This Week’s Small Pleasures: episode 9

A great way to start the week, is to write about the small pleasures of the week that has past.  The first working day of the week is over, and as I think about dinner, I can also think about some things I have enjoyed over the last seven days.  Thanks to A New Life Wandering for the idea.

1  Kicking leaves.  Autumn isn’t the same in New Zealand as it is in northern Europe or America.  Apart from non-native species, trees are pretty much green all year round.  There are several old oak trees in the Botanic Gardens, which offer up lots of autumnal acorns and crisp, brown leaves, to kick through and remind us of the season.

Oak leaves

2  Dance.  I wrote about the ballet in my last post, which brought a certain amount of pleasure, as watching dance always does.

Dorothy, the lion, the tin man and the scarecrow

3  Monday night toad-in-the-hole.  None of us drink milk in this house, so what to do with lots of left overs?  Make toad-in-the-hole, with good sausages and a beer batter (I always use this recipe from The Guardian, though use oil instead of dripping).  If you don’t know the dish, it is basically sausages covered with a batter similar to pancake batter, and baked in the oven.  Serve with gravy and peas as suggested, or as I did, with silverbeet (chard) tossed in garlic.

Try it – perfect for autumn evenings (or cold spring ones)

4  Autumn fruits

Apples

Feijoas

Pears

Passion fruit

4  Catching up with friends, having lunches and drinking tea. Always a good way to spend time at the weekend.

5  Two amazing Pilates classes.  It was also International Pilates Day on Saturday.  If you love Pilates, do search on YouTube for some original footage – it will make you smile if nothing else!

6  Finally, re-reading a book, Jane and Prudence, by one of my favourite authors, Barbara Pym. Just the perfect length for a work day trip to Hamilton!