All of our operators are busy right now…. (A telephone conversation I wish I could have.) Hello automated voice? I….yes I KNOW I’m 20th in line, you told me that 12 seconds ago. And I’ve heard about your website address. You told me that too, but you see, I am on the phone right now.… Continue reading All of our operators are busy
Tag: vegetarian
Fish!
Welcome to our new house. When we bought our house I had no idea that its existing inhabitants would be so much trouble and cost so much. “And here is the pond,” said Steve, the then owner. “We thought at first that we would get rid of the fish and fill it in. But then,… Continue reading Fish!
Doors — more humiliation
Doors – and More Humiliation! One thing about building a community is its individual welcome, and DOORS are part of that welcome. I love the wreaths that my Indiana sister puts on her front door, that change according to the season, how attractive and friendly they are. When I arrived in England as a… Continue reading Doors — more humiliation
A Community of Displaced People
Alexandria, Egypt. Summer, 1966, during the Six Day War. 4.am. We arose silently, dressed, gathered our meagre belongings and went outside. The police, also silent, led us into their waiting cars, the engines idling softly, ready to move.. Then quietly, quietly, they drove off. They suggested that we duck down if we saw anyone on… Continue reading A Community of Displaced People
Protected: A Community of Walkers
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
March
March Storm. On a recent morning walk, a passenger jet prepared to land on my head. It didn’t. And it wasn’t. It was only the wild wild wind thrashing the trees– spraying the raindrops into showers of rainbows in the surprising, intermittent sunshine. The fierce roar was intense. Sometimes I was hustled along,… Continue reading March
American Thanksgiving in a Non American Country
Well, we had roast turkey, sausages, gravy, apple-celery-bacon cornbread stuffing with cashews and cranberries, Amish sweet potatoes with apple and mace, mashed potatoes, squash with crystallised ginger, green beans almondine, broccoli, cranberry-orange relish, the obligatory creamed onions (which, I understand, is an Upstate New York addition), and mince-peach pie, apple-cherry pie, and of course, pumpkin… Continue reading American Thanksgiving in a Non American Country
Apple County Apple Country
They say that if a medieval Greek man wanted to propose marriage, all he had to do was to toss his Intended an apple. If she caught it, or even tried to catch it (let’s keep her options open as wide as possible here) she agreed to the union. A powerful thing is the apple. … Continue reading Apple County Apple Country
Community Gardeners
It seemed like a good idea at the time. I once infiltrated a posh Herb Workshop on a massive Gloucestshire estate, hoping to pick up cooking tips using herbs. Bad bad idea. The situation turned prickly after the lemon balm tea and lavender-bud shortbread, when we had to explain why we were there. All had… Continue reading Community Gardeners
The Steinbeck House
How many of you retired folk wake up one morning and say, “I think I’ll buy me an old house, turn it into a restaurant, and get it registered as literary landmark”? Not your ordinary retirement activity, is it? Not quite sitting and staring at the middle distance waiting for a daughter to ring, or wandering… Continue reading The Steinbeck House
food that builds community 