A Very Welcome Change

This morning it is bright and clear but frosty. At noon I "waddled" across slippy frosted pavements and sidewalks to go for my messages (that's how folks say "ran my errands" over here). First stop was the post office to mail off the last of the UK Christmas cards. Next stop was to the charity shop to see if I could find some parfait glasses to serve the Eton Mess pudding in this evening. (They didn't have parfait glasses but I got 7 stemmed glass pudding/fruit cocktail-type glasses. Those and a small blue-and-white jug to add to the collection on top of the utility room cupboards came to the grand total of one pound.) Final stop was the greengrocer where I picked up the raspberries, albeit frozen ones.

On the way, I took photos for comparison sake so you can see just how much the river has gone down since Wednesday and even Thursday morning. The first shows the spot on the pathway where I had photographed Donald on Wednesday evening standing next to where the water level had reached. It was just on the other side of the fence. You can see from looking at the background just how much farther away and lower down it normally is. The second photo shows the house across the river with sandbags in front. The sandbags are still there and probably will remain for a while yet just to be on the safe side. If you can see the small wall to the left of that house (click on the photo to enlarge it), you'll see that the lower half is lighter than the top half. That's how high up the river had advanced when it burst its banks on Wednesday night. The third photo is taken from the bridge, looking eastward so you can see that while the River Earn is still high, it has gone down considerably. By the way, these photos are unretouched as to colour. Isn't it a beautiful day?

Don is off playing golf with the St. Fillans Seniors for the second day in a row. He is one happy camper to be back out there. I am washing clothes and wrapping gifts as well as getting ready for tonight's Channukah dinner. We have invited Helen and Gordon Rae and Trish and Haig Hamilton. Haig and Trish have had our brisket and potato pancake (latkes) meal before, but this will be a first for the Raes. Don is making his Aunt Mildred's recipe which calls for cooking the brisket with onions the night before, making gravy, and then baking it a bit more. After it has been sliced and has cooled, it all goes into the fridge until a couple of hours before the meal, when it finishes cooking so that it is rich, dark brown, and tasty as can be.

While people have drinks and nibble some Ritz crackers topped with the wonderful smoked salmon mousse Don made yesterday, I'll have to make the latkes because if I make them ahead they won't be crunchy when they're served and that's the way I like them. I made NPR Cranberry Relish yesterday and popped it in the freezer. I'll take it out 3 or so hours before our guests are due so it can thaw in the fridge before I whip it up to serve it. I also made applesauce last night. Apparently, people don't eat applesauce over here the way they do in the States. We can buy it in jars at the supermarket but the jars are only about twice the size of a baby food jar. It is so easy to make that I just don't buy it over here. There will be fresh fine beans (thin green beans--from Egypt!) and, of course, sour cream to go on the latkes along with the applesauce.

The pudding course will be Eton Mess, so-named because it has traditionally been served to parents in the refectory at Eton during regularly scheduled parents' visits to that famous school on the Thames. It couldn't be easier and is nice and light following such a rich and heavy meal. You take ready-made meringues and crunch them into small chunks. Mix this with slightly sweetened whipped cream and some raspberries. Put into parfait or pudding glasses and top with a dollop of whipped cream and a raspberry or two or three. It looks lovely, tastes fresh but not too sweet, and doesn't spoil your appetite for the cheese course. Oh yes, over here we finish a meal with biscuits and assorted cheeses. Then comes the coffee, chocolates, and finally, brandy. Fortunately, the practice of men retiring to the drawing room for cigars has gone out the window!

I've not managed to quilt but one panel of the baby quilt so probably won't get back to it until tomorrow. I guess it will be sometime next week before the quilt gets delivered.

We will think of you as we light our Channukah candles tonight and hope for peace.