I'm a white wine drinker. I always feel a little embarrassed about this, white wine seems so frothy somehow, so not a 'take me seriously' drink. I'd like to be a red wine drinker, red wine says sophistication, complexity, substance. Whenever I have red wine I always have a brief moment of 'look at me, I'm such a grown-up!'. This isn't to say that I don't like red wine, I do - very much. But when it comes down to it, I veer instinctively to the white and then perceive myself to be without depth or character.
Genuinely I do prefer white wine. I like the sharpness of the taste, the crispness of the flavour. I like the way it cuts across the top of food all tangy and zingy and fresh. It's my version of the sorbet course that comes between the starter and the main at full on many coursed dinners.
I think my obsession with white wine stems from one lunch in the garden of my grandfather's house. A blazingly glorious sunny day and I'd just had my A-Level results which I'd completely nailed. Life was uncomplicatedly good. Better than good, it was great.
Grandpa loved his wines and that afternoon he'd chosen a special wine to celebrate. It was a beauty, pale as can be, almost clear and the sun reflected through the bottle all the way through lunch. The taste was as close as I have ever been to vinticultural heaven. Perfection through and through. One of those tastes at one of those moments that can not be bettered in any way.
Ever since that afternoon I've been trying to find out what that wine was. Grandpa died 15 years ago and thinking he would be around forever I'd never thought to ask him what it was. I've asked the others who were at that lunch, but noone can remember.
It was a dry wine. Very dry, Sancerre maybe? Sauvignon Blanc? I don't know, probably never will. But every time I open a bottle of white wine I have an anticipation that this wine might be the one. It never is of course, I think hunting down this vintage is destined to be one of my life's great unending quests.
But for better or worse I'm a confirmed white wine drinker. Reds just don't cut it with me. For all their complexity, depth and character I prefer the shiny uncomplicatedness of a summer's afternoon perfection.
Monday, 27 February 2012
Saturday, 18 February 2012
Losing weight; the canine way
Jessie, our food obsessed Golden Retriever, had a bit of a shocker over Christmas. On a walk she trod on a bit of glass and it sliced open her paw. Really sliced it open, there was blood everywhere.
She needed to have stitches, which required an anaesthetic and was off games for 6 weeks. That is 6 whole weeks of no walks which, for an active pup (in her mind that is, she is in fact 7 1/2) was torture and purgatory. There was abject misery for the humans as well, with a £500 bill to pay.
Now, it has been said before that Jess is a greedy dog. She has no off switch when it comes to food and she is not, at all, selective in what she eats. She will, and frequently does, eat anything. Be it fox poo, bin detritus, bread for the ducks, other peoples picnics, she will just help herself whenever possible. Keeping her trim has been a long and hard battle (although it does have to be said it is a lot easier to put a dog on a diet than it is to put a human onto one, I guess their inability to open the fridge door and help themselves to a glass of wine must be a factor).
With 6 weeks of inactivity coming up we were worried that she would start to put on weight again, so we cut her rations. She lost some weight so we put her rations back up again. Unexpectedly she still lost weight. Overall she lost 3 kg in 6 weeks (being about 10% of her body weight). We were confused, she was eating as much as we ever gave her, but doing a lot less exercise.
Time passed, her foot healed and she is once again out and about. After about 3 weeks of normal walking we noticed that her weight is back up to normal levels. A light bulb went on. We have always known that she scavenges a lot of food, but we had never quite realised just how much.
So, here's to our Jess. The only creature for whom trying to lose weight consists of doing less exercise.
She needed to have stitches, which required an anaesthetic and was off games for 6 weeks. That is 6 whole weeks of no walks which, for an active pup (in her mind that is, she is in fact 7 1/2) was torture and purgatory. There was abject misery for the humans as well, with a £500 bill to pay.
Now, it has been said before that Jess is a greedy dog. She has no off switch when it comes to food and she is not, at all, selective in what she eats. She will, and frequently does, eat anything. Be it fox poo, bin detritus, bread for the ducks, other peoples picnics, she will just help herself whenever possible. Keeping her trim has been a long and hard battle (although it does have to be said it is a lot easier to put a dog on a diet than it is to put a human onto one, I guess their inability to open the fridge door and help themselves to a glass of wine must be a factor).
