For Part 1, see here.

I’m currently washing my mouth out with salt water. I was once advised to do this by a dentist and try to remember to do it every so often as a precautionary measure. As I have an appointment at my new dentist in a couple of weeks, I thought this might be a good time to do it. Ideally I should have thought more about my teeth fifty years ago, but that’s just how life is.

Old Factory Sign – Middleport Pottery

I have to do this late at night after Julia has gone to bed as the time taken swilling a mugful or brine one mouthful at a time, accompanied by sucking and swooshing noises, tests her fortitude and patience to the limit. I did write a haibun about it once but, strangely, nobody wanted to print it.

A wet day in Stoke

In an attempt to improve our budget and diet I have been looking at a low carb cook book. It features a lot of soups and salads but not a lot in the way of actual food. Salad is OK in summer, and in moderation, but it’s not going to hit the spot in October. So it’s roasted veg and sausages tomorrow and some hard thinking tomorrow night as I try to come up with something cheap, healthy and inspired. I’d settle for two of them to be honest. Over the last six months we have gradually lost the plot and we need to get back to good habits. That’s another area where we improved in lockdown.

I always thought these wee cobbles, but it seems they may be setts. Whatever they are, they aren’t good when you use a stick.

Julia walked down to the shop fro a few items this afternoon (we are giving it a few more days before doing a major shop) and reports a lot of space on the shelves. We note that expensive Free Range eggs are still available, but the cheaper, cage produced eggs are not. Could it be that people on budgets are deserting Free Range for cost effective eggs or are the supermarkets just going for eggs with the best profit margins? One thing I do know is that it’s not because farmers have switched their chickens off – you can’t do that.

Narrowboat, canal and winch and rain. Our industrial past.

Pictures are taken at the Middleport Pottery.