Getting ready

The bookcase has been emptied, cleaned and moved. The build-up of dust has been vaccumed away, the washing has been taken down. All is ready for tomorrow’s scheduled delivery of the fridge. It’s so large that the hallway has to be cleared. I almost feel obliged to take a video and post it on  youtube – such has been the anticipation. As you can tell we don’t often go in for new furnishings or equipment, though the extra cold capacity will be welcome. It’s well seen that more items are stored in fridges these days than ever used to be. Most preserves etc have a recommendation to store in a refrigerator once opened.

My mind often jumps back into its recesses to dredge out images from the past. In particular I am thinking about pantries. (Special food storage cupboards.) They were large cupboards with shelves of different widths and heights to store food. There was often a marble slab on one of the shelves, and sometimes an air vent to the outside to take advantage of cooling draughts. The houses I lived in only had one, of course, unlike grander dwellings which had several each dedicated to a separate use.

There was something comforting about a well stocked pantry – it’s much more difficult to store packaged food in carousel cupboards, for example. I end up nearly standing on my head trying to find things, but that could be because there is too much in them. I was watching a cookery programme with Nigella a few years ago in which she claimed to be in her own kitchen. She went into the “pantry” for some flour and caster sugar . . . . . . Oh what a dream of a pantry. In reality it was a small room, nearly as big as a corner shop, with shelves stacked with all manner of groceries, staples and preserves. Imagine lusting after someone’s pantry when I am no longer the cook in our house – I just enjoy eating and watching other people cooking. I blame my indolence on too many years of cooking basic meals for a medium-large family.

All of these reminiscences make me want to  delve into the kitchen cupboards and have a spring-clean. That’s my trouble you see, I wake up when it is getting near bedtime, then in the morning I am useless until well on into the morning. (I really mean lunchtime.) It was ever thus but all the tablets I have to take have made it worse.

It occurs to me looking at this post, that I lead a very little and very ordinary life these days. And do you know what? It is rather lovely. A day can consist of such delights as frothy coffee mid-morning, catching up with facebook friends, a little light dusting, a phone call from someone special, news of one of the grandchildren, a walk with the dog and a sit in a sunny porch to watch the birds with HBTW. Bliss. . . . . . .