With 6 weeks of inactivity coming up we were worried that she would start to put on weight again, so we cut her rations. She lost some weight so we put her rations back up again. Unexpectedly she still lost weight. Overall she lost 3 kg in 6 weeks (being about 10% of her body weight). We were confused, she was eating as much as we ever gave her, but doing a lot less exercise.
Time passed, her foot healed and she is once again out and about. After about 3 weeks of normal walking we noticed that her weight is back up to normal levels. A light bulb went on. We have always known that she scavenges a lot of food, but we had never quite realised just how much.
So, here's to our Jess. The only creature for whom trying to lose weight consists of doing less exercise.
Tuesday, 14 February 2012
Review: Star Wars Lego, Lego Castle Building and a spot of Duplo...
.. can you tell we are a fully subscribed, Lego obsessed household? What I don't know about standing on a piece of lego in your bare feet isn't worth knowing. Lego hurts worse than Playmobil. That's all I'm saying.
Anyway, when contacted and asked if I'd like to review some Lego, I nearly took the PRs arm off in excitement. Half term was coming up, likliehood of a pox ridden (and housebound) bunch of boys was high. I was in NEED of Lego.
The 6 yo has been into Lego for a while now, and will take away a new set, the instructions and not be heard of again for at least an hour. Lego Star Wars is his thing, so we went Luke's Landspeeder. I've learnt that the thing about Star Wars Lego is not the set itself, but which minifigures come with it. This one had Luke Skywalker, Obi Wan, R2D2 and C3PO (as well as something else that is very exciting but I don't have a clue about) which seemed to me to cover all the main characters. The boys were very excited by the little men. The landspeeder was soon up and running too. Very happy little lads.
The 5 yo has only just started to get into Lego and much as he wants some Star Wars stuff it is a little complicated for him at the moment. The Lego City or Lego Knight range are good options for easier Lego sets for children who are itching to move on from Duplo but would be a bit overawed by the quite complex older kids sets. We went for the Lego Castle Building set and it was also a hit with both the boys.
Now of course we have endless battles between the Star Wars characters and the Knights which may explain why I have been standing on quite so much Lego recently.
Of course then there is little Sam who at 15 months doesn't want to be left out of any event. I needed something to distract him from the tiny little bits of Lego and was delighted to be offered the Duplo Bus Set for him. He loves Duplo, although mainly in the throwing it around ultimate destroyer kind of way. He also loves buses so the Bus Set was always going to be a hit with him. I also really liked this set. The bus comes with 3 people and a couple of suitcases as well as a bus stop. Sam likes to drive the bus along and then stick all the people in the bus (only to eject them a few metres further up the road). I read somewhere recently that this is classic play for toddlers, the ability to observe and recreate the world around them is an important development step. He certainly spends a lot of time putting the people in and out of the bus.
So, as expected, we loved it. All of them. Please can we review some more?
This is a review post for which we received the LEGO Star Wars Luke's Landspeeder, the LEGO Castle Building and the Duplo Bus Set, each costing about £20, to keep free of charge.
Anyway, when contacted and asked if I'd like to review some Lego, I nearly took the PRs arm off in excitement. Half term was coming up, likliehood of a pox ridden (and housebound) bunch of boys was high. I was in NEED of Lego.
The 6 yo has been into Lego for a while now, and will take away a new set, the instructions and not be heard of again for at least an hour. Lego Star Wars is his thing, so we went Luke's Landspeeder. I've learnt that the thing about Star Wars Lego is not the set itself, but which minifigures come with it. This one had Luke Skywalker, Obi Wan, R2D2 and C3PO (as well as something else that is very exciting but I don't have a clue about) which seemed to me to cover all the main characters. The boys were very excited by the little men. The landspeeder was soon up and running too. Very happy little lads.
The 5 yo has only just started to get into Lego and much as he wants some Star Wars stuff it is a little complicated for him at the moment. The Lego City or Lego Knight range are good options for easier Lego sets for children who are itching to move on from Duplo but would be a bit overawed by the quite complex older kids sets. We went for the Lego Castle Building set and it was also a hit with both the boys.
