Today is day 14 of the blog every day in May challenge! Today it’s 10 things that make me really happy.
1. The process of making tea (not necessarily drinking it)
2. Going to the farmer’s market
3. Foraging in the woods (berries and the elusive morel are my favorite)
4. Watching the sun set or rise
5. Cuddling
6. Listening to my favorite music while taking a walk
7. Eating chocolate
8. Laying on a blanket in the sun
9. Finishing a successful knitting project
10. Swimming on a hot day
I’m finally getting around to sharing some pictures of the Cinco de Mayo party we went to. Our good friends were co hosting it with another couple. The party was a little more interesting due to the fact that the power went out in the building where we were all gathering. So we had to navigate completely dark stairways to get the the apartment. Luckily it was sunny out so our party wasn’t in the dark.
After food and some trivia we headed to the courtyard outside where the pinata was destroyed and where we could enjoy the warmth. Near the end of the party a few of us played pin the tail on the donkey and had a few good laughs. I think Walker was cheating a little bit with his leg us like that. Oh well, it was a good afternoon.
It’s day 2 of the blog every day of May challenge. The topic today is educate us about something you know a lot about or are good at. I chose foraging. I’m not an expert by any means but having grown up in the woods and on a summer camp I’ve picked up a thing or two. If you’re starting from scratch though I would recommend a few things.
-DON’T ever just eat something you found in the woods unless you’re absolutely sure it’s edible and even then proceed with caution.
-take a foraging class with someone who has been doing it for a long time
-I don’t recommend foraging for mushrooms unless you’re with an expert (they are easily to mistake with deadly consequences).
-borrow from the library or buy some foraging books with good photos.
-it’s good to know which plants have poisonous look a likes.
-take a walk and test some of your skills but I wouldn’t recommend eating anything until you’re more than 100% sure of what you’ve found.
-when you’re more comfortable with identifying edible plants I would still start off with the most recognizable ones like wild strawberries, raspberries, blackberries or if you live in a place like Texas-pecans.
-if you don’t feel comfortable with what you’ve found just don’t eat it.
-I pretty much stay away from anything that looks like a wild carrot because it looks so much like poison hemlock and that is not something you DO NOT eat.
-if you’re looking for a more informed foraging blog to follow I recommend Langdon Cook’s blog. He’s a forager in my neck of the woods and he knows what he’s doing.
I’ve been foraging for years but I stick to what I know-mainly wild berries, cherries, apples, wintergreen and their berries, juniper berries (for tea not eating), sorrel, and a few others.
