It's going to be a Sloe year

Before I loose this bit of paper...

900g (2lb) Sloes
1.2 Ltr (2 pints) Gin
225g (8oz) White Sugar (castor - depending what you read)

Prick ya Sloes (or freeze - basically to break the skins enough for the juices to seep out)
Put fruit in jar (wide necked!)
Add sugar
Pour Gin to fill

Leave in a dark place for at least 4 months, turning occasionally.

Strain liquid off the fruit into a bottle.
Taste for sweetness - add more sugar if required/to taste.
Keep until following Winter - hang on just a cotton pickin’ mo!

OK. So ya can guess what I was picking this weekend. I’m only sorry now that I didn’t pick the fruits last year when I first discovered them - 12 months is a long wait.

It’s also Blackberry time, and guess what, if you do a search for blackberry vodka (they seemed the most likely ingredients to me) - you get sloe gin too. Just substitute the 2 main ingredients. That’s next weekend taken care of then. I see disaster looming for Xmas 2008!

Saturday - when not sleeping or working on video sleeves, Max and I went a walk taking the camera with us.
I figured that if they are planning to build an industrial estate and houses on our walk, may as well take some pictures before they destroy our countryside.
Now I know some of you are gonna say “can’t stop progress - housing’s required” etc., but there must be less picturesque places locally than the fields and woodland across the road - and yes, I know that reeks of NIMBYism.

Every other day we see deer, foxes, other dog walkers, flora and fauna - it’s just so varied and natural, and so easily destroyed. By the time they’ve developed the farmland that edges the woodland and meadow lands, and built the reservoir up the road, there’ll be nothing left but the country park - and to be honest, the country park is such a lie - it’s all managed and very much like any other samey country park. Not much original in it.

Any ways - took my camera and decided to record some of it, but I wanted to try a new technique (to me at least) as we went along. Here’s the results:



Each image is made up of between 3, 5, and 8 individual frames - I was quite happy with my first attempts. Needless to say, Max got bored ;o)

My Sloe Partner in Crime
At this point I feel that I should point out, before she gets on the phone and screams at me - that Karen, as in Mark and... helped me pick some of the sloes, when not slumped on the grass downing real ale and slagging M off "he never takes me out... he used to..." - moan moan moan (I can see her picking up the phone right now) :o)

Yes - bless 'em, M and K came over and Max and I got a long awaited trip to the workshop - the much changed workshop I should say.

Mark was dragged straight in to doing some work for some trike blokes that were there waiting when we arrived. K got on and made some lovely bacon, egg, mushroom, and cheese butties. This wasn't the plan, we were hoping to stop off just below Portsdown hill for a fab bacon and brie sandwich - but sandwich butty van had packed up for the day - damn!

This one has flaws - but I'll work on my technique. Karen has flaws - but nothing to be done there lol
x

It's a spleen venting thing...

OK. This is me pushing the poor ol’ Mac to it’s limits. Not only is it rendering video, playing music (track 370 in me Itunes list - Beethoven: Symphony #8 In F, Op. 93 - 4. Allegro Vivace - yes, it's not all Bowie and James), and has me chatting to mates on MSN (normally pronounced S&M by me for some reason!), I’s now doing some typing too!

Well today I’ve plowed into the Stockport video tapes and I’m (we if you include the Mac), are on the last one for logging. “Stockport” - because I now realise that anyone reading this and hasn’t spoken/emailed/texted... etc me in the last few weeks, is another video project Guy and I are working on for Network Rail. It involves another road over rail bridge being chewed up and replaced in next to no time type promo.
The shoot itself is done whenever NR say they have something worth shooting - often involving 24 hour shifts between us. Then all the tapes have to be “logged” i.e. put all the usable bits on to computer, 50hrs of tapes so far. Then the fun begins. Music selection, cutting, effects etc etc etc.

Any ways - today was a good day for logging the tapes, after all it rained all day - what else is there to do?
Well actually... catch up with Dan and Jens adventures travelling America and Canada in their Camel 110 http://usacanadatrip2007.blogspot.com/ - always good for a laugh, that and see if Sam is talking to me yet.

Dan and Jen, or Jan and Den as I inevitably say it, don’t know why, any ways - they seem to be having a good ol’ jolly, even if the last few days have been just covering miles an’ miles of nothing but corn fields. Reading that part of their blog reminded me of driving back through France and the miles and miles - actually lets put it into perspective - days and days of wheat fields. I was in a 90 - no rush!

BRB - tape to log...

OK - that’s enough of concrete being poured - get on with it Mr Mac...

News?
I told Nay I thought she was a user and should leave as soon as possible last night.
I don’t mind that she took the pyss when she was staying at my house (I do but we’re not on about that) - but to do the same thing at my mates house! Not On!
I don’t know why (yet - I will give it some thought and get to the bottom of it) but people can sh8 on me and I put up with it - for so long at least - but sh8 on my mates an I get all upperty. Like I say, I’ll try and suss it out.
Anyways - she didn’t respond immediately, which I was rather disappointed with because I had lots more to say, but she did ring me up today and appologise because as she put it “I never realised you felt that way” - can I just ??????? ???? ? !!!! for a mo?
I’ve hardly said a word to you in 3 months - get the hint?

OK - I’ve now realised how wary I am of blogs. As I said before, I think it’s good to have a space to let off steam, previously it’s been a note book, but this - I aint to sure about.
Having said that - I do feel better for airing my spleen. So, while the typing it out helps - the public domain thing is still a worry - hey ho, technology?

Laters.