My raindance was effective – it has rained every single day since my last blog post! Not *all day* every day, but enough to make the natural world come alive. Suddenly, there is food everywhere! In the past week, we’ve eaten our own tatties and found a patch of wild strawberries. In the Shire I’ve picked blueberries and raspberries, and blackcurrants.
Today was fantastic! I cycled out with a pot of custard and a spoon, and added blueberries to it at Mill of Cammie. Straight from the bush into my bowl. I stood there grinning from ear to ear, in blissful enjoyment of fresh fruit.
Here in Scotland we have tiny insects called ‘midgies’ that make our life a misery when we’re out and about, so I dressed up like a grannie to stop them getting into my ears and neck. I like to think that car drivers passing by really thought I was an old grannie (or preferably a witch of some sort) as I’m more likely to be left in peace that way 😆.
Further along there were pink raspberries – the first of the season! I gobbled them up by the handful (and have been a bit gaseous since…).
On the way I also spotted chanterelles and field mushrooms, which I’ve just consumed in a one-pan scramble with 2 eggs.
All in all, a lot to be thankful for today. Tomorrow I’m heading out again to see what I can find! The title of this blog post is ’11 months and counting’ – this refers to the fact that I’ve lived supermarket free (with regards to my daily fruit) for nearly a year. Everything I’ve eaten over the winter and spring has been picked by us last summer, and stored in our freezer. Only now am I eating fresh fruit again. It’s amazing to realise that it is possible to get it all for free from our locality. Zero food miles! With all the new stuff appearing I am now certain that I’ll make it to 12 months, in 2 weeks’ time. Watch this space!
The healthy forager 