The reach of this newsgroup

Such is the power of the internet and this newsgroup in particular, that just as we were about to start our Sunday morning Bacon & Eggs with Kipper walk at Blackdown, a chap armed with a thermos approached, saying "Is that a Short Haired English Geezer?"!

Thereafter we enjoyed a good breakfast, a couple of hours of great conversation and, as is always the case when you meet a real craftsman, I learned a few things about this and that.

So thanks all round.

Christopher W.

Taking you at your word literally, Kim, I certainly do have a pet project, > and I shall be focussing on it for the first time this year tomorrow morning > (Sunday morning) weather permitting. > > The project is called "Bacon & Eggs with Kipper" and it started exactly > three years ago. > > Kipper is our dog. He's a terrier cross with a bit of Border in him and a > bit of something slightly taller; he's three-and-a-half years old and he's a > nice chap, good company, lots of fun. As an aside he's also very good > looking - earlier this year he and I were enjoying a muddy walk around > Blackdown after some heavy rain (Blackdown is close to the point where SW > Surrey meets W Sussex and Hampshire) when we came across a Hooray Henry and > his wife/girlfriend also out for a walk, and inappropriately dressed (by the > time we came across them I reckoned they had done £50 worth of damage to > their clothes!). The Henry looked at Kipper and said in a

pseudo-Sandhurst

accent: "I say, what a grand little dog - what breed is he?". I told him > that Kipper was a Short Haired English Geezer, which the Henry wrote down > carefully on a scrap of paper. I had wonderful visions of him ringing up > dog breeders out of the Yellow Pages and asking "I say, do you have any > Short Haired English Geezers?" You can imagine the reply: "Yes mate, > you're talking about my husband, but he's not for sale and I'm certainly not > putting him out to stud". > > Back to Bacon & Eggs with Kipper. Our lives have changed since Kipper came > to us, and very much for the better. We are blessed with some wonderful > places for walking in this part of the world. At the weekend, time > permitting, I enjoy early morning walks. Some of the views are stunning - > million dollar views that no travel agent in the world could send you to, > especially at short notice. It occurred to me one morning that it would be > great to have a million dollar breakfast looking at such a view, which is > how the idea for Bacon & Eggs with Kipper was born. > > The challenge was to devise an ultra-lightweight kit for cooking and eating > the best possible bacon & eggs with bread & butter, while sitting in comfort > with a cup of tea or coffee, not too slowly otherwise Kipper might lose > interest and wander off. > > So for three years I have experimented with different types of stove (solid, > liquid, gas - has to be controllable otherwise the National Trust will ban > me from their properties) and pan/plate/cutlery etc.. I have also tried all > of the supermarket bacons together with those from local butchers, and > likewise eggs. The objective with the kit is to reduce weight while > maintaining quality; the objective with the food is that it should be of the > highest quality, otherwise what's the point? > > As projects go, it offers a fair amount of scope with a little engineering > thrown in, and plentyof fresh air. I had no idea, for example, that there > are people out there for whom developing lightweight stoves is a life's > mission. > > Phase two of Bacon & Eggs with Kipper will be photographic. The idea is to > photograph million dollar views and include Bacon & Eggs with Kipper in the > frame. > > So Kim - is that what you meant by "Pet project"! > > Yours, > > Christopher W. > > PS If anyone would like to join Kipper, myself, my friend and colleague > Johnson and his lurcher Josie, we'll be at Blackdown tomorrow morning from > around 08.00 for an hour or so. Bring your own bacon. If it's raining, we > won't be there. Johnson's from Birkenhead, so you had better bring some > earplugs as well. > > > > > > > > > I'm away Saxon house building this weekend. > > > > It's been really quiet here for several days - no-one got a pet project > > they're working on? We'd all like to hear about it, you know, our wit is > > only exceeded by our nosiness! > > > > Regards, > > > > Kim Siddorn. > > > > > > > > > > > >
Reply to
Christopher Wigdor
Loading thread data ...

PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.