Yesterday evening we held a slightly previous family get together to celebrate Mrs Strachan senior’s 79th birthday. Although technically not her anniversary of birth until today, already pressing engagements resulted in the clan marking the dawning of mater’s 80th year a day early. The brood’s celebration of the event taking place in an East Leeds Italian restaurant. Despite not having a politically incorrect bone in her body, mother suffers from an […]
I commence this essay sitting in the Costa coffee shop within the Next building at The Springs Retail Park, Leeds; a recently built construction which also incorporates a Gino D’Acampo*** restaurant. **** – Or Gino D’Campingstove as my spouse, with her quirky tic of mispronouncing celebrity surnames, incorrectly calls him….. Gino D’Acampo not to be confused with Gino D’Compo the elderly wellington boot wearing West Yorkshire chef with a penchant […]
Lethargy is today’s watchword for GJ Strachan. Feeling like he’s undergone an energy suction procedure, the vitality felt in recent days following a break with long term buddies currently evades him. The northern Englishman feeling as spent as his wife’s wardrobe budget, but pragmatic enough to know it’s a fleeting fatigue which’ll no doubt abate post-slumber. As an aside, if the Dulux paint chart is to believed, today the sky has […]
With a view to creating a herb/salad garden, yesterday I bought some edible plants from the garden centre. Well, if truth be told, I intend to create a couple of tubs of herbs and salad shrubs; calling it a garden is somewhat stretching the growing area’s description. Consequently, this afternoon I’ll be planting rocket salad, red/orange/yellow peppers, thyme, mint and rosemary into two large pots. Containers that’ll not only provide […]
“Contentment is an achievable Holy Grail, Gary……. Disenchantment, though, can only be consequential from bearing aspirations of eternal serenity. They’re the notions of fatuousness that’ll lead to inevitable disappointment, corrosion of spirit, manifestations of discontentment and taint the soul. Take heed that the pragmatist ordinarily prevails over the dreamer” The wise words offered yesterday by my local butcher Frank. Locutions and guidance I appreciated, although I’m unsure why he felt […]
Alec Thompson’s banty eggs were frequent visitors to the 1970s/80’s Strachan kitchen table in Dorchester Gardens, Low Fell. Not just physically, in the shape of an omelette or cake ingredient, but also as a catalyst to meal time banter surrounding the culinary splendour of truly fresh produce. I didn’t know Gateshead man Alec personally but my mum was a friend of his wife, who for anonymity purposes I’ll call Linda […]
Last week I wrote a narrative containing untrustworthy recollections from my senior high schooldays in Low Fell, Gateshead. Within those memories I touched upon a sandwich shop called The Griddle – During my schooldays a ‘go to’ source for midday refreshment. In the 1970s/80s, this Durham Road deli was heavily patronised by Heathfield Senior High School students. A haunt where they sought lunchtime sustenance and distracting from the fact they’d […]
