19 January 2023

DJ is cooking again

DJ has been doing some more cooking, carefully following the instructions;  

"Something smells nice"

when Sioned comes downstairs, she comments that something smells nice, so he invites her to come and sit down.

"I want you to try some things for me"

“I want you to try some things for me,” he says, and she looks at the screen of the laptop, 

He has been consulting a website

which reads, ‘15 ways to make money fast’.   He explains that juggling jobs is the secret and there are no miracles;  

"Better I cook than start stripping"

“But it’s better that I cook than start stripping!”

"I would pay to see that!"

Sioned maintains that she would pay to see that, and he regrets that she has not got any money, in that case.   “Seriously now, what’s this about?   You’re going to a lot of effort,” she wants to know.   He considers that he should go back to what he knows, and has organised to meet Cassie in the Deri to see if he can have a few shifts in the kitchen.

"You haven't got the time"

Sioned is concerned that he has not got the time and does not want him to kill himself working.   DJ replies that it says on his screen that you can always make time;  

"By losing sleep?"

“By losing sleep?” she asks, but he points out that they need that money.   

"A real Superman!"

She describes him as, “A real Superman!”

"I haven't contacted Tegwen again . . ."

Matthew is outside APD when Cai comes across the road;  Mathew thanks him for listening yesterday, and says that he has not contacted Tegwen again, 

". . . it's better to leave her alone"

thinking that it is better to leave her alone.   

Rhys is approaching

Rhys approaches and invites him to come to the bar tonight.

“Off to the Deri tonight, then?” assumes Cai, 

"Tesni has a bar out the back"

but Mathew explains that Tes has got a bar out the back, trying to recreate the place they went to in Lapland.   

"I might come over to say hello"

 he learns that Tesni will be there tonight, Cai thinks that he might come over to say hello.

"I think we could add something new to the menu"

DJ begins his sales pitch to Cassie;  “I think we could add something new to the menu – brunch is very popular, and you always say customers come in here early to have their coffees.   

"They don't want a fry-up or bacon baps"

“Do people ask for something to eat with their Americanos?   But they don’t want a fry-up or bacon baps – they don’t want to smell of grease all day.   

"I've brought you some things to try"

“They want something new, fresh – I’ve brought you some things to try.”

Esther greets Rhys

Rhys is at Llwyncelyn when Esther rushes in, followed by Hywel and Gaynor, after what seems to have been a very short trip to Thailand.   

"You smell of perfume – you do!"

Esther remarks, “You smell of perfume – you do – smell him, Dad!”   Rhys explains that it is Gaynor’s shower gel.

She has brought him back a present . . .

Esther shows him what she had brought back for him, made by the Karen tribe, 

. . . and has made a scrapbook

and she has a scrapbook, recording everything they did while they were away;  “To show her big brother a completely different culture,” adds Gaynor.

"How was Lois?"

Rhys says that it sounds as if they had a great time and asks about Lois;  she was thrilled to see her mother, who had to be dragged home by Hywel.   

"You were supposed to look after the place, Rhys"

“Talking of home, you were supposed to look after the place, not squat here – look at the place!” complains Hywel, but 

Gaynor had been hoping for a tidy house

Gaynor maintains they are just tired after the long journey, and were hoping to come back to a tidy house with food waiting.

They are left to tidy the place up

Rhys is sorry and should have thought of that;  and his father will tidy up while Esther and Gaynor do the unpacking.

"This is what it's going to be like"

Mark, still immobilised by his foot, is on the sofa, and moans at Tyler who has just come downstairs ready for his shift at MFC.   “So this is what it’s going to be like from now on, is it?   You waltzing off to fry oil, leaving me on my own for hours every day.”

"What – you want me to babysit you?"

“What do you want me to do – give up my job to babysit you full-time?” Tyler snarls, 

"No – to keep me company"

but Mark does not regard it as babysitting, but rather keeping him company.

"You don't realise how difficult it is for me!"

He continues to whinge, “You don’t realise how difficult it is to be here on my own – the hours pass so slowly, there’s nothing on the telly – my mind just wanders, and that’s not healthy, is it?”

"Your friends could sort you out a few stamps"

Tyler suggests that he starts a new hobby;  “Like what?   Collecting stamps – I don’t think so,” but Tyler imagines that a few friends at the sorting office could sort him out some stamps.   

"What are you doing with Garry?"

“You think it’s a joke, don’t you?   What are you doing with Garry?” Mark demands.

"Working in the shop"

When Tyler replies that he is working in the shop, Mark wonders if that is all;  “You said last week he was doing something dodgy over there – is that true?”   Tyler growls that it is not true and that he should stop asking.   

"I shall find out, you know"

“I shall find out, you know,” Mark tells him as he leaves the house.

"I wasn't expecting the place to be so untidy"

As they do the washing up together, Hywel apologises for his attitude earlier;  “I wasn’t expecting the place to be so untidy – but you’ll soon understand, now that you’ve got your own place.   

"How does Tesni feel about it?"

“How does Tesni feel about things?   It must be odd to see the place being sold.”

