So, the end of the month, and the end of the theme of the month. I think some time next month we'll probably see a loosening of the restrictions (unfortunately, probably for just long enough for us to really regret it). Whether that is the case or not, I'll have a new theme for next month.
Anyway, it has been a largely uneventful month, as was always to be expected. But before it ends, a quick grab-bag of thoughts on some of the topics I mentioned at the outset:
Home working: This has been going fine. I've now settled on using our study for my home office, which means that each day starts and ends with the ritual of building up and tearing down my work system (so that we can use the room normally for the rest of the time). Staying in touch with colleagues has mostly been easy enough, subject only to the whims of the wi-fi and VPN connection. So that's all to the good. Mostly, though, this the time when we really benefit from all the investment that the company made to support people being mobile in their work. They didn't intend it for this purpose, but it has worked out well.
Food supplies: Fortunately, Tesco now seems mostly back to normal, so the big challenge is building a sufficiently-complete list that I only have to go once a week. So far, so good. Our freezers and cupboards remain full, so apart from some key staples such as bread and milk, we'd actually be able to manage a two-week total lockdown if we had to.
Quarantine beard: Nah, I shaved it off. I had a fairly extensive festive beard late last year (due to other stresses), so didn't really fancy growing one this time. So I let it grow out for a couple of weeks, but mostly through pure inertia, before getting rid.
And that's pretty much that for this month.
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Monday, April 27, 2020
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance
One of the great pleasures of the subscription model for TV is that it gives access to a whole slate of shows that you might never actively seek out, and certainly wouldn't pay for, but that you might consider on the basis "why not?" Much of these are dross, of course, but every so often you come across a gem.
"The Dark Crystal" is a film I'd actually never seen until recently. To be honest, I don't really consider that much of a loss - there's a lot of really clever world-building there, but the plot is somewhat lacking.
I therefore approached "Age of Resistance" with a degree of trepidation. After all, not only is it a prequel to a film that didn't wow me, it's a prequel, which is never a good sign. And the very first episode was essentially more of the same: lots of great world-building, but...
Ah, but... After that first episode it gets better. And then it gets better, and better...
We're now five episodes into the first season, and I've just seen that there is indeed going to be a season 2, which is excellent news.
So, count this as a recommendation. And a further recommendation for the DMs out there: take notes!
"The Dark Crystal" is a film I'd actually never seen until recently. To be honest, I don't really consider that much of a loss - there's a lot of really clever world-building there, but the plot is somewhat lacking.
I therefore approached "Age of Resistance" with a degree of trepidation. After all, not only is it a prequel to a film that didn't wow me, it's a prequel, which is never a good sign. And the very first episode was essentially more of the same: lots of great world-building, but...
Ah, but... After that first episode it gets better. And then it gets better, and better...
We're now five episodes into the first season, and I've just seen that there is indeed going to be a season 2, which is excellent news.
So, count this as a recommendation. And a further recommendation for the DMs out there: take notes!
Friday, April 24, 2020
Living Dangerously
Been a while since I did a post about the weekly shop...
It's a strange thing, that we're now at the point where the most dangerous thing I do is to go for the weekly shop each Friday. Honestly, there was never much risk - just the commute to and from work, but now the trip to Tesco means risking exposure to the virus. It's not likely, but unfortunately it is possible - and it's also the one vector for infection I have left.
As a consequence of the lockdown, we've taken steps to minimise contact, and that has included avoiding takeaway food. Which sucks - the local Dominos are still delivering, and I'd really quite like to order... but really don't think I can justify it. And likewise, we're trying really hard to only go shopping once for the week. The upshot is that we're both having to be quite careful in putting together the list, and also having to order more, both than we usually ordered, and also than we perhaps think we need. That has meant, of course, that the cost is higher than it has generally been. But since it's now our only big expenditure, it works out well.
The other thing that has been noticeable is a big win. It has been my practice when putting the list together to write everything down and then carefully re-order it to match the order of items in the store. (Naturally, I have the store layout memorised. Doesn't everyone?) This has occasioned a certain amount of bemusement on the part of LC, for reasons that I'm sure are obvious.
But in light of the virus, Tesco have now introduced a one-way system. This is intended to minimise contact between customers, of course - if everyone moves through in a fixed order, that will aid with that.
And, of course, that suits me perfectly - I was already following the system anyway, so the upshot is that now pretty much everyone else was already. Basically, I had pre-optimised for these days. Huzzah!
