Silver Sunfish, Dragon Yachts, Fire, TV, Olympics.

In Bob Scotney’s recent blog he talks once more about the SS Great Britain and how she was scuttled (sunk on purpose) in the Falklands in 1937. This made me think of the MFV Sunfish which was the second boat I lived on, and which had been sunk at one time, I am not sure whether it was on purpose or not. She was a Motor Fishing Vessel design and during the war was used in mine sweeping. Somehow she ended up in South Africa and I have no idea how my father ended up getting hold of her. Of the three ships I lived on, she was the best, she could take any weather you could throw at her and although it might have been uncomfortable for the passengers, Sunfish (renamed Silver Sunfish) rode it out. She must have been refurbished after she sank, I don’t remember any problems with her when my father first got her. I may have been at boarding school for her original arrival, I no longer remember.

I remember many trips on Silver Sunfish – we regularly crossed to Ostende in Belgium which became a regular stomping ground for me, I had lots of friends of my own age at the Yacht Club there and we would go all over the place, not least of which was dancing at the Kursaal which was a casino there. Also, whilst in Ostende we carried the judges for an international Dragon Yacht race as I have mentioned before, and became very good friends with the Danish judge whom we visited in Denmark, on Sunfish, a year or so later. That was a good trip, we ended up in the Tuborg Harbour to get fresh water, we had trouble in the Copenhagen yacht  harbour as it wasn’t really deep enough for us. In the Tuborg harbour, it was the only time the harbour master ever offered us a  beer, a Tuborg of course, we were interested because he kept the glasses in a fridge, but not the beer itself. Funny the things that stick in your mind.

I heard an ad on the radio, insurance I think, and they said “there is nothing worse than a house fire” sorry mate, there is nothing worse than a fire on board a wooden boat. This happened once when we were at sea and we were all pretty scared. Luckily it turned out not to be too bad and we managed to put it out, but when you are at sea, there is nowhere to go – OK you can get into the dinghy etc. but it wouldn’t be funny at all to have a whole bunch of you piled into the dinghy and miles from anywhere with no-one to help. These days with all the communication gadgets I guess it would be better, but back then, 50 years ago maybe????

If, like me, you are waiting for the next series of Downton Abbey, I found out this morning they will be shown starting January 6, 2013. If its as good as the last two series, it will be excellent. Really looking forward to it. Shirley McLane will be in the new series. They talk a bout sparks flying, will be interesting to see the reaction between the characters played by both she and Maggie Smith. Not til January though, boo hoo.

We were very impressed with the London Olympics ceremony last night, although very sorry, but I think Paul McCartney should retire, he’s 70 and his voice sounds like it. Everything else was excellent and nothing, but nothing appeared to go wrong. I thought the foundry sequence with casting one of the Olympic rings in front of us was wonderful, I actually didn’t think it would work ‘cos the metal would have been so hot. They had a bunch of smoke stacks too, belching something, I hope it wasn’t real smoke but something cleaner. I got pretty emotional at the beginning with the Jerusalem hymn being sung by the kids from each country. I was sorry, when they were doing the children’s literature section, that they didn’t mention Paddington Bear though. Great job Britain, I congratulate you.

I love the flavour of Puttanesca sauce so when I saw this I thought it would be a good one to share and try.

Easy Vegetarian Puttanesca

ByThe Gluten Free Goddess
WebMD Recipe from Foodily.com

Fire-roasted tomatoes, garlic, hot pepper flakes, jalapenos, a spoon of basil pesto, and tart little caper buds create a sexy, spicy pasta sauce.

Ingredients

1/2 package spaghetti
Sea salt
Extra virgin olive oil
4-6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 14-oz. can organic fire-roasted diced tomatoes with juice (Muir Glen is tasty)
1 tablespoon chopped jarred jalapenos
1 tablespoon rinsed capers
1 tablespoon basil pesto
1 generous splash balsamic vinegar
2 shakes of hot red pepper flakes

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil and cook the spaghetti according to package directions, just until al dente. Do not over-cook your pasta or you’ll ruin the dish.

Meanwhile, pour a generous amount of extra virgin olive oil into a deep skillet and heat it gently over medium heat.

Toss in the garlic and stir for a minute; add the tomatoes, jalapenos, capers, basil pesto, and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Shake some hot pepper flakes in, to taste.

Drain the cooked pasta and pour it into the skillet; stir gently for a minute to coat the strands.

Serve in warm shallow bowls with torn off pieces of gluten-free bread to soak up any sauce left in the bottom of the bowl.

Total Servings: 2

Have a great weekend