What a horrible day that was, it's never a 'good' day - 9.11 - for all of the thousands of people who were affected by the terrible things that happened and, of course, New York City itself.
For her, it's like Valentine's Day, the day that Hugo died or October 30th on which Edgar, Bill and Moley died, all on the same day but in different years.
Darling Dagga, he would still be alive if that idiot hadn't put the box of washing tablets behind the mirror, he died at almost the exact time the first aircraft hit the north tower.. on the deadful third anniversary of that day of terror.
When she came back from burying him later that day, she took down the huge dressing table mirror from which he had fallen, put it in the hall and gave it away that next week.
It didn't matter that she loved it and had known it all her life, she would never be able to look at it again and not hear the scream of pain as his neck broke.
Gruesome days.. ugh and she had another last week when the nurse taking a blood test, couldn't get any blood out of her first needle, so she had to take it out and put another needle in.
Her lovely GP had called her in to the surgery to talk to her because he had come back off holiday to find her emails and to be told all about the fun and games that happened two weeks ago.
So various blood tests were ordered.. but as she bumped into a lovely friend on her way out, that was a treat as she lives miles away and we don't get to see her very often.
Fifteen years ago, such a lot has happened since then. She misses that big bird, Dagga Parrot, more than she lets on. She seldom talks about him and
it's only old friends who knew and remember him and his funny ways.
However, there was a story published recently about her and the three African Grey, yes, you read that correctly, because if it hadn't been for her meeting Tunku, an African Grey in Malayia when she was eighteen months old, I wonder if I or Dagga Parrot would have come into her life.
She's loved us birds for a long time, she and Dagga met when she was rising thirty eight, she's now sixty nine, she has had Greys for over thirty one years but if she had had her way, she would have had one when she was eighteen months old and the parrot would probably still be alive!
Our species live, if loved and treated properly, for a very good length of time! Longer than a cat or a dog, that's for sure!
I have her 'captive' at home! The strappy sandals she has worn for three summers which make her feet striped with suntan, have caused a huge bump on the outside of her foot, which is so weird as they have never in the past caused her to have the slightest pain and in fact, were extremely comfortable to wear for both walking and working in.
But the strap that comes from underneath her foot and then over her arch has caused this extremely sore area on the edge of her foot which is also slightly underneath, it is probably a bursa, as in bursitis.
Boring! And incredibly painful. The rest of that side of the foot swells up if it is contained in a shoe or boot so that puts the mockers on her working at the allotments, that's for sure!
She had breakfast with her much beloved friend Pat on Monday who asked mum why she was limping, mum explained and Pat immediately told her to go to Burchills, the podiatrists on the Fulham Palace Road, as they'll be able to help you.
She knew immediately where they were as she passes them every time she goes to the allotments or to Charing Cross hospital, which is located on the same road, so when Pat and she parted she hopped onto a 430 bus and made an appointment with them.
She came back via our lubblyjubbly butcher in the North End Road, she was in need of comfort food and a ham hock was what she was after!
Have you ever cooked one?
You need a big cooking pot, we've two stock pots and it was the smaller of the two that she brought down from the top of a kitchen cupboard, after giving it a rinse, she put in three large carrots, three celery stalks home grown, three bay leaves, a big bunch of both rosemary and thyme, two heads of garlic chopped in half with the outer skin taken off and two huge white onions, everything was chopped in to large pieces, she is mighty proud of the fact that all these before mentioned vegetables were home grown!
A large piece of fresh ginger root was added together with a handful of black peppercorns. But NO salt was added!
She put in the ham hock, topped up the pot with filtered water and put it on to boil, once it had come up to the boil, she dropped the heat down and reduced the liquid to a simmer. It simmered for a long time, a very long time indeed, she took a bone out, the flesh dropped off and she knew it was ready.
Having turned off the heat, she stripped the flesh and skin off the bones and allowed it to cool. Then added more celery, carrots and a monster Patty Pan squash which had grown too large, put back the bones and the skin into the pot, added more water and brought it back up to a rolling boil, then turned it back down again to simmer for another hour.
We now have a large bowl of the most succulent pork and a massive amount of pork and vegetable stock, most of which she will freeze and some she will give away as a treat to a family who don't really cook this sort of food but oh, they love it!
For who doesn't like home made pea and ham soup and guess what, frozen peas make brilliant soup!
Now, it is lunch time and I'm annoying her by tooting and whistling whilst perched on her head, she finally has got the message as she's just looked at her watch and realised.. guess what?
It's lunch time!
So, we hope that you are all somewhere safe, the worlds' press has seemingly forgotten about those thousands of unfortunate people and all of their animals in the Bahamas.