"She has been fine about it"

Rhys says that she has been fine about it, and his father thinks she might be glad to see number 10 having a new lease of life.   “To be honest, she’s been in good spirits recently – under the circumstances,” Rhys comments.

Gaynor was happy to see Lois in the flesh

When asked how Thailand was, Hywel replies that Gaynor was just happy to see Lois in the flesh, rather than on FaceTime.   He is surprised that Rhys is still showing an interest in Lois, 

"I'm seeing someone now"

and it is pointed out to him that Rhys is now seeing someone.

"Are you going to tell me who?"

“You’ve found a girlfriend since we went away on holiday?   Are you going to tell me who it is?” asks his father, and Rhys stresses that it is just casual.

“Well, from my experience, ‘casual’ doesn’t last very long,” says Hywel, 

"We understand each other, Dad"

but his son is convinced that they understand each other, and is now going to spend time with people who are less out of touch than his father.

Cassie likes the waffles

Cassie pronounces that the waffles are wonderful, and DJ continues his ‘hard sell’;  

"You have to have plenty of options"

“The thing is, you have to have plenty of options to go with them – you could have meat, something sweet, fruit, yoghurt – well, that’s up to you.”

"There are no jobs going at the moment"

Cassie agrees that it is a good idea, but does not have any jobs going at the moment;  

"Some kind of 'pop-up'"

“No, I understand that,” says DJ, “I was thinking I could do some sort of  ‘pop-up’ – I run the thing and you get a share of the profits for using the place.”   

Cassie will give him a two week trial

Cassie seems to be convinced by this, and will give it a go for two weeks to see how it works.   He assures her that she will not regret it.

"Isn't there much work at Deri Fawr?"

“As long as you promise I don’t have one of these every morning,” she adds, “Or I won’t fit behind the bar!   Isn’t there much work at Deri Fawr?”   

"Cooking at home is not the same"

DJ answers that he just misses cooking, and cooking for himself and Sioned is not the same.   He will finish the milking before he arrives at the Deri, and Cassie cannot understand how he manages it.

“You hear about these people who clean windows or drive taxis after finishing work – I can’t think of anything worse after doing a shift,” she says, 

"Yes, that's idea, Cassie"

and this appears to have given DJ another idea.

Madge has bought some fried chicken

Madge has just purchased an MFC, served up by Tyler, as Garry comes into the shop.   

"One customer complained about the meat"

“One customer complained about the meat,” Tyler reports, and he told them that it was organic, as instructed by Garry.   “But it’s not organic!” he gleefully points out.

"They don't need to know that"

“They don’t need to know that,” answers Garry;  he is warned that Trading Standards will get him.   Garry seems quite convinced of that no-one is coming after him.   

"Mark says you're up to something dodgy . . ."

Tyler then mentions that Mark was asking about him and the business, suspecting that he was up to something dodgy.

Garry wonders why he would think that, and Tyler tells him, 

". . . that you're selling drugs"

“I don’t know, but he’s got this theory that you’re selling drugs and using this place as a ‘front’.”

"And you told him there was nothing going on?"

Garry seeks assurance that Mark was told that there is nothing going on, 

Garry goes to confront Mark

and will go to see him;  Tyler says that he is at home and has not moved for weeks.   

Tyler looks pleased with himself

He appears quite pleased at having wound up Garry Monk.

Garry strides across the road . . .

Garry crosses the road towards number 7 and knocks on the door;  

. . . and demands entry

“Mark, I know you’re in there!”   Mark staggers to open the door and Garry is anxious for a word with him.

"What's wrong, Gar?"

Mark asks if anything is wrong, 

"A little bird told me . . ."

and Garry growls, “A little bird told me that you’ve been making accusations against me!”   

"Ah – Tyler!"

It does not take much imagination to work out that it was Tyler, and Garry demands what he knows.   

"I was only getting at him for leaving me alone"

Mark says that he knows nothing, and was only getting at Tyler  for leaving him on his own.

“How old are you?” Garry demands, and again Mark whines that he cannot do anything will go anywhere;  some people like their company, but he is not one of them.   

"I wouldn't like your company either!"

Garry grunts, “I wouldn’t like your company either!”

"I thought you were a friend"

Mark thought that Garry was a friend, adding that Tyler was hiding something;  “Look, you and I go back a long way, don’t we?” Garry stresses, 

"You wouldn't want to ruin the friendship, would you?"

“You wouldn’t want to ruin that friendship, would you?”

"I want a job like Tyler"

Now that they are friends again, Mark wants a favour;  “I want a job like Tyler!” but Garry does not seem very amenable to this.  

"All right – out the back, prepping the chicken . . ."

However, he finally agrees that Mark should be out the back, prepping the chicken.

“Cash in hand and a free meal, all right?   

". . . and only until Britt gets back from Newcastle"

“And only until Britt gets back from Newcastle – happy?”   

"I shall need a stool . . ."

Mark stipulates that he will need a stool, because he cannot stand for hours, 

". . . shall I be getting a stool?"

and as Garry leaves the house, he demands whether he will be getting a stool.