Now of course we have endless battles between the Star Wars characters and the Knights which may explain why I have been standing on quite so much Lego recently.
Of course then there is little Sam who at 15 months doesn't want to be left out of any event. I needed something to distract him from the tiny little bits of Lego and was delighted to be offered the Duplo Bus Set for him. He loves Duplo, although mainly in the throwing it around ultimate destroyer kind of way. He also loves buses so the Bus Set was always going to be a hit with him. I also really liked this set. The bus comes with 3 people and a couple of suitcases as well as a bus stop. Sam likes to drive the bus along and then stick all the people in the bus (only to eject them a few metres further up the road). I read somewhere recently that this is classic play for toddlers, the ability to observe and recreate the world around them is an important development step. He certainly spends a lot of time putting the people in and out of the bus.
So, as expected, we loved it. All of them. Please can we review some more?
This is a review post for which we received the LEGO Star Wars Luke's Landspeeder, the LEGO Castle Building and the Duplo Bus Set, each costing about £20, to keep free of charge.
Wednesday, 8 February 2012
A plea to those on their bikes at night
I have a few things to say to cyclists. Actually, I should be more specific. I have a few things to say to some cyclists, the ones that don't have bike lights, wear black clothing and skip red lights.
First up I should say that I cycle. You have to be living where I do, this city really only works on a bike. So I am aware of the hazards of being a cyclist. Like those moments when a car overtakes you only to turn left directly in front of you. Or when a lorry that hasn't looked out for you decides to move closer towards the pavement. So when I drive, especially round here which is a city full of people on bikes, I always look out for cyclists - take that extra glance to make sure that there isn't someone on a bike who wasn't there before. The cyclist fatality rate is too high - last year 16 people were killed on their bikes in London which is scary.
The other night though I was driving home and almost hit someone on a bike. Someone wearing black clothes, without lights and who had skipped a red light. I had the green light, I wasn't expecting anyone to be coming from my left. Particularly someone I couldn't see. It really shook me up. I don't want to be responsible for causing the death of a cyclist. I don't want to live with that on my conscience for the rest of my life. But dressed in black and without lights, I genuinely couldn't see him coming.
So I'd like to issue a plea to people on bikes. Please be aware that whilst you might feel that everyone can see you, if you don't have lights and are wearing black we really can't. If the cars have their lights on, so should you. High vis jackets may not look all that stylish, but you do stand out. It is true that junctions can be improved and certainly many drivers can be more aware of bicycles, but please be conscious that if you don't have lights at night, wear black and jump lights many cars simply won't be able to see you. It's an accident no one wants to happen.
First up I should say that I cycle. You have to be living where I do, this city really only works on a bike. So I am aware of the hazards of being a cyclist. Like those moments when a car overtakes you only to turn left directly in front of you. Or when a lorry that hasn't looked out for you decides to move closer towards the pavement. So when I drive, especially round here which is a city full of people on bikes, I always look out for cyclists - take that extra glance to make sure that there isn't someone on a bike who wasn't there before. The cyclist fatality rate is too high - last year 16 people were killed on their bikes in London which is scary.
The other night though I was driving home and almost hit someone on a bike. Someone wearing black clothes, without lights and who had skipped a red light. I had the green light, I wasn't expecting anyone to be coming from my left. Particularly someone I couldn't see. It really shook me up. I don't want to be responsible for causing the death of a cyclist. I don't want to live with that on my conscience for the rest of my life. But dressed in black and without lights, I genuinely couldn't see him coming.
So I'd like to issue a plea to people on bikes. Please be aware that whilst you might feel that everyone can see you, if you don't have lights and are wearing black we really can't. If the cars have their lights on, so should you. High vis jackets may not look all that stylish, but you do stand out. It is true that junctions can be improved and certainly many drivers can be more aware of bicycles, but please be conscious that if you don't have lights at night, wear black and jump lights many cars simply won't be able to see you. It's an accident no one wants to happen.
