Making lots of Dough

Well not me exactly, it is my new bread-making machine that is making the dough. Sometime ago, I happened to have some beautiful home-made bread made by Ruth. I had always thought that bread-making machines were not much better than useless, but to my utmost amazement I found myself eating delicious bread out of one such machine. So impressed was I that the next time I visited Grandma and Grandad I related the story to them; whereupon Grandad said that he wanted to buy me one. This instruction to buy was passed on to Mum and eventually, last Wednesday to be precise, my own bread-making machine appeared. Yesterday I had chance to play with it and discover for myself the intricacies of bread-making at home. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that there are no intricacies, it is dead simple. You put in the flour (500g) and add a little water (320ml), close the lid and press the button - in three hours you have a loaf of bread. Fascinating. My first loaf was well tucked into when I got home from the club last night and I had to tuck in for myself before going to bed. This morning I made my second loaf and took it for Grandma and Grandad, and my third is currently waiting to come out of the tin. Happy days!

A step in the right direction

Insignificant when compared to the rainforest, nevertheless Ling Close Wood was acquired as part of the "Woods on your Doorstep" initiative by the Woodland Trust in 1999. The name was chosen by the local people and the site is said to have had a variety of uses over the years including allotments, cricket and football pitches pre-war and arable thereafter. Running through the wood is a network of paths and tracks which are cut regularly creating pleasant circular walks. To celebrate the year 2000 a pond was created as the millennium feature. In the region of 7,200 trees were planted including oak, ash, cherry, field maple, willow, alder, hazel, hawthorn and dog rose. It is situated on the western edge of the village of Ledston Luck, the next village to Kippax where we lived when Jonny was born. The Raleigh volunteers are doing great work for ecology and conservation in the rainforest and we are doing our bit by starting a monthly subscription to the Woodland Trust, and for that they have planted a tree for us in this wood. Sounds like a nice afternoon walk to try and find it. They have sent also a Woodland Trust "nature detectives CLUB" pack for Holly, Henry and Isla - they will be really excited - but it is a first step and a valuable one.

America Bound and Rebound

Last Friday we went to the Apree Bar on High Street, Boston Spa, for Joshua's farewell do before he sets off for th USA on a soccer scholarship to some university or other - I thought he was going to California though Alex thought Tennessee - I suppose we should have asked. Given the number of people attending, most of whom appeared to be Josh's mates, the only conversation with him was basically "hello" and I'm not sure what happened to the "goodbye", nevertheless it was an enjoyable evening at, compared with France and Germany, reasonable prices - apart from when Uncle John stung me in a round. It was, as always, good to meet with family members infrequently seen these days, and the initial trepidation at a perhaps lukewarm reception evaporated quickly, though the hostess scurried around all evening without venturing in our direction, other than to ask whether or not we had had food. There were gaps in the gathering as you might expect and the gaps these days seem to be growing, again as you might expect - no Tess, no Tom, no Sarah, no Ryan, no Dale, no Amy, no Sue (she was tired), no Joe, no Clare, no Marcus and not many Longfellows - so apart from the Leaders et al, not much of a family gathering. But it was nice and significant as another milestone as the clan spreads and the family widens. It was also nice because of the location. The bar was at the top of Bridge Street so I nipped out during the evening to go down to the river and recollect thoughts and sights of my childhood. So much water has flowed down that river since those days, so many people come and gone, and still it looks remarkably the same with the notable exception of a swathe of Himalayan balsam clogging the right bank. It was close to the bridge that my Grandad Longfellow was born. The bar where we were, used to be a shop and, opposite, The Royal, where my Mum and Dad had their wedding reception, was a Costcutter. Change is good but somehow it didn't seem right to me. It was in Boston, many years before, that I realised I could read - it was at the bus stop which I could see from the bar; I could see that the bus was going to "Leeds" - not the hardest word to read I suppose. So America bound - and the rebound? Well a somewhat forlorn JP is home, now that his visitor status has expired. He is now contemplating the next step but while doing so he has the opportunity to spend time with his mother - and Uncle Hughie is over to visit her from Canada, which is nice for her, but now Eric has two invalids to look after.

Iron Man

Yesterday I received a phone call from Jonny who was looking for sponsors for the Iron Man he is doing on Sunday August 8th in Nottingham. The charity he has chosen to support is Overseas Anaesthesia Fund - Ruth's idea - and you can contribute by visiting the JustGiving website. Quite an undertaking when you think about it and even when you don't think about it - stepping into the unknown. Years ago, while I was at college, Emile Zatopek, Olympic gold medal winner in 5000m, 10000m and marathon (I think it was the first marathon he had ever run), all at the same games, said that if you wanted to run then you should run a mile, but if you wanted a new experience in life then you should run a marathon. On this scale, an Iron Man should take you into a different plane. He's done plenty of training, hopefully not too much, but it is still probably going to be the hardest thing he has ever done. Becky and James, Mum and I are going down to watch and offer encouragement. It is, however, a difficult event to spectate. In the 12-14 hours he hopes to complete it in, we might get to see him half a dozen times, if we stay to the end, as he passes by about every two hours.

Recent holiday

We are now back home after a wonderful break in the Rhine valley. We travelled on Eurostar to Brussels and on to Aachen by coach. After one night in Aachen the coach took us to Andernach on the Rhine and along its banks via a beautiful village/town called Bacharach, where we had drinks, and then on to Heppenheim where we spent two nights during which time we went to Heidelberg. After leaving Heppenheim, where we enjoyed the outdoor theatre, we went via Baden-Baden and the Black Forest to Strasbourg where we spent three nights. While at Strasbourg we went to the wine region of Alsace and the Vosges mountains, and had a beautiful tarte flambee in a cafe in Colmar. We came back to Paris on the TGV and then to St Pancras on the Eurostar. We had a great time and met some lovely people.

The first blog

This is my first attempt at this form of communication which is prompted by the fact that my son Stephen is on expedition in Borneo and is one means by which contact can be made. Being a complete novice makes me wonder how this will work and how the blogs get to be seen. My guess is that it must be more systematic and therefore more successful than putting a message in a bottle - but how I'm not sure. In some ways I feel as if I am casting these words into the wind, hoping that somehow, someone or something will bring them to their destination.

If this attempt is successful, I will continue with more, so keep searching Ste.

Love Dad