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08-12-2011, 05:05 PM
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#21
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Administrator
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Chicagoland
Posts: 40,706
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So many good meals. One in particular
In Caracas, my mega-corp employer was hosting a large international sales convention and the BOD decided to honor a member that was retiring from the board to accept a position in the Venezuelan President’s cabinet. They hired the Chef’s Private dining room (seats 8) at the best hotel in the city – probably the most exclusive restaurant in the country – to give him an intimate farewell dinner.
That day the entire country exploded in mass protests and riots. The convention was cancelled, martial law was declared, the armed forces took over, and, of course, the BOD meeting was called off as well - but the dinner was already paid for. A group of us workerbees were stuck at the hotel. I was sales manager at the time and was hanging around the lobby with a couple of peers when the sole board member that was in the country saw us, walked over and said “hey – you guys have any dinner plans?” Three of us, along with the Country GM, and senior management and the board member, had an amazing dinner. Personally catered by the Chef, no menus, no rush, no plans, and nowhere else to go for us of the chef - and no bill to pay or limits.
Not sure if it was the best food I've ever enjoyed, but certainly the most memorable meal.
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08-12-2011, 06:07 PM
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#22
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Nicola Lake
Posts: 53
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bbbamI
I'll add a new twist.... I don't have a 'most memorable food experience'...but I do remember the joy of eating ice cream when I was a little girl. We were poor, so treats were far and few between.
On a rare occasion, my daddy would smoke a cigar, and this event would always happen on a Sunday. Since he had his 'treat', he made sure I had one as well. He'd take me to the store and buy a tiny carton of ice cream for me...the kind that came with the flat wooden 'spoon'.
I can smell a cigar today and it takes me back more than 45 years...and I crave vanilla ice cream....with that little wooden spoon.
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Those wooden spoons...I remember the way they felt on the tongue when the ice cream had melted away. Brings back another ice cream memory. In Ireland in the fifties we didn't have a fridge so when Sunday dinner was to be followed by ice cream it was my job to run to the store, buy a little block of ice cream and run home as fast as I could before it melted. Then the block was wrapped in newspaper to insulate it and when dessert was finally served tie ice cream was just perfect...firm but soft at the same time.
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08-13-2011, 08:47 AM
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#23
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Nebraska
Posts: 1,543
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I don't know if these were my most memorable but they are at the top of my mind right now.
A few years ago my daughter and I arrived by train in Vienna, late at night. We were starved and stopped by an Italian cafe, in old town, that probably was about to close for the night. I ordered a pizza with "rocket" (arugula) baked in their wood fired oven....so good. I savored every bite.
Another time, also late at night, with my late husband, in Paris. I had a very simple quiche...we ate outside at a small table.
Both of these meals were late at night and the streets were very quiet and peaceful. I think part of the memorable portion was because of the peacefulness and atmosphere and sharing a meal with loved ones.
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08-13-2011, 08:57 AM
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#24
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gone traveling
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Eastern PA
Posts: 3,851
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For me, it's Steak Tartare, which I was introduced to, and able to get during the years I traveled to Europe on my j*b over many years, before retirement.
For those that don't know the dish, here's a summary:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steak_tartare
I've only found one restaurant that will serve it (thus far) in the US - a French bistro in DC, a few blocks away from the capitol building.
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08-13-2011, 11:30 PM
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#25
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Nicola Lake
Posts: 53
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Quote:
Originally Posted by happy2bretired
I don't know if these were my most memorable but they are at the top of my mind right now.
A few years ago my daughter and I arrived by train in Vienna, late at night. We were starved and stopped by an Italian cafe, in old town, that probably was about to close for the night. I ordered a pizza with "rocket" (arugula) baked in their wood fired oven....so good. I savored every bite.
Another time, also late at night, with my late husband, in Paris. I had a very simple quiche...we ate outside at a small table.
Both of these meals were late at night and the streets were very quiet and peaceful. I think part of the memorable portion was because of the peacefulness and atmosphere and sharing a meal with loved ones.
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That is exactly what I was seeking..not so much a wonderful meal but a magical moment that just happened to involve food.
