February 2019 - Part 2

 February seemed colder than January, or maybe it was just me? I had a nasty cold for the middle of it, no doubt from working too much and not being on holiday enough!

I spotted this piece of graffiti while we were stopped at the local petrol station before heading off somewhere. I'm not normally a fan of graffiti in this sense, but the rhetoric behind it struck a cord with me. I love graffiti that is artistic, tells a story, makes you feel something. The area we live in tends to have the scruffy lazy sort of graffiti where people just spray without thought. I enjoy going to places like London, where in areas there is a real graffiti culture, with incredible pieces being made. It's a very fluid art form, constantly changing and adapting, before being washed away or covered over. It always feels very present, in the moment, that sort of thing. Very deep for a Friday I know!

I can't remember where this was, but I remember being amazed by how mnay swans there were, and they seemed to be swimming in pairs!

Ok, so this picture both makes me laugh and want to cry. I found a game online called Tetris Jenga. In essence, its jenga, but with Tetris pieces, so there's some L -shaped ones, corner ones, square ones, it made Tetris so much more fun and unpredictable! We must have played a dozen times round my friend's house, and we paused only to cook dinner, roasted veggies with salmon!

We did some swan feeding down in Fareham, which isn't far from us. As by the blue skies, you can tell it was a beautiful day

And the picture below is of Danbury, and Iron-age fortress. There's not much left except for these large earthworks, but there's enough to give you an idea of the size of the complex. It also makes for a great day out, and there were a few people walking dogs and the such there.

And this adorable gang was at Finkley Down Farm, a petting zoo and working farm in Andover. It's full of friendly animals, (and some overfriendly ones, as one of the goats decided to lick the entirety of my arm, coat sleeve and bag) who you can feed & pet. There are so many different animals there, plus places to eat, shop and plenty of places for kids to play. Tickets start at £15.95 (You get a £2 discount for booking online, and its a fully cash free attraction), just be mindful it gets very busy weekends, we went on a Saturday and it was heaving, although it started off quite calm and quiet when it first opened. I think we were one of the first ones there.

This may have been the greatest breakfast sandwich ever.  A hot fishcake, between two bits of toast with mayo on them. It was heavenly, and got me through another manic shift at work!

And this is the Bargate, in the centre of Southampton where I live. Its a real icon of the city, and was formerly the main gatehouse of the medieval city. We are lucky here, we have so much of the medieval town walls and fortifications still standing, and I wish sometimes that the city council would do more for them, restore them and get them open more for people to visit. There is a museum inside the Bargate, I went in as a child, but it closed a few years ago and sadly never re-opened

Another attempt at making Georgian Khinkali, and another failed one. They tasted nice, but I just can't seem to get the dough and cooking process nailed. If you can give me a master class, I'd be happy to pay!

Daffodil season was here, and the only thing I could find to put them in was the Corona ice bucket. I thought I brought a vase with me when I moved in, but I couldn't find it anywhere. Still the daffodils didnt seem to mind!

And this, was amazing. It's two different cottage pies, one classic, with beef mince, onions and a mashed potato topping, the one behind was a jerk beef, peppers, and a garlic sweet potato mash topping. It was so, so good, definitely one I will be making again! And the plates were all empty at the end, so I think everyone else enjoyed it!