Kaily

Bim sometimes it's nice to walk in the rain isn't it? Long as its not torrential. Deer are very shy and often freeze for a few seconds then flee. Lovely to see.

Mags I did wonder what you were talking about. Being somewhat old fashioned as regards to tech I turn on and off my own lights. I guess you mean't Alexa ... I thought you meant smart as in nice.

PJ you are right food addiction is a completely different animal to drinking. Does me good to remember just how bad it got, forcing alcohol down my throat, putting my vodka in milkshake so it didn't cause so much pain in my liver, driving when I could barely walk, giving up vodka but drinking 3 bottles of wine instead thinking I was doing well. Not knowing or respecting the difference between night and day. Drink, pass out and repeat. Yeah M & M's now sound not so bad.

Willow apart from the alcohol around your weekend sounds lovely. Yes do stay close, AV will probably try it on hard but you sound good and ready for any of its nonsense. Enjoy!

Willow00

Thanks Kaily
The AV already had a go when it saw the complimentary booze. My partner doesn’t like champers and the AV didn’t want to waste it. But I told it in no uncertain terms where to go! It slunk away sulking, but I know it could sneak back anytime so I’m keeping my guard up.

Mags1

Willow, have a good weekend. We’ll be here for you, shout out if there’s a problem.

Kaily, I thought I’d said Alexa, duh, what am I like. Scuse me. x

Willow00

Just went for fish n chips, yummy
Partner had beer. The couple on the next table were drinking wine. The AV sparked up and I smacked it around the ear and got a sparkling water. Friday night and still safe, phew

Cityboy

Great work Willow! There was still some fish on ice from last Friday's trip so I fried it all up with a light breading last night. So much fish that I didn't bother with chips or any other vegetable, but did have a small piece of my wife's pineapple pie afterward.

I always used to pack something in my bag for vacation trips. Like kaily, towards the end I would pack wine instead of whiskey like I was making a more healthy choice. It seems so ridiculous now, which I'm sure is what my wife was thinking the whole time.

Cityboy

When we lived in town, there was a pub downtown that we went to often and I got the fish&chips a lot, which I assumed to be in the traditional style for the UK. A more traditional fish basket where I live (Florida) would typically include fried fish (breaded not battered), French fries, a bit of coleslaw, and a couple of hush puppies (fried balls of cornbread). Along the gulf coast, it is traditional to put a little guava jelly on your hush puppies and have them as a dessert. Guavas do not grow there and can only speculate that the jelly used to come from Caribbean trade boats. All that to ask if you guys have hush puppies with your fish&chips in UK or Australia, and if so, do you put jelly on them?

venuscat

I had never heard of hush puppies until I got to the US CB.

In Aus, fish and chips is traditionally fried or grilled flake or any number of other fish(es ), chips, potato cakes and dim sims.
Well, where I am from it is traditional.....Melbourne.



Those may be onion rings at the back....or something else, not sure.

CaptainHaddock

Thanks Dee, all very true. I’m here because I benefit much from all the support and enjoy now and then perhaps giving a little something back. In a sense though, I’m one of those “stubborn” ones that only really tends to reach out for help when my rope is about to be be severed. I know that is something that needs to change, so thank you.

I remember years ago a friend of mine I used to play tennis with told me that he realized he had a problem and phoned a rehab facility. First thing they told him was, “You know, no one needs to quit drinking on their own.”

least, Willow, Kaily, Suze, Bim, Sao, Mags, PJ, MLD, Cityboy (and too many others to mention), thanks for your support and kind words of encouragement. I’m doing fine right now and look forward to keep up with you and moving forward.

Mags1

CityBoy, I’ve only heard of hush puppies as a make of shoes.

We have most fish fried in batter at chip pies around this part of uk (North Lincolnshire) but they're also cooking it in breadcrumbs or just flour coated at some places. At home we have it steamed.

Captain, it’s good we all have each other to lean on.

Cityboy

OK, only found a couple of pictures in my photobank with a visual of hushpuppies. Struggling with my Paint app obviously. Fried corn bread dough (made from the residual breading) = fat + carbs, I don't do them very often for health reasons. Enough Florida culture for one day.

biminiblue

I love the Florida culture. We'll have to have a day where we talk catfish and hushpuppies and then maybe boiled peanuts. There are also corn fritters, which are much sweeter and with more flour in them, so more like fried sweet bread. Oh, and Conch fritters.

Venus, you're talking in a foreign language here:
No idea....?

