Life and Cherries. Delicious Dark, Sweet, Juicy Cherries!

Life is just a bowl of cherries!

While he was out shopping Mr.R bought some cherries from a local greengrocers.
They were seriously good, big, dark, sweet, and juicy. Delicious!

Eating the cherries reminded me of the phrase 'Life is just a bowl of cherries!'
It's actually a song lyric, I think, an oldie from the 1930's originally sung by Ray Henderson, and lots of others stars have sung it too - Judy Garland, Rudy Vallee, Doris Day.......

Oops, this isn't a blog post about a song, or who sung it, it's about cherries.
We're don't usually eat much fruit, but we do enjoy cherries.
I mean, we like fruit, it just doesn't particularly like us - we're more savoury food lovers.

Cherries!
We love 'em!
Are you a lover of cherries?
They are perfect delicious little bite-sized delights aren't they?

The Dog Rescuers Presenter Alan Davies Owes Us A New TV - TV Zero, Rottweiler One

I wonder, if I ask very very nicely, do you think Alan Davies will buy us a new television?
I only ask because last night our TV was attacked, smashed to the floor, and broken. It's completely fecked!

What's our broken TV got to do with Alan Davies?
You may well ask.
Well, it's his fault our TV is buggered.
Why? How?
Well, last night Mr.R asked if I felt like watching The Dog Rescuers.
I said, yeah OK.
No sooner had the programme started when a dog appeared on the screen, not surprising as it is a programme about dogs. Actually not a dog, 3 dogs. Collies if memory serves me right.
And as quick as a flash Porter, our Rottweiler jumped up from his sleep ran at the TV and attacked the screen.
The TV went flying, I screamed, simply because I thought the television was going to fall on top of our Lurcher Barley, but thankfully it didn't, it did make him jump though; the sight of Porter launching himself at the TV, the TV crashing to the floor....... and that was that, the screen has a dent in it and lots of cracks. It is definitely dead.

The damage doesn't look too bad, it's difficult to photograph because of the reflections etc.

I wonder if the local recycling centre accepts broken televisions?

As the presenter of The Dog Rescuers on Channel 5, we think the death of our TV is entirely the fault of Alan Davies, which is a shame because we like him, he's a funny man.
So, TV zero, Rottweiler one.
And to think they said adopt don't shop! Rescue dogs are are so loving and rescuing a dog is so much better than buying a puppy, blah, blah, blah.......
Well, that may or may not be true, but one things for certain, Porter does not feel loving towards Alan Davies.
Do you think Alan Davies should buy us a new TV?
Or, failing that, I know of a lovely Rottweiler who may be looking for a new home very soon - interested? 

Dog Walk on Blast Beach, Dawdon, Seaham, County Durham

A couple of days ago we decided to make the most of the Summer by taking our two dogs, Barley the Lurcher, and Porter the Rottweiler, to the beach for a mooch.
Summer? Hahaha!
Lately we've been wearing Winter coats when out walking the dogs, slippers indoors, and we've even had the fire on a couple of evenings.

Crappy weather aside, we are very fortunate to have several beaches nearby to choose from, of which three are beaches we use regularly. But this time we thought we'd try somewhere new, so we drove to Blast Beach.

Thankfully, despite it being the end of July, we were the only people on the beach - probably because it was a gorgeous Summers day; cold, windy and chucking it down.
Rain rain go away, come again another day.......
Gotta love an English Summer! Ha-fecking-ha!

Anyway, from the car-park the quickest route down the the beach was barred, the next route was not suitable, as Barley and Porter are both strong pullers on the lead, and the rain had turned the grassy bank into a scene from Glastonbury festival.
So we kept walking along the clifftops until we came to some steps made from large flat rocks, which lead straight down to the beach.

By this time all four of us were completely soaked. Cold. Tired. But as I said there was no one else on the beach, so we were happy - ish.

