A Difficult Drive and a Scare

   Just the usual number at Book Club this afternoon and we had a lively discussion followed by treats and coffee. The book for this month was "Before We Were Yours" by Lisa Wingate, a fictional account of a very real situation - baby stealing, kidnapping and cruelty at  Tennessee orphanage in the 1920's.

   Digging out from another snow storm and more is forecast for tonight. I managed to get my car out onto the street this morning and had a fairly easy drive to my tennis game. The main roads had been cleared and well salted. We are very fortunate to have our sidewalks cleared by the city (not all parts of the city are) so that was one less thing to do. However, tennis and snow shovelling was more than enough exercise for one day. I had a small scare on my way to tennis as my "low tire pressure" light came on and the last time that happened I had to replace the tire. I managed to inflate it and will wait until tomorrow to see if it holds the air. Otherwise it will mean a trip to the dealership to see if they can fix it. New tires are expensive.

   I am having a couple of meatless days. Yesterday was roasted veggies and bean casserole. Today I made some savoury muffins which I will have with the rest of the beans. Having said that I just realized I had some smoked mackerel an hour ago while the muffins were cooking, so not entirely meatless.

They are mostly carrot and cheese with a little flour and just one egg.

Contagion

    So strange...... half our dance group didn't come to class last night. I'm not sure why but think it may be fear of contracting the coronavirus. There is quite a lot of hand contact in the dances. This is despite the fact that in this city of over 3 million, there have only been 3 cases of people testing positive for the virus and all are in self-imposed quarantine at home. 

   Here is one of the more difficult dances we learned last night, not danced by us, obviously.

   There was the usual number of Bridge players this afternoon so no fear of cantagion there - a healthy bunch!

Food and a Book (2)

      Saturday is grocery shopping day but I usually go after breakfast. Yesterday I changed things up a bit and went first thing, The store was considerably quieter but there were only two cashiers so I didn't save any time. Also, shopping on an empty stomach is not advised - I came home with a batch of chicken wings, something I rarely buy, but they were delicious grilled in BBQ sauce. 

    The rest of the day (the weekend, in fact) has been spent reading "Bring Up the Bodies" by Hilary Mantel. It is the second in a trilogy set in the 16th century and told through the eyes of Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII's master Secretary. I read the first book, "Wolf Hall", some time ago, and am now waiting for the final one, "The Mirror and the Light" which should hit the shelves soon. 

    This evening I am binge-watching "Howard's End" on PBS. It is a Masterpiece production full of magnificent views of the English countryside and fabulous costumes. There's another book I should request from the library.

The BBQ wings ready to eat.

Food and Book Talk