Firstly, I'd like to thank my readers for the wonderfully positive response I received to my last post, about having blogged here for 14 years. I write; you respond; I adapt to the response. People seem to prefer posts with a variety of themes, and posts with pictures of trans ladies doing their thing. We aim to please.
Thumbs up
Partayyy!
It's the height of the holiday season here on the riviera and everyone's in bikinis (well, the men aren't - more fool them!) and we've had fun this last week. The condominium "pool party" in the garden (not to be confused with the "garden party" in the pool!) went really well. We all brought home-made food. I brought Ascolane, which - if you're British - might be described as "Scotch olives" after Scotch eggs, i.e. olives encased in mortadella (baloney) sausage, further covered in breadcrumbs. (To non-British readers, a "Scotch egg" is a boiled egg surrounded by pork sausagemeat in breadcrumbs.) Also and vitally(!) some fizzy wine. I think the resident wives try to outdo one another in what they make and, as a transwoman, I'm totally into food rivalry with those other women in the block, ha ha. Just kidding (not kidding).
Anyway, our evening garden party went well. I've also enjoyed a couple of meals with neighbours. More food news below.
The town summer fireworks were beautiful and somehow the bangs seem to have been toned down to more pet-friendly swooshes. Special mention for the golden feathery bursts and the many red love-hearts cascading over the harbour. How they get bursting rockets to form red heart outlines, I don't know. Maybe the natural fall of the stars just happens to form that uneven shape with a pointy bottom and a bow-like top. But I was content as I watched from my eyrie up the mountain where I see the bursts and blooms at eye level.
It's crowded in town with concerts and summer sales in the shops. Nothing on the sales racks has caught my eye so far. Call me cynical, but these days if it's in the sales, it's because it wasn't selling in the first place because it wasn't worth buying!
Foodie news
It's the mushroom season and I've been enjoying some nice dishes, pasta with porcini sauce especially. (I'd like to go mushroom hunting myself in public woodland as I used to do as a kid but you need a license these days because of overpicking by the more selfish.)
I'd never tried caprino ravioli until now: hand-made pasta shaped like moneybags rather than traditional pillows, filled with goat's cheese, honey and walnuts, and with a blue cheese sauce. Pretty amazing.
There's also the local "trombetta" (little trumpet) squash grown locally that makes a tasty savoury "green pie" that's a favoured local recipe and is nice hot or cold. The ones in this basket don't look so much like trumpets but some really do!
RIP Terence Stamp
"Kneel before Zod!"
No, not that. I especially remember this actor from his outstanding turn as Bernadette in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, a film that perhaps did more to improve tolerance of trans, gay and drag people than almost any other single thing.
A dip in the archives: Kew Gardens
I don't dip into my archives as much as I used to but recently my lovely friend Dee posted her recollections of a picnic she and I had at the Royal Botanic Gardens in London, better known as Kew Gardens.
Kew Gardens are important in my trans life. The first time I left my own home dressed in 2010 I ended up there. I also went with friends Joanne and Petra in 2011. But here's a link to Dee's record of our trip.
I've linked to Dee's blog before. Recommended reading.
Thanks for the happy memories, Dee.
Sue x
I did enjoy your blog anniversary post Sue.
ReplyDeleteNice to read the pool party in the garden went well, sounds like you all ate well too. I've never heard of Ascolane but I'll keep a look out for it here in the UK. I live olives, and I like scotch eggs too so it sounds like it might be right up my street.
The firework show sounded good, your vantage point for watching them sounds good too.
I do like mushrooms not sure I'd pick my own though, some are lethal and knowing my luck I'd probably end up picking the wrong ones.
That caprino ravioli does sound very nice indeed..
I saw Terence Stamp had died. I only ever remember him playing General Zod in Superman II though.
Thank you for all your comments, Lotte. I really appreciate your support, not least for my last post on 14 years of blogging, which got an overwhelming response.
DeleteI've no idea if you can find "Ascolane" in shops in the UK. Maybe in a specialist Italian deli. Could be pricey, mind. If you've got the patience, you could make them yourself with big green olives, sausagemeat and breadcrumbs. I love Scotch eggs and there's been a fashion of late for them to be home-made in pubs and such and they are totally different and much more delicious than the factory-made ones.
There are very few lethal mushrooms so as long as you can identify those you'll normally be fine assuming the rest are edible. Just watch out for those others that do weird stuff to your head, especially if you drink alcohol with them!
You should see "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" if you can. It's a cracking road movie with more classic one-liners per minute than any other film I know!
Sue xx
Caprino ravioli sounds pretty amazing. You are braver and more well-informed than me if you are confident to pick your own mushrooms from anywhere wilder than the vegetable aisles at Tesco or Sainsbury's.
ReplyDeleteStamp is another of those actors who got typecast early in his career and then reinvented himself in a range of more varied and interesting roles later in life.
Thanks, Susie. Mushrooming is fun and as long as you know what's poisonous or inadvisable then you can largely assume that everything else is edible. It may not be tasty, but it won't kill you. I feel a botanical post coming along ...
DeleteTerence Stamp played villains to start with, then he reinvented himself as a bitchy drag queen in order to play a succession of grumpy old men! I dare say that's a simplistic assessment, but it seems to fit!
Sue xx
Ascolane sound lovely. I'll keep an eye out for those. As to mushrooms, I used to go picking them with my gran, and she had an eye for which ones to pick.... as which ones to leave well alone.
ReplyDeleteJust this week we had mushrooms (brown and white cap) in bolognese sauce, and tagliatelle. An absolute favourite!
Thanks, Lynn. Another fungus fan, I see! Likewise, I used to go out with my grandfather for tasty toadstools.
DeleteI've no idea about the availability of Ascolane in the UK. You may need to visit a specialist Italian deli.
Sue xx
Thanks for mentioning my blog. It's very much appreciated. The Summer food sounds very yummy. In France you can take your foraged fungi into vegetable shops and supermarkets and they will tell you if it's edible or deadly. I don't know if they let you know it's hallucinogenic effects. San Remo does sound like a pretty cool place to live.xxx
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Dee. Your blog is excellent.
DeleteIn Italy you can take your mushrooms to the specialist unit at your local health authority who will evaluate them for a very modest fee.
I like where I live. I'm pretty happy here.
Sue xx