Sunday 3 June 2012


1st June 2012




Today's sandwich was an interesting affair. Unique in many ways, not least being the fact that it was made with my own fair hands.

Yes, Hayley appears to be on strike this week. Not that she's actually said anything to me about it but the blank space on the kitchen worktop speaks volumes to me. I won't go into details of those volumes here but the main thing it says to me is this - "Make your own sandwich, I'm on strike."

Strike is probably too strong a word. In all fairness, Hayley has taken the week off from work to look after our youngest during his half term holiday and I'm guessing that includes all sandwich making responsibilities as well. I'm not going to kick up a fuss about it but the first couple of days the sandwich box was absent from the worktop were very upsetting and traumatic for me and I ended up having to eat something else for lunch instead! That's right, I went without my cheese butty and have had digestional issues all this week as a result.

Anyway, I digress. I know you all want to know what the sandwich was like so I'll cut to the chase.

Making my own sandwich gives me the opportunity to vary the contents within the constraints that I have, i.e. it must be cheese and pickle on white bread. I allowed myself the luxury of slicing the cheese slightly thicker than usual (this can be clearly seen from the picture), of putting slightly more butter (margarine really) on it and going overboard with the pickle. Also, I was able to utilise my favourite tupperware container which is exactly the right size for two of the above sandwiches laid on top of one another. This means that less air gets to the sandwich making a lot fresher than normal. It also means less content spillage from the sandwich into the container which really makes my day as I hate fishing about in the deep recesses of an oversize Tupperware container to find the missing pieces which enable me to reconstitute a badly packed meal.

On opening the container to consume the sandwich at work, I realised I had run out of plain crisps. The topic of which crisps are best on a sandwich like this could run for several pages but suffice to say, I prefer the cheapest, thinnest, crappiest crisps that Asda or Morrison own brands can deliver. Unfortunately, the cafe downstairs don't realise that these are the bestest crisps to be had and insist on selling Walkers ' massive packet with few crisps' variety. Once I'd procured the crisps and laid them lovingly on the sandwich I was ready to eat them.

I must remember though that there is a downside to using too much margarine on a sandwich with thin bread. That being, the difficulty of opening the sandwich to get the crisps in as the butter acts like glue and I nearly ripped the bread trying to open it!

To conclude, the sandwich was all I'd hoped it would be and more. With all the extra portions I'd crammed in there I feel I might struggle to eat my Cod and Chips later but maybe after the 9 mile ride home I'll feel differently..

next week could well be a cheese and sandwich free one as we celebrate 50 years of being ruled by a German monarch and then I'm off camping. Prepare for rain!

3rd June 2012


Most people enjoy a nice sponge cake on their birthdays but my special treat just for me was a cheese and pickle sandwich with plain crisps!

There's advantages and disadvantages to eating the daily sandwich at home. Firstly I only have to transport it from the kitchen worktop to the kitchen table instead of half way across Manchester and secondly I can watch TV whilst munching my way through it.

The disadvantages are numerous. This might sound strange but a freshly made sandwich doesn't compare to one that's been stored in tupperware for a few hours. It might be that the sandwich sweats a bit whilst in the tupperware container or maybe the various elements merge and mix a bit but it definitey tastes better than something straight out of the fridge, IMHO. (I have to add that even though I don't want to so that you won't think I'm preaching and being arrogant, even though I am really).

Also, the cheese and butter (lol, it's low fat lurpack make believe butter which probably has as much to do with cows as the moon has) are cold. Even the bread is cold because Hayley has a fetish about keeping the bread in the fridge despite recent research showing that it keeps fresher longer out of the fridge (something I daren't mention to her as she'll only take it personally).

Anyway, it's late now and bed beckons. Next week may be bereft of cheese butties as we go camping but I hope to be back online the week after.