Strawberry overload..

I am now officially sick to death of strawberries. Not a comment generally heard from the girl in Wimbledon during the tennis season, but then I am experiencing a bumper crop this year - dare I say glut? How many strawberry and yoghurt breakfasts can a girl eat?  Every day for the last 3 weeks?

I didn't expect a season like this, but it has been relatively warm and the rain all came at the right time to plump those little fellas up. There is some serious weeding out to be done in the strawberry bed for next season I think. And I've given up on the little wild strawberries in the flower beds - hopefully the birds will benefit.

I've eaten them incessantly, given them away, forced them on friends. It's now time to bite the bullet and start freezing them for a spot of jam making later on. I know it seems such a waste for these fulsome, organic beauties, but I will appreciate it later on when the weather turns cold....

The Formative Years

I recently started an idle review of my fave literature from the formative years (pre secondary school). I was talking about it with the folks the other day, and Dad who was the primary story-reader in our house, remembers knowing much of the early stuff by heart.

First up would have to be The Kitty-Poosies by Ivy Wallace. I still have the tiny book - missing it's cover and ragged at the edges. Who can forget such passages as...

"What can I call my Kitty-Poosies?" wondered Mama Pudditat. "The grey one has such very white paws - I think I will call her Snowy-toes," she purred. "And the little ginger one is just the colour of toffee - he can be called Toffeekins. And the third kitten will be Purry-paws because he is always purring."

Well, maybe you had to be aged 3 to get the thrill of this, but it was big stuff in our household...

The next big impact would have to be a long stream of superhero comics that Dad started buying when I was ill with chicken pox or the like.  But which also ignited a desire to have a head start on reading.  Being the micro feminist that I was, I especially loved my female superheroes, with Supergirl at the top of the list (quick flashback to me streaking around the house with a pillowcase hooked around my shoulders as a cape...)

My mother also influenced my reading choice with her childhood books (yes the original musty old tomes retrieved from the back of a closet on the farm). Little Women and Anne of Green Gables stand out especially and I read my way through both series. I think the portrayal of gentle femininity was meant to have a good influence on me.  Tough luck, Mum.

And then how could I forget my initiation into classic Sci Fi through the books of Isaac Asimov (the I, Robot stories) and Philip K Dick and his unique view of the future through novels and short stories. I think Dad might have been a little concerned when his 11-12 yr old daughter started hanging out in these library aisles, but they were really my introduction to philosophy and quirky logic on a cosmic scale.

Next installment will be the High School years....

Berry lovely

So it's produce city once again in my household.  Despite weeks of rain, my rampant strawberry patch is producing the biggest crop I've ever had. While we might see strawberries as delicate little blighters, I really think they are just old scrubbers.  Three years ago I chucked down some bark chipping around the clothesline, to cover a big area of infill/hardcore resulting from the removal of a large pond.


I happened to have a pot of strawberries sitting nearby.  Since then, the strawberries have sent out runners, jumped ship and now cover the whole of the barked area - about 3-4 metres square.  They seem to be tough little buggers and love it in this rather harsh setting.


And I'm not complaining - strawberries and yoghurt for breakfast every morning is something I don't get tired of.  Also, some wee wild strawberries somehow got established in my flowerbeds (good ground cover) and they are adding to the harvest.

So I took inspiration from the burgeoning garden and had a day in the kitchen rustling up some preserves - more grapefruit and lemon marmalade and a large batch of my world famous tomato relish.  This should keep me, my friends and neighbours happy for a while....

Last Jubilee post...

I promise!  But I just had to show off my baking efforts for the Wandle Trust Jubilee themed cleanup in St Georges Park on Sunday. Mega baking (large chocolate cake and Union Jack berry topped lemon cakes), cucumber sandwiches with herb butter (no crusts)and roses and peonies from my own garden, stuck into a Spode china teapot.  And of course the obligatory flags and bunting.

I have now done the Jubilee to death and just want a cup of tea and a lie down...

Jubilation

Well, the long weekend that celebrated a 60 year reign for the lovely Liz is over (is that my OBE going down the gurgler?) Wet in places, with dry patches - it could have been worse considering the number of outdoor events planned, and this is Britain after all...

You couldn't pay me to go into town to celebrate and observe the festivities first hand, however I saw a lot from the dry and comparative comfort of my couch (hot tea, snacks, a loo within easy reach and a stagger up the stairs to bed afterwards). No traffic nightmares for me....

I did partake of 2 street parties - 1 wet and 1 dry.  The dry one (which was round the corner from me) benefited from the weather and was a pleasant event.  A nice setting on a patch of green under a large tree, good 'ladies - a plate' food and byo grog, gentle activities for the kids (face painting, circus school for littlies), old photos up on the fence showing pics from VE day celebrations on the same spot and maps where local residents stuck pins in to indicate their national origins (quite a diverse international bunch in my area - and met another 3 kiwis).

Most of the locals I know were there and I met at least as many again.  I should walk round the area more often - I just don't seem to run into them in the day to day. A few of us decided we should make this an annual event - a summer party. I wouldn't mind helping out next year you know...