Thursday 13 December 2018

Thursday

I am spending Christmas Day with three friends and we are sharing the cost of the food.   So today, after my hair appointment, friend W and I made the trip to Northallerton to a food M and S to stock up on things we needed for the Christmas feast.   What lovely food the M and S stores have and how tempting.

It wasn't a case of searching for what food to buy, rather a case of rejecting things which, although tempting, were going to be superfluous to our needs on the big day.   One thing I did buy was a box of Medjoul dates so that I could make a salad I had in a restaurant the other day and which was absolutely delicious and so easy to make:
a bed of mixed leaves scattered with sliced (lengthways) dates, pecan nuts and crumbled feta and dressed with a light French dressing. Try it, it is absolutely delicious and so refreshing after so much rich food.

On our way back from Northallerton we called at a farm shop for a light lunch - Pannini filled with sliced hot sausage, stuffing and streaky bacon and served with a sliced jacket potato (piping hot and browned under the grill) and a light salad.   Delicious.  (that's my menu description for today Thelma).

For various reasons I am feeling rather fragile at the moment so a day out - even if it was shopping - was a very enjoyable day.   My Petpals lady, who walks Tess a couple of days a week, is not well at the moment but her assistant does it for her and soon after  my return Tess went off on her jaunt and has just come back full of the joys of Spring (or maybe Christmas).   So let's cheer up everyone - only another ten days to the shortest day.   It can#t come soon enough for me.   I hate the dark nights, especially without the wood burner I had at the farm.

18 comments:

Rose said...

I am anxious for the shortest day to be over with also...I like getting up to light rather than darkness...

jinxxxygirl said...

Pat if theres one time of the year i think you can give yourself permission to be superfluous its this time of year.. I personally hate to see the shortest day of the year come and go as then i know we are headed for Spring and another hot / humid summer... uuughh.. Give me Fall and Winter.. lol For us so far its been a mild Winter... knock on wood... Take care. Hugs! deb

John "By Stargoose And Hanglands" said...

I've just had an interesting "conversation" with the two little boys who live next door. They don't care about winter darkness or Brexit because they have some dinosaur toys and have been practicing jumping!

Granny Sue said...

Your posts remind all of us who read them to look continually for joy and contentment in the smaller things in life. Friends, planning a holiday meal, eating out, caring for our pets and those we love give us that inner peace that world news will rarely if ever provide.

Terra said...

I am amazed at how early I have to walk Bounce in our second walk of the day, I need to go at 4:30 or 5, it is too dark to safely see to walk at 5:30 p.m. and it gets cold too.
For the earlier time for evening walks I bought a little light for his collar. You have a great plan for having a feast with friends on Christmas Day.

Derek Faulkner said...

Gawd, jinxxxygirl, somebody who actually likes this vile time of year, but we can't all be the same. The only good thing about this time of year is mostly living on my own and not having to endure all the Christmas thingy.
I've never been impressed with M & S for food and thinks it's very much over-rated, much prefer Waitrose. The dates that you mentioned though, are really scrummy, our local farm shop sells them, quite expensive but well worth it.

Sue said...

It will soon be the shortest day and then we can look forward to lighter evenings again. Hang on in there, Spring will be here before you know it!

The Weaver of Grass said...

Derek - the nearest Waitrose to here is a long journey away. Mand S is only about eighteen miles - and there is a nice farm shop for lunch on the way back so I am afraid it is no contest, although I love Waitrose too.

Rachel Phillips said...

I am quite happy with Winter although I do love Spring and Summer most of all. My nephew was shopping in Leyburn at the weekend and phoned home to see if they wanted him to buy some kind of sticky pudding that was on sale for Christmas Day. My brother said yes, having no idea what he had said yes to. I thought of you in Leyburn and you might have passed my nephew and his girlfriend because they often go there but we are unlikely to ever know the answer to that.

Derek Faulkner said...

Well that's a sensible choice then Pat, it's easy down here to fail to understand the distances between places that you have - sorry.

Heather said...

I have made a note of the ingredients for that salad, it sounds delicious. What a great idea to share Christmas with your friends, you will be such good company for each other and help to alleviate the bittersweet feelings that Christmas can have for some of us. I hope you will soon stop feeling rather fragile.

marlane said...

Do you know about those electric fires that look just like a wood burner and give out warm air also. My son has one here in the USA. I see they have them in the UK also here is a link to one on Amazon. https://www.amazon.co.uk/HOMCOM-Freestanding-Electric-Portable-Fireplace/dp/B01LAO89ZW?ref_=fsclp_pl_dp_2

Joanne Noragon said...

The shortest day is such along time in coming.

Cro Magnon said...

No sign of Turkeys in the shops here yet. Next week maybe. I've written my lists, all it needs now is the last minute shop!

thelma said...

Your meals out give us something to think about, the date/salad recipe for sure. We are still not sure about what to eat on Xmas day, Paul suggested dover sole (no) but that is because he wants to go to Whitby for some oysters...

Librarian said...

Time passes so quickly for me this year, I would like to hold on to my days a little longer, but I am also looking forward to the hours of daylight gradually increasing again. I can dress against the cold and wet to a certain extent, but there's nothing I can do about the early darkness.
The salad with dates is a great idea for our New Year's Eve dinner, we're probably going to celebrate at my parents' this year, what with my Dad not yet being fit to spend all evening and night away from home. My Mum will be glad for some contribution or other!

The Weaver of Grass said...

Thank you Marlane, I will look into that.

marlane said...

Thanks for acknowledging my suggestion about the look alike wood burner.