Our house is not yet on the market in St. Louis and we were hoping it would be by now. In preparation for installing new carpet, H found the basement floor to be damp and has to fix that first. Ugh! Of course the news here is reporting a dismal situation for the housing market in the U.S. Say a prayer, light a candle, whatever you do…
Potato chips are called crisps here. I don’t usually like potato chips but they are really crunchy and salt and vinegar is a popular variety. Delicious! I get a small bag at lunch. Another popular flavour is prawn cocktail! Note: my UK version of Microsoft Word inserted the “u” in flavor.
I noticed when I lived in El Paso, Texas that lard was prominently displayed in the grocery store. I was told that the best refried beans contain lard. Here, you can buy goose fat. They also had Columbian coffee flavoured milk next to the chocolate and strawberry varieties.
Occasionally I have to consult with my friend K on my cultural observations. She has family that lives here so she is much more in tune with the differences. I said to her the other day over Instant Messenger, “Either people here use their middle finger as their pointing finger, or everyone I work with is flipping me off”. She assured me that it was the former.
It is currently 62 degrees and the rain is blowing sideways. I guess it’s time to trudge home.
5 comments:
Soon you'll be using "whilst" instead of "while!" Great blog!
J--your blog is the highlight of my day. We're all living vicariously through you! Betsy
I was in the Black Forest in March, and a common condiment that appears on tables for smearing on bread is Schmaltz. It's some sort of fat with herbs in it, and it's kinda gross. Some people love it. I'm not one of those people yet ...
So - the word "schmaltzy" really sort of means oily, smeared fat. Which sort of fits.
Thinking of congealed goose or bacon fat smeared on bread with salt just makes my mouth water. My entire family on both sides of the Channel and Atlantic have an appreciation. Oh, to be in England with you.
Sorry, one more comment. It's dinner time so I'm obsessing on the food portion of this post. At some point you will probably have a "fry up" for breakfast. This will include, but not consist only of, baked beans and if you're lucky, a few slices of fried bread as an alternative to toast (or as a supplement). The bread is fried in the bacon fat. It is sinfully delicious.
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