That smells like the best Twiglet ever!

Spent my days off doing a spot of hostel hopping around the Lakes. Keswick again for football, then a night at Windermere which featured the purplest sunset I have ever seen. Somewhere in between all that I called into Kendal to get windows put in the back of my van, and made use of having phone signal by Facebook messaging Evie Plumb. My favourite writer is a plumber from Sheffield. & all I've ever read of his is the occasional Facebook status about yodel deliveries and geraniums. It's a special talent to be able to generate interest in something like that - most other people would have you asleep in seconds. I don't think he has any idea just how good he is. But that's a slight digress from Evie asking me if I'd like to write for Eskdale Now! - an Eskdale based monthly newspaper (run by herself & Tom-Tom). It's always a compliment to be asked, and especially so when the person asking is as creatively talented as Evie. I was listening to her band's (LOWES) debut single on YouTube the other day, and let me tell you, it's really something. I wouldn't put them in the same musical genre as Chris de Burgh, but don't let that put you off. Speaking of C de B - I hit the charity shops of Kendal whilst waiting for my van windows to be installed, and I thought I'd struck gold when I found a best of Chris de Burgh album for only £1. But when I opened the case and saw that the CD missing, a little part of me died inside. 

 

I was on my way back to Eskdale when I received a voicemail from Rachel. The first part reminded me a little bit of those birthday cards which, when opened, sing a recorded message to you. "Oh come with me to the rolling sea where the weather's calm and still....hello Ki-Ki-Deeee!" But then the singing stopped, and Rachel asked in her most serious voice if I could pick up seven loaves of brown bread, some ham, chicken, and cheese. I figured that either Mick was really really hungry, or the sandwich delivery hadn't arrived. Mick and Rachel had returned from Scotland the previous evening, and I was super excited to see them again (and super proud that I hadn't blown up the hostel in their absence). One of the first things Rachel told me about their holiday was how she had mistaken the packet of ginger biscuits I had given her for plain regular oatcakes. That in itself wasn't too much of a problem, but it made for interesting eating when she put a thick layer of cheese & chive pâté on top. Jo however was not to be outdone by this, "well I've put chocolate covered Kendal mint cake in my porridge. I thought it was actual cake, and when I discovered it was just a bar of sugar it was the biggest disappointment of my life. But, it needs eating so I thought I'd try it in cereal." I didn't really know how to respond to all this, so I quietly offered Rachel a Marmite rice cake to try. I'm not quite sure what she made of the taste of it, but she had no hesitancy in declaring, "that smells like the best Twiglet ever!" 

I had a near death experience the following day. I'd gone out to the Solar Garden to hang up my washing when I saw an Adder sunning itself on the gravel. I somehow managed to get Rachel's attention (who was inside the hostel somewhere) by calmly saying, "there's a snake!" Rachel arrived just in time to see its tail disappearing into a bush. When I saw Mick later I told him about the snake, and said that he would have been very impressed with how cool I was about the situation, given my fear of them. 

"Oh really? I saw Rachel, and she told me that you'd been screaming your head off?!"