It's Christmas Eve all too suddenly,  and here is my Christmas blogette which again has come round all too suddenly.

Why a blogette?  Basically because December has been so busy that I have decided to return to that ancient tradition of doing absolutely everything on Christmas Eve.  Ably assisted by Mr Cooper, I hasten to add.  Even as I type I can hear him ably getting to grips with the hoover, cleaning those parts of the carpets that have only just been revealed since last year in a frantic early morning tidy-up.

And lately, when not hectically socialising, going to a brilliant wedding, and and enjoying an early Christmas, I have been beavering away at The Greyhound.

This was my little dish-washing corner yesterday at work, full of festive cheer and colour.  The flowers and card were from the chefs, and the wonderful pink flamingo from Juliette.  It was so lovely both to be given presents, and to have such a decorated windowsill that I think I shall have to continue with that theme next year (the windowsill that is, I don't think I will be given flowers on a weekly basis!)  Work was fairly festive too, in the kitchen.  But spoiled only by having to do lots of washing up for customers actually enjoying Christmas festivities in the usual way. 

Remember the picture of the elderly Christmas tree fairy?  Well, today she was placed on top of the tree again, the first time for many years.  And to make her feel especially at home, the tree was of the old fashioned variety, full of spindly branches and very sharp needles, but altogether very beautiful.

More so really than the robust blue spruces.

Last week, Mr Cooper wondered why I had written that I would be putting the tree up twice.  'That's simple', I said.  'They always fall over at least once'.  'Not with our new holder!' he cried.

Well, luckily I had decided to put the fairy on last, as when my back was turned, the tree toppled over into me and my head.  That's one of the reasons that I know they are so very spiky!

Here is the fairy on top of the tree, posing in front of my decorative christmas curtains, and collection of snow globes, both of which I am sure help her to feel more at home.

What do I want for Christmas?  Not a lot really, in the material sense; apart from a health check for my camera, which has started to do some very funny things.  I have had to take 2 of this week's photos with my phone, which is handy but nowhere near as good as my now elderly camera.  And like most relationships, we have been together for so long I do not want another.

As far as New Years resolutions go, one is get to grips more with technology.

Also to up my swimming times so I am regularly swimming a mile.

I didn't keep last year's resolutions, one of which should have been very easy to achieve.  They were to go to Brighton to buy a pair of denim dungarees, and to also enter the London pantomime horse race.  Perhaps having more down to earth aims next year will do the trick!  

Anyway, I hope your Christmas time will be special for you, and you manage to avoid any falling trees.

Don't over-complicate the New Year with too many resolutions.

 Drink plenty of water is always a wise one. When I see you next in January, water will seem a most welcome choice of beverage!

I leave you all with Christmas wishes, beautifully supplied by what Christmas is all about.

This is a tag from a present, which was given to me by someone with a big heart full of love.

Quite a bit of the past year has been hard, but the gains to it have been wonderful.

Try to keep your hearts loving and open, in this sometimes fraught season.

It is a time for giving and also receiving.  Sometimes presents, sometimes unwelcome points of view!

Keep those hearts full of love, and your glasses full of good cheer! 

Here I am today looking back at a week of hard work, but also a week of such smiles and laughter.
As well as the usual hard work in my life (trying to be a successful artist and cookery book writer, washing up manically at The Greyhound, and being happily married to Mr Cooper) I realised that Juliette and Colin's wedding was getting alarming closer, and there were still things I had to do.

As well as being my wonderful female friend in the (for me) male environment of The Gayhound, Juliette is a regular reader of this blog, and always gives fun feedback.
It's not easy you know, being an artist. We work all day on our own and all we need is everybody we meet to tell us how wonderful our work is.  You can imagine now why it's not easy being an artist!

Anyway, back to reality.  Juliette asked me if I would do a reading at their marriage ceremony, which was so exciting.  Son Sam suggested that as Juliette was a Green Donkey fan, I should write the actual reading. Not only did Juliette and Colin agree that this was a good idea (even more exciting) they wanted the contents to be a surprise on the actual day ( substitute 'scary' for 'exciting' now!)

So a Sunday morning was spent in my most productive writing place (in bed surrounded by sheets of paper and cups of tea.)  Then afterwards me and Mr Cooper went out for our usual Sunday afternoon drinks, and Mr Cooper pronounced the reading to be good, even before the second pint.

Then onto the completion of the Smash and Spam tray………….

……………I know I have alluded to a forthcoming artwork, featuring Spam and Smash.  They were to be united in my wedding present, along with their good friend Worcestershire Sauce.  And is it was to have a breakfast tray feel about it, what better drink to include than a robust and uplifting G and T?