We let the boys off their leads and they immediately started running around each other, with a bit of snarling, barking, neck nipping, and tail nipping. Well, we've only had Porter for a few days, so they are still getting used to each other.......

We had hoped to take some proper photos of the DLSR camera, but because the rain was so heavy we didn't want to ruin the camera, so we just shot a few quick photos on our phones.
Barley was mainly happy just to zoom about all over the sand, and roll around with a dead fish, and Porter was happy attacking an empty flagon he'd found washed up on the beach.

Blast beach is famous for being the location where the opening scenes for the film Alien 3 were shot.
Other than that I have nothing much more to say about it.

It was a decent enough beach, but I'm sure when the weather is good it will be too busy for us to use, as Barley doesn't believe in recall, and no doubt Porter will soon copy his bad habits. Hehe!
On a bright sunny day, I imagine Blast Beach would be really lovely, lots of rich colours and textures in the landscape, but horrible rain drenched days are the only ones that would be good for us to return.
Mr.R and me both prefer the beaches we usually go to, so that's probably the first and last time we'll ever visit Blast Beach.
Have you been to Blast Beach?
The Alien films are some of my favourites, do you like them?
Does your dog have good recall?

Our Family Just Got Bigger - Meet Porter The Rottweiler!

We are no longer a family of three.
Last Tuesday we adopted a Rottweiler from StrayAid, the pet rescue charity in Coxhoe, County Durham.

Porter. He doesn't like having his photo taken

We'd been talking for a while about getting another dog, a playmate for Barley, our lovely Lurcher, and over the last few weeks I'd been showing Mr.R various photos of the dogs on the StrayAid website.

Out walking this morning, lip-licking at a passing Collie 

There were several dogs on the website that we liked, Porter and a couple of Lurchers, we thought we could give a good home to.
But events seemed to be conspiring against us. One morning when we had intended to drive to StrayAid the car had a flat tyre, we found a screw in the rubber.
Another day we had a family emergency.
We were beginning to think the Universe was trying to tell is something - Don't get another dog!
But we were wrong because finally last Tuesday the Universe helped us find the perfect new addition to our family, Porter.

Watching me in the kitchen - hoping I drop some food on the floor

Initially at the rescue centre me and Mr.R met Porter, (they'd named him Hero), and once we'd decided we liked him and he seemed to like us, it was time for Porter and Barley to meet.
At first there was a little bit of growling, from Barley, but Porter seemed to instantly like Barley, and we were assured by the staff that the match was a good one.

Porter and Barley, they're getting closer every day - Ahhh!

Next there was lots of paperwork to complete.
While I was filling in the adoption forms we chatted to the staff about Porter, vaccinations, pet insurance etc.
Paperwork complete it was time to head back to the house.
Once home we went for a little stroll locally, not too far, as Porter was still recovering from being neutered.
Walk over we returned to the house and showed Porter around his new home, we think he approved.

Enjoying an afternoon nap

It's now been eight days, and things are going well.
Porter is a bit underweight, and his muscles are fairly weak, so we are slowly trying to help him gain weight with lots of lovely fresh healthy food, and gentle exercise.
Porter is a lovely affectionate boy who loves Barley, and Barley is slowly beginning to feel love for Porter.
They have played a few games of tug, with lots of growling, no aggression, just heightened excitement.
Porter loves his food, he sleeps very well, and we think he's happy with us.
We are looking forward to a time when Porter is fit enough to enjoy running on our local beaches with Barley.
Rescue dogs are wonderful!
Have you ever adopted a rescue dog?
Wonderful aren't they?

Sore Throat, Best Remedy - A Lovely Cold Pint!

I think I'm a bit run-down, nothing serious, just lack of sleep.......
I just feel a bit yukky, the main symptom being a sore throat, which probably explains why I'm sitting here craving a lovely pint of icy cold Strongbow cider.

