The Simple Bare Necessities feat. Gratitude & Recipes

Good Evening :hello:


Went the day well?


Ours has been pretty spiffy After lunch, a big knock at the door had me opening it, expecting to be met by some earnest soul, campaigning for some party or t'other, but instead I was met with an empty doorstep........ as I stuck my head out, a young man came running back to the door, pressed a parcel from the 'big forest' company into my hand and ran off again :rotfl: I did say thank you, and he shouted, 'you're welcome' over his shoulder.......... :rotfl: A glance at the box revealed it to be for BG But we weren't expecting anything, so it was a mystery........


It turns out, a friend had heard BG had broken an item, and had thoughtfully made moves to replace it... (with a better, more robust model). How kind, how very, very kind. And how lucky is BG to have such people in their life, who care so much for them?



I'm actually glad that I have 'here' to record such kindnesses and good stuff that happens to BG - and Family Greying - because it allows me to express my gratitude, and serves as a reminder that there is usually good in every day - today we got it in abundance


In between fiddle-faddling and clothes folding, I have mostly been doing more fiddle-faddling :rotfl: Lunch was cheese & tommy sangers, using my YS'd wArburt0ns bread from HB. T'was only a small loaf (i got 2), but every penny saved helps


Tea this evening was a salad bowl, because I had to make summat outta bits & bobs, having used the oven chips the other night to make a meal, because we couldn't have pizza, 2 nights on the trot I ended up making; lemony lentils and chickpea salad, pugilese beetroot salad, marinated cherry toms, served with wild rocket, and a one egg thin omlette which was served with sliced avocado (half each) and toasted sunflower and pumpkin seeds. Thankfully it fitted the weather conditions (luck, not judgement ), filled a gap, and tasted nice - DH specifically said, 'thank you for that tea, it was lovely'........ *knockmeoverwithafeathersmiley*


I was reading an article about foodbanks on the BBC website today (do not feel obliged to click on the link) - an interesting 5 minute read. It won't tell you anything you don't necessarily already know; but I thought the community pantries were a really good idea - far better than perfectly good food getting skipped.



Today I am grateful for these 3 things;


BG's improving mood as the day wore on (couple of false starts and a kicked ankle (mine ), but that was all, so.......)


kind and generous peeps :smileyhea

food in our cupboards, on our table and in our tummies.


And yes, before you ask, BG did love their gift AND the box that it came in :rotfl:


Ta for popping in. Very, very much appreciated. As ever.


Greying X

Good Evening :hello:

rtandon27 wrote: »

:eek: to the kicked ankle - are we at terrible twos now or troublesome threes?

Igamogam wrote: »

....followed by the fearsome fours and the frightful fives.......doesnt get any easier just more interesting:D

LA LA LA - I've my fingers fixed firmly in my ears - can't hear neither of you - LA LA LA LA LA - Greying, currently on long-term vacation in De-Nile..... :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Cheery_Daff wrote: »

Aw, what a lovely thoughtful gift from your friend GP! :j

Absolutely Cheery, they are thoughtful thru & thru We're lucky to have them in our lives


End of week one of 'stuff & chaos' another week to go.


I've been keeping out of mischief (mostly). Spending relatively wisely And eating from the freezer or storecupboard with supplemental 'bits'. Got some super YS'd avocados in mrS the other day - 2 for 75p (normally £1.50) lovely and big and ripe. So similar price to mrAl for 4 (I did buy 2 packs) but bigger fruit and nicely ripening. Also got a couple of nets of satsumas - normally £1, YS'd to 39p. Look like nowt, but wonderfully juicy and tasty, and as yet, no pips :j


This week I've been most grateful for;


sunshine,

pack-up snap,

friends,

an opportunity to do something 'fun' & for the heck of it


kindnesses



Mustache. Loads to do. Probs not going to be around much at all for the next wee while. But I'll be back.


Ta for popping by. Appreciated. As ever.


Greying X

Good Morning :hello:


Thanks for the link Paspatur. I'm not sure lack of recipes is contributing to my cooking malaise, I rather think it is a combination of factors that have just coalesced at the same time. Which purely co-incidentally I have given much thought to this past week.


One of the factors is the town where I live is fast becoming a food desert - for people who don't have transport to the outer reaches where all the supermarkets are located. Formerly, I could walk (and have walked) miles to these outlying supermarkets. Now that I have BG, I cannot, easily do that - and with summer beginning to rev up, it will further curb our ability to venture too far in roasting hot sunshine. Our local greengrocer sometimes has fruit and veg that is within my budget. Most times, they do not. M&$ is only affordable (for me) when they YS items, but the quality of the produce is not always good for eating - despite sell by dates etc etc. I have seen 'fresh' basil covered in grey mould before now - YS'd. Even YS'd, it was not fit for consumption. The express/local/mini/little supermarkets do not routinely carry a wide range of fruit and vegetables and are priced for convenience, not for households on a budget. I do not pass most of these shops when they finally do their mark-downs, which I appreciate can sometimes be very good. Many years ago, there used to be a thriving vibrant market that sold all manner of fruit, veg, meat, game, fish etc. It now sells 'polished' veg for wannabe insta-gram-publishers and has a champagne bar...............