Wedding jobs done, all I had to do now was to do my regular 11-12 hours in the kitchen on Thursday, and then, joy of joys, go to our hotel room at The Grosvenor, ready for the wedding on the following day.  To make this even more better, Mr Cooper joined me for this novel Thursday experience, and we went to the hotel via the Three Cups.

Friday morning dawned, and we ventured down the High Street to practise the speech on George and son John ('Too fast, much too fast, far too fast and you said again twice', from George.  'It's very good, well done, perhaps a little slower would be good, and there's nothing wrong with a reinforcing repetition, perhaps just a little slower' from a more tactful John)

Then all we had to do was to return to the Grosvenor to dress, and apply jewellery and nail varnish, one or both of us, then go downstairs in readiness for  the wedding.

And what a wedding!  It managed to be beautiful, so moving, happy, deeply personal and just fab all at the same time.  Our friend Jane Waterston was conducting the ceremony, and she was just perfect too.
Not only was it such a privilege to be there, and to be reading, but it was so lovely to not only be included in the happiness of Col and Juliette, but to be able to continue that happiness beyond the ceremony, and beyond the day.

Here they are, only just married, and still looking like it was a jolly good idea…..

……………………and very much a traditional start, will Col upright and manly, and Juliette touchingly leaning towards him for support.  Nothing to do with pre-wedding Bucks Fizz.

'Attention to detail' is a good mantra for living, and must have been the mantra for the wedding.
After bubbles, then more bubbles, we went through for the meal.  Although Mr Copper and I knew only 3 people there, and one of them had already left, we met such great people on our table. The order for the day was indeed smiles and laughter.
 All of us received a personalised goody bag, each illustrated by Juliette's daughter Lisa.

When the meal was over, Mr Cooper and I decided to reserve some strength for the evening ahead, so we retired for a couple of hours to eat fudge from the goody bag, and also a wedding cupcake.

For a couple who normally eat only savoury food, we were doing really well. 

 All that remained to do then was to spend the rest of the evening dancing, and to music that we not only recognised, but really liked! 

 And as we put a lot of effort into all that dancing, we made sure we kept our liquid levels topped up.

So much so that at the end of the night I was so worn out with all that dancing, that Mr Cooper had to help me up the stairs!

Christmas draws closer, bringing with it that manic Christmas rush.  On Sunday I went to stay with Mum, and we went out for Sunday lunch, a really good habit we seem to be getting into.  This week, a lovely pub about 4 miles from Mum, in the village where my younger brother went to school.  It sounds idyllic, but it was not a small village school. Rather, a large, rough secondary, full of a real mixture of pupils from many villages. Glinton.

I don't know what the school is like now, but the pub is well worth a visit.  A really charming village, attentive staff, and super food.  http://www.thebluebellglinton.co.uk/

After that, Mum and I did our usual evening occupation…….trying to remain awake enough to watch a complete of episodes of 'Murder Most English, The Flaxborough Chronicles'.  After 3 separate attempts now, I have gathered the gist of 2 of the stories.  This is not helped by the fact that Mum is apt to wake from a doze, then go mad with the remote control, so if you are conscious, what you watch will change in front of your very eyes.  If dozing, you will wake to wonder who these new characters are, in 'The Chronicles'.

When I was there, reading the radio times, I saw that the film 'Seven Years in Tibet' was on the TV.  I remarked to Mum about how childhood had changed.  When we three were little, 'Seven Years in Tibet' was a book that Dad had bought (and never read.)  We had been through it to look at the illustrations (we had to make our fun in those days, and yes we did have electricity, John)

The illustration below never failed to make the three of us laugh.  But after many a wet afternoon of us all inside, and laughing repeatedly at this butter skull procession, Mum always seemed a little cross and frazzled.  If only we had had ipads then. We wouldn't have had to have made a sound, or even moved!

Back to preparations, and this time for Christmas.  I have just returned from completing the Christmas present shopping, phew.  When this is written, we are off to Bristol for the night to see Mr Cooper's family, and then over to Portishead, to have an early Christmas with my little brother's family.  Back on Monday, which is my only work-free day till Christmas Eve.  On Monday we have only got to do the shopping, put up the tree, find the decorations, put the tree up again, ice the cakes, wrap the presents, make pickled pears, clean the house, stay talking, etc etc.

But more important than that, inspired by Colin and Juliette's decorated camper van, I am knitting two tinsel Christmas scarves.  It suddenly seems very important to be festooned with sparkles whilst cooking goose and flaming puddings.  

Next year I am going to be more organised.  At least I have kept with 'attention to detail'.  The 2 scarves with go beautifully with my 2 Christmas dresses.

