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Continue reading →: Samhain
We are approaching the Celtic New Year festival or Samhain. Ancient pagan festivals were often adopted by Christians such as Halloween, the eve of All Saints Day. Children go trick or treating, although I don’t know anyone who would perform a trick rather than hand over a few sweets. My…
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Continue reading →: Under pressure
We noticed a drop in the water pressure over the last two days. We thought it might have had something to do with the boiler, but it occurred to us that there could have been a burst mains water pipe in our street. This morning we checked with our neighbour,…
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Continue reading →: Seasonal prompts
To get us started, the leader of our poetry classes, Stephanie Conn, has given us an autumnal theme and its associations. I have written two rhymes on that theme, A Bumper Crop and Conkered. You can find these on the Latest Draft Odes page.
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Continue reading →: Art auctions
I enjoy browsing the lots on online auction websites. Locally, Ross’s has a good reputation for prominent artists’ work. Artists such as: William Conor, Marky Robinson, and Charles McCaulay are often up for auction. Even prints and catalogues come up for bidding at affordable prices. I bought a watercolour some…
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Continue reading →: Pastry
I have brought two packets of ready-made pastry: short crust and puff pastry. Apple pie, apple crumble, fruit compote, apple sauce… I will be a bit bored with apples sometime soon. I think I might just freeze some apple compote and have done with it
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Continue reading →: Free verse
At my last poetry class one of my fellow students quoted Robert Frost “Writing free verse is like playing tennis with the net down.” I am uncomfortable writing poetry without the structure of rhyme and meter. I have made a few attempts at the form, but it often reads like…
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Continue reading →: Antipasto deli
Today I had my breakfast in a wonderful delicatessen called Antipasto on the Lisburn Road in Belfast where the BT9 cognoscenti go. Ciabatta with mortadella and spicy pecorino cheese was delicious. The double espresso was good, and the Sicilian patron was very chatty. We talked about this and that and…
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Continue reading →: Even more about apples
It was all going so well, or so I thought. The apple pie recipe was easy to follow, and I had decided to make the short crust pastry rather than buy ready-made. So what went wrong? Not enough water in my dough? Possibly. In any case, the dough fell apart…
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Continue reading →: A wet and windy day in Belfast
This morning was miserable. Grey, windy and wet. I was late for the appointment with my dentist and rushed out without a jumper. Cycling quickly to avoid being late, I hadn’t charged the bike’s battery. Arriving at Antipasto for my morning’s caffeine fix I decided to leave the bike locked…
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Continue reading →: PSA blood test
My brother, who is a young 72 year old, often gives me sound advice. Recently, he suggested I get a PSA blood test. It measures prostate-specific antigen levels to help check for prostate conditions, including enlargement or cancer. His levels had increased marginally, so his private doctor had recommended an…
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