We haven't..
GeeGee Parrot.
September 18th, 2019.
For her, it's like Valentine's Day, the day that Hugo died or October 30th on which Edgar, Bill and Moley died, all on the same day but in different years.
Darling Dagga, he would still be alive if that idiot hadn't put the box of washing tablets behind the mirror, he died at almost the exact time the first aircraft hit the north tower.. on the deadful third anniversary of that day of terror.
When she came back from burying him later that day, she took down the huge dressing table mirror from which he had fallen, put it in the hall and gave it away that next week.
It didn't matter that she loved it and had known it all her life, she would never be able to look at it again and not hear the scream of pain as his neck broke.
Gruesome days.. ugh and she had another last week when the nurse taking a blood test, couldn't get any blood out of her first needle, so she had to take it out and put another needle in.
Her lovely GP had called her in to the surgery to talk to her because he had come back off holiday to find her emails and to be told all about the fun and games that happened two weeks ago.
So various blood tests were ordered.. but as she bumped into a lovely friend on her way out, that was a treat as she lives miles away and we don't get to see her very often.
Fifteen years ago, such a lot has happened since then. She misses that big bird, Dagga Parrot, more than she lets on. She seldom talks about him and
it's only old friends who knew and remember him and his funny ways.
However, there was a story published recently about her and the three African Grey, yes, you read that correctly, because if it hadn't been for her meeting Tunku, an African Grey in Malayia when she was eighteen months old, I wonder if I or Dagga Parrot would have come into her life.
She's loved us birds for a long time, she and Dagga met when she was rising thirty eight, she's now sixty nine, she has had Greys for over thirty one years but if she had had her way, she would have had one when she was eighteen months old and the parrot would probably still be alive!
Our species live, if loved and treated properly, for a very good length of time! Longer than a cat or a dog, that's for sure!
I have her 'captive' at home! The strappy sandals she has worn for three summers which make her feet striped with suntan, have caused a huge bump on the outside of her foot, which is so weird as they have never in the past caused her to have the slightest pain and in fact, were extremely comfortable to wear for both walking and working in.
But the strap that comes from underneath her foot and then over her arch has caused this extremely sore area on the edge of her foot which is also slightly underneath, it is probably a bursa, as in bursitis.
Boring! And incredibly painful. The rest of that side of the foot swells up if it is contained in a shoe or boot so that puts the mockers on her working at the allotments, that's for sure!
She had breakfast with her much beloved friend Pat on Monday who asked mum why she was limping, mum explained and Pat immediately told her to go to Burchills, the podiatrists on the Fulham Palace Road, as they'll be able to help you.
She knew immediately where they were as she passes them every time she goes to the allotments or to Charing Cross hospital, which is located on the same road, so when Pat and she parted she hopped onto a 430 bus and made an appointment with them.
She came back via our lubblyjubbly butcher in the North End Road, she was in need of comfort food and a ham hock was what she was after!
Have you ever cooked one?
You need a big cooking pot, we've two stock pots and it was the smaller of the two that she brought down from the top of a kitchen cupboard, after giving it a rinse, she put in three large carrots, three celery stalks home grown, three bay leaves, a big bunch of both rosemary and thyme, two heads of garlic chopped in half with the outer skin taken off and two huge white onions, everything was chopped in to large pieces, she is mighty proud of the fact that all these before mentioned vegetables were home grown!
A large piece of fresh ginger root was added together with a handful of black peppercorns. But NO salt was added!
She put in the ham hock, topped up the pot with filtered water and put it on to boil, once it had come up to the boil, she dropped the heat down and reduced the liquid to a simmer. It simmered for a long time, a very long time indeed, she took a bone out, the flesh dropped off and she knew it was ready.
Having turned off the heat, she stripped the flesh and skin off the bones and allowed it to cool. Then added more celery, carrots and a monster Patty Pan squash which had grown too large, put back the bones and the skin into the pot, added more water and brought it back up to a rolling boil, then turned it back down again to simmer for another hour.
We now have a large bowl of the most succulent pork and a massive amount of pork and vegetable stock, most of which she will freeze and some she will give away as a treat to a family who don't really cook this sort of food but oh, they love it!
For who doesn't like home made pea and ham soup and guess what, frozen peas make brilliant soup!
Now, it is lunch time and I'm annoying her by tooting and whistling whilst perched on her head, she finally has got the message as she's just looked at her watch and realised.. guess what?
It's lunch time!
So, we hope that you are all somewhere safe, the worlds' press has seemingly forgotten about those thousands of unfortunate people and all of their animals in the Bahamas.
We haven't..
GeeGee Parrot.
September 18th, 2019.
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