I hope your preparations are proceeding smoothly.  Just remember, as you are getting frazzled at having to do so much in such a short time, and be seen to be enjoying it too, that it's 'just for one day'.  If that quote really makes you cross, you are probably well stressed, and trying to do too much.  

Why not sit down for a short while with someone you love, and a little glass of something?

Oh well, time to get up and peel the potatoes, chop the carrots and bugger the turkey.

See you all just before Christmas, I hope.  Till then, stay sane and have some fun.

so h

Cooking is very much to the fore in my life this week.  Christmas gets closer, and presents need to be made.
Luckily, this little booklet I purchased from a vintage shop should help me with my present-making.
What could be better than a chutney consisting of bananas, dates, apples and black treacle, all stirred together, and cooked inside the oven?
The recipe sounded so amazingly horrific that I had to give it a go.  Will let you know the results nearer the end of the blog, when all is bottled.

I try to avoid tidying and cleaning the house, Mr Cooper does it so much better than me after all, but I have been tidying my photos from long ago.  I had almost forgotten the Black Forest afternoon, when I baked a tremendous black Forest gateau, when was further fortified by extra layers of chocolate buttercream! The cake was intended to inspire some artwork.  Sarah and Gareth came round to help devour it, and it did inspire Gareth to have 2 slices, a decision which we all thought was foolish, including Gareth after he had embarked on the second slice.

The photos I took of the eating of the cake did work as an inspiration, and I produced my first 'food art' lino-cuts, based on a slice of Black Forest gateau.  If you are inspired to become the owner of one of these prints, do get in touch with me, as I did get rather carried away………...

….and recently discovered about 20 original works of Black Forest art nestling in my plan chest.

When I became 50 years old, Mr Cooper demonstrated how well he knew me, by giving me this birthday card.  I spent a happy Saturday morning last weekend doing one of my favourite occupations (cooking) in readiness for friends coming over to dine later…………….

……...when I would be able to combine that favourite occupation with another I hold dear.
Mr Cooper was the photographer for my interpretation, inspired by the card, and he suggested I should have the oven door open, as above.
Artistically a good idea, but did I want to spend a couple of hours cleaning the oven first?
Closed it is!

Now I have the Christmas tree fairy in my possession, I felt inspired to do my first festive bake.  When we were little, Mum always made mince pies with bright green icing.  When I grew older, and visited friend's houses, I realised that this was not how any other families enjoyed their mince pies.  In fact, apart from Mum and her mum, and sisters, nobody else seemed to be producing this festive treat.

Combined with the fairy, and a shiny doiley, these will become my first illustration for the 'Green Donkey Cookery Book'.  What could be more fitting as a first illustration for it than green mince pies?
I just need to find the right green food colouring.
The above are not as lurid as those we enjoyed in the 70s!  No wonder we spent a lot of time running around outside.

And outside was where I went the next Saturday, to complete the 2nd half of the Octagen walk with Mr Cooper.  We started from Compton, and ended at Walderton this time.  I hadn't been by Racton ruin for some time, and was pleased to see the fence had been removed so we were able to go right up to it.

In fact, inside the ruin there was a distinct 'modern art' feel.
But however brightly coloured parts of it are, its overall mood is a sombre and brooding one.
 Not a place to spend the night, unless as part of a large and jolly group.

Have you noticed how seamless my links are this week, from one image to the next?
Taking on the ghostly theme……………...

This has to be one of my favourite authors, and most favourite mystery series.  If you are not already familiar with Flavia de Luce, you must rectify the situation.  The first one of the series is 'the Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie'.  and when you have totally fallen in love with that book you can look forward to reading the next five!
And what about the sweetness at the bottom of my oven? (another seamless link!)
When I first read the recipe, I thought that it could only be awful, or amazing.  And thankfully, it has gone down the amazing route.  It did take an act of faith to do what the recipe asked you to, but the end result is deliciously different, and I feel moved to share this recipe with you.

I cooked it at 140 c, and stirred it three times throughout.  I also cooked it for two and a quarter hours, and put it whilst still hot into warmed jars.  When it says 'bake for about 2 hours until a rich chocolate colour, you will get a rich, very dark chocolate colour.  Do not expect Galaxy or Dairy Milk here.

I hope you are able to enjoy your festive season preparations in the coming week.  I am determined to do advance preparations to avoid that 'totally frazzled' feeling that does tend to take away from the magic of Christmas.
I might braise some red cabbage this evening.  Perhaps a G and T would help me as I chop………
Or perhaps a nice cup of tea instead.  It is only Monday, after all.
I hope you enjoy the week ahead. See you next week.
Until then, have fun whilst staying on top of things.