Your revelatory Heyday Friday newsletter
A late in life discovery, a surprising TV recommendation, a delicious recipe from an unusual source, and a strangely effective home hack in this week's newsletter
Hello!
Having my lovely fella living with me whilst he recovers from surgery (which he is doing steadily well, thank goodness) has given me cause to reflect on something I came to relatively late in life and have found, to my great surprise, I really enjoy.
And that’s living alone.
Before I go any further, I should say my reflections are no reflection on his presence in my little house (though the little bit definitely becomes more of a consideration when it comes to us spending an extended length of time here together, rather than just the weekends as we normally do). He’s been an exemplary patient, and is being sweetly considerate and respectful which I appreciate enormously.
As someone who grew up in a busy, raucous house and went pretty much straight into the home I lived in with my husband and then our two children (via two years as a student when, for reasons too boring to explain, I lived with my grandmother in her flat where the water pressure was so terrible I could start running a bath, cook and eat dinner and only by the time it was cleared away would the bath be filled. And no, there wasn’t a shower. But I digress), I only lived on my own for the first time in my early fifties.
How that came about is explained in this week’s blog, along with the reasons why I’ve come to find solitary living so unexpectedly delightful. And the very particular realisation that makes it so.
You can find out what that is by CLICKING HERE
If you’re also someone living alone, I’d love to know how you find it. And what your advice would be for anyone facing the same prospect.
FRIDAY FUNNY
I don’t know who said this, but I couldn’t agree more
Rummaging through the reasons why solo living works for me reminded me of the conversation I had with Heydayer Pam
and the wonderfully refreshing reasons why she finds solo travelling so satisfying and enlightening. Discover what those are by CLICKING HERE
THIS WEEK I’VE BEEN…….WATCHING
Here’s a recommendation I never thought I’d make. Because (for reasons not entirely unconnected with my lovely fella, see above) it’s for a programme about football.
Whilst Welcome to Wrexham is a documentary about a the third oldest professional football club in the world, playing in the oldest professional football stadium in the world, it would be fair to say, certainly for anyone who isn’t a football fan, that’s not its main attraction. Because, if you didn’t already know, Wrexham AFC is also a football club which was bought in 2020 by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
If you’re hoping the first series of this show (series four is about to air - I’m late to the party as always) will explain exactly why an A-list actor and a hugely successful writer and comedian would want to buy a struggling, fifth tier team, playing a game they know next-to-nothing about, that’s never made entirely clear. What is clear, though, is that this is no vanity project for either man.
Watching how increasingly committed (both emotionally and, by necessity, financially) Rob and Ryan become, not just to the team itself and all the people involved in running it, but to the community in Wrexham, a proud but struggling town for whom the fortunes of their beloved football club are inexorably and passionately woven into their lives, is part of what makes this such an entertaining, enjoyable and unexpectedly moving watch.
The good folks at Disney have also understood that Welcome to Wrexham needs to have enough off-pitch stories and sentiment to appeal to a broader audience than just football fans. And so we meet a wide cast of Wrexham residents who share their lives and stories with remarkable and heart-warming candour (and there’s certainly plenty of candour when it comes to their views about the team, players and management).
Throw in a generous helping of humour, especially around explaining what’s going on and being said for a presumably frequently bewildered American audience, and you have all the makings of a series that is as appealing to football fans as agnostics like me.
You can see Welcome to Wrexham on Disney Plus
And watch the trailer for series one HERE
GOOD TO KNOW
A welcome burst of unusually warm spring weather here in the UK has meant an earlier start to the challenge of keeping flies out of the house than usual. Fortunately my eco-heroine (and since sitting beside her at last year’s Women of the Year Lunch, new best friend) Nancy Birtwhistle has a typically invaluable and chemical free way to do that.
Do you ever try making recipes you see in magazines? Before the internet (back when dinosaurs roamed the earth) that was my main source of cooking inspiration and over the years I’ve cut out and filed probably hundreds of recipes, the shameful majority of which I have either never tried, or only made once, although a few have made it onto my regular cooking roster.
One that is definitely destined to be added to that regular dish list is this one from last weekend’s Times Magazine which is every bit as lip-smackingly delicious and ridiculously easy as it looked in print.
SPAGHETTI WITH TUNA AND LEMONS
This amount serves two people and takes 10 mins to make
Cook 200g spaghetti in a large saucepan of well-salted water until al dente.
Heat 4tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan. Add 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced, and saute until just turning golden. Pour in a small glass of white wine (you can use veg stock if you prefer to make this non-alcoholic) and allow to boil for a minute or two. Then add 1 x 150g tin of tuna, drained and stir for a minute. Add the zest of 1 small lemon, a pinch of dried chilli flakes, a large handful of rocket (or if, like me you’re not a rocket fan, spinach works just as well), large leaves roughly chopped, small ones left whole, and a little chopped parsley. You can also add a few capers at this stage if you like them. Taste for seasoning and add a pinch of salt a little more lemon or chilli for heat as you prefer.
Drain the pasta, keeping a few tablespoons of the cooking water. Add the pasta and the cooking water to the tuna pan over a medium heat and warm again for a couple of minutes tossing and stirring so the pasta is well coated.
Serve with an extra drizzle of olive oil.
WHAT’S MADE ME HAPPY THIS WEEK
I had a lovely day recently in the company of grand-girl No 1 visiting the fabulous London Transport Museum (what fun to be somewhere my girls enjoyed so much with the next generation) and wandering round Covent Garden with its various entertaining street performers. She was particularly captivated by this energetic trio. We didn’t see the tiny unexpected extra member who joined in so enthusiastically in this video, but isn’t his delight fantastically contagious.
That’s it for this week. If it would encourage you to leave a little like heart, I promise to run around excitedly for each one (think of it as a service to my daily exercise target).
Hope your week is filled with music, food and fun. And free from flys.
See you next time.
Good to hear all is going well with your fellas recovery. Tuna pasta sounds nice, love a stock cupboard dinner 😋