Honey Roast Ham.

Hi to anyone who is out there, seem to have been away for a while. I have actually been quite busy writing the new book. Making some really good progress but decided to take this weekend away from it. There was little plan other than cooking but that all changed on Frieday night.

I had a text from Izzi at http://www.juggleglass.com/ asking if we might meet to go the a mental health exhibition at the Old Vic Tunnels by Waterloo. As it was free-yes I am still on my economy drive-I decided to go. It was great to finally mean Izzi with whom I have been communicating for a while. She took me the South Bank Food Market-what a site for a foodie. Had a nice lunch of Moroccan Harissa chicken then headed for the exhibition.

As you can imgine we were not so amused when we got there and were informed that there was an error on the website and they were charging £12! We didn't go in which as a shame but in these chastened times I didn't have the cash. But other than that the day was good.

Today I turned once again to cooking. I had fancied a chicken but they had sold out so I had to settle for ham. Well I can live with that. What emerged was a wondeful honey glazed ham with crackling-heavenly! That done I plan a quiet afternoon of reading before the storm.

That storm of course is the return of the students tomorrow. From then until April I won't stop. But it is good. My mood always rises at this time-getting back to what I really do best and that is help people.

Will let you all know how it goes.

I Heard a Voice.

Long Overdue Greetings.

Hi all,

I'm back! It seems so long since I have been on here. I had hoped to post on 9/11 to commemorate that black day but got rather tied down with chapter 11 of the new book. That is now done and chapter 12 is underway, hoping to complete it tonight. Still making good progress though.

So what of my world? Well I've been back at work nearly 2 weeks now. Slightly too busy for my liking considering the students aren't even back yet. But I am surviving. I had a trip to Leeds last week for a conference which might have yielded a friendly journalist with the Guardian. Had a quick chat with him as he has an interest in mental health. But my real motive was to try get the paper to take on doing something with "A Pillar of Impotence". We shall see but I took the plunge today and sent my last copy to him in the hope that he can help.

Also had a really interesting proposition put to me yesterday-more on that when and if it happens.

I've been doing a lot of cooking which is great. Going back to one of my favourite Thai curries tomorrow. Not sure what else to do over the weekend but I have the urge for pork crackling so maybe I will see if I can get a small joint for Sunday.

Mentally I am very well despite some rocky events. It would seem now that there is usually a rise in mood come September which might be a surprise considering the storm that always engulfs me at the beginning of the year-all hell breaks loose on Monday 26th September. But I will be back well before then. So for now onwards and upwards, chapter 12 here I come!

I Heard a Voice.

A Long Journey.

It has been a long and arduous journey that brought me to where I am now. Why might that be relevant today as September heralds the start of autumn? Well actually it is very relevant for it was four years ago today that I began my job at the university.

One of my old Cambridge friends once described it as "poacher turned gamekeeper"; my transformation for unemployable psychiatric case to a mental health professional. Maybe he was right. I certainly never set out to do that; in fact the complete opposite was true. But they gave me job when no one else would and now I find myself here.

Packing up and moving one's whole life into the unknown is extremely stressful. Creating a new job from scratch may have been just as hard. But now I find myself in the most interesting job in the world, and, contrary to what happened in my long time in the System I have a voice that someone wants to hear.

Back to it all again on Monday. Who knows what the new term will bring me apart from the unusual chaos? In the mean time I will continue on with my new book-have written 9 chapters and nearly 14,000 in the last month. It seems so much easier than the first one.

As for this weekend, generally quiet. I exhausted myself yesterday visiting an old school friend and her two adorable but very boisterous young children. Just heating up leftovers today but I do have some Chinese BBQ ribs marinading in my fridge for tomorrow.

I Heard a Voice.

Back Home, Time to Cook!

Greetings all,

I meant to post yesterday but didn't get round to it. It was the day on which I turned 42. It never ceases to amaze me how fast time goes when we get older. I had a good birthday. Had a Chinese lunch with parents and a couple of friends then had a couple of beers with my friend Tom in the evening. It was great to see him in the light of his recent family tragedy.

I have a few days left of my holiday. Hoping to get on the with the new book and am going to meet my friend Tory for a picnic in London on Friday-weather permitting of course.

I'm keeping the food simple tonight. A Carbonnade of Beef courtesy of Rick Stein. My sister gave me a signed copy of his latest book on Spain so I guess I had better try it out before I go back.

Nothing to report on the mad front so I will leave you all. See you in September!

I Heard a Voice.

Tapas in the Rain.

It was quite late in my culinary career that I discovered North African and Middle Eastern food. I'd always been slightly put off by the propensity to mix meat with fruit-never been a fan of that. But my tastes are changing and I'm discovering what I had been missing.

So this morning I set off to Canterbury with the express idea of going to my favourite cafe, Cafe Mauresque in Butchery Lane. Check out the website if you are ever in these parts http://www.cafemauresque.com/ . It is well worth a trip.

As the rain hurtled down outside I indulged in tapas that was very good. I mused on the idea of whether it really was right to call it tapas-should it really have been mezze? Or is that just if it is Turkish? There are few things better than merguez sausages and tabbouleh to go with flatbread and hummus and finally a nice aubergine and feta stew.

Not sure of the authenticy but I did enjoy it. Suspect I had a rather better day than my friends who went to the St Lawrence ground today to see Kent versus India-no play before 5 pm. I was thinking of them as I went past the gorund in the bus.

I'm in Kent until Wednesday-my birthday on Tuesday. Hope the weather picks up and I can make it to the beach. And there are plans for a BBQ on Sunday so hope the sun comes out.

I Heard a Voice.

Escape from Hell!

Well I'm down in not so sunny Kent for a few days. Actually it has been much sunnier here than in Hertfordshire-I drove down through torrential rain.

The nightmares of this week's invasion were compounded last night by my flat door jamming and being locked in all night. So I was calling a locksmith at 8 am and having somehow clambered through the window he finally managed to open an escape route and fix a temporary lock 3 hours later. Sometimes I wish I had never moved to Hertfordshire-both flats have been a disaster. I wonder if my dubious landlord will fork out for his responsibilities-on past experience I doubt it!

Hopefully now I'm away I can enjoy my holiday. Have a birthday BBQ to go to on Sunday-I guess I had better think up some kebabs to cook.

I Heard a Voice.

Heady Days

Just a very quick post today. After my bad day last week I am feeling much better. My holiday has started and despite the light rain outside that is also hanging on over the Oval things are looking up.

I've just written chapter 4 of the new book and all is looking good. Am tempted to get on with chapter 5-it is already in my head-but will have to pause as I'm waiting for my friend to come round for tea. So killing time now and wishing the cricket would get started again but Wales vs Argentina will have to suffice in the meantime.

Beef Bourguignon is marinading in the fridge so am looking forward to a feast later.

Here's to holidays!

I Heard a Voice.