Neighbourhood Loony

I've been whinging about the weather a bit recently, because it has been poo. But today we witnessed the welcome return of El Sol. I didn't know it was going to be hot and sunny, in fact it was quite nippy when I left the flat for a 9am meeting. So I was wearing a shirt, sweater and chunky leather jacket. It was quite a long meeting, and I went shopping immediately after it.

This was not the usual local shop. I was on a mission to get some bread flour*. The nearest place I've found for this is Carrefour Express at Cuatro Caminos - three Metro stops or a ten-minute bus ride away. I left the shop laden with four pretty heavy carrier bags, and got the bus home. Unfortunately, it was the wrong bus. It goes about two-thirds of the way, and then turns off.

I jumped off the bus, and decided that I would not wait for another one. It was only a ten-minute walk back to the flat. But after a short while, the carrier bags were cutting into my fingers, the heat was making me sweat, and a solution was needed. I stopped and rummaged in my jacket pockets. I am the proud owner of two nifty pieces of hard plastic that can be clipped onto the loops of a supermarket bag to form a comfortable grip that doesn't cut off the circulation in your digits. I normally carry them in a jacket pocket, just in case I need them.

Wrong jacket.

But I did find my suede gloves. I am now recognised by at least a dozen people in my locality as the Brit nutcase who wears a heavy leather jacket and gloves on the hottest days.

*You know I like to bake my own bread. You really need 'strong' bread flour for this. You can use normal flour, but the result tends to be a bit leaden. 'Strong' flour has more gluten in it, which makes the dough rise more and gives a lighter texture.