Bad parenting

The Girl has been off school for a couple of days - eventually we kept her at home after she returned from school with tales of being told she should be at home by her teacher. I always think though - it's far warmer in school than at home and she's better off in the warmth.

Sunday was the first Sunday of advent. Not an occasion that has ever meant anything to me, but Jussi's family celebrate it - lighting a candle and such. To add to that Christmassy feel we had our first snow which I rushed out to capture on camera. But I needed a subject, and a snotty girl was the nearest to hand. Not a bad piccy - in that it shows you what it was like. It's called "Dicing with pneumonia".

Weather

What with all the flooding everywhere it seems incredibly churlish to complain about the amount of water we've had falling from the sky of late. Everything is getting very wet and it's not nice. The old stable has a slightly leaky roof - we've patched in places and this keeps the water in check most of the time - until the day when we replace the whole roof - but all this rain is beating our repairs. And everything is all rather sodden.

It has been quite windy too. Not madly, just irritatingly. But the thrill is it gave me a chance last week for the first serious use of the anannanonomometer Jussi bought me for my birthday. So, on Wednesday, I measured 20.8 m/s (46 mph, 75 kph, or just gale force 9). And I didn't try particularly hard - just stepped out into the garden which, relatively speaking, is quite sheltered, and compared to many days we've had, it didn't seem all that windy.

My sentences seem to be getting longer. Perhaps the rural isolation is turning me into a rambling bumpkin.

Hmmmm.

A home for Hugo

There are all kinds of reasons why sometimes I don't manage to blog. Sometimes it's because I want to say something but can't quite figure out how to say it, sometimes it's cos I don't feel like it, sometimes it's cos there's nothing to say, sometimes there's too much to say...etc. Anyway I've been off-line recently for all the above. Of all the things I've omitted to blog of late there are two spectacularly significant events.

Firstly the completion of the lean-to - started with such urgency way back when. Here it is - labouring by yours truly, block work by Malc, magnificent holes by Christian, frame design and build and doors by Jussi. It's big, it's warm its glorious and we built it ourselves. Those who have known Jussi long enough might recognise Warrender-Park-Road-Bathroom-Blue. Funny how those old tins of paint get used up eventually.

It's first job is to house Hugo - an old timer we've borrowed to 'cover' the goatlings, and a couple of last years first time mums who aren't milking as well as we hoped (and it also puts them out of synch with the others so that we don't get overwhelmed with kids like we did last year). Anyway - as you can see Hugo is a bit of a toothless old sod. A character through and through. But pure Anglo Nubian and hopefully soon to be father to a handsome clutch of kids.

And hopefully soon to be returned to his adoring owner - cos MAN he stinks, and everyone who comes into contact with him stinks, and the house stinks ..... and Rebecca is coming to see us this weekend. Unfortunately I think we omitted to warn her...

Competence competence competence

So I drives all the way the Aberdeen - and it takes a long time mainly as a result of of all the road works on the A96 - due to the last serious bout of flooding - and I goes to the job interview at 4pm - a rotten time for an interview - and it's a dead simple interview really - asking questions the likes of which I've asked hunnerds of candidates in my time - but somehow not the questions I was expecting and somehow flapped and gulped like a drowning fish and totally fluffed that one thank you very much. And I drives home again. And I gets home to be slaughtered by a cold-like virus.

Bleugh.

My thoughts today are with the wet ones. Cumbria and Dumfriesshire. We seem to be in the eye of the storm here - beautifully calm and sunny - but down there looks grim. In 2004 a report by Sir David King, then the UK Govt Chief scientific adviser, predicted that, by the end of this century, what were once considered to be events that will only happen every 150 years, would be happening every 10 years. So the "1000 year" floods we had yesterday will have become events that can be expected to happen every 66 years.

As usual there was the TV footage of the besodden bemoaning the lack of action - "they should do more - build more flood defences" etc etc. You matey-pie, should get out of yer 4X4, and scream for higher taxes so Govt has the funding. Roughly, the UK Govt needs an extra £1bn per year to spend on flood defences if construction is to keep up with the worsening climate.

Climate change is real, we are seeing it in our own lives, the predictions are getting worse and politicians need mandate to do something about stopping it, and for finding the cash to adapt to it. And that it down to you.

Social services

Sorry - not blogged in almost a week. After the last post social services came and arrested me and took me to Guantanamo Bay. Hopefully I'll be able to post next week - when I'm going to Aberdeen for a job interview. Big City Lights.

Pollock Saratoga

Fish - three good sized ones and a wee for good measure - gutted and cleaned

Garlic - crushed

Parsley - chopped

Tomato - sliced

Green Pepper - sliced

Wine Wine - glug glug glug - splash

Olive Oil - glug glug

Plenty of Salt and Pepper

Stuff the fish - add the wet, season, bake in sealed container/foil.

Bingo.

Why this recipe should be Saratoga - the site of one of the worlds most important battles ever - no really it sez so on Saratoga.org - I've no idea. I found it on the web, but refined it through the addition of green pepper. Naturally the freshest fish - caught by yer own fair hands, is imperative - and I'd suggest serving it with rice cos the sauce turns out to be one of the deliciousist ever and needs a bland carrier.

I'd recommend fishing on one of those beautifully crisp and still winter days, and take your camera with new batteries, following the advice of an esteemed blog reader.

We fished with two new spinners - I caught three fish on five casts with the first - then The Girl tried and the spinner was snagged......and then lost. Then I cast once with the other new spinner, caught a fish - then The Girl tried and the spinner was snagged.....and then lost.

Good sized fish, so even with the cost of the spinners it was a reasonably cheap meal, but The Girl was a bit despondent.

Check the tide tables, this tide was only about 3m - any higher and I think The Girl might get washed away.

Tasty recipe of the day

Hold me back hold me back hold me back.

Bug yer minister

Follow this link to write to Alistair Darling (or equivalent if you're not a UK voter) and ask him to discuss climate change at tomorrows G20 finance ministers meeting in St Andews. You need to do it today or tomorrow (November 6 & 7th).

G20 managed to find £600bn to stimulate the economy after the financial crash last year. Groups like Avaaz are only asking for £150bn climate change package. Well it would be start.

Add your voice:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/climate_finance_emergency/98.php?CLICK_TF_TRACK

(when I wrote this they had got just over 5000 signatures, they are aiming for 25000 - how many have they got now?)

Saturday night

Yay! We went to the pub!

Totally spontaneously we got the opportunity to spend nigh on three hours in the pub on a Saturday night. FAB-U-LOUS. And not only was it an excellent little birthday treat but it was Halloween and therefore an excuse to lay on a dance in the village hall and for the locals to get dressed up for it. The pub was rockin'. Lots of young uns, not too many inebriates and plenty of high spirits. We had babysitting duties so couldn't get to the dance - one day we will, for better or for worse.

Our Saturday night excursions were fueled by a black forest gateau that I'd asked Jussi to bake for me. A fantastic treat - I think only the second bfg I've had in my life, the first being on my 19th birthday when I was too pissed to notice.

And it was all washed down by an unfeasibly large mug of tea from those nice people in Bonaly. This is a 1.5 pint mug - over 800ml - two tea bag sized. Phenomenal.