#1377 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Twixtmas2 Comments

What are the highlights of an Old Mortuary  Twixtmas. Leftover food would be a good conversation starter. Rather like a family of hibernating bears we stock up a bit at Christmas time to have nice things in the cupboard until the Spring. Yesterday was the great festival of left overs.

Bubble and Squeak. Gorgeous patties of left over Christmas Veg served with eggs and bacon as a brunch after a lazy start to the day, perusing our Christmas books. Followed by lunchtime in the pub drinking hot, warmly spiced cider. Pubs have to have a bit of history for me, and as this one has been offering  food and friendship to travellers heading further west since 1678. It more than fulfills my exacting criteria.

Rod and line – Drink. Dance. Laugh. Love. Stay. Eat https://share.google/9X6k8hE3RkG7eGwWu

Gently home then to more books, T. V and more left overs. Turkey sandwiches for the evening offering. Served with crisps.

Culinary delight in our house. Not a sophisticated menu in sight!

An itinerary of our day is not exactly a ponder but there is much to ponder in the enjoyment and creation of left over food. Because of the unpredictability of what exactly has been left over.

This year the parsnips and red cabbage were great for our Christmas dinner. The sprouts, always controversial, were a little lack lustre. The roast potatoes were Gold Star and  were consequently almost all eaten at Christmas Dinner. So the Bubble and Squeak lacked the heft of a solid potato base  this year. The carbohydrate responsibilities fell to the parsnips. Lighter and sweeter our breakfast brunch staple transformed itself into something  much more glamorous. Bougie even!

Similarly the Turkey Sandwiches were anything but standard. Just a little turkey left over required some improvisation. The addition of some ham and stuffing, moistened by a little bread sauce elevated the whole thing to something that might have been served in a very fancy place.

Honestly one of the better years for leftovers. I think we may have one more solid day of over catering and then I can make a start with my new Pasta Cookbook.

Padella was on my early morning walk home from night shifts. Tucked into a corner of Borough Market.

This book was purely on my Christmas List because of the smells that  used to haunt this corner of  Borough Market. I never ever ate there. Already I have found a recipe that uses left overs. My Twixtmas food list has some new inspiration.

In other Borough Market inspo there is a wonderful cafe that serves Bubble and Squeak all year. Another smell sensation on my walk home.

Not just me either.My birthday twin stops there too.

P.s What would you like for breakfast?

Christmas Pudding.

Only in Twixtmas.

#1376 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn FamilyLeave a comment

Twas the first day of Twixtmas. Or Boxing Day for some of us.

The giddy excess of Christmas Day is over and we have 6 days left of the old year. 6 days of exploring new books, toiletries, candles, maybe some early clearing out. 6 days of nibbling in the foothills of the festive food mountain. 6 days to savour the gift that is a loving family. Fascinating friends and a  solid house to call home. 6 days of pondering Christmas Pasts.

For no particular reason I spent some time pondering Brian Bilston’s poem.

Two reasons. I am a woman of simple needs at Christmas, and indeed life. Family, friends, some travel , some kindness, health and happiness. Positivity where possible. Yes there are dark moments but valuing and storing the good vibes helps out in the  more uncomfortable and distressing moments of life.

For many years I shared Christmas with a woman who,  valued and relished negativity.  She views life and other people with the sharp acidity of lemon juice on a mouth ulcer

Christmas always demonstrated the chasm between our outlooks.  How would she use Brian’s Poem as inspiration for her Christmas  experience and how would I. Who knows?

To be clear she was as happy in her negative world as I am elsewhere and as generous as any other person in the festive season. Different viewpoints can be interesting and enlightening. Also infuriating.

The Christmas things we have opposing views on in no particular order are

Shortbread biscuits.

Why would anyone give shortbread biscuits at Christmas? Her

The year I gave her a big box and I received a smaller one.

A golden buttery treat to see me through the winter months. Me

Candles.

What would anyone buy me a candle for, I have lovely bright electricity.

The more the merrier. Me

Photographs of children

The non- genetic are more highly prized. Her

Twenty of the same three children, fabulous. Me

Not sure I get that, but each to their own, or not.

I could go on but that would be missing the point. How have these two very different women existed in close familial contact for more than 40 years.

Compromise in the public domain.

Respect and understanding of different life experiences.

An awareness that one of the greatest gifts of Christmas is the confidential invisibility of ‘ Thought Bubbles’

Honestly, without invisible ‘Thought Bubbles’ we would not have made it past the first Christmas.

A quarter of her is in the children that I adore and an eighth in the grandchildren who are loved and cherished. I would not have them different in any way. Maybe her gift of negativity is useful and strengthening for them with their abundance of positivity from all their other gene pools.

So to Brian’s poem of collective nouns I would add.

A Compromise of Christmases.

More valuable in so many different ways.

Family. Just a collection of mis matched baubles.

#1374 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Advent, Serendipity2 Comments
Exeter City Centre

I found this temporary sculpture yesterday. Doubtless commissioned as a photo opportunity. But beautiful in its own way without humans  posing against it. I love the ambiguity of it. Are they Angels wings or Fairy?

