Picky, picky, picky!

Peter over at Male Pattern Boldness asked what we never skimp or compromise on. He was asking in the context of sewing but I ignored that and answered:

"Bacon. It's got to be dry cured, and smoked back for preference. That and beer. Otherwise, pretty much everything else  "

And then I realised I'm wrong because I'm a picky bitch. I like nice food and nice things, and although it's not true that I won't compromise, I definitely have preferences. Strong preferences. Take incense, which I mentioned a couple of posts back... the only stick incense I've found acceptable is Nag Champa (the real deal, I've had fake once and it was nasty) otherwise it's loose incense, and even then quality can be hugely variable. That 50p baggy of 'Frankincense'? Smelt like burning tyres. And don't get me started on beer.

I am lucky to be able to afford to make these choices. I occasionally have access to great quality meat, properly hung, so the colourless stuff from the supermarket tastes like Quorn by comparison. My Dad's homebrew is the ale of the gods, so the piss they serve in many pubs and bars might as well be lemonade. I've tried high quality Frankincense so the cheap stick incense smells like dangerously nasty dope to me. I am so very lucky (priviledged even) to be in the position where I know the difference. And if it comes down to it, I'd rather have good meat once a month than anemic MRM every day, or one pint of my Dad's homebrew rather than a keg of Stella Artois (aka Piss).


Sewing and knitting are introducing me to new areas of gorgeousness too. Cashmere, silk, merino, baby alpaca... these things were not in my vocabulary a little while ago (ok maybe silk was, but mostly as an unobtainable pretty). Having said that, one of my favourite yarns is Marble Chunky which is 100% acrylic so I'm not a dyed-in-the-wool yarn snob just yet. I have also recently discovered the joys of A Good Bra and Good Shoes and am gradually learning about well-fitting clothes. This could either be a very expensive journey, or one on which I learn to make all my own clothes and exist on a 'capsule wardrobe' (the horror!)

Although I often frame these choices as being about what's so nasty about the 'cheap and nasty' option it's actually about what is good about the option I like. Ok, so Stella = Piss is good for a laugh, but really I don't avoid Stella because of anything at all about Stella. I choose Fursty Ferret, or my Dad's homebrew or Wychcraft because they're really feckin' tasty and I like that in a beer. I chose that alpace/silk mix because it's deliciously soft, not because there's anything wrong with the other options. I like butter because I like butter, not because I dislike margarine (though I do). Other people like marge, Stella and polyester (the freaks). That's cool. More butter, steak and homebrew for me!