New Years target achieved by end of October

It's been little sacrifice living on supermarket own brands, home made and home grown or wild and free but it has more than paid off.  There have been a few slip ups, tea bags and biscuits from the corner shop, the odd lunch from the bakers, or worse the garage forecourt, pre packaged sad offerings,. 

The idea of paying someone else to make an inferior sandwich due to my own lazyness, is now something that I no longer do without thinking blimey that's expensive.  Lunch for less than a fiver, not really excessive, but a lot when you consider most weeks this year I have lived very well on much less than twenty quid for groceries. Fast food outlets and coffee shops are still a temptation I  do enjoy a Costa, Costa lot- cup of coffee, although I have gone ten months without the muffins, or flapjacks instead making my own. 

Fresh oysters from Whitstable, and a glass of artisan wine - would cost a couple upwards of fifty quid at Wheelers, cooking on stones and sticks on a beach is much much more fun. Oysters wrapped in bacon over an open fire, a BBQ, made of stones on the sand, a salad of marsh samphire in the company of friends can not be beaten.  I fed six for under three quid, and all of them have asked to do it again, and even know now, that the oysters did not come from the fish market, only the shukka (oyster knife).  I had collected them earlier on the rocks at low tide.  Now a regular summer night -full moon event, for privileged friends certainly more fun than a night at the pub.

Some may mock at me collecting snails,  or picking garlic chestnuts or damsons in the woods. In many parts of world, with warmer climates these things  are considered a delicacy to be hunted for and eaten. Here in Margate rain and snails are both plentiful, very easy to find especially with a little experience and knowing when and where to look, far more tasty and nutritious than pot noodle any day.

Next years resolution : study Mycology!   Could I study it in FRENCH?  

Why not.

Plentiful rain  and snails, are not a good trade off for Mediterranean warmth and sunshine. 

Here, a bigger target for the future, the question is does it have water?  and how long will it take me to achieve it and what's it going to cost to do up?   Till then I'm on a foray in the woods to find my dinner.