Chocolate and Almond Syrup cake and Family Parties

I made THIS to take up to my inlaw's Ruby Wedding Anniversary and it was GORGEOUS.

Is quite involved but the end result is one of those puddings that:
a) goes further than you think it will as is very rich so only small slice required
b) is memorable. Really very yummy (tastes like a giant Jaffa Cake with extra magic yumminess).



Possibly the main reason I was please was that IT ACTUALLY LOOKED LIKE THE PICTURE when I had finished. My cooking usually has the "big mac" effect - ie the picture on the menu and the food that is delivered bear little resemblence to one another.

Recommended.

So yes - Ruby Wedding party involved travelling to Leeds and back in 24 hrs (440 miles) with party in between. Big family gathering, and first of its kind for a good few years with an excellent turnout. Bro-in-Law cooked 11 Tapas dishes in 2 hrs - dazzling stuff and it was all delicious. Downside was having to drive back last night so not being able to partake in the fizz, etc on offer.

Got a 5-miler in along the canal (one of my regular favourite Leeds runs) to keep up my xmas challenge with Rob (who can get the most in before Jan 4th race)...

Christmas do on Wednesday (24 people) that I've organised so that could all end in tears (it usually does).

eurghy

lawdy do I feel eurghy today.

perhaps my body is rebelling as I am not eating or drinking enough in December. Normally by the 11th I'd have had a few xmas evenings out and eaten a fair quantity of mince pies.

I have a night planned for tomorrow so hope an early night and sleep will see it off.

A big store that isn't woolworths is also closing down, and I spent my lunchtime queuing to get in, and then queuing to get out (ie pay). Nightmare. Got some cheap xmas stuff though so just about worth it. (was The Pier by the way).

Have signed up for the Tadworth 10miler on January 4th to blow away the Christmas cobwebs. Only 700 runners (so a bit different to the 25000 at the Great South Run) and they'll probably be tough club runners so might be quite challenging! 2 laps in and around Epsom Downs race course...

Flying. Not Flying.

Very briefly. This is my brother is a room with a big fan.

fun i think - yah?

Light at the end of the Tunnel

2008 has been different, from a work perspective, as I've been part of a team who have been funded, skilled and targeted to deliver something worthwhile - and we've succeeded. Saying that, it has been exhausting and we're not quite over the finish line yet (project end is 10th December).

It certainly proves the point that if you want to do something properly you need to assign adequate resource and incentive to do it, rather than our traditional approach of expecting the same few faces to take on more and more work. I wonder, when the project is over, and with these difficult times restraining recruitment/contractors, whether we will return to our bad old ways...

The heating at the office is bust, so we're wrapped up warm. A nice run round Richmond park at lunchtime helped the circulation a bit.


Have plans for 4 little socials between now and Xmas day so that should help us to hop skip an jump along to the holidays.

After all these years I'm watching "Band of Brothers" as it is being repeated on BBC and we're storing them up and watching when we can. Solid, serious, impressive and sobering like so little telly is. Lead Balloon continues to be just right too - not too cringeworthy, but cringeworthy enough. Putting in an offer on a house, just because he went into an Estate Agent's to ask to use the fax machine. And Magda is priceless. "You bought a house?". I guess you have to have seen it.

A group of us do an annual "top albums of the year" poll and there's been loads of great music this year - having real trouble whittling it down to 10. If you haven't heard The Stand Ins by Okkervil River you should make the effort...


Am trying to have a week without bad food and booze before the Christmas onslaught. Have also accepted challenge from Fossy of "who can do the most miles in December" followed by a race on Jan 4th (The Tadworth Ten).

Pub Quiz on Thursday - huzzah!

What a difference a day makes...

The sun is streaming through the window, the sky is blue and my diary has 90 minutes blocked out at lunchtime for a run. I'm finally rid of the snot'n'chokes and feeling really quite human. This is the first year that I seem to have avoided a chest infection after my "octobercold" and that's just great.

Been listening to Mark Morriss' (he of the Bluetones) solo album this morning for the first time, and it is amazing how music can transport you into the past. We saw him at the black sheep bar in Croydon last year doing a solo spot and he rattled off a few of these new tunes. The minute I heard them on the album they came ringing back from that night, which is testament to the quality of his tunesmanship methinks.

Anyhows - a busy day ahead where I must internally repeat by mantra (without moving my lips) "Do not kill the stoopid people, Do not kill the stoopid people"...

time moves on...

...so how often does one blog. often enough I suppose.

The Great South Run was a bit of a flamin' disaster really. Cold, wet and slow and didn't get through the mystical 1:20 barrier despite lots of training (had been ill/crocked for a fortnight beforehand).

The kids got to do the "mini south run" though on the Saturday - 1 mile round the seafront - and had a whale of time (wail?) Then spent most of the next 3 days in the historic dockyards which was absolutely astonishingly stonking. As I age, my history muscle is strengthening so I can genuinely spend time in museums, etc and be actually interested. Not sure how that happened and I apologise.

Next plan is the Berlin Marathon in September '09 (with some short runs in between now and then), but have more than a stone to lose before/through training. Want to be skinny(ish) so have to cut out the yorkies and brownies and down on the beer.

If you go here http://sinjville.myminicity.com/ then my minicity will build itself - what fun.

Saturday was our tenth anniversary of Thursday Night Football. 14 bodies from quite far afield reconvened for what can only be described as a blummin' marvellous afternoon. A round-robin tournament of such numeric complexity that only Spektor understood it - but fierce competitive games followed by a beerlarf in the pub til around 4.30 - plus a lift home. Result.

Then had to act sober and light fireworks/bonfires with neighbours in the rain while the kids watched from shelter. Ah - tradition.

Next time - will start to post witty and interesting observations. This is just me practicing.
Honest.

Apparently Heather Small was knocked out of Strictly on Saturday for dancing badly to Rebel Rebel. Good. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ud0CAZA5cjU





Asda have Indy Jones and the Crystal Nut for 8 squid - will see if they have any back in stock since lunchtime? (erm - not likely)

New Beginnings

Have been on an "Emerging Leaders" course this week. Not sure if I emerged or not. Was certainly torn apart character-wise in a manner that would provide material enough for several Woody Allen movies.

The outcome is that I must still do the things that I do well, and must do the things that I do badly better. Or something. Not sure what the business paid for me to garner those gems.

Weekend in Portsmouth from tonight in honour of the "Great South Run" which I'm hoping will be as Great as it is South. This is the 9th time on the trot that I've dragged my sorry carcass round 10 miles of wet and windy rundown seaside town and I'm desperate to crack 80 minutes. A crocked back and stinking cold over the last 2 weeks have done all they can to scupper my chances but feel better today. We will see.

Looking forward to going to the Mary Rose and the other terribly historic old ships'n'all. And please please please don't P*ss it down.

My Angels are doing the Mini South Run on Saturday (1 mile) and are giddy with excitement. They'll get their own medal when they get round which is a bit of a thrill for a 4-year-old.

hey ho.