The conquest of bread

My friend S was once given a bread maker for Christmas. It wasn't what she was looking for, but she ended up using it to startling effect. In 1999, she was at art college, already in her late fifties, and she decided to literally cook the books by baking bread inside vintage books, in the bread machine. Over time she became proficient, and based her end of year show on the performance of baking bread, and her finished sculptures. She sold several. This is her piece de resistance, The Conquest of Bread, by Prince Peter Kropotkin, now crumbling slightly at the back but still alive in her bungalow on the hill. I hadn't seen it for 22 years. Memories came flooding back when she produced it today. I even wrote a short story about her project, a couple of years back, but it didn't make it to a women's mag (I deemed the subject matter too eccentric for submission) nor to Stroud Short Stories. Maybe I ought to dust it off again and polish it up.

I published this today because my sister TML has never seen the bread sculpture but heard much about it. Also because G and I and A had a fabulous meal at S's. She cooked us arancini, caponata, Sicilian pizza (gf for me), and cherry ice cream from scratch. She's thinking about starting an affordable lunch club, based on gourmet themed food rather than basic provision.  She is also going to darn my new jumper creatively  (it has holes in it after I stupidly wrapped a china bowl up in it and packed it in a suitcase. The bowl didn't survive the  flight, and the jumper is riddled with holes). So much creativity! S. is 79 years old.

We had a  conversational lunch: S has worked for local government, G and A in the NHS and allied services, and I've done a few jobs too, so we had some amazing and amusing stories to share. We've decided to meet again for lunch and stories. I'm bubbling over with excitement already!

Oh, and A and G have visited our house separately, and met our cat Indie. Her socialisation is proceeding apace.She was perfectly comfortable with both of them.