Summer made liars of the Met Office guys again this year, turning their optimistic forecast of long, hot barbeque days into little more than wishful thinking. A few random weeks of sunshine, followed by rain, more rain, wind, and an early descent into autumn. Beans and strawberries remained obdurately green and rotted, while blackberries swelled and ripened early in the hedgerows.

But then, just when we had accepted the chance of the promised barbeque summer was over and were mentally prepared to follow the days into a damp, blustery autumn, laying down jams and preserves and syrups and wines for the months ahead, the elusive summer decided to give us one last hurrah after all. A week of mild, calm, warm weather. Halcyon weather, my father used to call it*. It lifts the spirits immeasurably to see blue sky instead of grey, and feel the sun's kiss on one's cheek instead of the rain. It's all the more precious because soon we'll be immersed in the long, dreary British winter again.

However, this year I'm carrying a little of Summer's Last Hurrah through into the winter with me. For the last few weeks I've been busy bottling and brewing, boiling fruit and sieving syrups, all produce made from wild food harvested from the hedgerows and lanes within walking distance of my house. Making blackberry and rosehip cordials and damson and elderberry wines have been regular annual events for a few years, but this autumn for the first time I've been experimentally making some jams and chutneys, and without false modesty I think I can say they're damned good for first attempts!

The funny thing is, I know I'm not alone in venturing into jam-making and suchlike for the first time this year. Maybe its a sign of the economic times, the influence of River Cottage and big name chefs on TV extolling the virtues of home-grown and home-preserved, or that more people are turning away from unhealthy manufactured foods, but I've read on many blogs, and heard from many equally unlikely people both in real life and online, that they too are starting to dabble with jellybags and Kilner jars. As usual, I am but one mote in a growing trend!

Actually, I think it's easy enough to find an explanation for my own hitherto uncharacteristic kitchen forays. I have an inherent need to do something productive and creative, and one of things that first got me interested in the internet and becoming a web designer was the creative angle of it. I can't write, or make music, or paint, but I discovered I could design and build websites that people liked, and that fact gave me a great deal of satisfaction. It was something I could take pleasure and pride in. Nowdays, I find web "design" as creatively satisfying as a paint-by-numbers kit. It just doesn't push my buttons anymore, and I'm tired of coloring within the lines. Circumstances led to me having more time at home this year and to get my creative buzz I'm increasingly finding myself straying down avenues I would never have previously imagined myself exploring. And I have to say, it's a very interesting journey!


* Halcyon days were 14 days of calm weather at the winter solstice, when the halcyon, a mythical bird identified with the kingfisher that had the ability to calm the wind and the waves, was said to breed in a nest floating on calm seas. The story of the halcyon's origins and attributes is in Ovid's Metamorphoses, which I had to study as part of my Classics course. Yes, I had that kind of an education, I'm afraid.