Growing My Own Food

I've always grown my own food as long as I can remember. The amount I grow varies from year to year - some years I'll grow all sorts of plants and other years I just grow whatever perennials I already have. It's quite rewarding to grow your own food, and I'm not just talking about the food itself - you get to see how these plants grow at every stage and you are more grateful for the food you've grown. It feels quite special to be able to eat something you sewed and cared for.

This year I'm growing peas! I have about 25 sprouting right now. Most of them are in their own pots but I still have a few to plant out. Peas are brilliant for improving soil quality as they have little nodules on their roots containing nitrogen-fixing bacteria. This means they convert the nitrogen in the air (N₂) into a form plants can use. Instances like this where two organisms work together like this is called mutual symbiosis. Both the peas and bacteria benefit here - the peas get nutrients, the bacteria get a safe place to live.

Another plant with this symbiotic relationship is broad beans. In fact, all legumes have nitrogen-fixing bacteria nodules. I mentioned broad beans because that's another plant I'm growing! Back in 2018, a field on top of the hills I take evening walks along was growing broad beans but the crop failed due to the intense heat that summer. When I took the beans from the blackened pods, the beans were already dried. I only took a handful of beans, planning to go back for more in a few days, however it rained heavily the next day (for the first time in a while). By the time I went back, the beans had already started to grow mould. I couldn't save any more beans but out of the ones I did, every single bean has germinated! Broad bean flowers are rather beautiful so I look forward to their growth!

Herbs are very important to me as I use them liberally and often. This year I'm growing heaps of catnip and basil. I'll also be growing thyme and possibly hyssop and safflower (two of the plants in a 'shake & rake' packet I bought contained hyssop and safflower, as well as bee balm and even more basil). Strangely, some of the old bee balm patch I used to have is starting to grow back, probably from dormant seeds. I absolutely love bee balm, or lemon balm as it's also known, so I'm quite chuffed about this. My cats on the other hand aren't so pleased. The younger one, Smudge, actually gagged at the smell!

I have some old seeds that I'm giving a chance but I'm not sure whether they'll grow due to their age (most of them are at least a decade past their 'sew by' date). It's worth sewing them despite the low chances of success, just in the hopes that something might grow. I may as well grow them seeing as there isn't really any other way I could use them. One of the 'newer' seed packets was for courgettes but I'm pretty sure I got them in 2012 as part of that year's vegetarian week, so it's unlikely I'll have much success there. I also planted 4 or 5 packets of poppy seeds, which I should have some better results with seeing as poppies can stay dormant for up to 50 years.

One of my perennials is strawberry plants. I've had them so long that I can't remember a time without them. For the entire month of June, I eat strawberries every day - 30 or more each day at the height of strawberry season. When I think of summer, I think of strawberries. It's basically a ritual for me now to grow strawberries. They've been taking over the garden for years now they just keep spreading (not that I'm complaining!). Ozzy, my older cat, loves a little bit of strawberry once in a while. My rabbit Nibbles used to eat half the strawberries before I could even get to them! Both Ozzy and Nibbles have/had white fur so you could always tell when they ate strawberries as they'd have a big pink stain around their mouths.

Two of my more recent perennials are raspberries and blackcurrants. I got them as a gift for my mum back in December 2013. Since then the raspberries have grown considerably in size and are almost as plentiful as the strawberries. The blackcurrants have been quite a bit slower to grow. In fact until 2018, they didn't actually produce any fruit. I didn't even realise they were still growing until I noticed one day a huge, hidden bunch of nearly-ripened fruits.

I've written before about how much I love rhubarb in one of my recipes but I'll say it again; rhubarb is so underrated! It can be used in a variety of sweet and savoury dishes, yet it seems most people only use it for Crumble. I have plenty of rhubarb recipes to share with you in later blog posts. Because of how big the rhubarb I grow is, I'll have plenty to try on all sorts of recipes all the way from spring to autumn! I've added some rust to the soil near the rhubarb this year, so it'll hopefully be extra flavourful. The rhubarb has even bigger growth spurts each year and it seems this year will be no exception! I counted eleven crowns this year, up from about 5 or 6 last year, which was a great year for my rhubarb. I had never seen it grow so big. Many of the stalks were as long as my arms and one was longer than my leg. With rhubarb, it's important to water it often as it's a large plant.

Next year I'm going to grow tomatoes. I would have grown some this year but I couldn't get a hold of any seeds. Tomatoes are a great plant to grow as the fruits are practically a necessity. I'm thinking of growing yellow pear tomatoes and green zebra tomatoes. The green zebras will be perfect for making green tomato chutney.

