JAM & other things

Splendid long weekend, featuring Acid-on-Sea (squelchy acid techno! on a boat!), Acid-off-Sea (in a pub in Old St & then one of those under-the-arches places nr London Bridge), the making of JAM, the consumption of pizza-&-beer, a visit to this year's temporary building at the Serpentine Gallery, and some time spent in pubs.

Ceefax Acid Crew, on Saturday: "A Ceefax Acid Rave! In daylight! This should be interesting..." (he rose to the challenge admirably, I'm sure you'll be pleased to discover). The afterparty stuff was OK, but the Old St pub was rather too hot in the part where there was dancing; and by the time we'd been at the London Bridge bit for an hour or so, where dancing was more comfortable, I was *knackered*. A fine day anyway, though - & glad that marnameow & bluedevi could make it along to join self & dogrando for the later bit (helpfully, sbp & boyofbadgers both made it only for the actual boat part, so wristband-swapping worked out nicely).

Then on Sunday Marna & I went to the allotment & picked vast quantities of rhubarb, which we then turned into 2.5 litres of lovely tasty rhubarb & ginger jam. And still had enough left over for a rhubarb crumble, & quite a bit of spare rhubarb in both of our freezers. *And* we may yet get another small harvest this year. I also attempted grape jam (with the grapes I've had in the freezer for the last year, picked from the garden at Webster Road); but sadly we discovered that when one puts the oven on, for example to cook rhubarb crumble, it heats the stovetop up by about 30deg, which is enough to turn jam into sticky toffee. So I have two jars of very tasty sticky grape toffee, instead. The plan is to melt it before use & use it as grape toffee sauce. We are also contemplating asking Ernie-at-the-allotment if we can pick *lots* of his blackberries, & turn them into jam as well. Or possibly blackberrynapple crumble. Mmmm blackberries.

Today I have been Solving Work-Type Problems, hurrah for me.

JAM & other things

Splendid long weekend, featuring Acid-on-Sea (squelchy acid techno! on a boat!), Acid-off-Sea (in a pub in Old St & then one of those under-the-arches places nr London Bridge), the making of JAM, the consumption of pizza-&-beer, a visit to this year's temporary building at the Serpentine Gallery, and some time spent in pubs.

Ceefax Acid Crew, on Saturday: "A Ceefax Acid Rave! In daylight! This should be interesting..." (he rose to the challenge admirably, I'm sure you'll be pleased to discover). The afterparty stuff was OK, but the Old St pub was rather too hot in the part where there was dancing; and by the time we'd been at the London Bridge bit for an hour or so, where dancing was more comfortable, I was *knackered*. A fine day anyway, though - & glad that marnameow & bluedevi could make it along to join self & dogrando for the later bit (helpfully, sbp & boyofbadgers both made it only for the actual boat part, so wristband-swapping worked out nicely).

Then on Sunday Marna & I went to the allotment & picked vast quantities of rhubarb, which we then turned into 2.5 litres of lovely tasty rhubarb & ginger jam. And still had enough left over for a rhubarb crumble, & quite a bit of spare rhubarb in both of our freezers. *And* we may yet get another small harvest this year. I also attempted grape jam (with the grapes I've had in the freezer for the last year, picked from the garden at Webster Road); but sadly we discovered that when one puts the oven on, for example to cook rhubarb crumble, it heats the stovetop up by about 30deg, which is enough to turn jam into sticky toffee. So I have two jars of very tasty sticky grape toffee, instead. The plan is to melt it before use & use it as grape toffee sauce. We are also contemplating asking Ernie-at-the-allotment if we can pick *lots* of his blackberries, & turn them into jam as well. Or possibly blackberrynapple crumble. Mmmm blackberries.

Today I have been Solving Work-Type Problems, hurrah for me.