Sunday, 5 February 2012
A comic genius
Picture the scene. Luke's birthday, many overexcited small children racing around. Luke is being given a birthday present which he is opening in front of the mother and child that gave it to him.
Luke: I don't like this present.
A pause, during which I mentally start to curse.
Luke: I LOVE IT!
My middle son. A master of comic timing at the tender age of 5.
Luke: I don't like this present.
A pause, during which I mentally start to curse.
Luke: I LOVE IT!
My middle son. A master of comic timing at the tender age of 5.
Thursday, 2 February 2012
Review: Oh Baby London boys clothes
I am frequently to be found ranting about boys clothes. Generally when I've been forced out to go and get some and head into a shop to find 95% of it full of pretty, flowery, pink stuff and the remaining 5% covered in skulls, graffiti or plain old dull. Why is it there aren't better, more interesting boys clothes? Huh? Why not?
Of course with three boys the thing that I am actually most interested in is how long the clothes are going to last. Ideally I'd like them to last through all three. Given that seldom happens (Levi's jeans being a noteable exception) I'd expect the clothes to make it through at least one boy before collapsing in a heap of holes. Currently most of their clothes are nearing the heap of holes level.
So when Oh Baby London asked if I'd like to review some of their boys clothes we jumped. Whilst my boys are classic males in that they don't think for longer than 2 seconds about what they are going to wear, they do like to 'look cool'. So Oh Baby London was going to have to come up with some cool designs that managed to appeal to the boys as well as me AND be impressively durable in order to impress us.
Adam's was the first one out of the box. He's a very tall 6 and we went for the 8 yo size. Fits him perfectly. Adam loves this top, totally appeals to his inner rock god. I like this top too, a good thick long sleeve, looks as if it will last well.
Luke's was next up. Again we had gone for a slightly bigger size (always room for them to grow into) and it fits my stocky lad just fine. The quality is as good as the one above, the material is thick and the top is well made. Luke loves this design, thinks it very cool. I'm less sure but then what do I know?
Finally little Sam got the 2 year old sweater. Again, I was pleased I'd gone for the larger size, it fits him well now, I don't think it'll fit him when he's 2. The neck is pleasingly wide though, I can get it on and off him easily, and the sweater seems lovely and warm. I've no idea what Sam thinks of the design (opinions in toddlers being wildly overrated) but I'm not a fan. It's a bit tatoo-ey for me and somehow I don't think it's appropriate for babies. The print is stuck on and I always wonder how long it will stay stuck to the garment.
All the tops have been through the washing machine a few times and are holding up well. Quality wise they have the feel of tops that will last and last.Pricewise they are not cheap (the tops costing between £18 and £20 each), but well made, durable clothes seldom are.
So if you are looking for different well made boys clothes, then I'd recommend a browse in Oh Baby London.
This is a review post for which I received the 3 tops above with a total value of £56 to review free of charge.
Of course with three boys the thing that I am actually most interested in is how long the clothes are going to last. Ideally I'd like them to last through all three. Given that seldom happens (Levi's jeans being a noteable exception) I'd expect the clothes to make it through at least one boy before collapsing in a heap of holes. Currently most of their clothes are nearing the heap of holes level.
So when Oh Baby London asked if I'd like to review some of their boys clothes we jumped. Whilst my boys are classic males in that they don't think for longer than 2 seconds about what they are going to wear, they do like to 'look cool'. So Oh Baby London was going to have to come up with some cool designs that managed to appeal to the boys as well as me AND be impressively durable in order to impress us.
Adam's was the first one out of the box. He's a very tall 6 and we went for the 8 yo size. Fits him perfectly. Adam loves this top, totally appeals to his inner rock god. I like this top too, a good thick long sleeve, looks as if it will last well.
All the tops have been through the washing machine a few times and are holding up well. Quality wise they have the feel of tops that will last and last.Pricewise they are not cheap (the tops costing between £18 and £20 each), but well made, durable clothes seldom are.
So if you are looking for different well made boys clothes, then I'd recommend a browse in Oh Baby London.
This is a review post for which I received the 3 tops above with a total value of £56 to review free of charge.
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