Buying Meat in England

I have never been big on buying different cuts of meat.  In the US, my typical monthly dinner rotation includes ground beef/turkey, chicken thighs/drumsticks, pork chops, meat for stir fry, seafood (fish, shrimp, scallops).  If I feel adventurous, I buy flank steak.  John will buy and try anything.

Since moving to the UK, I have become more tempted to buy meat and different varieties of it (lamb chops, sirloin steaks, pork in various forms, whole chicken).  Having more time helps, but a lot of this is driven by the presentation of the meat.  I often just see something and think, that looks good.  I wonder how to make that?  I'll buy it and figure it out later.

UK packaging (above) and
US packaging (below)

First, UK meat packaging seems far more appealing and appetizing to me than US meat packaging.  I'm used to seeing meat shrink wrapped onto foam trays or squished into vacuum packaging.  It looks mass produced and industrial to me.  It doesn't look like someone has "cared for" the meat or lovingly carved it for me.  In the UK, meat is usually in a deep plastic tray so you can actually see it--it's shape, texture, cut--for what it is.  When you see 6 lamb chops nicely fanned out like they are behind a butcher shop counter, it is very tempting.  Distribution is much tighter here (much smaller country) so perhaps stores can afford to allow more air in the packaging?

Second, the meat section is more naturally a part of the grocery shopping experience.  American grocery stores often relegate meat to the back of the store, because the butchers prepare it in the back room and place it in refrigerated compartments as it's prepared.  In Britain, meat is in a standard refrigerated aisle, flanked by an aisle of refrigerated prepared foods like lasagne, tapas, pizzas on one side, and an aisle of dairy products on the other.  You are going to pass the meat aisle on the way to get yogurt, cheese and milk, so might as well have a look at the meat.  (As a side note, I have never seen more yogurt and cheese varieties in the US).

Third, meat is displayed on shelves at eye level rather than in bins at hip level.  You don't have to look down to find the meat.  It is at eye level, practically shouting out "See me! Buy me!"  You can't avoid seeing meat, even if you walk right past the aisle.  If you are lured in, you see lots of choices propped up, from hip level to above eye level.  It is everywhere.

Fourth, the shelves are angled so the meat appears more upright.  It seems more "awake", while in the US, meat is lying flat and "asleep" in bins.  The former seems more fresh and shall we say perky?  Perhaps Clotaire Rapaille would agree.  (He studies culture codes--e.g., cheese in America is dead and cheese in France is alive.)

Finally, I think meat is also more appealing because it is part of everyday life, not viewed as mass produced (even if it is).  Having a local butcher reminds me that meat comes from a farm and is often carved by a person.  And he's a nice person who waves.

Where Christmas Starts in October

In the US, Target (the store) is a good example of how holiday and special occasions are marketed and consumed over the course of any given year.  In August and September, the summer items are pulled and dorm essentials are in.  In October, the endless supplies of notebooks and backpacks are displaced by Halloween costumes, candy, and decor.  November sees the likes of turkey shaped placements,  autumnal wreaths, basters and pie plates, cranberry sauce cans.  Finally, December hits and out come the holiday range-- Ornaments and Christmas decor, stocking stuffers, Hanukkah serving platters, Tupperware in snowman prints.  As an American, this is all anticipated and predictable.  I've seen this my entire life as has nearly every other American consumer.

Christmas wishlist, check!

In the UK, the holiday season (Christmas mostly) starts much earlier.  While Americans are otherwise occupied in October and November, the British have the anticipation of Christmas.  (There are Bonfire Night and Remembrance Day but they are far more contained in scale and consumerism.)  Stores and restaurants put out what I like to think of as wave 1 of holiday decor--more wintery looking window signage with a nod to Christmas in color or words, snowflakes on windows, slightly denominational visions of winter.  Last month, department stores and garden centers set up large "winter wonderland" areas jammed with holiday decor, gifts for him or her, stocking stuffers.  Stacks of Christmas gift guides appeared in stores.  Every restaurant in Heswall started advertising Christmas dinner specials. I think some of them may have even started in September.

The kids made Christmas cards at school in October on a day that I happened to be volunteering in Anna's classroom.  This was done early for practical reasons of ordering and printing, but with every squeeze of the glitter glue, a little bit of Christmas magic was in the air.

Now that we are well into November, the school nativity play is the hot topic.  Anna and the Year 1 pupils will be stars.  Michael's role has not yet been assigned but he hopes to be a Christmas cow.  I can hardly wait.

Cupcakes and the (Near) Absence of Tupperware

Anna was beaming this morning as she brought in her little cakes for the school fundraiser for Children in Need.  (Remember the sticker she got the other day?)  We made chocolate Rice Krispie cakes, and all of the ingredients came from the shop in the village, which somehow made them even more homey.  Anna picked the yellow and polka dot cake cases so they would fit the theme colors of the event.