Mmm, cider!
This photo is an old shot taken in a pub.
I'm only half serious about fancying a pint of cider, I know it wouldn't really cure my throat.
I take my health seriously, so I don't like taking medication, or throat pastilles etc.
Whenever I'm not feeling particularly well, I always try the 'natural' treatment first, so I've been dissolving salt in warm water and gargling with it, which is helping.
What do you do when you have a sore throat?
Do you use any natural remedies? If so, what?

Fairglobe Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, 2014 - Wine Review

We like to help keep our local Lidl supermarket up and running, which is why we buy a lot of wine from there - a lot of wine.
This bottle of South African red is another bargain wine Mr.R recently purchased - and very nice it was too.

On the nose there were rich aromas of blackberry, cherry, liquorice, and cocoa.
On the palate there were flavours of black cherry, blackcurrant, black pepper, tobacco, cloves, and vanilla.
Fairglobe Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, 2014, is a very enjoyable full-bodied wine, and one we'd definitely buy again.

From the label -
Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot
Wine of South Africa 
2014
The combination of aromatic Cabernet Sauvignon and fruity Merlot grapes has resulted in a unique tasting experience, due to the dry climate, ideal soil conditions, sunshine and cool nights they are grown in. 
This red wine is an ideal accompaniment to pasta and hearty meat dishes.
Serving temperature 16-18C.
Once opened, consume within 3 days. 
13.5% Vol. 
Have you tried Fairglobe Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, 2014?
What did you think of it?

What is it about Unicorns?

They're everywhere! Unicorns.

I mean, I haven't actually seen a unicorn, but for several months they seem have to been everywhere I look. 

No, not everywhere I look, as I said, I haven't actually seen a unicorn, but if I had a pound for every time I've read the word unicorn, I'd be a multi-millionaire. 

For many months now, whenever I use IG (InstaGram) I always see at least a dozen references to unicorns, usually in the bio sections, but also in the photos themselves.  

And if not there, then I see them mentioned in various products; tshirts, mugs, artwork, jewellery, the list goes on.......

Unicorn love is everywhere. 

If I had a pound for every time I've seen the quote 'Always be yourself, unless you can be a unicorn, then always be a unicorn', I'd be a billionaire. 

So, although I'm not into 'Keeping up with the Joneses', I'm beginning to feel left out of this unicorn obsession that's going on, so I thought I'd write a blog post about unicorns. 

Unfortunately as I haven't ever seen a unicorn, I haven't got a suitable photo to upload to this blog post, so here's a photo of one of the horses in the river in front of our old house in France.

If you look closely I think you'll agree that maybe this wasn't a horse after all, and that it was actually a unicorn. 

Or maybe it's a doodle of an ice-cream on top of a photo of a horse? 

I know there are some people who say unicorns are not real. 

But I think we all know the real truth - Unicorns most definitely do exist. 😜😂😂😂😬

Have you ever seen a unicorn?

Or are you in fact a unicorn? 

If you are a unicorn, do you post selfies on IG? 

Tomato Toes! Rain, Dog Training, Cooking, Vacuuming, Life, Sunday.......

I know it's not busy compared to many other people, but I feel as though I've been a very busy bee today.
I woke at 4:30am and not long after I was enjoying a dog walk in the rain, this was followed by me going back to bed for a while at about 6:30am - well, I had to get warm and dry somehow.

I got up for the second time today at about 9am, scoffed a quick breakfast; hot water with honey and lemon, followed by rice cakes with Nutella (yes, I know it's crap, but I fancied it so I bought a jar) banana, raisins, and maple syrup.

Then we set off for an obedience class for Porter, the newest addition to our family, he's a rescue Rottweiler we adopted on Tuesday.
At the dog training class I had intended to watch Mr.R and Porter, but because we had Barley, our lovely Lurcher with us, I was kicked-out. I'm joking! I was asked to leave, that's the same thing but different.
We'd taken Barley to the same place when we first adopted him so we knew it was OK to watch, but this morning the class was very small, something to do with school holidays, so the guy running the class said, 'No guests!' I said fair enough, and went for a walk with Barley, followed by us cuddling and dozing in the boot of the car together, which was very nice as Barley is not always a particularly affectionate dog.

