It starts with a mess.

The workshop shed has been up since late August/early September last year. After the monumental effort preparing for and building said shed, I didn’t have a lot of energy left to do much else. Time went by, and other more pressing concerns arose (including a leaking pipe leading to some minor kitchen demolition). As a result the shed became exactly what I didn’t want it to be. A dumping ground for stuff with no real system. I had piled up some decking boards and other wood saved from dismantling the rotten decking with the intent of making a workbench.

The sun was out on a slightly chilly Sunday, and I was feeling motivated. It’s safe to say I’m at least partly solar-powered (that might explain the amount of chlorophyll in my blood…). I started organising and moved out the wood to get a handle on how much I had. At the same time I looked at a few designs for workbenches. I wanted something straightforward and fast to put together, but solid enough to actually be usable.

It had been quite a while since I had the mitre saw out, but it was ideal for this project. I needed to cut four legs, four short braces, and four long braces. Most of the wood was reclaimed from the garden and decking. After cutting the pieces, I stained the rest black to match the existing pieces. Once they’ve dried I’ll be able to assemble the whole thing with a decking top (at least temporarily), possibly to be replaced by plywood.

Being able to use the saw inside the workshop was really handy, although having power out there would be ideal. The current setup with an extension reel connected to the 110V transformer is a bit of a pain.

Luckily I was well-fuelled from a pizza party we had earlier in the day.

There have been a lot of colds circulating recently. Luckily, there’s a cure: the Penicillin. The combination of two ounces of blended scotch, a quarter ounce of single malt scotch, three quarter ounces of lemon juice and honey-ginger syrup. It’s a delicious and soothing cocktail when you’re feeling under the weather. There’s a traditional Penicillin on the left in the photo below, and on the right is a riff swapping out the scotch for a cinammon-apple-infused whiskey. It’s pretty Autumnal, and tasty all round.

The evolution of enchiladas was also part of the weekend. I made a baked chicken enchilada mix before wrapping it and topping it with a mole sauce and a mixture of regular cheddar and chilli cheddar. The recipe is based off a Sorted Food recipe from years ago which is no longer available, but I tend to use a mixture of chipoltle paste, paprika, and garlic powder to marinate the chicken. The mole sauce uses a teaspoon of cocoa powder and smoked paprika to create a rich and smoky topping.