Cooking for one (Mark Three)

PasturesNew

For many years I've often passed tinned hotdogs in shops and looked, but never bought them as it seemed such a faff to have to eat all that lot so soon after the tin's open.  Some foods are fine, you don't mind putting up with eating them 2-3-4 days in a row, but a hotdog sausage isn't really up there in that list. 

But, I've got this un-started bag of onions I bought.... so I am seriously considering buying some soon/next time in the shops + some form of bread rolls ... and eating my way through a whole can.   I can't decide yet whether to buy part-baked baguettes and have two sausages/baguette ..... or to opt for a multi pack of regular soft rolls from the bakery aisle.  The soft rolls wouldn't need to be toasted, just spread with a bit of marg -v- the part-baked baguettes that I have to either stand for 30-40 minutes while the oven heats up then they're finished, or see if I can just take a chance and eat them as they are.  In "Ye Olde World" it'd be no trouble to pop into 2-3 shops to peruse how cooked they are and get the best looking ones; in this world you really get one shot at where you're going/what you're buying as browsing for fun is off the agenda. 

Today I've eaten twice: 
1/ 3 smallish spuds + spagbol + cheese.  Just one portion of spuds left now from that bag.  Won't buy spuds for awhile, standing in the kitchen for the 10 minutes it takes to cook them always seems to coincide with 2-3 others passing through, unpacking, washing up and it's annoying. 
2/ I had something else, but can't remember what it was .... *thinks* ... er ... is this how dementia starts?  Oh, just looked round my room - I had chips and fishcakes (dish still on the bed beside me).   

Current status: Hungry.... might have a rootle round in my food bag in a bit, see if I fancy a cold tin of peas or rice pudding with marmalade (out of jam).  Might as well go for that rice pudding ... I think it's the last one, so need to buy more next time I go shopping.   Nearly out of everything I regularly eat now. 

EDIT: Ah, found a jar of apricot jam, thought that was marmalade as it was orange.  That's better.  

PasturesNew

Farway said:

..... Covid has gone round the Northern rellies like a bad smell.

Another one in hospital with pneumonia complications now, rest are fatigued & poorly at their homes.

I never knew it also causes vomiting, not pleasant at all and keeping well away still seems best option

Do they know where they caught it? Or are they guessing/assuming they know?  

People are very slack once they believe they are in an "allowed zone".... in the kitchen earlier somebody came in and wanted to get something from the fridge, so I stood as far away as possible to give them all the space they needed and she seemed surprised and said "but we're a bubble" - and I said "you're still supposed to try to stay 2m apart"; with family bubbles that's a rule to be tossed out the window.... but in a bubble of complete strangers there's no reason to not wholly abide by that advice.  I think my housemate was "mildly amused" by my adherence to rules and best observance..... if she's patient 0 I get the last laugh.  I'd rather be gossiped about as "the nutter that comes in here and presses the machines using anti bacterial wipes and does all that social distancing nonsense" than "she's the one that brought it in here".

I refuse to be Patient 0 in this household if it enters ... or the next one.  I say to people "The 1980s AIDS adverts told us Don't Die of Ignorance"

caronc

Good morning everyone, 
Hope your rellies recover okay Farway. I make a dip for pakora but it is nice with  sausages, breaded fish and cold meat which mixes equal amounts of yoghurt, tomato ketchup and mint sauce and a splosh of vinegar or lemon juice  if you need ideas to use up the "bucket".
We'll find out later today if my area stays in Tier 3 restrictions or gets moved to Tier 4 (pretty much the same as the current lockdown in England).
Dust removal and work top oiling continue it will be a recurring theme for the next few days.
Easy Thai Green curry tonight using frozen prawns and a pack of baby corn/mange tout so no minimal prep needed. We'll have it with some nuked rice. Cheese toastie and salad for lunch.

Farway

Lovely sunny morning, popped out for a bit of exercise at the volunteer border, it was nice in the warm sunshine

Lunch, another sausage sarnie, this time with brown sauce

Dinner, will nuke last of the LO spag bol

PasturesNew said:

Farway said:

..... Covid has gone round the Northern rellies like a bad smell.

Another one in hospital with pneumonia complications now, rest are fatigued & poorly at their homes.

I never knew it also causes vomiting, not pleasant at all and keeping well away still seems best option

Do they know where they caught it? Or are they guessing/assuming they know?  

People are very slack once they believe they are in an "allowed zone".... in the kitchen earlier somebody came in and wanted to get something from the fridge, so I stood as far away as possible to give them all the space they needed and she seemed surprised and said "but we're a bubble" - and I said "you're still supposed to try to stay 2m apart"; with family bubbles that's a rule to be tossed out the window.... but in a bubble of complete strangers there's no reason to not wholly abide by that advice.  I think my housemate was "mildly amused" by my adherence to rules and best observance..... if she's patient 0 I get the last laugh.  I'd rather be gossiped about as "the nutter that comes in here and presses the machines using anti bacterial wipes and does all that social distancing nonsense" than "she's the one that brought it in here".

I refuse to be Patient 0 in this household if it enters ... or the next one.  I say to people "The 1980s AIDS adverts told us Don't Die of Ignorance"

They are all NHS one way or another, not in same households but two are married couples, one gets it the other must surely follow

From what I hear in that area social distancing & masks is for the birds, try as you might to avoid it you still have to walk the streets, bit like you & the kitchen by the sounds of it

My grandson [12] is now isolating at home from yesterday because someone in his class is positive, and a Granddaughter [16] is anticipating same

That's Southampton way PN,  creeping ever closer.