The only remaining downside is that my preference now is to hit Tesco just after opening on Friday (8am), but they can't start selling alcohol until 10am. Under the circumstances, it would be really useful if the government would relax the relevant licensing laws accordingly. In the absence of that, my pattern is to go at 10am once every few weeks, and to buy a fairly considerable amount of wine at that time. We won't be consuming any more than previously - just combining the purchases for several weeks into one bigger shop. But that's all just a minor quibble.
#19: "I, Strahd: The War Against Azalin", by P.N. Elrod (unfortunately, a likely candidate for the weakest book of the year.)
It's a strange thing, that we're now at the point where the most dangerous thing I do is to go for the weekly shop each Friday. Honestly, there was never much risk - just the commute to and from work, but now the trip to Tesco means risking exposure to the virus. It's not likely, but unfortunately it is possible - and it's also the one vector for infection I have left.
As a consequence of the lockdown, we've taken steps to minimise contact, and that has included avoiding takeaway food. Which sucks - the local Dominos are still delivering, and I'd really quite like to order... but really don't think I can justify it. And likewise, we're trying really hard to only go shopping once for the week. The upshot is that we're both having to be quite careful in putting together the list, and also having to order more, both than we usually ordered, and also than we perhaps think we need. That has meant, of course, that the cost is higher than it has generally been. But since it's now our only big expenditure, it works out well.
The other thing that has been noticeable is a big win. It has been my practice when putting the list together to write everything down and then carefully re-order it to match the order of items in the store. (Naturally, I have the store layout memorised. Doesn't everyone?) This has occasioned a certain amount of bemusement on the part of LC, for reasons that I'm sure are obvious.
But in light of the virus, Tesco have now introduced a one-way system. This is intended to minimise contact between customers, of course - if everyone moves through in a fixed order, that will aid with that.
And, of course, that suits me perfectly - I was already following the system anyway, so the upshot is that now pretty much everyone else was already. Basically, I had pre-optimised for these days. Huzzah!
The only remaining downside is that my preference now is to hit Tesco just after opening on Friday (8am), but they can't start selling alcohol until 10am. Under the circumstances, it would be really useful if the government would relax the relevant licensing laws accordingly. In the absence of that, my pattern is to go at 10am once every few weeks, and to buy a fairly considerable amount of wine at that time. We won't be consuming any more than previously - just combining the purchases for several weeks into one bigger shop. But that's all just a minor quibble.
#19: "I, Strahd: The War Against Azalin", by P.N. Elrod (unfortunately, a likely candidate for the weakest book of the year.)
Saturday, April 18, 2020
Experimental Cookery 2020: Green Lentil Curry
As a consequence of doing the Ham & Pearl Barley Soup, I found myself in possession of quite a lot of excess green lentils, and so the hunt was on to find a use for them. Fortunately Tesco provided an answer to at least part of that, which led to today's dinner.
The recipe was quick and easy to put together, though it did include a 45-minute simmer stage. So it's one for a weekend rather than an weekday evening. But that's fine.
Interestingly, this was a recipe that really highlighted the value of seasoning - after the simmer stage I tasted the meal and it was foul. But with the addition of salt and pepper, and a bit of a stir, and suddenly it all came together. That was really something.
I also whipped up some flatbread to go with it. They were very nice, but I wouldn't really dignify them with the name 'naan'. (Though, of course, that just means 'bread'. :) )
The meal as a whole was a massive success - tasty and very filling. Not to mention cheap. We'll definitely be having this again, if only because we still have an abundance of lentils to use up!
The recipe was quick and easy to put together, though it did include a 45-minute simmer stage. So it's one for a weekend rather than an weekday evening. But that's fine.
Interestingly, this was a recipe that really highlighted the value of seasoning - after the simmer stage I tasted the meal and it was foul. But with the addition of salt and pepper, and a bit of a stir, and suddenly it all came together. That was really something.
I also whipped up some flatbread to go with it. They were very nice, but I wouldn't really dignify them with the name 'naan'. (Though, of course, that just means 'bread'. :) )
The meal as a whole was a massive success - tasty and very filling. Not to mention cheap. We'll definitely be having this again, if only because we still have an abundance of lentils to use up!
Friday, April 17, 2020
Experimental Cookery 2020: Ham & Pearl Barley Soup
A few weeks ago, I noted that Tesco had some rather nice-looking gammon joints, and so that became one of our weekly roasts (which are taking a short break just now). Since it was a piece of meat big enough for 6, this left us with quite a large amount of leftover meat. Some of this went into a very nice macaroni cheese, and today I used the second batch in a soup. This one came from the "New Covent Garden Food Co. - A Soup for Every Day".
As with soups generally, this proved to be pretty easy to put together, and although the elapsed time was a bit more than an hour, this was mostly taken up with two 30-minute simmer stages that didn't require much attention.
