Fish cakes

A fortnight ago to Vauxhall to take fish cakes at the Estrela, where they happened to be one of the dishes of the day.

A mild overcast morning, mild for January. With the first non-scoring trolley, from the M&S food hall, being on the ground on Station Approach.

With the second being outside Vauxhall Station. A stack of trolleys from Sainsbury's. All carefully engraved with 'not for sale, hire or loan'.

A bit further along I came across a warning notice, which told me to go to reference 1 - which is going to have to do in lieu of a maker's mark.

The website talks of products, as if they did actually make them - and are not just a distributor for Wanzl. But it is hard to be sure from what I have seen.

Somewhere in the vicinity a chap wearing an ethnic version of my duffel coat, with hood (up) and vertically striped in black and white. Perhaps cotton or wool, looking a bit like the sort of thing you use for towels or dressing gowns, in which case it would not be much good in the rain. Never seen such a thing before.

On past an indoor climbing space. An aspect of climbing that I was never much good at, having a poor head for heights and a poor strength to weight ratio, certainly as far as upper body was concerned. Plus, if I am to exercise, I like to be in the open air, if not up a mountain. Not the same in a gym at all. Cycling is just the same: I cannot muster any enthusiasm for exercise bicycles: it has to be out on the open road.

One of those green walls which are all the thing in London just at the moment. It looked to me as if it could do with a bit more water than it was getting - but in any case odd that I had not noticed it before.

While this building, solidly built and once operated by the London School Board, I would guess as a primary school, may have been let out to one of those more or less privatised educational operations, the sort that go in for deputy executive head teachers. I suspect what used to be called a special school run by the people at reference 2, who are possibly mixed up with the people at reference 3. Probably not mixed up with the social reformer Octavia Hill of references 4 and 5. She was more into housing and open spaces than education. In any event, on reflection, perhaps having a pop at their management structure is a bit unfair. Probably not that sort of operation at all.

Something else which I had forgotten about, if I had ever noticed it before - although BH claimed to know all about it. The substantially built Wheatsheaf Hall behind what used to be the Wheatsheaf public house, a place where I used to take the odd beer. Very good beer too, as I recall. Which of the two did the name start with, or was there something else?

A heritage door pull on the front door of the Tate Library. Perhaps from the 1920s? Inside to make use of one of their computers, remembering on this occasion which bit of the number on my card needed to be typed in - but having forgotten my indoor spectacles. I managed, notwithstanding.

And so to the Estrela and fish cakes, two of them. Rather more chewy than you might expect. Taken with an equally fine rice and bean stew, just about visible in the saucepan upper left. Didn't quite manage all of it.

But I did manage all the Deu la Deu. According to the website at reference 7, just the thing for seafood, as illustrated by the fine snap above - although I dare say the octopus is not quite as big as might at first appear.

There was also some wrapping in the form of bread, olives, soup of the day (not a particularly good day), almond tart and a spot of aguardente. I learn from reference 9 that this last can be made from all sorts of stuff, including sugar cane, in which case it is not that far removed from rum. Popular in Latin America as well as on the Iberian peninsular. Literally firewater, although that is not its usage.

Out to notice some fine detailing underneath a window on the building next door. Not the sort of thing that you see much of on today's brickwork.

And the house that used to be the Wheatsheaf, the place where I discovered baked oxtail. I also wondered, not for the first time, about the placement of the hefty looking front chimney stack. Was the window below always blocked up? Then what happened on the ground floor, in what used to be the public bar - a bar I don't think I ever patronised?

Arrived at Raynes Park to find that my train was cancelled. Texted BH to rearrange pick-up, then managed to fall asleep in the waiting room and miss the next train. BH not best pleased.

However, my exit from the platform down the stairs at Epsom was brightened up by a fine young chap who was very keen to carry my trolley for me, a trolley which seemed nearly as big as he was. He sported a fine smile and a badge saying that he was something to do with Jesus. I declined, as nicely as I could manage.

Home to find that the Archduke of Waterloo advertises in the Epsom Comet, the print freebie from the people at reference 7. Perhaps Surrey, with its good connections to Waterloo, is the native haunt of jazz people?

They even offer a facsimile of the print version. Lots of public notices.

PS: The father of Richard Church, a chap who has been keeping me busy since last July, was keen on the open road too. First cycles, then motor cycles and then cars. See reference 8. There is also a church two and church three is on the stocks.

References

Reference 1: https://she-ltd.co.uk/.

Reference 2: https://www.ohs.uk/.

Reference 3: https://www.octaviafoundation.org.uk/.

Reference 4: https://octaviahill.org/.

Reference 5: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octavia_Hill.

Reference 6: https://adegademoncao.pt/en/wine/alvarinho-deu-la-deu/.

Reference 7: https://www.surreycomet.co.uk/news/epsom/.

Reference 8: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2024/08/church-one.html.

Reference 9: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aguardiente.