Porter the Rottweiler, Barley the Lurcher 

When Mr.R came out of the obedience class I could see he was sweating, and Porter looked very tired.
Mr.R said it had gone OK, but that Porter kept losing focus on him, and had little interest in the treats he was being offered - mainly because of a very yappy little dog.
And at one point Porter managed to slip out of his dog collar and do a runner straight over to the little yappy dog. I wish I'd have been inside to see that - Hahaha!
No small yappy dogs, who resembled a Chihuahua crossed with a Dachshund, were harmed.

Dog obedience class over, we drove back to the house - just a few minutes drive.
But there was no time for me to sit down and mess about online, which is one of my favourite things to do - or not do, because that's not really doing anything is it?

I had things to do. I'd put a load of washing on as we went out the door to the dog class, so that needed sorting out.
I had also told Mr.R that I would cook our lunch. I very rarely cook, but for some reason I offered before I'd thought what my cooking duties would mean. They would mean I wouldn't be able to sit down and play on IG - InstaGram the photo sharing app for those of you who may not know what IG is.

Anyway, after sorting the washing, I began chopping an onion. I hadn't really thought about what I was making for our lunch. I don't usually think too deeply about such things. I just start cooking and dish-up when I'm fed up being in the kitchen, or when the food is cooked - the later being my preference.

So, onion chopped, I then chopped up lots of garlic. I may not have known exactly what we were having for lunch, but I know that pretty much everything we cook and eat starts with onion and garlic being sauteed.
With the onions and garlic mingling and getting all lovely and delicious in the pan, I rummaged in the fridge, the freezer, and the larder, for some more things I could chuck-in to the pan.

I chose aubergine, carrot, chili, peas, sweetcorn, broccoli, cauliflower, and green beans.
Chop, chop, chop, bunged it all in the pan with the onions and garlic along with some turmeric, ginger, mountain black pepper, balsamic vinegar, salt, and Sichuan pepper, and left it all to sauté.

As I waited for the vegetables to cook, I decided to whizz round with the vacuum.
I was beginning to feel like superwoman; dog walking, sleeping (yes, I count that as a busy activity), washing clothes (yes, I know the washing machine does the hard part of that activity), cooking, vacuuming, eating (yep, that's another thing I consider as a busy activity) - I was doing it all, everything.

When my vegetable concoction was more or less cooked, I poured some couscous into a pan, squeezed some fresh lemon juice into it, chucked some boiling water on it, and after 5 minutes everything was ready.

I dished the couscous into bowls, topped with the vegetable concoction, added some fresh spinach, and scattered with lots of lovely homegrown coriander.
Lunch was seriously delicious. That's not just my opinion, Mr.R said so too, and he ate everything in his bowl, so he must have liked it.

 Random Acts of Tomato-ing. Cheering up the train station, Taranto, Italy 

I was so eager to eat that I didn't waste time taking a photo of our lunch, I wish I had of done now, but hey-ho I didn't. So, here's a photo of Barley and Porter, and a shot of some tomatoes that I took years ago.
Why the tomatoes? Well, because despite being a very busy bee, I felt good from my head down tomatoes.
Yeah, I've been very busy today, and I even made time for that bad tomato joke. You are very welcome!

Speaking of being busy, I often say to Mr.R, I don't know how people do it.
And by do it I mean life.
How do people work full-time jobs (outside of the home), raise children, clean the house; shop for food, wash clothes etc, have a social life.......
I just don't know.
Time just seems to disappear, I don't know how people live such busy lives.
I honestly feel as though I have been very busy today, and I am now extremely tired, and I know there's not way I could do it all again tomorrow, or the day after that, or after that.......

