Are we having a wonderful time? We’ve been in Norfolk this week with both of the offspring visiting, Eliza with her newish boyf, who is lovely. I am, however, finding the younger people exhausting and, to be honest, it was almost a relief to do a volunteering shift in Kings Lynn this morning. Visitors are in prospect again next week, when James will catch up with his best friend for New Year before returning to Canada on 6th January.

Don’t get me wrong, I really like young people and welcome their views on a hostile world, but there is a tendency there for them to think that they know the world and that we older people have nothing to offer. Am I jaded and feeling a little battered? Yes. No arguments were had, and we enjoyed our time together but they both depart, not to be seen again for many months, leaving me wondering whether any of my careful rearing has stuck with them, and if not, why on earth I bothered. I’m sore. And facing the imminent heartache of separation, literal and figurative, so excuse my more-than-average grumpiness.

Three disasters. (I tried without success to make a connection between them and the three kings)

Dismayed at the closure of last year’s South London purveyor of our Christmas Lunch, I tracked down their supplier, Fosse Meadows, for a goose several weeks ago. After quite some va et vient this year’s goose was set to be delivered on Monday 23rd by a courier company that is, by several accounts, inundated and struggling to cope with orders. We received a message just before 6pm on Monday as we got ready for a special meal out that the items had been delivered and all was well. But goose was there none, and the customary delivery picture showed a blank, black screen.

I called the courier company who agreed that their driver had probably done a runner with our Christmas lunch and I found myself wondering how Alin would fit it in his oven and wishing him good luck with that. Fosse Meadows immediately arranged to send a driver with a replacement package, which I had to head off when our original goose and rib of beef was delivered by a different DPD driver who legged it without trace before we could question him. Disaster averted! I cooked the goose overnight in my simmering oven, browning it for thirty minutes in the roasting oven and it was perfectly cooked in time for Christmas lunch.

A concurrent personal disaster was that the unworn black velvet cocktail dress, the source of my personal fat shame for which I’ve spent months dieting, treacherously decided to explode its zip and will thus remain unworn for another year. I’ve reached the point where I’m so exhausted that I really don’t want to dress up again for months, and besides I’ve eaten so many Lindt balls that I’m beginning to resemble one myself.

The third disaster arrived on the evening of Christmas Day, when our elderly water softener decided to give up the ghost and began noisily ushering mains water down the drain. The gushing sound was horrendous and intrusive, not to mention the wasted water. The softener had been installed without a bypass (Why is such a big proportion of plumbers so unfamiliar with the workings of water softeners? We’ve had no end of issues with our previously wrongly-installed ones in Beckenham) so we had to keep turning off the water for a bit of quiet and turning it on again whenever anyone wanted a shower or the loo. At that point there were five of us here, and an impending five more scheduled to come today.

We posted an appeal on our local Facebook group only to be met by a snarky response from a “true Norfolk Broad” who obviously has a problem with incomers and gentrification, but eventually, as things go in Norfolk someone eventually knew someone, who came and disconnected the softener and installed a bypass yesterday morning.

That’s our three FW disasters, then. I hope that’s it for the year. As I type this the words “famous” and “last” spring to mind.

An unfortunate chest infection has postponed the visit of John’s family today but that’s given me a little breathing space at least.

Here are some pictures:

Works for me:

These Airscape coffee and tea canisters that keep the source of your hot beverages vacuum fresh for longer by actually extracting the air from them. Very good and effective, if initially a little hard on arthritic thumbs.

Did not work for me:

I continued in my valiant sourdough baked goods quest this week, this time making two panettone over two days each. I think there was something wrong with my timing, or I think Anthony, my starter, is weak so the rise was disappointing but they still tasted delicious toasted, especially early this morning in that peaceful time before anyone else was up, so I shall persevere with Beatrice, my new and more vigorous starter.

I was today years old (eyeroll emoji) when I finally worked out why this is the correct placement of a loo roll. Here is one in our newly refitted bathroom.

That’s all for this week. I’m off for a cup of tea and possibly some delicious cheese on toast made on the new Aga, with which I am in love. May I now wish you a very happy, healthy New Year and a brave, kind 2025.

Have fun!