PasturesNew

One of the reasons I am staying out of the way of everybody else, minimising contact etc and even taking an anti-bacterial wipe to operate toaster/nuker/oven (even to open my own fridge/freezer doors) is because they're all strangers.  I've no idea where they go to when they leave the premises, what they're doing, who they are seeing, what they are touching.  I have no reason to trust any of them .... and conversations/observations prove to me repeatedly that nobody is as strict to the rules as me.  

Some people stick to the rules, but don't think outside the box, for example.... they don't think about where the others might be going.  One goes into a Hospital: High risk of cross-transference between healthcare professionals.  One goes into a care home: a key environment for cross-contamination.  One delivers hot food: Possibly to a lot of quarantining or self-isolating people.   The rest.... who knows.  One went to London last week.  One works somewhere (not worked it out yet), but I think it might be some sort of support hostel or something, so, again, lots of close touchy-passing on possible.  One does something in care, I suspect including overnight sleeps, so close proximity to care environments. 

I might look ridiculous to them - not that I'd give a hoot in any case what strangers think of my opinions - but I know I am doing my level best to maintain super high hygiene under awkward conditions + minimising periods of cross-contamination.  "I am not your friend, I am not your family" is the mantra in my head as I deliberately pass up opportunities to stand and chat, or sit and chat, with the others.... and scuttle back to my room to wash my hands. 

You can't catch me out Mr Virus.... he's going to have to catch me in unavoidable activities and locations. 

PasturesNew

Today I've eaten absolutely nothing so far. Last food was last night's rice pudding & jam.  There's been somebody in the kitchen for 2 hours today, for starters... so a lot of the time I was putting it off, putting it off.... but, there's also the unavoidable fact that I've pretty much run out of "in room/instantly edible" foods.  

I've no bread, no flatbreads, no crumpets. I've no bananas.  I've just a little cheese left.  
I've one tin of peas and one tin of rice pudding. 

In the freezer I've got one small portion of chips, 8 fishcakes, 1 curry/rice ready meal, 2 hash browns.  

I NEED to go food shopping, to restock my in room edibles....  I do still have 2 noodle pots and about 20 cup a soups.  

I've got food, which I could eat.... in fact, that's it.... I'll go now (or in a bit) and nuke some spicy taco beans and a pouch of rice    

Brambling

I hope the grandchildren stay healthy Farway 

I drew back the curtains this morning to see an ambulance parked across the road, not sure for which neighbour but I'm assuming it was for one of the elderly couple who are both well into their 80s and have lived here since the the houses were build in the mid 60s.  It's not the first time over the last couple of years, I'll have to catch another neighbour to find out as not a lot escapes him   

Other than getting my annual thyroid blood test today was very much like yesterday and probably tomorrow will be the same   at least the advantage of lock down seems to be only a 40 minute wait rather than over a hour at the hospital.  It did wait until I left the building for the skies to open, typically by the time I pulled out of the car park the sun was shining

lunch was grabbed when I got back so some of the nice cheese I brought at the weekend with crackers and apple. Dinner was baked loin of cod with new potatoes and green veg

PasturesNew

Yesterday's scoffathon ended up being: 
rice pouch + tin of 4ldi spicy mixed taco beans, which didn't taste as awful as they could have.  
a noodle pot

Starving really ..... but can't quite get my head into the zone of "you must go food shopping now + cook some of it". 

It's not that I have a shortage of edible food, I just CBA to do something with what I've got, or don't fancy it. 

The super cheap (35p) pilau pouch rice at Mr T is a much better texture than any others I've had (except that T1lda one which was lovely and I still have 2-3 of those here).  I will definitely get more of the Mr T pouch rices.  

Farway

Up & about early, blood test day, loads of water slurped to swell the veins for when they go looking

All ready to go out when I double checked diary, BU66ER, it's tomorrow, Thursday not today.

That's the penalty for CFO & retired, one day is same as another and easy to slip a cog

Now I'm at sixes & sevens and probably require counselling later

Lunch today has had a couple of changes since the shock of wrong day dawned, now down to cheese & salady sarnie

Dinner, dull old say out, and because I had a lovely Savoy delivered from W8rose, along with nice spuds it's looking like some frozen pie plus mash, steamed cabbage & carrots

If I do enough then B & S another day

Must say the fresh stuff I had delivered from W8rose is good, decent sizes.

The FR gammon is nice, larger than I would've picked, well over a Kg but has long date so plenty of time to decide on when & how to use it

If I could get slots I think they would be my first choice, but in theses Covid times delivery slots have to trump the rest for me

caronc

Good afternoon everyone, 
Wet and wild here today I've no intention of heading out apart from a quick bin trip there's still plenty of dust busting and wood oiling to be getting on with indoors. I'm hoping the sink tap will be reconnected this evening now the surround has had a couple of coats of oil which will make life a bit easier.
Exciting news yesterday as my elder son and DIL-to-be had an offer accepted on a flat. It is in the area they wanted and is a three bed so ideal for their needs. It has been done up to a good standard and they hope to move in mid-January.
On his IKEA trip last week my younger son picked up a pack of meatballs so it's Swedish meatballs, mash from the freezer, cream sauce and frozen veg for dinner.