New Year's Eve

It is New Year's Eve 2021.  I am not really a lover of New Year's Eve - I find it quite sad saying goodbye to another year even if it has been a bad one.  For me it is a time of reflection on all those friends and family who are no longer with us some of whom we sadly lost this year.  During these uncertain covid times we realise that it can be foolish to make promises that Next Year will be a better Year because we simply do not know.  Things which we used to take for granted are no longer a given - health and travel being two of them.  I don't like uncertainty and I don't really like change.  

We had been invited across to our neighbours Das and Belinda to see in the New Year - just a small group of eight of us (it ended up as seven due to Sonia feeling below par).  We had offered to help with some food so that Das did not do it all although he is a good cook and seems to like doing it.  It also meant that he didn't have to worry about food for me and my annoying restrictions.  I made a cauliflower 'hummus' with some veg batons for dipping.  Some vol-au-vents with filling I could eat although I wasn't sure about the cases but in the end I did eat a couple and had no ill effects and the final dish was one of sweet potato balls rolled in sesame seeds.  These were a complete bugger to make - I followed the recipe which was basically to cook and mash the sweet potato and then add flour and some sugar to make a thick dough which was to be rolled in sesame seeds and deep fried.  Bloody hell we couldn't get the dough thick enough and so it was a right old palaver making the balls and then during the deep frying process the oil got so hot it melted my slotted spoon.  Anyway we weren't at all sure about them but by the time we came to eat them they were bloody delicious.

We really have to thank Das and Belinda for a lovely evening.  The house was toasty warm and the wine was flowing and the food was far too much but lovely and even though we didn't know their friends Nigel and Sue we soon became acquainted and we were really pleased that Isabel had felt able to come even though she was on her own.  She seemed to have a lovely time despite only drinking water!

Das entertained us with his guitar and then with karaoke which we haven't experienced since John's Mum and Hadge used to run the Double Top in Inkersal!!!  Let's just say John put his abject performance down to not being able to see the words quickly enough - I said Das should have put on some Jim Reeves and John would have been well away!  It was probably a good job that it appeared that all other residents of Lordos 1 were out or away otherwise they might have been somewhat disturbed by our attempts at singing!

I had brought some mega party poppers from Jumbos.  The idea had been to let them off outside so as not to cause a mess but in trying to investigate what needed to be done to set one off it did its thing in the lounge!  At that point Belinda was beyond caring and decided to do them all as she would just hoover it up in the morning.  

We had several differences in clocks and watches so think we may have declared it Midnight a little prematurely but I don't think anyone was that bothered and what is a couple of minutes between friends!!!  We had done our best wishes to friends and family earlier in the day anyway.

A good night was had by all - and now we look forward to what 2022 is going to bring.  Mum will be up with us tomorrow as we go for our traditional New Year's Day lunch at the Farmyard.  I can honestly say there is nowhere I would rather be for lunch tomorrow - I can taste the beef already!

So to all the people that read my blog I wish you all the very best for 2022 may it be kind, peaceful and healthy.