Mrs Miniver, good neighbor,

Today's reading is Mrs Miniver, the book from which the Oscar-winning WW2 propaganda movie of the same name was made.

I feel a kind of cultural obligation to read it, despite itself. The writing is women's magaziney cranked up to 11, labored attempts at poetic descriptions, with some more graceful parts.   Wealthy Londoners with a second home, servants, two months vacation in summer, late 1930s.

It opens as she comes home from vacation, carrying flowers, finds a fire already going, teatray in place, and she doesn't go to put the kettle on, she rings for tea. The scene is set, and you know her social setting.

Anyway the Miniver family ( even the name is opulent) suddenly find they're facing war, and what happens then.

I think I'm going to like it, if only for the social history. I'm looking forward to the dresses and hats. Chapter one already introduced the new car.

Meanwhile we had snow overnight and I looked out this morning to see my good neighbor, not Gary, the other side, quietly cleaning off my car. 

He'd done both of theirs and kept going. I opened the door to call thanks and he gave a little ah tis nothin shrug.  Why I love my neighbors.

I did get a walk, determined, despite the cold wind, and Helen's objections.  It wasn't  long but it was out, walking, mailbox then on round the block and back, blessing the length of this coat, and feeling quite smug. It's a far cry from making it to the pond, but that's going to happen in warmer weather.

This afternoon is a pot of tea -- it's barely two cups in size but there's something good about even a small pot -- piece of cake, knitted afghan on me,  crocheted one in progress. 

The house is so clean, I bless the cleaning family,  they leave me with little to do  between visits, just enjoy my surroundings.

I launder all the cloths they use, top up the spray bottles of cleaning fluid, put back the things I put out of their way, and my part's done for another month.

Happy day everyone, maybe we can find our bit and do it.

Meanwhile 

Good neighbors, good food, Textiles and Tea

Yesterday I looked out to this welcome sight, good neighbor Gary cleaning snow off my car. He stopped by later before he went out, to see if I was okay and did I need anything, and he will start my car today. Meanwhile he endorsed my plan to skip my meeting, roads icy, unless it was vital.  

I made the  promised pasta with puttanesca sauce, blue cheese crumbles on top.

Quite a few meals here, probably the last of the  pasta  will go into a soup. I forget the name of these curly pasta, but they're very good for this sauce.

Later I made a small easy  supper, starch day! Roast potato in a cheese crust, chopped hardboiled egg chucked over.  In the toaster oven.

You're best doing this with parmesan and Yukon gold potatoes. I had sharp cheddar and no name yellow potatoes, worked fine anyway.  Also best cooked in a glass  pan, to preserve the crust.

And Textiles and Tea featured a weaver who, among creating  complex double weave  structures, also upcycles by not only cutting old fabric into narrow strips to reweave, but actually harvesting silk thread from old kimonos to reweave. You'll see two examples of this in the pictures. She also does all kinds of other complicated weaving as you see.  And dyeing.

All these layers were woven in one process, at the same time

See the shuttle, left, holding silk thread? And on the right, a strip of the original kimono edges the new weaving. She does that to honor the original weaver.

I'm definitely impressed by the up cycling aspect of her work, though it's only a small part of her practice. I fancy trying that. Of course! 

And I finally bought one of my all-time favorite novels, hilariously funny, great characters, The Reluctant Widow, by Georgette Heyer. 

Disregard the corny illustration, they always play up the romance which is almost the least of it in Heyer's comedies of manners.

I've worn out a couple of paperback versions, and the type is a bit small, so I kindled it, despite its never going on sale. Pushing the boat out here!  But on days where plans about going out are foiled by ice, a great read. It's so funny I have to put it down to laugh here and there.

And are you up for a puzzle?

Happy day, everyone,  puzzle and keep warm in the northern hemisphere, dry in the southern.

Good neighbor, Mitered Tunisians, Breadtopia and Misfits

Busy day of many moving parts punctuated by thunderstorms.

Early this morning my neighbor came over to collect my car key because he wanted to inflate my tires while he was doing his own. He did mine first, honestly, he's worth all the strawberry jam and little somethings that end up at his door. Then he went on to attend to his pickup.

I was busy working on my first lace weight project using the blue yarn and a fine hook to try a Tunisian Mitered Square. Tricky getting something this small going until you have enough to hold while you work. 

Also getting your eye in to this scale is a trick, after the yarn I've been using. But I prevailed and now I have another scissor fob. You can see the relative size against the first one.

Scissor fobs are useful for helping you locate the scissors which have buried themselves in the threads and needlebooks and fabric in your bag. They're also good to keep track of your own stuff in workshops where several people might be using similar scissors. For embroiderers,  they're a chance to make a little personal stitchery. In my case they're also a handy destination for idle musing.

In the middle of this I heard the front door open, thought it was neighbor though he usually announces himself so as not to startle me. 

Looked up and there's a total stranger in the living room looking at me in bafflement. Beautiful young Indian lady. I asked if maybe she'd come into the wrong house? 

She said, I think I must have, sorry, sorry. Not the first time people have done this. They go by a vague set of directions, don't check the house number, end up chatting with me. Off she went to try again. 

Then knitting group on-line,  and I left when I heard a thump at the door, thought it was my Misfits box and it wasnt. It was my Breadtopia!!

I had finally realized what was putting me off making bread.  It was the mixing of the dough with a wooden paddle, best tool available but annoying, and hard on my hands.

A bit of research brought me to Breadtopia and this lovely dough mixing tool from Poland. While I was there I picked up some parchment paper already in sheets, and  some flour. 

I like very much how organic, small crop flour producers love to explain about their flours, how they work and why and what's the best use. 

I learned about bolted flour, too. It was pretty much a grain education. Bob of Bob's Red Mill is similarly a good teacher. They all love their product, real artisans. So now I can get on and make bread. 

Meanwhile I had a pasty for supper.These pasties are getting to be the kitchen drawer of cooking. Any old stuff ends up in them. 

Today was the original onion, mushroom, sausage, with additional leftover sweet potato, the last of the garlic Rondele soft cheese, and chunks of roast chicken. It was definitely a complete meal in your hand.

I ate it in the middle of a whirling dervish of a Misfits prep, when the box finally got here, through a massive thunderstorm.

Owing to consumer error, there are a lot of leeks. I meant two leeks, not two sets of two. Good thing I have the freezer. 

And between the leeks, scallions and white onions, I definitely have my share of the allium family.

I always prep rapidly, since the produce arrives cool and in good condition, and I want to get the best out of it, which means keeping it fresh or rapidly frozen while it's still at its best. I sound like a spokescook for Big Ag! Nooooo.

Anyway the cauliflower finally showed up, and my plans for it can now happen. The leeks and potatoes will be soup and possibly pasty filling. The broccoli will be just steamed, bit of butter. The mushrooms, who knows, they're always good somewhere. I expect if I try,  can figure out uses for the chocolate chips.

And the other items will find good homes in various dishes I have yet to figure out. The strawberries and blueberries might be jam. I wonder if you can make canteloupe jam.. with ginger? Must check.

After all this I sat down with a cup of tea and a little bowl of strawberries. They're different from our local ones in flavor.  Both are good. Our local ones are nearly done. The storm today probably didn't help, if the flattened plants on the patio are any indicator.

Nodding off now..