I was thinking of taking a day off from the ancestors.......................

.....................well I thunk about it, deleted the very long post I made first thing this morning and I'm just taking a breather from cleaning walls and ceiling.  I have to see the dietician this arvy - do you think it would be possible to lose 2 kgs by then, Nooooo, I didn't think so.

I wrote a very long and weighty piece this morning about relatives losing touch with each other even when they live in the same place, even the next street. I asked mum about this and she said each family kept to themselves, there was lots of fallings out over silly piddling things, there was no big scandal that she could remember, just petty squabbles. It seems such a shame now. I have uncles and an aunt that live still in the area their ancestors came from and cousins living near by yet they know nothing of them (or choose not to).

Rereading the original piece I wrote this morning I felt it was way too heavy for a simple craft blog. All those names on that family tree - we share a common ancestor, we have genes added to the pool from other places, we are all individual, we make choices, we move away from the pack. Sometimes the grass isn't always greener but it might be mowed and weed free and occassionally the view is great. There is so much in this lifetime for us to get wrapped up in, so many opportunities to occupy our minds and time with other things that there doesn't seem time to keep up with the reli's and before you know they are gone.  Families are not just for christmas and easter you know.  I am lucky that the people I am close to are family orientated, I have a large extended family full of in-laws and outlaw and I have wonderful new cousins who I feel I have known forever.  I am lucky that through the internet I am able to keep up with the family in the UK using Facebook.  I don't know why my mothers family grew apart and I wish I had stayed in contact other than christmas cards. 
So, phone a reli today, hug a reli today, be a good reli today.

Jan

Ami photo shoot

Here are a few ami's and bears that I have left.  I forgot to go to the yarn shop this morning - Bumped into a friend and we got stuck talking about family history, as we chatted her hubby had finished the shopping, gone through the check out and packed everything away into their car.  I finished the cross stitch. Now I'm going to catch up with the housework now Matts gone off to Taekwando for a few hours. Dinner is leftover spicy sausage casserole with garlic bread and pasta.

Jan

Playing with piccys

I am soooo bored.  I've been playing with my piccys. I know I've posted this little bear before but here she is again only multiplied.  I should make more. I was playing with colour changes and she looks quite nice as a varigated green colour and an orange colour.  Neither of which I have and I think I made this one up as I went along and didn't write the pattern down. Once the mittens are finished I might make a couple more bears up and see how they look.  I can work out how many stitches etc, its not rocket science and with amigurumi's the weirdier the better.

skeletons in the cupboard

Oh boy and what a nasty evil one it is too.   Most of the Australians I have spoken to about tracing their british ancestors are always eager to find a criminal amongst their ranks and they are quite proud of this.  I unfortunately have a fourth cousin just discovered that is a very nasty piece of work. I have discovered more of my nans family and have filled in a few more holes - they have william dying in 1900 as well Norma and don't know much about him.

I googled the family name and came up with a report of a murder trial of a young man with the same name, a horrible murder. He's just been given 23 years.  This was before my new cousin in the UK told me one of 'our' lot had just got 23 years.  Put two and two together and we have one evil evil man.

I'll have to go and immerse myself in getting this cross stitch finished to get rid of the nasty taste this discovery has left. 

Creature from the black lagoon

This is my latest project, as soon as I saw it in a vintage Aunt Lydia's yarn book I just knew I had to make it. What style, how cute. My grandbubs would love it - what kid wouldn't.  Okay so I'm joshing with you. I have posted this little horror before over on Rantings a few years ago. It looks like something out of a B grade horror movie - swamp monster or The Thing that crawled out of grannys knitting bag.  Its got to be the ugliest looking toy ever made. Now I've left you with the prospect of nightmares I'm off to put the bins out.

Oh Yes Norma, its like bread making - punching out that dough LOL.

Another beautiful day today, despite the fact I had to pay part of my council rates.  I treated myself to marshmallow choccy eggs on special at Spar in commiseration at parting with all that money.  The choccy must have given me energy - I sailed through the ironing and ripped a few weeds out as well. Finished the gloves last night and started on some mittens. Something not to taxing on the old grey cells.

I've got till thursday to finish off the cross stitch. Don't think I'll be starting the rose this time round.

Jan

Didn't get one thing at the garage sales and the new second hand shop was hopeless as well, though it did have some very nice vintage clothes in.

This morning I had a lie-in, then fired up by the beautiful blue skies I went off to market. A friend has a stall there so I hung out with her for an hour.  I wanted plants but the plant people weren't there.  I've got the house to myself for a while. Might do some meditation since the house is quiet. Everybody mowed this morning, whippersnippers going off all over the place - making the most of the good weather.  So now its peaceful I might just chill out.

I've got 5 Sue Grafton books to read and a couple of other novels. Plus I started knitting more fingerless gloves last night, just got half of the second one to do and thats it, might knit some mittens nexts. It doesn't get cold enough really here to warrant gloves but I'm sure I'll find good homes for them. I just can't sit and watch tele without something in my hands and I need to use up some of the yarn stash.

I don't do a lot of the needlefelting Norma, it does get rid of a bit of tension - stabbing bits of wool into things with a very sharp needle (which also hurts like hell if you stab yourself).  I haven't tried wet felting yet, though it is on the very long list of things to learn.