Your recollections triggered another memory that I will always treasure and it was simply buying my son and I a hot chocolate and walking down the main street of White Rock a couple of days before Christmas, early evening, festive lights twinkling in the trees and a light snow falling... a tiny magical moment and the best hot chocolate I ever drank. What made it more special was when my son talked about it years later and I realised that he had felt the magic too.
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08-13-2011, 11:54 PM
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#26
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 11,401
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nobulife
Those wooden spoons...I remember the way they felt on the tongue when the ice cream had melted away. Brings back another ice cream memory. In Ireland in the fifties we didn't have a fridge so when Sunday dinner was to be followed by ice cream it was my job to run to the store, buy a little block of ice cream and run home as fast as I could before it melted. Then the block was wrapped in newspaper to insulate it and when dessert was finally served tie ice cream was just perfect...firm but soft at the same time.
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I'm from Ireland too, and I remember that so well, although I grew up in the fridge era! My favourite block icecream was Neapolitan: strawberry, vanilla and chocolate. Do you remember the wafers?
When I was 17 my parents and I went to Italy. My Dad had been there as a young man and had many fond memories. I'll always remember the day he introduced me to cappucino. We had walked the streets of Rome for hours. We sat outdoors at a little trattoria opposite the Parthenon. The coffee was dark roasted, the milk was foamy, and there were chocolate shavings on top. We sat there watching the Romans gesticulate and swoop by on their Vestas. Buon giorno!
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08-14-2011, 01:19 AM
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#27
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Nicola Lake
Posts: 53
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Meadbh
I'm from Ireland too, and I remember that so well, although I grew up in the fridge era! My favourite block icecream was Neapolitan: strawberry, vanilla and chocolate. Do you remember the wafers?
When I was 17 my parents and I went to Italy. My Dad had been there as a young man and had many fond memories. I'll always remember the day he introduced me to cappucino. We had walked the streets of Rome for hours. We sat outdoors at a little trattoria opposite the Parthenon. The coffee was dark roasted, the milk was foamy, and there were chocolate shavings on top. We sat there watching the Romans gesticulate and swoop by on their Vestas. Buon giorno!
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Yes, I remember the wafers. I think they gave you some when you bought the ice cream block. I remember too when they sliced the block in the store and sold you a threepenny or sixpenny wafer. Do you remember the broken biscuit deal where you could buy a pound of broken biscuits and there would be an assortment that would include some of the deluxe ones that your Mum would never usually buy. That was before packaged biscuits(cookies) when they were sold by weight and were displayed in big,square tins with glass fronts on a rack. You are maybe too young to remember those. My parents were pretty conservative spenders so I am pretty sure everyone in Ireland had a fridge before us so it wasn't that they didn't exist. Same with the telly, we didn't get one until about 1964.
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08-14-2011, 09:05 AM
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#28
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 11,401
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nobulife
Yes, I remember the wafers. I think they gave you some when you bought the ice cream block. I remember too when they sliced the block in the store and sold you a threepenny or sixpenny wafer. Do you remember the broken biscuit deal where you could buy a pound of broken biscuits and there would be an assortment that would include some of the deluxe ones that your Mum would never usually buy. That was before packaged biscuits(cookies) when they were sold by weight and were displayed in big,square tins with glass fronts on a rack. You are maybe too young to remember those. My parents were pretty conservative spenders so I am pretty sure everyone in Ireland had a fridge before us so it wasn't that they didn't exist. Same with the telly, we didn't get one until about 1964.
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I remember the broken biscuits when we went to West Cork to visit my Granny. My mom had social aspirations so we didn't get those at home...but my parents were leery of the effects of too much television on kids' reading habits, play, etc, so we didn't get a TV till the late 60s. And it was rented, so they could give it back at any time.
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08-14-2011, 09:55 AM
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#29
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Gone but not forgotten
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Sarasota,fl.
