre, and then baked in the oven. If you can remove the core, the hole can be filled with butter and sugar before baking.
Very pleased to hear Sheridan, that you are enjoying reading the Achives from the start. Have to say I really like reading them myself (it's so long since I wrote the first ones that in all honesty can't even remember saying any of it - so it is if someone else has done the writing).
What I like about them is that a whole month comes up - or at least part of a month as I've had to remove most of the chat and half the recipes to keep enough room for the best to remain - and even when I only want to find one recipe, I enjoy scrolling up (or down) to speed-read the rest as there is so much more worth reading (at least I hope you think there is).
A welcome to Gill. Possibly we could have done something similar with our smoke alarm to prevent it bleeping, but when it was fitted we were told we mustn't touch it - just call in the Fire Service to fit a new one. From what the people said today it seems we can now remove the cover and do something like you said, so maybe this is a 'new improved' model. They have given us a booklet and phone number to call if there is a problem (which no doubt B will 'mislay' so think I will pin it to the cork board in the kitchen (hardly ever used and I don't know why).
What an excellent way Kathryn to use black pudding. I've occasionally bought a couple or three slices for B, and think I might have some lurking in the freezer, so will definitely include this when I wish to 'beef up' a dish when I haven't much 'proper' meat.
During the war I remember my mother serving stuffed marrow at least once a week and possibly two (my dad grew a lot on top of our Anderson shelter - and they store for months). Due to shortage of meat, the marrow was stuffed mainly with thyme and parsley or sage and onion stuffing (like we make now using packet mixes), but with a meaty filling (as you suggested) it would taste wonderful.
Am hoping to go to the church meeting (Bright Hour) tomorrow afternoon. Much depends on how I feel and how the new pills will have affected me. Don't want to nod off during the meeting, but as I didn't go last week, feel I need to go and sit with 'like-minded' people. It's nice to know that I'm not the only one that has had strange things happen to them, although they all take it in their stride. Most of them have had at least one parent (usually the mother) who was also psychic. I did have an great-aunt on my mother's side who was psychic but she ended up in a mental home (possibly wasn't mental at all but 'seeing/hearing' what other people didn't would make them believe she was out of her mind.
Now that I've decided to write my blog occasionally, this doesn't mean great gaps between. It would be difficult for me to break a daily routine of 8 years anyway, but at least the pressure is off, and I know if I do miss a day you won't mind. So I could be back tomorrow, or it might be Wednesday. Even I won't know until I sit down and write. So watch this space...TTFN.
Anyway, he has prescribed me some pills to help remove the pain. Normally they are prescribed for depression (and bed-wetting), but said in my case they were for pain relief and he was giving me a stronger dose. One pill to be taken at night for the first few days, then two a night after. Tomorrow I expect to wake up a very happy bunny, and not have had to get up in the night a couple of times to go to the loo!!! (that in itself would be a bonus).
When taking the pills, mustn't drink or drive (do neither) or use any machinery (does that include an electric hand mixer?), and so it could be I end up hitting the wrong keys on this keyboard when I next do my blog. Have to wait and see.
The doctor is phoning me on 1st September to see if the pills have helped. If they don't work he says he can give me a steroid injection into my knee but can only give these 3 times a year.
He also sent me to the hospital next to the surgery to have my knees X-rayed, so that was done before we returned home - in time for the Fire Service to come and fit a new smoke alarm. This one should last 10 years.
Then B went out to the sailing club where he now spends most of his time helping to put up shelves and no doubt being a general nuisance. I prepared is supper (duck confit with roasted veg) but only half-roasted the veg as he did not come home at the time he said he would (he never does), and left these - and the duck - for B to finish off in the oven on his return. As I'd just that minute turned the oven out, he was able to heat up the duck etc immediately, leaving me to retire to my chair in the living room and put my feet up (well one foot, if I put up my left leg it hurts my knee when I try to put it down).
Anyway, feel loads better now that my problem is in the hands (almost literally) of my doctor - who is a really lovely man and it is worth being poorly just to go and see him. Can now get on with planning my culinary cooking for the autumn and freezing away what I can when I can.
That's a good idea of yours Jane to use a loose pastry lid (as mentioned in yesterday's recipe) as a covering for other dishes. My B does not like pastry that has a 'soggy bottom', and by this I don't mean the base (normally avoided by blind-baking), but when the pastry covers a pie (steak and kidney for example), crimped to the base pastry at the edges. The steam as the filling cooks stops the underside of the lid crisping up. So I often cut the pastry the same size as the topping, and cook that separately on a baking sheet, covering the pie with foil, then assemble together when serving.
You had a real bonus Jane when your garden had a real apple tree rather than a flowering cherry. Crab apples are very sour and limited to their use. As to using apples whole (without peeling and coring), all I can suggest is cutting them into quarters and cooking them down - with a very little water - until softened, then removing the flesh and discarding the peel and seeds. This way it might be possible to cook them until just tender and keep the flesh intact to use in pies. Otherwise mash up and use for apple sauce (which in itself has many uses).
Larger apples can have the peel left on, but scored round the centre, and then baked in the oven. If you can remove the core, the hole can be filled with butter and sugar before baking.
Very pleased to hear Sheridan, that you are enjoying reading the Achives from the start. Have to say I really like reading them myself (it's so long since I wrote the first ones that in all honesty can't even remember saying any of it - so it is if someone else has done the writing).
What I like about them is that a whole month comes up - or at least part of a month as I've had to remove most of the chat and half the recipes to keep enough room for the best to remain - and even when I only want to find one recipe, I enjoy scrolling up (or down) to speed-read the rest as there is so much more worth reading (at least I hope you think there is).
A welcome to Gill. Possibly we could have done something similar with our smoke alarm to prevent it bleeping, but when it was fitted we were told we mustn't touch it - just call in the Fire Service to fit a new one. From what the people said today it seems we can now remove the cover and do something like you said, so maybe this is a 'new improved' model. They have given us a booklet and phone number to call if there is a problem (which no doubt B will 'mislay' so think I will pin it to the cork board in the kitchen (hardly ever used and I don't know why).
What an excellent way Kathryn to use black pudding. I've occasionally bought a couple or three slices for B, and think I might have some lurking in the freezer, so will definitely include this when I wish to 'beef up' a dish when I haven't much 'proper' meat.
During the war I remember my mother serving stuffed marrow at least once a week and possibly two (my dad grew a lot on top of our Anderson shelter - and they store for months). Due to shortage of meat, the marrow was stuffed mainly with thyme and parsley or sage and onion stuffing (like we make now using packet mixes), but with a meaty filling (as you suggested) it would taste wonderful.
Am hoping to go to the church meeting (Bright Hour) tomorrow afternoon. Much depends on how I feel and how the new pills will have affected me. Don't want to nod off during the meeting, but as I didn't go last week, feel I need to go and sit with 'like-minded' people. It's nice to know that I'm not the only one that has had strange things happen to them, although they all take it in their stride. Most of them have had at least one parent (usually the mother) who was also psychic. I did have an great-aunt on my mother's side who was psychic but she ended up in a mental home (possibly wasn't mental at all but 'seeing/hearing' what other people didn't would make them believe she was out of her mind.
Now that I've decided to write my blog occasionally, this doesn't mean great gaps between. It would be difficult for me to break a daily routine of 8 years anyway, but at least the pressure is off, and I know if I do miss a day you won't mind. So I could be back tomorrow, or it might be Wednesday. Even I won't know until I sit down and write. So watch this space...TTFN.
posted by Shirley at 10:06 pm
<< Home