Jan

Day 3 - SouseLob

The Lobby is no more, as predicted Matt came in last night and dived into what was left with the last of the crusty bread.  So I can claim a success, it will go down on the list as comfort food. He didn't complain that it wasn't spicy enough (the celery leaves gave it just a little peppery bite) or that it looked disgusting. He listened when I told him about the ancestors coming home from downT'pit who would have been grateful for the meal he'd just had and sometimes thats all they had day after day.

Guess what we had as dessert..............christmas pudding and custard.  I found the last of the damm things at the back of the freezer (I won 3 puddings in 3 different raffles). THis one was the smallest so it should be gone by tomorrow. 

I should really craft today, I felted a knitted square and want to embellish it with a bit of needlefelting and embroidery. Its just a practice piece but I want to make it into a coffee plunger cosy. I need to finish off the cross stitch flowers and make a start on the rose one.  I've gone two days without doing 20 mins a day.

These are the practise piece needlefelted hearts, the biggest is about 4 inches tall.  I bought some hand dyed roving from a lady that spins and dyes her own wool. 

Should I go garage saling today, I want to but the lethargy is setting in. Its a beautiful day today, the rain has gone and the sky is the most beautiful blue, I have enough petrol in the car was a 50 klm round trip, come on girl, think of all the 'pretties' that are out there, thats it hit the publish button, come on you know you can do it, thats it, a little bit further

ScouseLob - Day 1 and Day 2

There are actually quite a few recipes for 'Lobby' as it was known in our house. Its amazing what you get when you google ScouseLob - its where the term Scousers (meaning Liverpudlians comes from).  The history of it is too much to go into here but it is interesting.

All I did for this one was use diced lamb (HeartSmart of course), but gravy beef or skirt which are all cuts suitable for long slow cooking are just as good. Tradionally it was left over meat and whatever veggies you had to hand.
This is Day 1 (8th April)

Antipodean ScouseLob

Half a kilo of meat  - Lamb or Beef - cut in chunks
3 or 4 large potatoes - some chopped small and some chunky (after the long slow cooking the smaller tatties will break down to thicken the gravy
2 large onions - chopped not too fine and not too big
3 carrots - prepared the same way as tatties
1 small swede  "         "        "     "    "     "
Sweet potato - I used half of a gold one. prepared as above (Not traditional I know before the purists jump on me)
olive oil (personal preference) Use your normal method of browning meat
Salt and pepper
Rosemary
parsley
Chopped up celery leaves (These have a taste similar to Parsley, a bit peppery) Optional.
Worcestershire sauce (Again - same comment as for the sweet potato)
Vegetable or lamb stock, I made enough up (Shop-bought liquid stock and added water)

Brown the meat in a large pan with a little oil

Add onions and gently cook till soft, add the chopped veggies and cook for a few mins, do not let burn, keep stirring.
Add the seasonings. herbs, worcestershire sauce and the stock. There should be enough stock to cover everything in pan.

Bring to boil, put the lid on pan and turn down the heat to lowest setting. It should just be simmering gently.
It should have at least 2 hours cooking time, Stir occassionally to check it isn't sticking to bottom of pan.
The constistancy should be thick and sludgy (sounds disgusting) but that is personal preference and it could be more souply if you like (Don't think thats a real word but I like it).  Mine cooked for 3 and half hours, with the lid off and the heat turned up slightly for the last half hour.  Serve with fresh crusty bread and pickled red cabbage.

Tradionally (well in our family) the meal was added to each day, more potaties, more carrots etc. It certainly tastes better 24 hours after cooking. The remains usually ended up being put into pies.

I think a lot of  Northern regional areas had their own versions.  Some say it had to be lamb others say Beef.
I wouldn't put anything other than the stated veggies in it. Definately not celery (apart from the chopped leaves and that is my own preference), definately no garlic (Boy, was that hard not to use - I stick in everything), no capsicums or zuchinni. 

Now it has Welsh connections, Lancashire and Liverpudlian as well and since I have found out I have both Welsh and Liverpool Ancestors as well as the Lancashire ones its definately 'an old family recipe'.


DAY 2 (9th April)

Half a pan left - Added more celery leaves, 2 more potatoes and an oxo cube. There a few pieces of meat left so they should break up even more to flavour everything.

Enjoy

Look at my 'prettys'

On the way back to the car I decided to call in at the op-shop, so glad I did. Since I have been very good and not had one bit of choccy over easter I treated myself to the ceramic tray, its about 12 inches long and PINK.  I'd eyed up the little spoons last time I was in and at 50c for the four it was a bargain. Not sure wether they are egg spoons, they are smaller than a teaspoon. 

I've been busy all day, all I have to do next door is and I'll do that first thing in the morning, my son came round to clear all the tree debris from the weekend he cleared for me, now I can see whats to be done in the garden. I wish this infernal drizzle would clear up so I can mow.

I've cooked up scouselob for dinner tonight, an old family favourite resurrected from the archives.  Its been simmering away for about 3 hours and smell delicious, lets hope it tastes like the one granny used to make.

Jan