Tesni tries an unimpressive impression

At number 9, Tesni is supposed to be doing an impression of someone, and it is unanimously described as rubbish by Rhys and Mathew.   

"We need a little gin after that"

They decide that they need a little gin after that.   

Who has been paying for all this alcohol?

She has some new spirits;  “One is macadamia nut flavour and the other a cherry one.”

She is just being told that they may have a visitor when there is a knock at the door and it is discovered that Cai is joining them;  

The visitor is not very welcome . . .

this is not welcomed by Tesni.

. . . but Cai is in apologetic mood.

“What are you doing here?” she asks and he produces a bottle;  he has come to say sorry for the other night in the Deri.   

"My behaviour was completely wrong"

“He accepts that his behaviour was completely wrong and he is really sorry.   He had been expecting them to be in the bar outside, 

"It's too cold outside tonight"

but they think it is too cold tonight.

"I'm off the booze for a while"

Cai is about to go when Tesni invites him to stay for a drink, but he refuses, explaining, “I’m off the booze for a while,” 

This comes as a surprise

and wishes them good night.

Sioned finds some paracetamol

Sioned takes a box of paracetamol from the kitchen drawer 

She is in some pain . . .

and appears to be in some pain;  

. . . and lies down on the sofa

she lies down on the sofa

MFC seems to be popular with school pupils

Hywel emerges from the alley and sees a couple of schoolboys who have visited MFC;  

"With the emphasis on the 'away'!"

Garry is remonstrating with three more outside his shop, pointing out, “You had takeaways, with the emphasis on ‘away’ – go on, off you go!”

"What's this?   You have no right!"

Hywel looks up with amazement at the shop sign;  “What’s this?   You have no right!” he protests.   

"You said I kept the salon closed for too long"

Garry moans that there is no pleasing him;  first he said Garry kept the salon closed for too long after the explosion and now this place has opened too soon after the fire.

“What about the noise and the rubbish and attracting rats?” goes on, 

"You were happy with the chippy"

and Garry reminds him that he was happy with the chippy, so he cannot see what has changed.   

"I would never have approved this!"

“I would never have approved this!” exclaims Hywel, 

"Good job you weren't here, then"

so Garry concludes that it is a good job he was not there.

Then Hywel realises who was doing the job in his absence;  

"Of course he did"

“Of course he did,” he sighs.   Coming round the corner is Gaynor, who is finding Cwmderi very chilly.

"Is it me, or is it freezing cold?"

“Is it just me after the holiday, or is it freezing cold?” she asks, “Do you fancy a takeaway tonight – I can’t be bothered to cook.”   

"Anything's better than the rubbish Garry is serving"

Hywel sneers that anything is better than the rubbish Garry is serving, 

"But it does smell nice, doesn't it?"

but she finds the aroma from the shop is very enticing.

"Ieuan Griffiths is the problem"

“Ieuan Griffiths is the problem,”he groans, as they continue walking along the street.

"There's no alcohol in them"

Siôn is reading a book at Y Felin when Cai comes in with a box of cans of Bavaria non-alcoholic beer;  “Before you say anything, there’s no alcohol in them,” he insists, 

Siôn takes a can . . .

“I’m trying to do dry January – we’re halfway through the month, but I needed to do something.”   Siôn is pleased to hear it, and wonders if Cai will succeed.   He seems determined to do his best and hands one of the cans to Siôn, 

. . . and is very pleasantly surprised

who finds it surprisingly good.

"I went to apologise to Tesni"

“I went to see Tesni earlier to apologise,” he goes on, and Siôn assumes that he did not get much of a welcome, but Cai advises that it was the opposite, and she offered him a drink, but he refused.   

"I feel quite smug about it"

“I really wanted one, but I managed to walk away – and I feel quite smug about it!”

Siôn tells him that it is a step in the right direction 

"Iechyd da!"

and they drink a toast, “Iechyd Da!”

DJ comes in . . .

Sioned is still looking particularly miserable on the sofa, as dogs can be heard barking in the background.   DJ comes in from the farmyard, remarking, “Those dogs are noisy – did you feed them?”   

. . .and Sioned sits up

Then he adds, “You’re lazing here instead – joke!   I’ve got some good news – 

"Cassie says I can start doing brunch"

“Cassie says that I can start doing brunch in the Deri.   I’ve got time to do the milking before going and after coming back – 

"After that, I could drive taxis"

“after that, I could drive taxis.   I’ve got an interview tomorrow.”

"I told you I'd sort it out"

As far as he is concerned, the sooner they pay off the debt, the better;  “I told you I’d sort it out – and that’s what I’m doing.”   

Sioned is not looking herself

He can see that Sioned is pale 

"What's wrong, Sioned?"

and that there is something wrong, but she just puts it down to being tired, so he will go and feed the dogs.

She bursts into tears . . .

However it is obvious that there is more to it than that, as she dissolves into tears 

. . . and lies down again 

and snuggles down beneath her blanket.