Willow, you sound good. Hang on! If the chattering in my head got to be too much I used to list every username I could remember from this site and then remind myself that every one of them would tell me, "Don't do it!!!" It's amazing how many usernames I could remember. My sober warriors, with me at all times. It was an excellent distraction I could do anywhere and no one even knew I was doing it. You've got this.

Kaily, I must look harmless because I've never had a deer run from me...well, to be fair there are probably a lot of them I don't see who run before I get close. This one must have had her head down and I got close accidentally. Deer is my spirit animal.

Mags, I didn't know what the heck you were talking about. Smart light bulb? I thought, "Wow. I am really old and out of the loop. Who knew there was such a thing?"

Welcome to Sober Friday. Just another day in lockdown.

The zoo opened yesterday. I guess they put up some new signs:

lunar

I'm in.
Thanks for the opener Mags!
Working today, off tomorrow.

Conch fritters, Bimini?
The Wreck, Grassy Key, FL.
Pretty sure the conch came from the Bahamas; harvesting them is illegal in FL, I think.

Have a nice safe weekend everyone.

Kaily

Who wants fish and chips when you can have cauliflower rice with prawns?

I DO!

Ha ha all that fat and carbs looks so good.

We have slush puppies in the UK, I had one once and it gave me brain freeze.

biminiblue

Lunar, I grew up in Florida in the sixties when conch was probably still legal in FL. Not sure. I've actually never had them, nor boiled peanuts - which is more a North Florida thing.
However, another FL favorite? Dolphin fish, called Mahi or Mahi-Mahi elsewhere; I think that is Hawaiian.


Mmmm speaking of, there is a little restaurant in Bimini that makes a breakfast sandwich with grilled fish, egg and cheese on thick bread that's to die for.

I think I need to make biscuits and sausage for breakfast today!

Coldfusion

The sparrows in Canada are changing their tune!

https://www.sciencealert.com/this-sp...e-heard-before

Cityboy

I did some work for a man that was an executive? with Slush Puppy (not sure of exact business relationship). He was from Boston but had a place in Central Florida. He had a slush puppy machine set up and everyone would fill a thermos with it. I quit doing it because you would always get stuck talking.

Never tried The Wreck. We have always eaten at The Keys Fishery at Marathon, but really don't get down that far much.

Cajun-spicy boiled peanuts are great after a day on the water.

We went to Key West around 1970 and I remember there being tables full of conch shells for sale. Queen conchs are now protected. I see conchs sometimes on sand bars and I don't know if they are queens or not, but I don't mess with them.

In a fish house on the coast of Oregon, I told the guy I wanted a pound of the shrimp and he just looked at me blankly. Then I said prawns. I suppose if you said prawns in a fish market in Florida you would a similar reaction.

lunar

1- Yellowtail snapper (and mangrove also)
2- Grouper
3- Mahi
4- Hogfish

What's the deal with the Lionfish now?

CaptainHaddock

And that fish Bim, by us is known as Dorado. A gamefish often caught just slightly off shore.

saoutchik

Evening Weekenders, i'm home already after leaving a bit early. A co-worker who I work closely with was supposed to have got married last weekend and been on honeymoon in Mauritius by now but didn't because of the virus. She not been easy to work with this week, I feel like I am treading on eggshells. Not being able to deploy sarcasm is like being disarmed by the UN.

Me too. You wouldn't want to be eating those breaded or battered.

I have eaten Dorado out in the Canary Islands, they taste superb.

I am missing the availability of fresh fish. I have almost stopped eating meat so I used to eat fish a couple of times a week. Maybe I will get fish and chips tonight.

I notice it is the 49th anniversary of the passing of Jim Morrison today, one of us if ever there was one. Normally I would play something by the Doors but as it is America's birthday tomorrow I will play this by the Sensational Alex Harvey Band. It is not a live version as that tends to last for 10 minutes plus but it is enough to catch something of their quality. This came out around the time of the Bicentennial.

https://youtu.be/0JvHroG3u5E

Robbie64

Thanks Mags. Count me in for a Sober Independence weekend!

It's going to be a strange day tomorrow. I live in the original Washington, the one from where the ancestors of George Washington came from and every July 4th we have an American Independence Day ceremony at the Old Hall. It's usually an all day event but due to COVID-19 the Old Hall is currenly closed. Normally on 4th July it's packed and often with American tourists. It's strange though being in the north east of England and hearing people singing the US National Anthem!

The Old Hall is now owned by the National Trust and it's a lovely building with beautiful grounds surrounding it. And it's only half a mile from my house!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Old_Hall
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/washington-old-hall