Posts: 11,447
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My fondest food memory is Christmas time. The weeks before the house was filled with the scent of cookies baking .Then on Christmas we would awaken to the house transformed into wonderland . My parents always decorated the tree after we went to bed . They also arranged the toys under the tree .Mom would have got up early to put the giant turkey in the oven so the smells added to the atmosphere . We would have an early dinner and then snack on turkey for days . To this day Turkey is my favorite food.
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08-14-2011, 10:07 AM
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#30
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Northern California
Posts: 549
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It was in the 60's. My best friend, Liz, & I used to go to Woolworth's every day after school - we were sophomores, 15 years old, pretty, and knew it. Liz was prettier than me, and so was my mentor for coolness.
We each had a hot fudge banana split - and would talk about our dreams and yearnings for the future. We figured it all out. I remember her new big yellow and pink flower pin; I showed her my new dress purchased with baby-sitting money. We lived in the here-and-now, and could see into eternity, so young and alive were we.
Little did we know what the future had in store. Liz passed away in the 70's from a drug overdose.
Somehow, I survived into today - somewhat stronger, more realistic, and wiser. I miss Liz still....
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08-14-2011, 11:04 AM
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#31
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: the City of Subdued Excitement
Posts: 5,588
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I had reindeer steak in Copenhagen over 30 years ago. It melted in the mouth. The best steak I ever tasted, bar none.
__________________
I have outlived most of the people I don't like and I am working on the rest.
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08-14-2011, 04:02 PM
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#32
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 143
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When we were young parents, I went with my husband to the Scottsdale Princess for a business conference he was attending. One night my DH ordered room service on our own dime. It was served on our balcony with real silver and china, cloth napkins and a red rose. He told me he wanted me to enjoy that trip because he would probably not ever be able to afford to take me to such a nice place again. Fortunately, we've been to many other nice resorts and had many nice dinners, but I will always remember that meal.
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08-14-2011, 06:21 PM
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#33
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Nicola Lake
Posts: 53
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Meadbh
I remember the broken biscuits when we went to West Cork to visit my Granny. My mom had social aspirations so we didn't get those at home...but my parents were leery of the effects of too much television on kids' reading habits, play, etc, so we didn't get a TV till the late 60s. And it was rented, so they could give it back at any time.
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Since we are on a trip down an Irish memory lane what was/is your favourite biscuit. Mine is Kimberley and my daughter brings me packages of them whenever she returns for a visit...she knows I wouldn't let her in the house without them!!!! She also brings me bags of Tayto crisps, cheese and onion flavour and this past June she outdid herself by presenting me with 2 Maltana loaves.
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08-14-2011, 06:30 PM
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#34
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 5,596
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Mom and I went on a trip to Paris back in the 80s. Just the two of us. We had a great time. A highlight was dinner at Le Bilboquet, a famous jazz club. Great music, wonderful food and a walk back to our hotel sharing an umbrella in a gentle rain. We talk about it often.
__________________
I purr therefore I am.
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08-15-2011, 07:44 PM
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#35
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 11,401
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nobulife
Since we are on a trip down an Irish memory lane what was/is your favourite biscuit. Mine is Kimberley and my daughter brings me packages of them whenever she returns for a visit...she knows I wouldn't let her in the house without them!!!! She also brings me bags of Tayto crisps, cheese and onion flavour and this past June she outdid herself by presenting me with 2 Maltana loaves.
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"Kimberley, Mikado, and Coconut Creme"....remember the jingle? I used to like Kimberley too because of the spicy ginger flavour offset by the sugary marshmallow centre.....but now they seem so artificial and processed. As my taste matured, I loved Jacob's Cream Crackers (with cheese and tomato slices). I understand that Jacob's shut its Tallaght factory in 2009 after 156 years of making biscuits in Ireland. Another biscuit favourite was/is McVities Chocolate Digestives. Interestingly, when I lived in the US I missed all these things, and in Canada you can often find them on the supermarket shelves.
I also love Irish rashers and (pork) sausages. I have family members in the US who will smuggle them in. I'm not sure they dare nowadays with Homeland Security being so paranoid!
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08-15-2011, 08:32 PM
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#36
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Orlando
Posts: 2,656
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Dungeness crab is my favorite food and two weeks ago I had as much of it as I could stand!