There were quite a few kids with cakes/biscuits this morning which made it all feel more special.  I noticed the containers that people brought their treats in.  Given that paper/disposable products are not as common here, I saw the process of wasteless culture first hand.  There was repurposed packaging-- a Quality Street candy tin, a biscuit tin, a cereal box with the side cut off (clever!)-- as well as carefully marked kitchenware from home--an actual round cake box with lid, roasting tin, and I did see one large plastic Tupperware-like box.

I was going to craft a cakes holder out of an Amazon.com box and foil, but I then remembered that John had brought me back Chinet paper plates and Glad Press 'N' Seal on his trip to DC last week.  (You wouldn't believe my excitement!)  So the 12 little cakes went neatly on a paper plate, covered in wrap.  Sometimes I can be so American.

American Products Not Sold in Stores

Here are some American products not found in our local supermarket:

• Triscuits
• Apple sauce 
• Crescent rolls
• Ranch dressing
• French fried onions
• Cranberry sauce in a can
• Bisquick
• Buttermilk
• Glad Press 'N' Seal, Saran Wrap (there are less durable wraps)
• Different candies (e.g., Twizzlers, Hershey)

Things you can find but in much smaller quantities:

• Napkins (everyone seems to use paper towels or "kitchen roll", tissues or cloth napkins, if at all)
• Paper plates
• Paper cups
• Disposable utensils
• Gladware-type disposable Tupperware
• Sandwich bags and that general category of Ziploc bags

More Fall Photos

Back garden

School Hill

Socks for the season

Photography Class

I'm partway through a 15 week photography class, Tuesday evenings at a nearby school.  I'm proud to say that I can drive myself there and back without worry even on these darker evenings.  On the way home, I usually listen to Radio 4 and there is always an interesting program during their Inside Health segment.

Like my other classes, I really like my instructor and the vibe of the class.  I've gotten to know Claire, who also brings in photos of her kids.  She has a 10 week old and is taking the course with her dad.  I just love that.

One of our recent assignments was to photograph "autumn" based on some of our learned technical knowledge of photography (aperture, shutter speed).  Here are the photos I brought in.

I Don't Know How She Does It

I was greatly entertained by the fact that Anna and her friend marched out of school last week, each wearing one of these stickers on their uniforms.  Anna was proud to have volunteered and I thought it was rather sweet, and also somewhat hilarious as an idea.

John and I were talking about how this approach probably wouldn't work in American schools.  Allergies and food safety are a big concern, and I think there would be a few complaints about the marketing tactics.  But this approach works here, and I am excited to help Anna with her baking tomorrow after she returns from Tesco with the ingredients.

Remembrance Day

Photo of Remembrance Day by John

Today, 11/11, is Remembrance Day in the UK.  It is a day in tribute to those who have fought and died in war since World War I.  The war officially ended on 11/11 at 11am.

Since the start of November, people have been wearing poppies on their lapel as a symbol of remembrance.  As Michael tells me:

"Soldiers in the war destroyed the fields and kicked the seeds around.  And then poppies started growing after the war."

The poppies are usually made of paper and are quite visible in the distance.  Most people wear them from what I've observed. John got one for me at Tesco, and Anna was really keen on having a poppy too, so Grandma and Grandpa got some for the kids too.  They were also selling poppies at the school so it is common for children to also take part in Remembrance Day.

The War Memorial - photo taken by Michael in Sept.

This morning, John and I walked up to the War Memorial just behind the kids' school, directly across from the Dee View Inn.  It was a crisp morning but the sun shone brightly and the River Dee was picturesque off in the distance.  We stood just behind a crowd of families and a few men in berets.  The older man in front of us held a poppy wreath with a yin yang and something about the Korean War.  At 11am, a firework went off in the distance, traffic stopped and everyone stood still for the two minute moment of silence.  The couple veterans I could see were standing still yet to attention.  It was simple yet very moving.  Two minutes later, another distant firework went off and traffic started again.  It appeared that a wreath laying procession was about to start, but we headed back down the hill, reflecting upon what we saw.

It is amazing to think that people have been gathering in that spot on 11/11 since the end of World War I.  The continuity is very comforting to not only veterans and their families but to the general public.  Veterans Day in America is also celebrated today with a focus on the war veterans.  Perhaps Memorial Day is more similar to Remembrance Day.  I enjoyed seeing a few friends' Facebook posts about Veterans Day in America and couldn't help but think of how Remembrance Day is more widely integrated into the British culture.  The historical lineage, the tangibility, the poppy as a symbol dedicated to remembrance probably play are role.

