Trying to tame "Bill"

For my sins, I have learned how to really work with MS Word. Consequently, I have a love-hate relationship with Bill. Gates. My capability has got and kept me jobs, but it's also nearly caused me to lose them. A few years ago, and because we have a friend in the village who once worked for Microsoft, I was able to go to the horse's mouth. In a manner of speaking.

I learned two things: when MS rolls out updates, they do it geographically. So that means that - in that case - my US based client and I had different versions of the app. To say that it was a nightmare is probably and understatement. The second thing I learned was that in those versions of Word, and when you format, and change format, the "old" format is not over-ridden. It's just added-to. So you have layer upon layer of different formats.

Even I know that's a recipe for disaster and it explains why documents just get bigger and bigger and bigger.

Then, that's complicated by people who don't actually know how the app works and who fiddle.

Which brings me to yesterday. I belong to a group of gig-workers and freelancers. Yes it's on that Web2 social platform and begins with an "F". It's more than useful. The group, I mean. It's been my major source of real work clients - from South Africa - for going on two years. A couple of days ago, someone was looking for a MS Word format expert. I put up my hand and yesterday, mid-morning, she got in touch with me because, well, the first person she used, just couldn't tame Bill.

Would I have a go?

Hell, yes. If I couldn't tame him, I'd kill him.

So, I started the work. It was a mess but as happens with these things, the screen sucks you in. Not only that, Bill was not going to get the better of me and by just after I should have been cooking supper, I thought I'd nailed it, sent the doc to the client and took to the kitchen.

It was, yes, pasta night and because my brain had turned to mush, and because The Husband suggested it, it was, as it often is, mushroom. The salad antipasti was a bed of shredded brassica (very bitter, red, un-cabbage-y cabbage leaves) that I'd separated from the other salad leaves. For the first time in ages we have a pineapple. It takes me back to my childhood, pineapples does!

The Husband declared it particularly delicious and perhaps it's because it was ultra simple: slices of mushroom slowly braised in olive oil and white wine and garlic.

Instead of adding the fresh parsley to the mushrooms, I tossed it into the hot pasta with a good glug of olive oil. Then, I plated it and piled on the mushrooms and topped that with slivers of mature gouda and with extra for sprinkling on the side.

It was good, but I went to bed and had nightmares about Bill. I'd not tamed him. Yet.

Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Photo: Selma
Post script

If this post might seem familiar, it's because I'm doing two things:

• re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I am adding them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine....?
• and "re-capturing" nearly two years' worth of posts.

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Original artwork: @artywink

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