The result was pretty much exactly as I'd expected - it was a very nice soup that bulked a fairly small amount of meat out with a lot of pulses to create a very filling meal. The only thing to watch is that the gammon was very salty to start with, so go easy on the seasoning!
The best bit: that has left us with two additional servings, that are now sitting in our freezer for another day. A winner all around.
#18: "Skyward: Claim the Stars", by Brandon Sanderson
As with soups generally, this proved to be pretty easy to put together, and although the elapsed time was a bit more than an hour, this was mostly taken up with two 30-minute simmer stages that didn't require much attention.
The result was pretty much exactly as I'd expected - it was a very nice soup that bulked a fairly small amount of meat out with a lot of pulses to create a very filling meal. The only thing to watch is that the gammon was very salty to start with, so go easy on the seasoning!
The best bit: that has left us with two additional servings, that are now sitting in our freezer for another day. A winner all around.
#18: "Skyward: Claim the Stars", by Brandon Sanderson
Tuesday, April 14, 2020
Day 108: A Belated Update on Goals
Day 100 of the year slipped past without me noticing! So here's a belated update on my goals for the year:
- Books: If I had written this update on time, I would have been reporting that I was somewhat behind on my goal. However, thanks largely to a good long weekend of reading, things have changed. By day 108 I should be on 17.213 books read. I'm actually some 90 pages ahead of that target at the time of writing. Which is nice.
- Weight: Lockdown seems to suit me. According to the scales this morning, I am 8 pounds down from where I started the year.
- Blogging: I managed to get caught up by the end of March, and am now right on target for this month.
- Work: Again, this has been made right since the previous update, and is back to going well. That remains true despite the lockdown.
#15: "I, Strahd: Memoirs of a Vampire", by P.N. Elrod
#16: "Sharpe's Gold", by Bernard Cornwell
#17: "Further Tales of Little Grey Rabbit", by Denis Judd after Alison Uttley (a book for Funsize. We've actually read the whole series (well, all the ones we have), but this is the only one that is really long enough to count as one of my books)
Sunday, April 12, 2020
A Tribute to My Wife
A week ago on Friday, Emma Brockes in the Guardian wrote, "We are all working on our time management skills, while realising that the only really valuable time management tool is a wife to watch the kids."
I'm not entirely sure whether this was an attempt at humour or something less pleasant, but that comment did strike me at the time, and has stayed in my mind since. Of course, that's because there is a nugget of truth to what she says.
The simple fact is that I couldn't still be working from home full-time were it not for LC being both willing and able to look after Funsize to allow me to do so. Of course, that's not entirely a matter of choice (since my working means I still get paid, which means the bills still get paid, which means a major worry is lifted.) However, I'm also well aware that it's not an easy ride, and would not be her preferred use for her days. As much as LC sometimes complains about her job, I'm convinced that she would prefer to be out doing that.
And, of course, there are also different ways that one can react to the necessities of the days - accepting things and carrying on with grace is not the only way to proceed. Things could be a lot harder than they have been... and that's largely down to LC.
Of course, the upshot of all of this is that I've come to the stunning revelation that a marriage (and indeed raising children) is a partnership. And like all partnerships, it works best of both partners do their bit to complement the other. That doesn't necessarily mean a 50/50 split of everything, since it's likely that aptitudes and interests will differ. But it does (or should) mean both doing thier share, and if need be stepping up to support the other in difficult times.
It is now eight years since LC made the crazy mistake of becoming my wife. Those eight years have been amongst the very best of my life, filled with very many more good times than bad (or even indifferent). She was, is, and remains my best friend, and I count myself very lucky (especially in the current crisis) to have met and married her.
And that is all I have to say about that. At least for now.
I'm not entirely sure whether this was an attempt at humour or something less pleasant, but that comment did strike me at the time, and has stayed in my mind since. Of course, that's because there is a nugget of truth to what she says.
The simple fact is that I couldn't still be working from home full-time were it not for LC being both willing and able to look after Funsize to allow me to do so. Of course, that's not entirely a matter of choice (since my working means I still get paid, which means the bills still get paid, which means a major worry is lifted.) However, I'm also well aware that it's not an easy ride, and would not be her preferred use for her days. As much as LC sometimes complains about her job, I'm convinced that she would prefer to be out doing that.
And, of course, there are also different ways that one can react to the necessities of the days - accepting things and carrying on with grace is not the only way to proceed. Things could be a lot harder than they have been... and that's largely down to LC.
