Tag: Nando’s

I Couldn’t Give It Away

CLICK ON ANY IMAGE TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED

Steady heavy rain fell all morning, so I delved into my photographic archives and scanned another batch of Streets of London colour slides made in May 2008.

Earls Court Road runs from Old Brompton Road in SW5

to Kensington High Street in W8.

The Blackbird pub, almost opposite Earls Court Underground station, was previously a branch of the Midland Bank. Currently closed for refurbishment, it was converted to a Fuller’s Ale and Pie house in 1994. It would be fun to speculate on the conversation taking place outside.

The Hansom Cab, now specialising in craft beer, has been operating on this site since 1827.

A little further along, on the corner of Pembroke Square W8 lies Rassell’s up-market garden centre, which has rather mixed reviews.

Scarsdale Villas W8 5.08

Immediately opposite Pembroke Square lies Scarsdale Villas W8.

Trebovir Road SW5 is very close to Earls Court Underground Station. Nando’s, started in South Africa, in 1987, now operates 1,000 outlets in 30 countries. Its speciality is peri-peri chicken.

Cumberland Terrace

and Cornwall Terrace NW1 both lie alongside The Outer Circle of Regents Park.

Transept Street NW1 crosses Chapel Street beside Edgware Road tube station.

Just off Camden High Street NW1 the bustling Camden Market has over 1000 shops and stalls selling fashion, music, art and food next to Camden Lock;

Inverness Street Market NW1, a more quintessentially English example, established around 1900, is tucked away from the high street.

This afternoon we visited New Milton to collect items from the dry cleaners, and to deliver more kitchenalia to the Oakhaven Hospice Shop. They had been unable to take my Epson printer, complete with spare, unused ink cartridges, but suggested that the Mind shop might, because they had a tester. They couldn’t. There was no alternative but to offer it to the sales area in the local dump, now known as a recycling centre. They were not allowed to receive the printer, but could accept the inks. I was directed to carry the machine over to the container dedicated to such goods. The man in charge of this spoke of the culture of fear of legislation which now dominates us. While we were conversing, a woman brought a pair of pristine looking crutches she had not been allowed to return to an NHS hospital.

My printer was about seven years old. It had been used once or twice only; its last six years having been spent in bubble wrap in a cupboard. I do all my printing on the Canon A3+ model, but, had I been so inclined, I could have printed all today’s images on the device I could not give away.

Our next stop was Otter Nursery where we collected a flat-packed wooden arch for Aaron to assemble on Sunday.

Elizabeth was out this evening. Jackie and I dined on Mrs Knight’s hot and spicy pasta arrabbiata, with which she drank more of the Chardonnay and I finished the Malbec.

Woman’s Mastery Over Machine

When I intimated yesterday that I might cut the grass I didn’t imagine that was all I would do, nor that the task would take me all day.
I would like to tell the tale of this man’s mastery over a machine. Unfortunately, like George Washington, on this occasion, ‘I cannot tell a lie’. At least that fledgling U.S. President had successfully cut down a cherry tree. My job had to have been easier than that.
First I had to take the Bosch Strimmer out of its box. As I feared, there was a certain amount of assembly required. I managed, to a rather insecure extent, to do this , found the extension lead, plugged the machine’s cable into it and set sail. I cut a couple of blades of grass and the nylon cutting line broke. After rereading and following the instructions I was able  to extend another piece the required 9 centimetres and have another go. Same again. Except that this time there was no line visible and neither Jackie nor I was able to decipher how to undo the holder. Clearly the cutting device had difficulty coping with our macho grass nurtured on the soak away area from the septic tank. Apparently our excreta leaches through the walls of the tank into the soil at this particular point, producing a very healthy crop. There are lots of alliums in the garden. I wonder whether their rather pungent aroma serves a masking purpose.
It is not really a good idea to leave me to my own devices in such matters, but Jackie had no option because she was still trying to turn the terrible overlapping and chopped up tiling squares on the bathroom floor into a reasonably level and complete surface. Reflecting on the fact that she was grappling with a botch upstairs whilst I was doing the same with a Bosch in the garden, I gave up.
I conceded victory to the Strimmer, but I did not give up on the grass. I abandoned modern technology for a trusty, albeit rusty, pair of garden shears. It was down on my knees again. The kneeler was in service upstairs.
I had made considerable progress by lunchtime. Enough to give me confidence to continue afterwards.
My lady carried on upstairs until she had finished her job. She then came down and began to cook the dinner. Observing me snipping away outside, she thought: ‘I can’t leave him’. Thus taking pity on me she sat on the bench and put her mind to working out the problem with the machine. She realised I was using the wrong line and used more brute force than I had been confident to employ to remove the holder and replace the line.

She was soon on her feet strimming away. Naturally I got to my feet too.
Well how was I to know that when Herr Bosch says his product comes with extra strong line that that is not the one fitted in the holder, but one kept at the back of the handle?

Jackie did allow me to have a go at strimming. I finished the job whilst she raked up the grass.

She is delighted to see that we have numerous geranium palmatums in the garden. Many are clearly seedlings, and quite small, but some are huge shrub-like plants.
I t was quite beneficial that Jackie returned to cooking our dinner, for it was delicious.


She had taken chicken breasts marinaded in ginger, lemon and lime, added a Nando’s piri piri lemon marinade, topped the chicken with red and yellow peppers and baked the ensemble in olive oil for thirty minutes. This is her recipe for lemon and ginger chicken.
Mashed potato, crisp cauliflower and carrots, were accompanied by par-boiled parsnips stir fried with two sliced red onions and garlic. I call this a recipe for stir fried parsnips.
Jackie drank Hoegaarden with this, whilst I chose Marques de Montino rioja 2010. We finished our drinks on the garden bench.