Anna's prayer she made up this evening (this child loves her Church of England education):

"Hands together, eyes closed.  Dear God: Thank you for the soldiers who served in war and died.  And thank you for delivering us from dying on the cross and delivering us from evil.  Amen."

(I continue to be amazed by how much the kids have grown and been shaped by our experiences here.)

Wasteless Culture: Where are the napkins, and will you please finish up your lunch?

As much as I love America, it is admittedly a wasteful culture, particularly when contrasted with UK living.  Relatively speaking, the UK is a wasteless culture.  Some examples of consumer products based on my narrow window of observation:

• Napkins are typically specialty items and cannot be purchased in large bundles at Tesco; napkins and condiments are usually handed to you at restaurants upon asking rather than serve yourself.
• Paper towels (a.k.a. kitchen roll) are much smaller.
• Paper plates and cups are not readily available and not typically used unless at a barbecue; we've also had our fair share of hot dogs and burgers (and crepes in Paris!) handed to us on a napkin without a plate.
• Fewer options in cling film, foil, tupperware-type storage.
• No plastic bags (or few) to put meat in at the grocery store.  (The packaging is more secure.)
• You bag your own groceries so you are made aware of how many plastic bags you use; most people seem to have reusable bags.
• Pre-packaged produce is modestly sized.
• Cookies (a.k.a. biscuits) are often packaged in strips (one row) rather than boxes (multiple rows) or bags.
• Juice is commonly sold in the thin carton rather than the wider one.
• Eggs are most commonly sold in 6's instead of 12's.
• Due to smaller storage space, we tend to just buy what we need. 
• We have one garbage bin and it is collected every 2 weeks, so you must be conservative in throwing things away.
• Recycling is really easy; we have one garbage can for all recycling.
• Smaller food portion size in restaurants, and no doggie bags to take food home (that is literally a foreign concept).
• Cultural value of "finishing up" one's meal.

Look at this standard bag of chocolate chips--smaller than a tea box!

Related to the latter, Anna exasperatingly told me one day that I put too much food in her lunch box everyday.  Apparently, she saw a couple kids get reprimanded for not finishing their lunches.  It never occurred to me that finishing one's lunch was important.  I have such a different cultural referent-- kids can stop eating when they are full, give them choice, leftovers are no problem.  But I can see how in the British culture, the value of not being wasteful, the cultural experience of rationing, and the continuity of tradition over time, this makes sense.  

Right or wrong, I've started packing smaller lunches for Anna as a way of coping.  In fact, one day, Anna was spotted by a teacher for finishing her lunch and as a result, earned a "Lunchtime Superstar" sticker.  The child was delighted.

WWI sign posted on Facebook

The UK also has its version of plenty in consumer products.  Whereas Wegmans in PA has loads more paper products and bigger product sizes, in my observation, Tesco has more shelf space devoted to certain products for which there is greater consumption:

• Prepackaged yogurt types and varieties
• Refrigerated foods (these are amazing)
• Beer and wine (which isn't even sold in PA grocery stores)
• Biscuit and cake varieties

Bonfire Night

Our friends from Harrogate (we met on our last sabbatical!) to visit us this past weekend.  We went to Bonfire Night at St. Peter's Primary, and enjoyed Chester Zoo earlier in the day.  Bonfire Night celebrates the foiled plans to blow up Parliament that were led by Guy Fawkes.  There was even an effigy on the bonfire to represent him!

The school playground was converted into a celebratory carnival atmosphere.  The grass area was set up with the bonfire and rows of fireworks.  The whole thing was spectacular as we stood there watching the massive fire and the fireworks set off by men in hard hats on the school playing fields.  Every once in a while, you could feel the dust and shrapnel, occasionally needing to blink to clear your eyes.  I couldn't help but think this wouldn't pass muster in America.  I was glad we could experience such revelry here in England.

The Bonfire

Looking festive

Amazing fireworks display

Chester Zoo

Halloween in England

Happy Halloween!  I've been asking mums at the school about whether Halloween is a "thing" here.  Stores do have small sections of costumes, candy, etc but nowhere near the grand scale in the US.  If you ever walk through Target in October, it's a huge section of the store.  Halloween is considered an American occasion and quite a "new" thing to do.  Trick or treating is pretty minimal and might be coordinated among a neighborhood.  

I didn't buy any candy this year, anticipating no knocks on the door.  However, while in the kitchen, I looked over to see a painted face peering through the panes of our front door, presumably to see if they could knock.  I nearly jumped out of my skin.  John and Anna went to answer the door; a group of maybe 12 year old girls stood there in white faces and pajamas, very politely saying "trick or treat".  I rummaged around and materialized a big multi-pack of Quavers.  Thank goodness for buying in bulk.