Happy New Year

    To all my friends in Blogland. "Lang may yer lum reek" (old Scottish New Year's greeting).

Hogmanay

    In Scotland Hogmanay, New Year's Eve, is actually a bigger celebration than Christmas - at least it was when I lived there 50+ years ago! People went from house to house after midnight with a bottle of whiskey to toast the new year with friends and family.

   There are several other customs linked to Hogmanay but the one I am most aware of was the "First Foot". This was the first person to enter your house in the new year. It had to be a tall dark-haired stranger. This  dates back to the time of Viking raids as Scandanavian invaders usually had fair skin and hair. So it was safe to allow the dark-haired visitor into your home. 

Getting ready to welcome in the New Year with some bubbly! Prosecco and orange juice.

   I probably won't manage to stay awake until midnight but my hope for 2022 is that it is a massive improvement on 2021!

A Bit of a Letdown

    Weather not cooperating today. I haven't been out since last Friday but, luckily, have plenty to keep me busy indoors. Today is strong winds and snow squalls, and the forecast is for freezing drizzle overnight, Yuk!

   The last of the Christmas meal will soon either be eaten or tucked away in the freezer and that includes the soup I made yesterday. Time for something different and it may well be vegetarian. You can only eat so much meat before the stomach requires a rest. I think there may be a couple of mince tarts calling my name later this evening but that's it!

   The decorations are starting to come down but I am interspersing it with reading or working on a puzzle. There's no rush and the tree will stay up until the new year. I love its sparkly brightness! 

My New Toy

   Despite no working oven, Christmas lunch went without a hitch. Daughter cooked the roast tatties and capon (I'm not a fan of turkey) to perfection, and they transported from her house successfully. Gifts were exchanged and here's my new toy from them.

An Instapot - really a high tech pressure cooker but nothing like your mother's version.

   I have given it a trial run and am ready for something more adventurous. Maybe after I have finished eating all the leftovers. Today I cleaned up, stripped the bird and made stock from the carcass so won't need to cook again for the rest of the week. Even though I sent lots home with the visitors, there's still a ton of food to eat up. Nothing wrong with that IMHO!