I suppose the answer to, how do people do it? is simple - they just do.
Even when I had a full-time job (outside of the home) I don't remember ever being normal, I mean I could never do everything that needed doing. I was always so very very tired - which may or may not explain why I used to have to take naps at work. I'm not kidding! I wasn't alone either. I mean I wasn't alone in having a nap during the working day, well, I was alone, in my own room, but other members of the workforce also used to sleep.
Hmm, I'm not sure 'work' force is the correct term for what we were. But as the saying goes, 'pay peanuts, you get monkeys'.
No, actually it wasn't that most of us were underpaid, although we really were, it was more that there was a serious drinking culture at that firm, and well, who can work when there's either more beer to be drank, a hangover to get over, or urgent sleep needed?
No one! That's who.

Sleepy boy

Oh yes, and after all of that busy busy busy activity, I washed-up the lunch dishes etc.
When Mr.R cooks, which is every day, apart from the very rare times like today when I cook, I do the washing-up, and when I cook, I still do the washing-up. That's not fair is it?

Oh dear! I know I often say this on my blog posts, but this post was meant to be one sentence.
Yes, you read that right. Read that right! Is that even English?
Whatever!
One sentence - I'm feeling good from my head down tomatoes.
Followed by a photo of tomatoes.
I just wanted to say that I feel I've been very busy today, and I also feel happy about it - hence the tomato joke. I didn't think I felt like writing much more than just that one sentence, I thought I was too tired, but obviously that wasn't true. I must have felt like writing much more than one sentence, because, well, I have.
And what a wonderful literary accomplishment it is - eh?! Ha!

I genuinely don't know what happened. I think this probably the most rambling blog post I've ever written, and that's saying something.......

So, just imagine if you will dear reader, presuming that you're still here reading this nonsense, and you haven't lapsed into a coma, that this blog post is titled Tomato Toes.
And that the only text is - I'm feeling good from my head down tomatoes.
And underneath the text is this photo -
And there you have it, the blog post I initially intended to upload. Great innit?!

I'm feeling good from my head down tomatoes!

Having a second dog is exhausting. It's only been a few days, so we are not where we hope to be once we are all settled and into a better routine. 

I've added some photos of the dogs, and a random extra tomato shot from our World travels, to help break-up my rambling. 

So, that was my Sunday, well, the morning part of it anyway.......

What's your favourite 'activity' to do on a Sunday?

How do you like to spend your weekends?

Jolie Laide - Beautiful Ugly. Remembering Our Life in France

This afternoon I've been thinking about our old life in the South of France, probably because we enjoyed lots of lovely sunny days there, and here today (in the North of England) it is dull, wet, and windy. Summer 2015!

France was one of our favourite places we've lived

And then for an unknown reason the words Jolie Laide came into my mind.
Jolie Laide translates from French into English as, Beautiful Ugly. 

Montpellier

I think of it as something like, if you shine within, then you'll be beautiful on the outside.......
Although beauty is a nonsensical thing, all in the eye of the beholder etc.
And what is beauty? I know we are programmed by the media to see certain places, people, things, as 'beautiful', but does that mean they really are?
Oops, rambing!

Decorative drainpipe in Fitou

So, yeah, Jolie Laide, it means Beautiful Ugly. 
It just randomly came into my mind, and I liked it, so I'm sharing it with you. You're welcome! Hehehe!

Wild boar feet nailed to a neighbours door

Well, that's all pretty random isn't it? Hahaha!
No idea why I suddenly remembered those two words, or why I felt like blogging about it - but if nothing else it's a good excuse to share some photos of France - not that I ever need an excuse to reminisce about our old life.......

It could be worse, I could have added even more photos to this blog post, I think we have about 50,000 that we shot in France.

Hmm, I just realised that I've uploaded four photos, and as I don't like even numbers - here's another one.

Wine? Yes! Yes! Yes!

