0 Friday Food Day (including Farm Delivery) and Let's Get a Little Personal

 *personal background in this post is in italics

Top row: calabrese broccoli, cauliflower, celery, pineapple
Middle row: purple sprouting broccoli, courgettes, cabbage, sweet potatoes, baking potatoes, carrots
Bottom row: shitake mushrooms, portobello mushrooms, lettuce pack, baby spinach, potatoes

Yeah, that's A LOT of broccoli.  But Paul likes chicken, rice, and broccoli, and I like Paul to eat non-processed foods, so I encourage this.  Yes, Paul's family, the broccoli really is Paul's- he even eats the baby spinach!  

Obviously the shitake mushrooms went over well last week- Paul ate some and liked them- unfortunately they spoiled before I ate any (a day later)- we have the WORST time keeping mushrooms here, with the humidity.  Any tips??

The pineapple is still part of the Fairtrade Fortnight, and it's the last week for that.

We also got my usual milk, buffalo fresh mozzarella, and Paul's roast beef.  They were already in the fridge by the time I got around to taking this picture.

Today was just not my day.  When I woke up at 8 the skies were bright blue- I went into the kitchen, emptied the dishwasher, got some cereal, and came out to grey clouds and rain.  Oh, England.  There's nothing so fickle as English weather...

Anyway.  I went out and ran a couple of errands, including going to the gym- your first sign that this post is going to get personal.

I don't exercise- I hate it.  I take the dogs out most days, but going to the gym just makes me angry.  My endorphins are confused.  However, I tend to get foot-pain and shin splints when I end up being more active than just walking the dogs, so I went to the podiatrist.  Turns out I severely overpronate and swing my feet to the sides when I walk.  He said "this could cause knee issues in the future" which led me to bring up that I sprained both knees two weeks apart when I was 14- and the doctor said that could be what caused my overpronating.  I bought special sneakers and my therapy involves going to the gym three days a week to walk on the treadmill for half an hour.  Yay.  

So I went to the gym, and did my half hour.  It sucked, although I'm pretty sure I fell asleep for part of it because I don't remember hearing three of the songs my iPod says it played.  

I got home, and I was so tired (from life; walking for half an hour doesn't knock me out!) I decided to make some tea to try to perk up.  I made my favorite blend, Darjeeling and Ceylon.  I got this blend idea from The Willow Tea Rooms when we were in Glasgow.  I also wanted honey on bread, and, as I am a self-proclaimed honey connoisseur, I used three different types: Yorkshire Moor, Scottish Heather, and Tupelo (my absolute favorite).   When we moved here, the bee crisis was going on and honey was on the "absolutely not" import list.  When I found out it was allowed again, a little over a year ago, I promptly ordered as many ounces as customs allows.  When I ate all that, I ordered more. It's that serious of a love affair.  You should try it.  It's amazing.

Back to my tea break. 

My teapot is from Leeds Pottery and the teacup/saucer is by Johnson Bros through Wedgwood.  I bought them both in Stoke-on-Trent, during one of my (many) trips.  

My day continued being crabby and rotten, for other reasons that I'll go into the next bad day they cause, rather than making this post even longer.
Looooooong story (3.5 years now) in a nutshell to quell curiosity: I have intermittent numbness, tingling, and hyper-sensation in my left arm and leg, believed (by a neurologist, after many tests) to have been caused by a birth-control related mini-stroke.  Most days it's ignorable, with just a buzzing feeling now and then, but some days it gets so back it actually becomes painful and exhausting.  Today I might have been willing to cut my arm off.

 For dinner I decided baked sweet potatoes would be easy and filling.  I put three small ones in the oven, and when they were ready I reached for my standard brown sugar.  I realized that wasn't actually what I wanted, though, so I googled "toppings for baked sweet potatoes" and saw feta.  Well, I had a new (to me) cheese that's not feta, but is a similar cow cheese.  

 When I opened the package I was fishing out the cheese cubes and saw that there is a little basket in there- handy! I had to share it.

I added some baby spinach, and it was delicious.  Easy, healthy, and delicious- my perfect meal.

Hopefully your day was better than mine, and hopefully tomorrow's great for all of us.