Civil Eats

Last weekend over 1500 people gathered at the former office block Hamilton House in Bristol (UK) for a feast like no other. None of the kitchen staff were being paid, all the food supplied was foraged, donated or liberated from bins and there was even free beer and hard cider made from foraged ingredients. So why did so many people offer to help and why did such an extraordinary event take place?

It was mostly down to economist and former business man Mark Boyle (I say mostly as the event was the idea of myself and good friend Francene). Mark Boyle has been living without spending any money over the last year that year ended on 28^th November. The feast was in order to celebrate his admirable achievement. Read More

Last week I spent $200 on food. I was traveling in Washington D.C., and the money was spent on two meals, just for me. The meals were great, but shelling out that kind of money, when I am committed to reducing the amount I spend, was a little shocking. It gave me a real sense of gratitude for the $130 I spent the week before for a week’s worth of groceries for my family of four.

In these interesting economic times, everybody is looking at ways to save money, and with rising health care costs we are also looking at ways to stay healthy. The answer seems to be in forgoing restaurants—both the big ticket and the fast food kinds, to spend more time in the kitchen and in the garden. Read More