Off Topic The Goodhand Arms

She must have found the hosepipe to be aversion therapy.

 

Usually she sees mucky puddles as "go to" areas despite what I might shout at her. Don't you f*****g dare is seen as a challenge in a spaniel's world.

 

My ex had a flat coat retriever called Monty AKA the delinquent dog. He was a resque he arrived after a year or so of being cooped up in a small flat. He was a runner and not good with livestock lucky not to have been shot wasn't a worrier, speciality was diving into ponds trying to catch fish then rolling in every bit of fox **** in Oxfordshire. No food could be left out and the cupboards had child locks refitted. Several joints and plated meals were lost the worst a kilo tub of marg can you imagine the mess! I think I was working in Kazakhstan at the time just about far enough away. The garden was stock proofed and he was never off a lead so damage was minimised. Lovely dog though for all his naughtiness.

 

Quick question.

Linguine or Rigatoni tonight?

 

Linguine.........with a lovely Shiraz

 

Actually, it was genuinely Fusilli, with a sauce I conjured from red pesto, and added to with red and white onions and red sweet peppers. All reduced down with extra virgin olive oil. Then I threw some black and green olives in near the end. Then I ate some of it last night, but the majority of it this evening. Remember that "better the second batch" thing? It was. And I sank some of that cheery Grapevine Merlot with it. Who says that being at home is boring? Can't wait to be told to stay home so that I can really get creative.

 

Has anyone been watching Star Trek: Picard? I'm on the 2nd episode. Pretty good so far.

 

Funnily enough I’m taking the opportunity to catch up with Star Trek: The Next Generation on Netflix before I watch Picard. Just finished Season3, so a way to go yet!

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52029083

Thanks for the advice Ashley but I'll be getting my info from a medical expert not a ****in' footballer.
Tomorrow, Ashley gives us tips on how to change the gearbox of a 1965 Ford Cortina

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-52034646
UK broke law by passing info to the USA that could lead to the execution of members of an IS execution and torture squad.
I am a great believer in the law and am against the death penalty, but still struggling to care.

 

My three favourite things are eating my family and not using commas.

 

Mushrooms

Not sure if this is of any interest but with all that is going on at the moment, I am feeling very pleased with my decision a couple of years ago to grow mushrooms at home. I grow quite a variety, such as Lion’s Mane, Enoki, Shiitake, Yellow, Pink, and King Oyster’s. They are a challenge to grow from cultures but these days they are often available as ‘grow at home kits’ for anyone to give it a try.

There are both nutritional and medicinal benefits in mushrooms and the advantage is they mostly taste amazing. My favourite is pan fried with chillies and a very light drizzle of honey when cooked. Cook them with the chillies until the edges of the mushrooms are crispy. There’s not much better as a vegetarian meal. Mushrooms are also great in soups and casseroles, on toast or deep fried in Panko bread crumbs. This autumn I am going to try growing a few different medicinal mushrooms which I haven’t grown before, mainly because growing them is so interesting.

I also invested in a food dehydrator so I could dry preserve large amounts of mushrooms when they decide to fruit all at once. It’s a brilliant device and will dehydrate any fruits or vegetables so they can be stored long term. It is brilliant at turning a glut of fresh tomatoes into sun dried tomatoes so they can be stored, or even put in oil to add to salads etc.

 

There's a few on here who's eye's will light up at the thought of cultivating "shrooms"

 

For the 6 years that I lived in rural Kent, I cultivated, grew, started learning about finding edible mushroom in fields and woods. Never had a problem, and ate loads of different delicious types, but on moving back to more suburban Southampton I gradually lost that ready knowledge. And it's definitely not a good idea to guess, even if it's an educated guess. You have to know for 100% certainty, cause getting it badly wrong can end in death at worst and organ damage if you survive that worst case.

 

Absolutely. The Death Cap (amanita phalloides) and Destroying Angel (amanita virosa) both resemble field mushrooms but are both so toxic that by the time symptoms appear, death is inevitable. Unless you’re sure, don’t go near!

 

Some years ago a woman from an East European country died in Carisbrooke after her daughter picked wild mushrooms on the Island that she was unfamiliar with.

 

So you will be very familiar with the Shaggy Ink Cap. God I loved those days of foraging for mushrooms in the woods with my mum. Hampshire must be one of the best places to do that.

 

Got a couple other shroom stories that came some time after, but I don't think that would be as appropriate to write about!

 

If it's about those little buggers, psilocybin, then I think you can share the stories. Years ago, I had few hilarious times with them, because they always put me into the most amazing good mood, and I'd laugh away my journey with them. Especially with a best buddy who shared the same ridiculous sense of humour.
But you can have a bad trip too [so I'm told].

 

Human's have been enjoying the effects for 10,000 years, so we shouldn't pretend its a new fad. And when intelligent mammals forage, they are usually okay, well the clever one's! Many years ago I went picking with some other 16-17yo's and some of them were bringing back any old thing! I didn't part-take in that sesh, but thankfully my fellow friends/morons came out unscathed! I always look back and laugh now, but god that could have been tragic! So fast forward another decade and me and friend were travelling in Europe. Spent a long period in the Netherlands. Now along with their marvelous cafes they also have these amazing smart shops, that deal with Hallucinogens. It took us a while to go back again (after all we had a responsibility to our type 25 and daily routine of living basic, not seeing people & traveling freely). But over the course of the year, I had a few of the funniest nights of my existence in Utrecht & Amsterdam amongst other places like Nijmegen. What a beautiful brain altering chemistry, but I tell you something, I wouldn't do it again, the world is too fuct up now!!!!!