Lamb's testicles and other delicacies

I am trying very hard to sort out a number of things - washing, ironing, which have fallen behind and invoicing and statements - and as we are having our lounge - or should I say, sitting room (I don't know the posh word for it) decorated, removing books and ornaments to another room. So a busy couple of days ahead.

Somehow, despite not being able to throw off my cold, I managed to participate in two presentations this week - one on my own with a half hour talk at Staines Synagogue, on how much of my writing comes from inside me, with readings to illustrate. (I read part of a chapter from a Bottle of Plonk, with the mother from hell telling how daughter how she should have behaved instead of divorcing her husband - and I got a gratifying amount of laughter from the audience.) Even M, who chauffeured me, said the talk was really good, and he was proud of me.

The second one was at The Deli, Lynchford Road, Farnborough, where host and hostess, Claire and Matt provided smoked salmon bagels, as mentioned in Tainted Tree, wine, some spicy finger food, a la The Moon's Complexion and Darshan and an attempt at medieval food to represent The Gawain Quest and Luther's Ambassadors with, er, lamb's testicles. The bagels were lovely. I thoroughly recommend that if you're in the area, you visit The Deli. Even if you don't fancy that particular bit of lamb.

This time, my reading was from Tainted Tree - where American, Addie Russell, my heroine, gets invited for an English roast dinner, with Jonathan, lawyer, his sister, Sarah, and mother, Helen. Helen is about the age that Addie's mother would have been, had she lived, and Addie tries to get insight into the period when her mother was growing up - in the late fifties and sixties. So not much about food then, but quite a lot about morality of the time.

While I was suffering from my cold, I lost two pounds, through lack of appetite. Reassuringly, I have now put it back on again - though maybe that was partly due to the bagels with cream cheese and salmon. Even with the increased appetite, though, I wasn't tempted by the medieval treat.