Povey Prattle

My father was an only child so I had no aunts or uncles from his side of the family. Mum was one of eight.  She had one sister (Kate) who died of tetanus poisoning way back when, long before I was born. Her youngest brother Albert was killed in Normandy in August 1944. From her five surviving brothers I had five aunts by marriage, one of whom I met only once. I knew the other Aunts a bit but did not know them well, all except for Irene.  May her memory be a blessing. Auntie Irene was always my favourite. She came to the U.S.A, from the U.K. maybe four or five times to see me, and to see her dear niece by birth Catherine  (Kippy) on Staten Island. We both adored her. Irene began a long journey into dementia.  When she could no longer take care of herself my cousins were able to secure her a place in a quite lovely "care home" in our native city of Bristol, U.K. Auntie Irene died today at age ninety three. I saw her last year (2017) in that care hom...

Very bad photo' shop ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The fruit I mentioned yesterday.... ...is a Persimmon.  New to me and utterly delicious.

I'd read about these, but  usually in a history or a novel in which ( for example) a western European traveler of the 18th century arrived at a market in (say) Persia and noted their abundance. "A relic of history" I thought. A few weeks ago my ex-Sarasota-now California friend Susan R noted that she had harvested, or had been given 50 lbs of them. I saw some in a Sarasota market this morning and bought some, not knowing what to expect, but thinking that if Susan liked them I might too. "Oh my stars!"  I discovered a gem of fruity sweetness, with a delightfully crunchy skin.  I'll be back at the market tomorrow  to lay in a store before they go out of season. ------------------------- I've never knowingly eaten one of these odd looking root vegetables so I took a chance and bought one in another market the day before yesterday. They are a devil to peel  (do they have to be peeled?).  I cut one into small pieces, boiled the piece...

Charlie Pierce A rticle posted on Face Book by my friend and former colleague Manny F **  See below for information about Charlie Pierce  ----------------------------------------------------------------------- "In my life, I have watched John Kennedy talk on television about missiles in Cuba. I saw Lyndon Johnson look Richard Russell squarely in the eye and and say, " And we shall overcome." I saw Richard Nixon resign and Gerald Ford tell the Congress that our long national nightmare was over. I saw Jimmy Carter talk about malaise and Ronald Reagan talk about a shining city on a hill. I saw George H.W. Bush deliver the eulogy for the Soviet bloc, and Bill Clinton comfort the survivors of Timothy McVeigh's madness in Oklahoma City. I saw George W. Bush struggle to make sense of it all on September 11, 2001, and I saw Barack Obama sing 'Amazing Grace' in the wounded sanctuary of Mother Emanuel Church in Charleston, South Carolina. ...

Yes, Sundays and holidays are not to his liking. 'Tis because there is no mail delivery on those days. My lovely dog is crazy about our regular Letter Carrier. The mail usually arrives mid to late afternoon at which time I am often to be found on my Lanai reading a good book. The letter carrier ( Sh-ane ) first delivers mail on a street which is roughly parallel to mine, but on the other side of our lovely retention pond.  Zi-Zi (Zion) recognizes the sound of his van and becomes alert, even more when he sees the van (across the pond, some three hundred yards away). That's our signal to go outside.  I know that the mail will arrive in about five to eight minutes. We wait.  Zion holds his head up high. When the mail van gets near I let Zi-Zi off the leash and he bounds forward ready to greet my letter carrier, not only to get a treat, but also because he is is entirely fond of Sh-ne, and Sh-ane of him. I may have posted about this before. ...

I was at the office of my Podiatrist  (Dr. Arthur C)  for a treatment this morning. I asked if he had thought about merging his business with a local Landscaper . He was bemused until I said you could call the merged business  " FOOT AND YARD"    He groaned.  Then he laughed. Then he added that he would try out my awful joke on his wife (Dr. Dawn C) who is also a podiatrist. FOOT YARD

So much produce is packed in tightly sealed plastic  (blah). that it is hard to remember that it once grew on a tree, or a bush, or in the soil. I rebel against this industrialization of our food. I try very  hard not  to buy those "oh so convenient" bags of lettuce, onions, squashes etc. which have been pealed, chopped and "washed" prior to being sold.  (Much loved Trader Joes is a serial offender.) I take primitive pleasure in peeling root vegetables Today as I did today.   I par-boiled  the peeled carrots, together with some par-boiled parsnips.  Then I roasted them alongside a butternut squash with maple syrup in the "well". Yum. Such a good meal! Damn!  Delicious!  Delightful!