How do you make a swiss roll?
Today’s answer is not about rolling down a mountain, nor a recipe.?It is a reflection on community and reconfiguring the street space. ?But a swiss roll does come into it!
During the UKs extended Bank Holiday, some people I know actively hid from Queen Elizabeth’s diamond jubilee pomp and circumstance. Many others, those less ambivalent about royalty, were busily involved in a community effort for a street party celebration.?Applying for street closures (which were free for this special occasion), sourcing tables, making bunting by yards, cutting cucumber sandwiches, and recreating the prize-winning jubilee trifle.
After sewing 80 metres of bunting, I seemed to still be up for a challenge. I volunteered to make that fancy trifle.??If nothing else, I discovered how easy it is to make a Swiss roll, and the delights of real fruit juice jelly (veggie too), but I drew the line at making my own lemon curd and custard from scratch.?There are only so many hours in the day.
But there are more important messages about this event than me developing cooking skills.?
The right royal street parties transformed thousands of street spaces across the country.?The cars disappeared, or at least stopped moving.?Children played without fear.?Adults sat around talking adult stuff in the middle of their streets, while the tables groaned under excesses of sandwiches either curling in the summer sunshine, or soaking the fine drizzle that had arrived by Sunday.?
Why is it that the same people don’t want parking or speed restrictions? ?Why is it only national celebrations, like the Jubilee and VE day, bring the community together to reclaim the street as a social space??
Why can’t we have street parties more often? ??
Why can’t we have more streets redesigned designed around social interaction and community based on the home zone concept as a permanent feature?
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In a way our street is lucky.?It’s no good as a rat run, and there is a very narrow section at one end.?The few cars are generally slow moving.?Like with the classic Appleyard study*, it’s a street where people talk.?When we moved in 9 years ago when the kids from six houses played together, in and out of the various gardens, and up and down the street.?Hiding seek amongst the parked cars and hedges.?The next generation are all a bit too young, but I hope that it will happen again.?In the meantime the cats make everyone's home theirs.
COVID prompted greater community cohesion, with a street WhatsApp and a general banging of saucepans and clapping on our doorsteps each Thursday.?While the online group has helped with introducing the new people, we still need more occasions to share time outside collectively to get to know each other (for good or bad) and have fun.? So here's my suggestion:
How about a traffic free hour every Thursday during the summer evenings where we can chink glasses and chill on the street as a community??
Personally, I would like to see our street redesigned completely away from the car, but I know it is far to way out there for most our car-wedded residents.?
And, in case you’re wondering, the trifle was a success and went down a treat.?
?*Read more about Appleyard's Liveable Streets
Yes - streets in Bath are back to their congested selves post the lockdown when we all discovered how wonderful it would be with less cars or no cars - though at least from observation not only are there many more bicycles and pedestrians, there are many more different bikes with trailers of various sorts, delivery bikes, bicycles that can carry more than one child and electric scooters. That trifle looks great! ??