Cakes, NEC show and a standing ovation

9 November 2013

Whenever I get a fancy for something nice, it's usually a cake I'm think of. Just lately there's been an increase of cake baking across the telly networks. If that is because they are feeding a demand or have created the demand and the increase of baking, I'm not sure. One thing I am sure of is that when it comes to baking I make a pretty van driver! My one great failing as a chef was in the pastry department as we called it. I just couldn't get to grips with it.

Well, the NEC near Brum has a cake competition on this weekend and has over a thousand cakes on display that had been entered. BBC Midlands Today had a presence there as normal and one of the 'cakes' on display was of a near life size Captain Jack Sparrow. Now here's my question - when is a cake a cake? I ask because this model was made of rice krispies, not out of real cake. See what I mean? So when is a cake a cake?

Someone sets fire to a home and the man inside dies from smoke inhalation. The arsonist knows the man is in there yet it doesn't deter him. The reason it is set it that man who died is a convicted paedophile and the intention was to frighten the man away from living where he was. Is a ten year sentence really high enough for arsonist? No matter what the victim had done in his life, no-one should have to die like that. I suggest a life sentence should have been given.

During my army career I attended the Royal Tournament twice, working in the kitchen feeding the participants. It was a good experience both times. I was working with chefs from the navy and air force as well of other army chefs. I think we all learned from the experience. Every year the show ended with a marching display one of the massed bands the services could bring together at that time. The Royal Marines and the Royal Armoured Corps were the two who played the twice I was there. The Marines did their normal precision drill display but the Armoured Corps came up with something different.

The various regimental bands shuffled into the darkened arena one by one, playing quietly and finally coming together and forming up into one massed band as the music became known to everyone watching. The music was the 1812 Overture by Tchaikovsky. And guess what, today is the day in 1812 that started the worst winter in recorded history. For 27 days as Napoleon and his troops retreated from Moscow temperatures dropped to -27°. And history was to repeat itself in the 1940s when Hitler got far too ambitious! Whatever, the RAC got a standing ovation one evening when they performed ... BRILLIANT!!!

And now for a photo ...

A trucker at work but not really working see as he was held up in a traffic hold on the M6.

And funny time ...

 I was in a pub last Saturday night, drank quite a few, and noticed two very large women by the bar. They both had pretty strong accents, so I asked, "Hey, are you two ladies from Ireland?"
One of them snapped back saying, "It's WALES, you friggin' idiot!"
So I immediately apologized and said, "I'm sorry. Are you two whales from Ireland?"