DH is in charge of getting provisions from the supermarket on most occasions, as it can be incorporated into travel to work journeys. My DH is a good bloke, but has not got the knack of shopping. He can only work to a list, and gets what is on the list. If I put 'cucumber' that is what I get, not the biggest, or the freshest, or the least yellow..... I get a cucumber. And as for bagged salads.........................._pale_ In his defence, and I'm sure others will agree, the 'discounters' are popular, and they also don't carry much stock. When it's gone, it is gone. Which is fair enough. But you can't rely on them to have what you wish to purchase, and whilst we are generally happy to 'go without' - it does sometimes booger up a meal plan....................... :rotfl:


This week has shown me that is is not just a phenomena in Greying Town. I have been to several places that regard themselves as 'foodie' capitals. I was met with the same scene. Why was a food hub for 'local' people empty, the fruit and veg mouldering away to unattractive limpness; whilst everyone was in the local mrT, filling their trolleys with french sticks and gin................. The prices in the local hub, whilst 'real' and possibly 'fair' (to the producer) would be way above affordable for the average wage of the area. I have seen (in both greengrocers and supermarkets) british asparagus the size of tree trunks! Why would anyone buy it? The bottom of the stem is woody and inedible - at best, only fit for stock. But why pay £2-3 for a bunch of something that you would use half of for stock? I can't afford to do that. And I am not ashamed to admit it.


BG is just being a small person with regard to food. I wish they were far more adventurous with their food choices, but they are not But actually, their food choices don't break the bank - they break mumma's heart that they are so BEIGE! :rotfl: but they don't break the bank.


I have actually made some nice food lately Using tins, jars, vac-pacs and chilled, I made a really nice salad plate, which included; lemony lentil (tinned) and chickpea (also tinned) salad, marinated cherry toms, beetroot, wild rocket (I selected the bag..... :rotfl:) and grilled halloumi. And also we had courgette and chickpea korma curry - the courgettes were 'fresh' (£1.20 for three :eek: - but proportionately cheaper than buying 'loose' :eek:), the chickpeas tinned and the korma sauce was actually a jarred Organic brand that was on sale for 69p in h3r0n - it would retail for at least double in a supermercado. This was teamed with a mixed bean masala and some basmati rice. Utilising Suffolk Lass's idea about ice cube packs from supermercados, we were able to get some cardboard box fish, and oven chips from an 'express' supermarket and get them back safely into the icebox, on a Sunday, when we'd lost track of time and were too far from our base and a regular supermarket that was closing at 4pm..... BG ate a breaded fish, some chips, but turned their nose up at (tinned) mushy peas!



Taking a pack-up lunch everyday meant that we could have treats. I found it interesting that a venue that is closely associated with a 'celebritee' food-lover (I refuse to call them a chef, as they are not), yielded HM style, tasty, interesting cakes and coffee for £5 LESS than we had paid recently at a national chain of val's cake shops, where the coffee was indifferent, and the cake appeared 'mass-produced' and not the least bit tasty. However, we also had coffee and cake at an highly independent, local, hipster, insta-gram-publishers dream cafe, which was only 60p cheaper than the celebritee food-lover's gaff, and yielded some of the driest, burntest, un-tastiest cake that I have tried to eat in a very long time. The coffee was lovely though. But as we are talking about costs that range from £12.50 - £18+, just for coffee and cake, I think that I am changing my mind about chastising myself for appearing 'mean' to take our own refreshments to places. There seems to be little value for money available. Interestingly, I did notice that several 'chains' of coffee shops were heaving with punters. Small local cafes had few, if any punters. One cafe that we always tried to visit when were were in the area (haven't been for a few years now) had ceased trading all together. When we first went there, it was a co-operative style venture, that offered opportunites for adult learners to gain employment experience.



I think what I'm saying (to myself) is that this period of time is throwing up difficulties, and new situations. I can do much more than I perhaps sometimes do. But I also need to cut myself some slack. We are sometimes exhausted, and can't do anymore than we manage. For those times, beans on toast has to suffice.



However, I have been thinking alot about food and our diet - particularly this past week, and it could do with revitalising, from an ingredients point of view. I still don't know how I go about changing my cooking activity, in a kitchen that is too small to have BG around safely when I am cooking; but if BG is not with me, they are out of sight in our house, and are now old-enough to get up to plenty of mischief in a nano-second........


Plenty to keep me occupied in problem-solving and away from retail-emporiums spending money, anyhoo


Greying X