Yog Sothoth

The Glen Bracken single malt at Lidl has crept up about that much too, but it's still a bargain for Tamnavulin 12 year old (which is what it really is).

After seeing one of our cats go over this morning, all four legs in the air, I swapped my bike tyres for ice tyres which I bought a couple of years ago. 240 tungsten carbide studs allowed me to cycle in no problem, depite there being black ice continuously all the way to Chesterfield Road. I think any decent-minded employer will excuse staff not getting in or being late. Safety has to come first.

Yeah, I gave it 5 minutes with the dough-hook on the mixer. That's normally fine. I did a bit of searching on the net and found a forum where someone said that with fast action yeast, which only needs a single rising, if you let it rise too long the bubbles in the dough get too thin-walled and burst when the heat makes them expand further, much like a sponge cake if you bang the door, so it collapses. No worries, I'll try again and keep a closer eye on it.

Bit of advice if anyone knows the answer please. I baked some bread last night, but used fast action yeast, rather than my usual Allinson dried yeast. I gave the dough the usual couple of hours to rise but when I baked it, the big domed top sort of..collapsed, leaving a flat top, so the loaf looks more like a cake than a loaf! Texture is OK but it seems to have lost a lot of its air so it's slightly dense. Could it be this 'fast' yeast? Did I leave it too long to rise? I wasn't aware that would make it collapse! Or could it have been too 'wet'? It seemed OK, maybe slightly sticky but nothing outside the ordinary. BTW This yeast says there is no need to knock down, unlike the stuff I normally use.

I need to hire a 9m ladder. There are a few places hiring them so I just wondered what people's experiences were? I need a place that will deliver (I have no car) and are reliable (ie if I need it Saturday morning they'll deliver it Saturday morning). The going rate seems to be around £30-35.

How was it locked? Cable or D-lock?

The shoe seller on The Moor stalls sells Converse shoes and boots.

In series 1, when Egg...sorry, Rick, climbed into the tank, why wasn't it dark? If getting bitten is so bad, why don't they wear protective gear? I would. It'd be a doddle - motorcycle leathers and decent gloves would do it. Did that zombie really eat ALL of Lori? A whole person? Including all her bones. Complete hokum but great fun all the same.

Interesting reading: http://www.ifamericansknew.org/

Riding in this morning, on Shoreham Street, I passed a bloke dressing in black, on a dark coloured bike, with no lights. It was still dark. Bloody idiot. I was going to say summat but I'd passed him already. I had bright lights and a high viz vest, and the whiteness of my bare legs always stands out.

One of our cats brought a huge one in last night. I left it out on the bird table for the magpies.

I did the survey.

I'd be straight on it.

Anyone had a bike nicked? I have. And no wonder it's so easy, looking at this!

Gardener's World. That's about it, maybe the occasional documentary. I don't mind the TV licence as it funds BBC radio, local and national, as well as their online services, which are all things I value highly. For a few pennies per day it's well worth it.

The arrow is more or less where the sloes are. http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=439408&Y=371325&A=Y&Z=115

There's tons on the golf course between Chesterfield and the hospital. Just leave the station, go under the railway, turn r and next junction, then take the path leading up between the houses and across the golf course. You'll find more than you can carry.

The News usually shocks me.

I have a Stingray. It's been running non-stop since 2008.

It was free in on Thursday, but £2 for a glass (refundable). A day ticket for the train rides was £13.50 if booked online.

My spuds were hit by blight, especially the Pink Fir Apple, and those I did get have turned slimy in their sacks. I've separated out the decent ones but I think I harvested less than I planted! That was from five rows of five different varieties! Best ones were Pentland Javelins. I'll try a different part of the allotment next year. I was surprised, as no spuds have been grown there for years!

The back of the pub is missing? So it's just open to the elements?

I was talking to someone the other night who would be interested in reopening it, but it seems a mystery as to who owns it. I note nobody was forthcoming when i posted this 4 years ago! Rumour has it that it's owned by one of the Universities, but I doubt that.

Sycamores have been in Britain for centuries and probably since Roman times. So they are as good as native. The jury is still out on whether they are 'true' natives, but as all tree species arrived within the last 10-12,000 years, are any truly that?

I didn't even know this was on! I'm already committed to the keighley and Worth Valley Railway Beer and Music Festival this weekend anyway. Real ale drinking whilst leaning out of the window on a real steam train, through the lovely autumnal Worth Valley!! Oh and the best chippy in Yorkshire at Oxenhope, or a contender for it.