Gobbledegeek 2.o

Blockpartytime, alias Charles Major from Barwon, Vic, is one such seller to avoid like the plague!

Two pairs of identical shoes developed the same fault in identical places within days of arrival. The first time it happened, he ignored my messages via Ebay and email. When lightening struck for a second time, he eventually managed a response but from thereon was incredibly arrogant and rude, and flat out refused a refund or any form of compromise.  He certainly offered no evidence of customer support.

To be honest, I can’t fathom how this distasteful pleb remains in business. Perhaps it’s a good job he sells through Ebay because if he had to meet his customers face to face, I would bet that he’d probably end up with more bloody noses than customers.

This numpty’s  refusal to communicate eventually cost him, though. Once escalated to a claim via PayPal, the seller is given several weeks to respond. Charles Major either refused or didn’t realise. Either way, a typical response but one which resulted in my money being refunded.

An objective review of this seller would probably point out that I am in the minority and that the overwhelming feedback for this plonker is positive, but this post is not about balance and is simply a ‘buyer beware’ warning based on my own experience alone.

Charles of Barwon, thanks for the refund but you are still my ‘Major Cock of the Month’. Congratulations.

A second test defeat was always likely, particularly if you look at the form books but Wales still could have performed better. The All Blacks looked a little unimaginative and may I be so bold as to say hesitant?

In the dying seconds the score sat at a perfectly respectable 22 – 10, a score many Welshmen would have bitten arms off to take prior to kick-off, but a slip from Byrne was gratefully pounced on by Cruden for a late try that was a little hard to swallow.

The effort by the Welsh was considerable but I couldn’t help but feel that there was a little more to come. Like many of my school reports,  ‘Could do better’ summed it up nicely, but surprisingly more so for the home nation.

As to the ref, Caplan, I’ll say no more other than he listened to the crowd way too much and even the Kiwi supporters detest his refereeing style, which went a long way to ruining an otherwise good game of rugby.

The third half result was more even, with the Welsh fans just sneaking a glorious victory by drinking Hamilton dry of Guinness. A great night was had by all and one I hope to repeat next year at the Rugby World Cup  2011, here in New Zealand.

An honourable mention must go the Waikato stadium grounds staff. Despite the constant rain in the run up the the match, the pitch held firm and looked great. The folks responsible for the joke at the Etihad stadium could learn a thing or two.

Great view of the game!

Yes indeedy! I no longer smoke. Following a heavy session last night, I finished the dust that remained in my pack of Golden Virginia and feel quite ill now. No more fags for me!

One of the first things I do every morning is think about what I might prepare for dinner that evening. Today I have been offered a suggestion in the form of a ready disected and roasted pumpkin and a packet of red lentils, strategically displayed where I wouldn’t miss them.

In a scene reminiscent of Ready, Steady, Cook I lean on the counter staring at the two ingredients in an effort to draw inspiration. It wasn’t too difficult to come up with a few ideas but given the frosty morning and the hope of little improvement for the remainder of the day, I opted for an Indian themed soup.

This simple recipe requires no culinary prowess and I am not even going to proffer precise quantities for all ingredients as it’s mostly created by taste and in quantities you desire.

Lentils are bloody marvelous, so versatile and help lower cholestral too. I use them in a multitude of dishes from soups to stews because they are so quick and easy to use. Rinse and chuck them into your favourite stock or plain old H2O. For this dish, I’m using 500gms of red lentils but then I currently have nine mouths to feed! Don’t fret about making too much as it freezes very well.

Firstly, rinse the lentils in cold water. I’m using the Nature’s Selection brand which require no pre-soaking, so follow the instructions you have.

Finely chop a large onion and gently fry in a few tablespoons of vegetable oil. As the onion begins to very lightly brown, add a couple of cloves of minced garlic. After a further minute or so, combine a heaped teaspoon of turmeric, cumin and coriander but you can reduce or increase any combination depending on your own taste. Gently frying at this stage helps to release the flavours and aromas of the spices better than adding to the soup later. Having said that, keep tasting periodically and adding more until the moment you serve.

Add your shiny clean lentils to a suitably sized pot and drown in chicken or vegetable stock. I’m starting with a litre and a half but can easily add more later if required and probably will.

Now scrape the flesh away from the hard pumpkin skin if soft, else cut the skin away and chop roughly.

Throw everything into your pot, bring to the boil and simmer for approximately 45 minutes. If you prefer, you can liquidise the soup for smooth finish but this just adds to the washing up and I consider it excessive faffing about and in any case, I quite like the non-liquidised texture.

If you have any fresh coriander leaves, roughly chop and use as garnish. Serve with a dollop of sour cream or natural yoghurt and accompany with mini pappadums or fresh crusty bread.

Spicy roasted pumpkin & red lentil soup

Bon appétit!
Mwynhewch eich bwyd!