Autumn
Saturday 3rd October 2020
Feeling very autumnal - the leaves on the blueberry bush changing colour.
Saturday 3rd October 2020
Feeling very autumnal - the leaves on the blueberry bush changing colour.
Undrinable Homemade Wine
Sunday 4th October 2020
"Bottled" the wine I had made in 2020 so I could make use of the fermenting vessel again for this year's harvest. It doesn't look good. Takoyaki (or a vegetarian version thereof) for lunch, a stroll on the heath in the afternoon, and some more Roebuck Estates in the evening.
Sunday 4th October 2020
"Bottled" the wine I had made in 2020 so I could make use of the fermenting vessel again for this year's harvest. It doesn't look good. Takoyaki (or a vegetarian version thereof) for lunch, a stroll on the heath in the afternoon, and some more Roebuck Estates in the evening.
Outdoor Cooking
Thursday 8th October 2020
Thought I'd give my new frying pan a go this evening, and did some al fresco cooking.
Thursday 8th October 2020
Thought I'd give my new frying pan a go this evening, and did some al fresco cooking.
Wild Life and Pubs
Friday 9th October 2020
Erika drew this picture for me, which I thought was rather lovely.
Friday 9th October 2020
Erika drew this picture for me, which I thought was rather lovely.
Hampstead Heath Yet Again
Saturday 10th October 2020
Went for a stroll to the heath while Erika was at Japanese school in the morning.
Saturday 10th October 2020
Went for a stroll to the heath while Erika was at Japanese school in the morning.
Picnic on the Heath and Drinks by the Thames
Sunday 11th October 2020
A rarely busy / social day, starting off with pizza on the heath for lunch with local friends. Then later on in the afternoon I headed down to the Thames for al fresco drinks with the usual suspects, and we were treated to some lovely views and a rainbow over the river.
Sunday 11th October 2020
A rarely busy / social day, starting off with pizza on the heath for lunch with local friends. Then later on in the afternoon I headed down to the Thames for al fresco drinks with the usual suspects, and we were treated to some lovely views and a rainbow over the river.
Pie and Mash
Thursday 15th October 2020
Ordered a Manze Pie and Mash delivery, which arrived today - making tonight's dinner an obvious choice. Also went for a quick early evening walk to the heath before dinner.
Thursday 15th October 2020
Ordered a Manze Pie and Mash delivery, which arrived today - making tonight's dinner an obvious choice. Also went for a quick early evening walk to the heath before dinner.
Cider
Friday 16th October 2020
Cider out in the garden after work, and generally feeling very autumnal still.
Friday 16th October 2020
Cider out in the garden after work, and generally feeling very autumnal still.
Sneaky Pint, Yard Sale, Lebanese Food and Butterbeer
Saturday 17th October 2020
Packed quite a lot in today in retrospect. Went to our local Middle Eastern food shop in the morning to buy things for a Lebanese dinner this evening (it being our wedding anniversary) and timed it perfectly for a sneaky pint at the one table outside the Pineapple on the way back. Went to Erika's friend's school yard sale in the neighbourhood later on, and picked up a wedding anniversary present for Chie - a Lost in Translation DVD. Lebanese food for dinner including some 1997 (!) Chatea Musar. After dinner I had a go at making Butterbeer (from Harry Potter) for Erika.
Saturday 17th October 2020
Packed quite a lot in today in retrospect. Went to our local Middle Eastern food shop in the morning to buy things for a Lebanese dinner this evening (it being our wedding anniversary) and timed it perfectly for a sneaky pint at the one table outside the Pineapple on the way back. Went to Erika's friend's school yard sale in the neighbourhood later on, and picked up a wedding anniversary present for Chie - a Lost in Translation DVD. Lebanese food for dinner including some 1997 (!) Chatea Musar. After dinner I had a go at making Butterbeer (from Harry Potter) for Erika.
Platform 9 3/4, Hampstead Heath and Fairy Lights
Sunday 18th October 2020
Erika and I walked down to St Pancras in the morning to visit the Platform 9 3/4 shop there, so she could pick up a couple of Harry Potter items she had wanted for a while. Another perfectly timed opportunity for a pint outside the Pineapple on the way back. In the afternoon I went for another walk to the heath, then in the evening we put some fairy lights up in the garden.
Sunday 18th October 2020
Erika and I walked down to St Pancras in the morning to visit the Platform 9 3/4 shop there, so she could pick up a couple of Harry Potter items she had wanted for a while. Another perfectly timed opportunity for a pint outside the Pineapple on the way back. In the afternoon I went for another walk to the heath, then in the evening we put some fairy lights up in the garden.
Cross Country Run and Cardo's Birthday
Monday 19th October 2020
Erika's class had a cross country run on Hampstead Heath this afternoon, and I went along to help marshal. Later on met up with Cardo on Primrose Hill for a couple of glasses of wine to celebrate his birthday.