I wish I was in the South of France now, or anywhere that's nice and warm and sunny.

I'm not complaining though, I'm very grateful that I can see the sea from every room in our house. 

Sadly it's not the Mediterranean Sea - it's the North Sea. Ha!

It's beautiful to be living right by the sea, but ugly that it's not somewhere warmer.......

What's your favourite type of view?

Do you love sea views?

Or do you prefer a countryside view?

Or something else?

Domaine Baptiste Boutes AOP Minervois 2012 - Wine Review

This wine from the Languedoc Roussillon region of France is a concentrated red that's very well balanced, with rich aromas of dark fruits; blackcurrants, black cherries, and blackberries, plums, pepper, tobacco, and a hint of vanilla.

The taste is velvety smooth, with rich earthy dark fruit flavours, a touch of chocolate, black pepper, a hint of spice, a lovely long finish, and silky tannins.
14.5%Vol. £5.79 from Lidl. Bargain!
We thought this wine was delicious!

Domaine Baptiste Boutes AOP Minervois 2012 is an award winning wine -
Silver medal winner
Vinalies Internationales 2014
Have you tasted Domaine Baptiste Boutes AOP Minervois 2012?
What did you think of this wine?

Pancakes, For The Dog, The Husband, And Last of all - Me

Yesterday I had a craving for pancakes.
So, I made some pancakes.

Mmm, pancakes with honey and lemon juice. Delicious!

I don't think pancakes are just for 'Pancake Day' I could happily eat them every day. Pancakes are very versatile; I like them hot, cold, sweet, and savoury. Perfect!

Plain pancake for Barley, our Lurcher

Although I usually prefer savoury pancakes, yesterday I fancied something sweet, so I ate mine with honey and fresh lemon juice.
Mr.R also had honey and lemon on his pancake.

It was a nice warm day; Barley dining alfresco - he's got us well trained

Barley, our lovely Lurcher, ate his pancake plain, fresh from the pan.
How do you like your pancakes?
Do you only eat pancakes on 'Pancake Day'?
Do you like sweet or savoury pancakes?

Pivovar Herold, Czech Black Lager - Lager Review

We like dark beer, but normally we drink stout not lager, but this Czech Black Lager from Pivovar Herold was a particularly tasty lager.
Mr.R purchased a bottle of Pivovar Herold, Czech Black Lager from Lidl, it cost £1.49, and after just a sip, we both wished he'd bought several more, it was really good.
It had sweet aroma of malts, blackcurrants, toffee and cocoa.
In the glass it's a rich looking lager with a lovely creamy caramel head, that lasts well.
On the palate we tasted a lot of interesting flavours; roasted nuts, dried fruit, then came the toasted malts, caramel, toffee, liquorice, coffee, and cocoa, with a delicate creamy feel, medium body and soft carbonation. Not too sweet, and not too bitter - just about right.
At 5.3% abv it's a really nice light beer, perfect for a hot Summer day - which is exactly what it was yesterday lunchtime when we shared this bottle. Delicious!

We went to the Czech Republic during our most recent World travels, but neither of us remember tasting this beer, and considering it's so good we definitely would have remembered it.
Czech Black Lager from Pivovar Herold is definitely a lager we'll be buying again, and again, and again.......

From the label - 

Herold Czech Black Lager was created in Breznice, Bohemia where beers are layered for 70 days in the cellars of the 500 year old Castle Brewery. The beer is dark with a dense creamy head and an oily richness. Its flavours are reminiscent of bittersweet chocolate with a cedary, smoky, dry finish. Herold Czech Lager is excellent with marinated meats and a perfect ingredient in beef stews. 5.2% abv.

www.pivovar-herold.cz
Have you tried Pivovar Herold, Czech Black Lager?
What did you think of it?
If you haven't tried it, and you like dark beer, get yourself to Lidl and buy a few bottles, you won't regret it!