After my annual year-end read of Rosamunde Pilcher's Winter Soltice, I determined to read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings again. We have limited hard-copy versions of both and they are a joy to hold in your hands to read together with beautiful artwork and original line drawings by JRRT.

Over time, I found that there were 2 or 3 products which tended to be hard-water resistant and I could rely on regardless of where I was. These products are Palmolive classic cream, Palmolive classic stick and The Body Shop Maca Root cream. I now only travel with the Maca root cream - it's entirely ...

As a boy, we always had Cardinals and Blue Jays around the garden in the winter months - especially the beginning of March. That was growing up in the Niagara Peninsula. Now in Ottawa, we are guaranteed to see a couple of either by mid-February. By far my favourite birds - mainly because I know what...

fallingwickets wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 10, 2019 2:18 am

Terry's Chocolate Orange

one of lifes little pleasures

clive

Indeed!

Gareth wrote: ↑

Mon Sep 23, 2019 3:43 am

We still use good old Imperial Leather in this house.

+1 - although we have been on MWF Bath Soap since we came back from North Yorkshire at the end of November.

A Terry's Chocolate Orange please ....... annual tradition since we married 37 years ago.

We got back a week and a half ago and true to form, I got my own personal jug of custard at family dinner --- back away from the custard and no one gets hurt ......

I run with both my LX (with Lamy classic Blue) and the TWSBI ECO with MOnteverde USA Napa Burgundy for all my daily use unless I am using one of my Staedtler mechanical pencils. Love both of these pens. They are a joy to write with and get better over time as the nib has formed to my writing angle a...

... All I ever knew for custard when young, it came from the Birds Co in a tub and required mixing with milk and careful slow warming. I was fascinated with it as the cornflour in it made it non-Newtonian as you stirred; runny if poured, but stiffened up as soon as you stirred. .... I drink this st...

Rufus wrote: ↑

Tue Oct 01, 2019 4:17 am

My favourite pork pie is the Melton Mowbray pork pie. Although not from Yorkshire, it’s from Leicestershire, it’s jolly tasty. My Yorkshire nan is turning in her grave as I write this; sorry nan.

You oughta be ashamed of yerself young man!!

Methinks me started something of a mini-thread-within-a-thread. There is a little butcher shop just off the high street in Skipton which has emblazoned across their window "Best Pork Pies in Yorkshire" & "Best Pork Pie in England". I can attest that they certainly keep up with the reputation. They a...

Don't laugh too hard when you read this -- best doggone meal ever was a Ploughman's at a somewhat obscure pub called The Black Dog outside of Blackburn, Lancashire. Yup it was seriously. My food pleasures are pretty simple and I don't go in for anything terribly fancy. It's all about flavour for me.

We have moved to a number of triple milled french soaps as well as MWF and Swedish Dream Sea Salt.

As always, Chris -- great post and wonderful story telling with the picture. Nothing like beskpoke chess sets. I have a bespoke Isle of Lewis set I have made specifically for me from a crafter in Skye from crushed Isle of Skye stone and resin with a matching table. I got them to include a set of dra...

For a very long time I always used alum after a shave, but have moved away from that entirely. My post shave ritual has become very basic indeed after all my rinsing is done I splash on some Thayer's Witch Hazel and finish with some GFT skin food - either Limes in the warmer weather, or Sandlewood w...

No sympathy here -- not so long as my supply of vintage Gillette razors are still serviceable.

I am back into some WWII history. This time it's William Craig's "Enemy at the Gate" - the story of the battle for Stalingrad. What an excellent tale. It is a bit on the gruesome side of things, but the story has to be told. Unbelievable that first off the Russians were successful in holding off the...

Been using the same setting on my Fatboy for too many years to recount here. Notwithstanding, at 60 yrs old, I don't fine my preferences any different than I did at 40. I'm a dedicated Gillette Silver Blue and Polsilver blade man and have been for at least 4 or 5 years.

Decided to take on Adam Nicolson's Sea Room for the third or perhaps even fourth time. It's a great read, and one that I always enjoy. Nicolson has an interesting writing style, all of his own, and I find myself often pulled into his narrative. I only have 20 or so pages to go to the end ... but lov...

Oh my giddy aunt. We are booked for November again this year. Can hardly wait for a Bettys tea --- or two --- or three ......