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What we have in WOS this week is a Kenwood Chef A701. This,as all kitchen buffs will know, is the creme de la creme of the mixer world. Forget the Kitchenaid, forget the Sunbeam, forget the Moulinex; the Kenwood is where it's at. Well having said that it's really the older ones made between 1950 and the mid 70s - the 700, 701 and 901 series-that are the desirable models. These were built before the idea of planned obsolesence was developed and so were overengineered to the nth degree making them pretty much indestructable.And thus they are sought after and almost immortal .
So why is this in WOS, you are asking. Surely it couldn't have been streetcombed?
But you would be wrong mon copain de cuisine.Because it was. And even more amazingly, you might be staggered to know, it was found with a twin.Yes,that's right; two Kenwood Chefs sitting in the middle of a pavement in the municipal district of Tooting.
Obviously they had been fly tipped by some unscrupulous house clearer who had no idea how truly versatile and long lived they are. Luckily I came across them before any sharp suited modernist who might have despatched them to a dark and oily fate in a landfill site, and having brought them home to the stately house of bear,I got them up and running in no time.And since then they have made many cakes, batters and, thanks to the wonder of the dough hook, breads and chapatis.Long live the Kenwood!
Ahoy there blogmates! This week Homepride man, his sons Homey and Maloney and their little pal Piglet decided to take a rafting holiday on Tooting Common pond.
When I saw them off they were cruising happily on their way to the bird sanctuary in the middle of the lake. But then, disaster! The wind turned sou' westerly and blew them off course into a remote and inaccessible part of the lake. There they were grounded, on a spit of land that I could not reach. Imagine my agony knowing that my mates were so near and yet so far. In need of help that I could not give them.
The last time I looked, about three days later, there was no sign of Homepride man or piglet or Maloney, but Homey was looking fat and healthy. Could it be dear reader, no don't think it....could it be that in his delirium and distress Homey had killed and eaten his shipmates? Or could it be that the three matelots had staggered off in search of help and are now wandering blind and exposed around the mud-slathed middens of the Common, searching in vain for a friendly face or someone who at least speaks their language - Finnish.
We may never know. All I can wish for is that one day I will open my kitchen cupboard doors and there will be their smiling, flour and dirt splattered faces beaming up at me and asking 'When can we go again?'.And I shall wish reader, I shall wish with all my heart.
Due to secret public demand (i.e. nobody has asked for it but I know that secretly they want to see more) I am posting further examples of bear art.Again all these things were 'installed' on Tooting Common.
The bags contain figures of Homepride man (which pic 1 shows was left on the floor of a glade)and Wallace of Aardman animation fame (which pic 2 shows was hung from
a tree). As we can see from the photos they were each holding a banner stating their predicament.
There is also an old Swiss bell telephone that was nailed to a tree (later smashed to pieces by some Swissophobe) and a Mickey Mouse novelty number, which was left at the side of a popular jogging path with a banner urging the 'citizens' to 'keep on rollin''.
The log with the mirror inserted was hung from a leaf shrouded branch where it twirled with the wind and flashed occasionally as the sun reflected off the mirror (so attracting the inquisitive mind, who later took it home with them).The wood bore the message 'there you are' because if you were looking into it you were,indeed, 'there'.
I nailed several clocks to several trees - each of the clocks bore a different label identifying them - one was Todd, one was Obama, one was Scott and another one was Randy - each label carried a personal message from the bear.
Todd, who was screwed to a Silver Birch - remained in position for well over a year - something of a record for bear@rt and Obama was later smuggled into Tate Modern where he was slipped into one of the installations (the one with all the beds and books).