Monday 19th October 2020
Erika's class had a cross country run on Hampstead Heath this afternoon, and I went along to help marshal. Later on met up with Cardo on Primrose Hill for a couple of glasses of wine to celebrate his birthday.
Smokeless Coal
Thursday 22nd October 2020
Took delivery of some "smokeless" coal today, with the view to possibly buying a fire pit / chiminea to allow us to spend more time outdoors in the coming months. Tried it out with the barbecue this evening, but it turned out to be seemingly impossible to ignite, which rather suggested the basis on which it could legitimately claim to be smokeless.
Thursday 22nd October 2020
Took delivery of some "smokeless" coal today, with the view to possibly buying a fire pit / chiminea to allow us to spend more time outdoors in the coming months. Tried it out with the barbecue this evening, but it turned out to be seemingly impossible to ignite, which rather suggested the basis on which it could legitimately claim to be smokeless.
Smokeless Coal Round Two
Friday 23rd October 2020
Another attempt to make a fire in the back garden with the smokeless coals this evening and more successful second time round! Used a lot more kindling and a lot more coals and eventually got a decent burn out of it. Did some fantastic baked potatoes!
Friday 23rd October 2020
Another attempt to make a fire in the back garden with the smokeless coals this evening and more successful second time round! Used a lot more kindling and a lot more coals and eventually got a decent burn out of it. Did some fantastic baked potatoes!
Sunrise on Hampstead Heath
Saturday 24th October 2020
I woke early and decided it would be good to try and watch the sunrise (or at least the tail end of it) on Hampstead Heath. Later in the day some GevCham out in the garden, and played with Cozmo with Erika.
Saturday 24th October 2020
I woke early and decided it would be good to try and watch the sunrise (or at least the tail end of it) on Hampstead Heath. Later in the day some GevCham out in the garden, and played with Cozmo with Erika.
Canterbury
Sunday 25th October 2020
Went down to Canterbury for the day, and sat under a tarp in Leon's back garden while he made pizza and we drank Spritzes.
Sunday 25th October 2020
Went down to Canterbury for the day, and sat under a tarp in Leon's back garden while he made pizza and we drank Spritzes.
Sunset on the Heath
Monday 26th October 2020
Finished work a bit early to do some exercise, and strolled to the heath to try and catch a bit of the sunset. Again a few minutes too late really, but got some nice shots of pink evening sky anyway.
Monday 26th October 2020
Finished work a bit early to do some exercise, and strolled to the heath to try and catch a bit of the sunset. Again a few minutes too late really, but got some nice shots of pink evening sky anyway.
Lunch in a Shed
Tuesday 27th October 2020
Erika was on her half term holiday this week, and today I took the day off work so that we could do something together. Unfortunately the weather was a bit grim, and many of the usual options for entertainment weren't available given the current restrictions so we ended up just having a pub lunch in one of the sheds recently constructed in the beer garden of one of our local pubs. Then we did a bit of papier mache in the afternoon.
Tuesday 27th October 2020
Erika was on her half term holiday this week, and today I took the day off work so that we could do something together. Unfortunately the weather was a bit grim, and many of the usual options for entertainment weren't available given the current restrictions so we ended up just having a pub lunch in one of the sheds recently constructed in the beer garden of one of our local pubs. Then we did a bit of papier mache in the afternoon.
Hampstead Heath Yet Again
Thursday 29th October 2020
Yet another stroll to the heath, again a bit bleak looking.
Thursday 29th October 2020
Yet another stroll to the heath, again a bit bleak looking.
Another Haircut Accident and White Truffles
Friday 30th October 2020
Took another day off work to do something fun with Erika while she was still on half term, but once again struggled to find much in the way of available activities, so we just headed down to Belgravia for lunch at Oliveto - I was very keen to have their excellent tagliolini with white truffles now the season was upon us. Before we headed off I got the girls to have a go at cutting my hair, and it went a bit awry again.
Friday 30th October 2020
Took another day off work to do something fun with Erika while she was still on half term, but once again struggled to find much in the way of available activities, so we just headed down to Belgravia for lunch at Oliveto - I was very keen to have their excellent tagliolini with white truffles now the season was upon us. Before we headed off I got the girls to have a go at cutting my hair, and it went a bit awry again.
Halloween
Saturday 31st October 2020
We manage to carve out some sort of Halloween related frivolity for Erika's sake despite the current restrictions.
Saturday 31st October 2020
We manage to carve out some sort of Halloween related frivolity for Erika's sake despite the current restrictions.
Friday 2nd October 2020
Fish (well, halloumi) and chips for lunch, wine from Roebuck Estate in the evening.