Christmas has become for many of us the most delightful mash up of Sacred and Secular. Consumerist and cozy. Family and friends. Memories and Magic.

I nearly always overthink Christmas. Preparing for the present yet nostalgic for the past.

Studying Fine Art as a mature student, gave me a new mentor as I found the writing of Robert Hughes as an excellent guide to Art Theory. But his famous quote about Christmas baffled me when I first read it. I had completely forgotten my bafflement until I was standing near his plaque in Sydney two weeks ago.

Friends and their feet at a plaque to commemorate a favourite writer and thinker. Robert Hughes

So here I am having given myself renewed bafflement fresh from the sunshine of Sydney. Bafflement caused by a man who had rejected Catholicism for deeply personal reasons and yet mentions God in one of his often quoted quotes.

I suppose my circular counter argument would be that a deep winter celebration was much needed by early humans in the Northern Hemisphere.Short cold days can be relentless. Early Christians saw an opportunity and popped God into the mix by a convenient Birth of Christ Story to coincide with Winter festivals.

Bob is your Uncle and Christianity gets a popularity boost. Whose heart did it start in?

Actually Bob probably becomes your drunk Uncle who always appears with his slightly grumpy partner Sylvia whose family Christmas traditions do not involve being pleasant to anyone.

So wherever Christmas sits in your heart currently. Seasons Greetings.

Fairy or Angel? Whichever is right for you xx

#1373 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn AdventLeave a comment
The Barbican, Plymouth. On a previous occasion.

I think we only started to engage with the Northern Hemisphere Christmas yesterday. For certain we have done Christmas admin for a few days but yesterday we went to gather with friends and strangers in a warm house, had good food, good conversations and gathered around a piano to sing Christmas Carols without a hymn sheet. 100 per cent accuracy of harmonies but maybe some of the words were a little erroneously placed. All part of the charm.

Exeter Cathedral on a previous occasion

The Christmas admin today took me to two of my favourite places. Exeter and The Barbican, Plymouth. Both places made me feel warm and fuzzy because like the harmonies of the night before success was 100 %.

Two images from earlier visits, nobody needs to see Exeter or the Barbican in the rain.

#1372 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Australia, Hong Kong1 Comment
New Bauble from Hong Kong.

A new bauble for 2025. After a slow start to prep we have Christmas 2025 on track. Taking our holiday during Advent made for easy choices of memento purchasing. Baubles have been a particular focus this year. Having never experienced the Southern Hemisphere in December, I wondered quite how Christmas baubles would sit in gorgeous summer sunshine. As it turns out Christmas baubles look absolutely wonderful in bright sunshine. Particularly at Dawn.

One Southern Hemisphere bauble made it into our suitcases. Somewhat loosely described as a bauble, a glittering pale green prawn hangs happily on our Christmas tree.

Prawn Bauble from Melbourne

My own Christmas image for 2025 was a handful of regular festive baubles. Enhanced now by the experience of seeing baubles in both the Southern and Northern hemispheres. Warm cozy background for the familiar wintery experience and splashy, brightly coloured sea shades for the new experience of baubles by a hot summer beach.

#1371 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Firestone BayLeave a comment
Winter Solstice. Firestone Bay

And just like that the shortest day is here and my inner pagan skips and jumps.

I am a closet minor melancholic from the minute the Summer Solstice brings the longest day.  Shortening days and looking towards the gloom of winter from the 22 of June is my secret USP. I keep it well hidden until late November but from then on I grump and moan a bit.

Singapore, Australia and Hong Kong reset me like nothing has ever done before. Long days of sunshine in December perked me up like new batteries in small electrical devices.

Buzzing would be the word. Never have I had so much va-va-voom in December.

Even the adverse events of this week have failed to dim my physical energy.  My heart and soul might be mightily bruised and hollowed out, but I have been ready to meet the day at stupid o clock. Thanks to being super charged by the Southern Hemisphere.

Onwards to longer days.

#1370 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Australia1 Comment
Baubles in the Southern Hemisphere.

I have never experienced Christmas in the Southern Hemisphere before. Or any other time to be honest. I was a newbie. As an artist I knew the colours would be significantly different. As a winterphobe I knew I would welcome sunlight like a lizard on a hot rock.

Nothing prepared me for the first hour of coffee and breakfast on Coogee beach half an hour after landing.

Sunrise in a new country is quite the moment. Mind blowing clarity and colours and a small town vividly bustling at 6 a.m.

I am still trying to work out how to paint the sensations and flavours of those first few hours.

The universe has seen fit to give me a bit of a pause for thoughts both domestically and internationally.  I have decided to revisit our holiday creatively and pleasurably in the new year. January will be a cornucopia of sunshine spam.

For now just Baubles in Sunshine.

#1368 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Serendipity1 Comment

Describe a man who has positively impacted your life.

The obvious answer would be my Dad. A quiet, clever man who avoided conflict and worked hard. He was dependable and wise, a man ahead of his time in many ways and out of step with the masculinity of his generation.

The bar was set quite high, but having a gentle father gave me a natural resistance to toxic masculinity in my inner circle.  Such men are unavoidable in the real world, but I am lucky that the significant men that I have as friends and family are of the same calibre as my Dad.