The monthly Your Top 3 has shown, for example, that no matter who you are, or where you live, food is the epitome of comfort. Often defined by our own experiences and cultures, food is sustenance for the soul. Now, though, the world is in a very peculiar place and we're all united in one major concern: Covid-19. Many of us have been confined to our homes and estranged from family and loved ones. Birthdays have passed with virtual celebrations. I speak for myself when I say, that as we approach being locked in for 50 days, it's beginning to tell. The news is never good; the more the scientists know, the less they know and, frankly, the less I want to know.
It's no secret that I'm a great lover of books. I love books and have a hard time parting with them. Frankly, and I've also often said so, I'd rather read the book than see the movie. This month's contest is about DVD/TV box sets. A foreign concept in our house. Partly because we don't spend a lot of time in front of the box screen other than in the evenings around/after supper.
My first two choices are based on my penchant for thrillers and crime. As well as cooking. Of course.
NCIS - the original one. I still have a school girl crush on Mark Harmon. A hangover from the days when he was in 240 Robert.
On a similar, but different vein is CSI. I also prefer the first in the franchise. I enjoyed not only that each episode stood alone, but that the characters and the relationships developed as the series progressed. As they do in NCIs. However, when I really thought about it, there really was only one choice.
Oh, and there are two other reasons that The Blacklist really does do it for me: firstly, there is often a hint of international and political intrigue. Secondly, the plot hovers - only just - on the bounds of reality.
Or does it?
I have watched him on TV and follow him on Instagram. I actually met him at the Cape Town Food and Wine show where he also cooked with some of "our" products. But sorry, loyalty and having clapped eyes on the man, are just not quite enough.
I guess if I were also basing my choice on what's in my bookshelf, and chefs I've met, I should be choosing Jenny Morris. I have two of her books - I draw on them often. Especially for Sunday Suppers and when I entertain. And in the days that email newsletters were a "thing", I had a subscription to hers. She (or her son) would send out the recipes she'd discuss on a local radio show. Jenny Morris lives up to her Giggling Gourmet moniker. She's warm and lovely, and when I mentioned that I had two of her books, she impulsively planted a kiss on my cheek!
However, my choice must go to first ever cooking show that really watched.
'E was still a young fing just frowing things t'gever in the kitchen.I liked that. The food was simple, as was the approach. He cooked food to share. I like that, too. Oh, and I particularly like that he knows the members of Jamiroquai.
This was one of my songs at the time....'twas the year The Husband and I married...
I guess the series could be quite dated now. Still, though, I'd make a point of watching The Naked Chef again and again.
I used to be an unashamed SciFi series fan. I loved Star Trek. And when I was at home, would watch it with my dad. From Kirk to Picard, and everything in between. I now realise that my father must have been a fan from the days when we still lived in England. My mother loathed the programme, so he and I would watch it. She'd retreat to the kitchen. I admit, though, that I'm not a fan of modern SciFi. It seems to be a mishmash of modern fantasy, and I can't really get beyond Dune.
When I thought about a series I'd binge-watched (not that it was a thing, then), the series that came to mind was V: Mankind's Last Stand. The original 1983 series.
It would have been 1987, and I was sharing a house. In those days one could hire a video player - not just videos - for a weekend. How we ended up hiring this series, I'm damned if I can remember. I do remember, though, that it's the only time I've ever spent an entire weekend just watching videos and just one series. That's all we did. Other than go to the video shop for the next tape.
With hindsight, and thinking about the themes of repression, oppression and restriction, it's not surprising it resonated for me. The mid-to late eighties were the height of the struggle years in South Africa. These themes simply reflect the times we lived in, and some of the things we encountered every day. It was never on television. It does occur to me that had the South African censors understood symbolism and/or allegory, this series would never have reached the video shops in South Africa.
I admit that I didn't watch the more recent remake of the series. I would, however, watch the original V - for all the reasons I've mentioned - as well as for the then rather delicious Marc Singer. In closing, I also wonder if choosing this series is not, to some extent, influenced by the potential ramifications of the restrictions imposed to stop the spread of Covid-19.
Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa
In yet another aspect of my life, I offer
