Diary Of A Church Mouse

I have just reread a fantastic poem by Sir John Betjeman called, Diary of a Church Mouse. The BBC website calls it, "wryly comic" and it certainly is. It a very perceptive piece of social commentary. I also like its rhythmic nature. You can hear Sir John read it himself here - http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/poetry/outloud/betjeman.shtml

Why Is Pasta So Hard To Cook (Well)?

Before going to the Emirates Stadium yesterday, I had a very pleasant lunch in the restaurant Ask in the Gloucester Arcade next door to Gloucester Road tube station. It's a pleasant restaurant with good service. I had spaghetti bolognese and whilst it was tasty enough, it lacked something both in the sauce and especially with the pasta. Whilst in New York in the summer, I had some pasta in a (not inexpensive) restaurant in the World Financial Center adjacent to Ground Zero and this too was disappointing. Those of us who have been fortunate to eat good pasta in Italy know what the benchmark is. These two experiences have got me thinking - why is it so hard to cook pasta well?

Down And Out In Paris & London

When most of us think of George Orwell, we think of his two most famous books, Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four. About a month ago, I decided to read some of his less well-known works and I've just finished his book, Down and Out in Paris and London which I thoroughly enjoyed and wholeheartedly recommend. It provides a compelling and unsentimental description of poverty as Orwell provides a semi-autobiographical account of a penniless British writer who finds himself destitute in both Paris and then London. As a dishwater in Paris, he describes in excruciating detail the horrors of what goes on behind the scenes in the kitchens of posh French restaurants. In London, he encounters the disturbing world of street people and charitable shelters. Narrated with occasional humour, it is a great read and provides some Orwellian truths about poverty and society.