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Summer Gardening

The garden continues to flourish in the summer heat, and we’ve managed to survive despite our heat averse bodies. More Garden Action The heat has more than made up for my late start in the garden, and the raised beds are doing amazingly well. The one remaining courgette plant has finally started to produce fruit…
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Portland(ia)

We were a tad busy and I didn’t get round to much writing in the last few days of the holiday. Portland I’m biased. I really enjoy the city of Portland. It has problems that need addressed in a constructive way including homelessness and rough sleeping (although it doesn’t rank close to some of the…
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Leaving Whidbey

Yes, this time I’m writing in Salem, Oregon after a fun filled week and a bit. We made the journey down from Whidbey Island last Thursday stopping at a few places along the way. Port Townsend From Whidbey Island we got the ferry across to Port Townsend. Ordinarily this would have been less dramatic, but…
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Whidbey, An American Dream

Sitting with a cup of coffee with half and half looking out over the Saratoga passage, there’s no better place to be. Whidbey Island is located a few hours up from Seattle in Washington state. It’s an idyllic forest haven mostly populated with retirees and holiday homes, with a few towns scattered along it’s length.…
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Bank Holiday Fever

We recently had a spate of bank holidays, but thankfully the situation is now under control and the working week has been restored. Am I bitter about bank holidays? A little. Having moved from Northern Ireland to England, we lost out on a holiday. The double bank holiday for the platinum jubilee made up for…
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Cakes

The title says it all. We’ve been baking! It has been a busy week with not one, but three cakes made. A Sicilian cassata, a pathology-themed teratoma cake, and an experimental mirror glazed Victoria sponge. I have been enjoying getting back into baking now that I have more time in the evenings and that has…
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Elden Ring or “How to die with style”

It compels me. Not the pursuit of the Elden shards, but the game itself… It is time for Elden Ring. I’m only three months late, but this game taken the world by storm and there’s no shortage of coverage this long after launch. It’s an incredibly expansive and compelling adventure of your own making. Want…