Of course, the upshot of all of this is that I've come to the stunning revelation that a marriage (and indeed raising children) is a partnership. And like all partnerships, it works best of both partners do their bit to complement the other. That doesn't necessarily mean a 50/50 split of everything, since it's likely that aptitudes and interests will differ. But it does (or should) mean both doing thier share, and if need be stepping up to support the other in difficult times.
It is now eight years since LC made the crazy mistake of becoming my wife. Those eight years have been amongst the very best of my life, filled with very many more good times than bad (or even indifferent). She was, is, and remains my best friend, and I count myself very lucky (especially in the current crisis) to have met and married her.
And that is all I have to say about that. At least for now.
Wednesday, April 08, 2020
Lines of Succession
I'm no fan of Boris Johnson. I don't like his policies, I don't like his approach to politics as a whole, and I consider him yet another really strong argument for Scottish Independence.
I also don't think that the Queen should have asked him to form a government when Theresa May offered her resignation. Constitutionally-speaking, the Queen is supposed to appoint as PM the person who commands the confidence of the House of Commons, which at that time Boris manifestly did not (hence all those defeats he saw in his first few weeks). Instead, the Queen should have required May to remain in post * until either Boris could show he did command the confidence of the house or until an election took place. (The order of events matters because as a new PM Boris probably saw a boost in the polls that Boris-as-Tory-leader almost certainly would not. That may or may not have affected the outcome of the election.)
* As a member of the Privy Council, the PM cannot simply resign at will - he or she serves at the pleasure of the monarch. So while Theresa May could tender her resignation, it was officially for the Queen to decide whether to accept it or not.
But all of that is by the way. The fact of the matter is that Boris did win a landslide majority in the General Election and he therefore did have the right to form his government afterwards. Which includes naming his own deputy in case he was incapacitated... as indeed is the case now.
What that means is that right now, and in the short term, it is right that Dominic Raab stand in as Boris' deputy. And, if need be, it's right that he exercise whatever decision-making powers are needed to take us forward through the crisis. (I'm suspicious of why Raab was chosen for this role, but that doesn't really matter - it was Boris' prerogative to choose. I also don't necessarily agree with the specific choices that are being made... but that falls under my current stance of not commenting.) So, in the short term, Raab is the guy.
What is extremely worrying is what happens if it becomes apparent that Boris simply won't be able to continue - if he's incapacitated long-term (or worse).
In that case, it's no longer appropriate that the country be run by a deputy - there would need to be a new PM appointed. And, normally, that would be a matter of finding the person who commands the confidence of the House of Commons, which in turn normally means the leader of the largest party (in this case, the Tories).
The problems right now are two-fold: the House of Commons isn't sitting (so how can its confidence be judged), and it's not really practical to run any sort of leadership contest right now anyway.
Plus, there's the other issue - an awful lot of the contenders would look at the current mess, dealing with Covid-19, then the mother of all recessions that is almost certain to follow, and dealing with Brexit on top of that, and decline to step up. Nobody in their right mind would want to be in the top job right now. But by the same token, they'll also look at it and calculate that they also don't want whoever does end up doing it doing too good a job, so that there's an opening afterwards. From a purely self-serving point of view, the optimum strategy is to stay out of it... but quietly frustrate things from the sidelines. (Or to get behind a fairly hopeless compromise candidate, who is more or less good enough to get us through it... but only just, and with a lot of pain.)
Which would, of course, be an utter and complete disaster for all of the rest of us.
The upshot of all of this is that I am desperately hoping for a full and speedy recovery on the part of Boris Johnson. Not just because that's the right thing to do (which it is), but also because the alternative is terrible.
I also don't think that the Queen should have asked him to form a government when Theresa May offered her resignation. Constitutionally-speaking, the Queen is supposed to appoint as PM the person who commands the confidence of the House of Commons, which at that time Boris manifestly did not (hence all those defeats he saw in his first few weeks). Instead, the Queen should have required May to remain in post * until either Boris could show he did command the confidence of the house or until an election took place. (The order of events matters because as a new PM Boris probably saw a boost in the polls that Boris-as-Tory-leader almost certainly would not. That may or may not have affected the outcome of the election.)
* As a member of the Privy Council, the PM cannot simply resign at will - he or she serves at the pleasure of the monarch. So while Theresa May could tender her resignation, it was officially for the Queen to decide whether to accept it or not.
But all of that is by the way. The fact of the matter is that Boris did win a landslide majority in the General Election and he therefore did have the right to form his government afterwards. Which includes naming his own deputy in case he was incapacitated... as indeed is the case now.