I was on vacation with my high school girlfriends on Whidbey Island (NW of Seattle). Our cabin (family cabin of 2 of the gals) was right on the beach which allowed us to drop crab pots and catch 29 dungeness crabs over several days. As soon as the crab was brought to shore, I built a fire and cooked them in a pot filled with salt water. Doesn't get any fresher than that!
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08-15-2011, 11:11 PM
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#37
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Nicola Lake
Posts: 53
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Meadbh
"Kimberley, Mikado, and Coconut Creme"....remember the jingle? I used to like Kimberley too because of the spicy ginger flavour offset by the sugary marshmallow centre.....but now they seem so artificial and processed. As my taste matured, I loved Jacob's Cream Crackers (with cheese and tomato slices). I understand that Jacob's shut its Tallaght factory in 2009 after 156 years of making biscuits in Ireland. Another biscuit favourite was/is McVities Chocolate Digestives. Interestingly, when I lived in the US I missed all these things, and in Canada you can often find them on the supermarket shelves.
I also love Irish rashers and (pork) sausages. I have family members in the US who will smuggle them in. I'm not sure they dare nowadays with Homeland Security being so paranoid!
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Ah yes, the great Irish fry. Those lovely rashers with the rind still attached and Burn's sausages. Mum bought the sausages and rashers on Saturday morning and we had a fry for tea, Sunday breakfast and Sunday tea and if there were any left finished them off on Monday morning for breakfast. In the prefridge days by Monday the sausages were often a little 'high" but we ate them anyway and lived to tell the tale. My Dad liked white pudding too and he loved to have a piece of bread fried in the bacon fat until crisp and golden.
I still do a fry up every now and then and bake some scones to go with it plus a pot of strong tea. I am brewing up with Lyons tea at the moment thanks to my daughter.
We went on a school trip to the Jacobs biscuit factory when I was in highschool. This was the original factory in the centre of Dublin. It was the highlight of 5th year. We got to eat biscuits right off the conveyor belt and at the end we were each given a little tin of biscuits. What impressed me the most though was a big swimming pool in the basement which was for staff use. The factory was owned by a quaker family who believed in good working conditions for their employees.
I love cream crackers too but with lots of butter and marmite.
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08-16-2011, 04:39 AM
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#38
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 121
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We were in Thailand last year and our group went to an ocean front open air seafood restaurant. We had 24 hour dried and then fried squid along with the biggest freshest tiger prawns ever.
The whole village that surrounded the restaurant was a squid and fish processing place with thousand of drying squid lying out on huge wire trays all over town. It was incredible.
The best meal in northern Thailand was in a village right next to Myanamar on the northern border. It was the first port belly I ever had and I wanted more. We also bought the best tea here. I am making it last.
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08-16-2011, 08:39 AM
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#39
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: NC
Posts: 21,298
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ronstar
My most memorable meal was last summer, when i picked a few of my own tomatoes for a salad, grilled a ribeye, and chased it all down with a couple of stouts that I brewed, while dining in my own back yard. Most of my memorable meals are homemade.
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+1. We grow some veggies and herbs, and the more we use in a given meal, the more I like it. The difference between fresh tomatoes, green peppers, garlic and/or any fresh herbs is considerable! Throw in some homemade artisan bread (vs storebought) and you've got something special...
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No one agrees with other people's opinions; they merely agree with their own opinions -- expressed by somebody else. Sydney Tremayne
Retired Jun 2011 at age 57
Target AA: 50% equity funds / 45% bonds / 5% cash
Target WR: Approx 1.5% Approx 20% SI (secure income, SS only)
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08-16-2011, 11:31 AM
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#40
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 11,401
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nobulife
I still do a fry up every now and then and bake some scones to go with it plus a pot of strong tea. I am brewing up with Lyons tea at the moment thanks to my daughter.
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In our house only Barry's Tea (Gold Blend) was good enough. But then, we were from Cork.....
Every Day Should Have Its Golden Moments | Barry's Tea
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