What that means is that right now, and in the short term, it is right that Dominic Raab stand in as Boris' deputy. And, if need be, it's right that he exercise whatever decision-making powers are needed to take us forward through the crisis. (I'm suspicious of why Raab was chosen for this role, but that doesn't really matter - it was Boris' prerogative to choose. I also don't necessarily agree with the specific choices that are being made... but that falls under my current stance of not commenting.) So, in the short term, Raab is the guy.
What is extremely worrying is what happens if it becomes apparent that Boris simply won't be able to continue - if he's incapacitated long-term (or worse).
In that case, it's no longer appropriate that the country be run by a deputy - there would need to be a new PM appointed. And, normally, that would be a matter of finding the person who commands the confidence of the House of Commons, which in turn normally means the leader of the largest party (in this case, the Tories).
The problems right now are two-fold: the House of Commons isn't sitting (so how can its confidence be judged), and it's not really practical to run any sort of leadership contest right now anyway.
Plus, there's the other issue - an awful lot of the contenders would look at the current mess, dealing with Covid-19, then the mother of all recessions that is almost certain to follow, and dealing with Brexit on top of that, and decline to step up. Nobody in their right mind would want to be in the top job right now. But by the same token, they'll also look at it and calculate that they also don't want whoever does end up doing it doing too good a job, so that there's an opening afterwards. From a purely self-serving point of view, the optimum strategy is to stay out of it... but quietly frustrate things from the sidelines. (Or to get behind a fairly hopeless compromise candidate, who is more or less good enough to get us through it... but only just, and with a lot of pain.)
Which would, of course, be an utter and complete disaster for all of the rest of us.
The upshot of all of this is that I am desperately hoping for a full and speedy recovery on the part of Boris Johnson. Not just because that's the right thing to do (which it is), but also because the alternative is terrible.
Sunday, April 05, 2020
Experimental Cookery 2020: Shepherd's Pie
I have, of course, made shepherd's pie before, but this one comes from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's "Love Your Leftovers", a book that has been generally useful and that is really showing its value just now. This was also my opportunity to use up the 550g of leftover roas lamb from last week.
As with the Hairy Bikers version (which, oddly, I don't seem to have posted about), this was not terribly difficult but was extremely time consuming - I was basically at work on it for two hours start to finish, with relatively little downtime during the process. But that's fine - there's a reason I set aside a weekend day for this.
The end result was great, being a marked improvement over the Hairy Bikers version (though largely due to the leftover roast lamb rather than the mince). And in addition to large portions for each of us, I was left with four more portions for later use. So that's good, too.
I'm not sure when I'll do this again, as we tend not to have roast lamb all that often, and are left with large amounts afterwards even more seldom, but I'm sure we will at some point rely on this one. Either way, it makes for a really useful option to have available.
As with the Hairy Bikers version (which, oddly, I don't seem to have posted about), this was not terribly difficult but was extremely time consuming - I was basically at work on it for two hours start to finish, with relatively little downtime during the process. But that's fine - there's a reason I set aside a weekend day for this.
The end result was great, being a marked improvement over the Hairy Bikers version (though largely due to the leftover roast lamb rather than the mince). And in addition to large portions for each of us, I was left with four more portions for later use. So that's good, too.
I'm not sure when I'll do this again, as we tend not to have roast lamb all that often, and are left with large amounts afterwards even more seldom, but I'm sure we will at some point rely on this one. Either way, it makes for a really useful option to have available.
Theme of the Month: A Knigdom of Isolation
It should probably go without saying that the major fact of this month is the ongoing lockdown. The government are set to review it in a couple of weeks, but I can't imagine that they won't renew it (and then renew it again - I can't see this ending before mid-May at the earliest). The Knigdom of Steph/vonia remains in sparkling isolation.
I remain determined not to comment on the actions of the government (any of them) at this time, despite sore provocation - there are many things I would normally want to say, but now is not the time. Instead, expect to see some musings on how we're getting on, on the topic of home working (and especially emergency home working), on our food supplies, and indeed the progress of my quarantine beard.
And, as I said before, I wish you the very best of luck as this grinds on. It's going to be a tough time, but unfortunately it looks like the alternatives are considerably worse.
#14: "The Stone Diaries", by Carol Shields (a book from The List)
I remain determined not to comment on the actions of the government (any of them) at this time, despite sore provocation - there are many things I would normally want to say, but now is not the time. Instead, expect to see some musings on how we're getting on, on the topic of home working (and especially emergency home working), on our food supplies, and indeed the progress of my quarantine beard.
And, as I said before, I wish you the very best of luck as this grinds on. It's going to be a tough time, but unfortunately it looks like the alternatives are considerably worse.
#14: "The Stone Diaries", by Carol Shields (a book from The List)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)