Are you growing anything this year, or planning to next year? Please leave a comment down below! Thank you for reading and goodbye until next time! :) ~Jay

Spectrum Binders - A Review

In May 2018, I bought a new binder from a UK-based binder company called Spectrum. Initially, I chose the medium size in white but this turned out to be too big for me when it arrived. Luckily, they have a free returns policy and I got a new one sent out in the next size down and this one fit perfectly. I bought the same size again one year later, except in a skin colour this time. The binder is fairly comfortable (well, for a binder it is! 😂) and it is quite effective at flattening my chest. The back and shoulder strap materials are breathable, which is a relief during summer. Here's a summary of the features:

• Made out of three materials: thick cotton on the front for binding; lycra on the back and shoulder straps to allow for your chest to expand as you breath; and a nylon mesh on the back which helps the cotton on the front to bind while still stretching to allow for breathing. 
• The materials are eco-friendly as they're made out of recycled material.
• The sewing is fairly good quality. I noticed the back-stitching starting to come undone on the front right shoulder strap a year into wearing my first binder (the white one), but this is probably because I'm not very careful with it when I take the binder off.  Besides that, the stitching has been rather reliable. Both binders are still in good condition after 1&2 years of use.
• The binders to begin to lose their binding ability after a year of constant use but they still flatten my chest to an acceptable level. 
• The price is similar to those of many other binders available. I'd say the price is fairly reasonable.
• Unfortunately they only currently have short binders. Personally, this doesn't affect me greatly but if you prefer full length binders then you're out of luck right now. 
• The binders come in a range of colours - the standard black, white, grey and 3 different skin colours. There's also a blue, a red and a lilac option. There has been a light green option in the past, however this is currently unavailable.

Overall, I'd definitely recommend Spectrum binders - especially if you live in the UK. Their binders are high-quality, well-made and effective. I'll definitely be buying a third one of their binders whenever I need a new one.

Thank you for reading and goodbye until next time! ~Jay

VOTE! (If you can!)

As you are most likely aware of, the UK is having a general election on the 12th of December. That's tomorrow! This is my first time ever voting, so I'm quite excited about this. I'll write a blog post about the experience tomorrow.

Here's a little checklist for before you vote tomorrow:

• Make sure you know where your polling station is. If you don't know where your polling station is, check your local council's website or click here
• Make sure you know who you're voting for!
• Plan what time you'll be going to the polling station. You have between 7am and 10pm to get there and vote
• If you were voting by post but forgot to send your it off, you can drop it off at your polling station.
• If you find yourself unable to vote, you can see if you're eligible for an emergency proxy vote. If you have a medical emergency or if work gets in your way, you can get someone else to vote for you. The deadline for applying for an emergency proxy vote is 5pm on the voting day. Here are the forms you need:
• Disability proxy vote
• Employment/occupation proxy vote

It's really important that you vote, even if you don't like any of the parties. If you're not going to vote, I urge that you watch this video on how crucial it is that you vote. If you can't vote for any reason then the video doesn't apply to you, but please make sure you encourage your family & friends to vote!

Thank you for reading and goodbye until next time! ~Jay

Positivity Post #2

Hello! It's been a while since my last positivity post. This time, I'd like to share a few words of wisdom that I personally find helpful when going through hard times. I hope that this brings some positivity into your life! :)

Always remember that you know who you are better than anyone else. Nobody can decide for you how you feel.

On dark, cloudy days, you can't see the sun because it's covered. That doesn't mean that the sun's no longer there. Eventually you'll see the sun again. Remember this when you feel hopeless. It may seem like things aren't going to get better and you'll never be happy again, but you will be. Just because you can't see a way for things to get better, that doesn't mean that there isn't a way for things to get better.

Do you feel broken? When you are 'broken' the parts of you can be put back together, in a different way than before. You are constantly changing and growing. When you feel broken, remember that this makes room for change and growth.

If you feel like a bad person and you don't like being this way, then you're probably not a bad person. A bad person wouldn't feel bad for not being a 'good' person.

You may feel weak, but considering all you've been through and survived, you're actually very strong!

That's all for this post, but there's more on the way soon. I'm going to make positivity posts regularly from now on, as I think these kinds of posts are important for those going through tough times. It makes me happy to know that this post could help someone feel a little better. Thank you for reading this post. Goodbye until next time! ~Jay

Rhubarb 5-Spice Chicken Recipe

Rhubarb is a wonderful and underrated plant with such a unique flavour. The past few years, my rhubarb plant has been growing progressively more out of control. It's so big this year that the leaves are all packed in together. I can't even see the stalks! Two of the stalks are as long as my legs and I don't even think they're the longest stalks!

If all I made with it was crumbles, pies and preserves, I'd get sick of rhubarb pretty quickly. Realising that I didn't actually know many uses for rhubarb besides desserts, I decided to research the savoury uses of rhubarb. It seems that rhubarb goes well with meats such as chicken and pork, so I decided to come up with this marinade for chicken. The tartness of the rhubarb, the sweetness of the spices and warmth from the ginger work perfectly together with the chicken.

Note: I haven't tried making a vegan version of this recipe yet, so if anyone does, please leave a comment to let me know how it turns out! I think this would complement tofu 'chicken' perfectly.

Servings: 2
Preparation: 25-40 mins, plus roughly 24 hours to marinate
Cooking: 45-60 mins

Equipment:

• Small saucepan
• Wooden spoon (or something to stir the sauce with)
• Glass dish

Ingredients:

• 1 stalk rhubarb (½ if the stalk is extra large like mine was) thinly sliced (between 1-2cm, roughly - this means that the rhubarb won't be stringy)
• ½ large red onion, diced
• 1 heaped tsp finely chopped fresh ginger
• 1½ tsp Chinese five spice
• 2 heaped tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp muscovado sugar
• 1 tsp butter (I used a dairy free butter)
• 2 cloves finely chopped garlic
• 2 medium sized chicken breasts

Method:

1. Add the butter to the saucepan on low-medium heat. Once it begins to melt, add the onion and sugar and carefully stir. Let the onion begin to caramelise.
2. Add the ginger, spices and garlic. Stir in then leave to further caramelise.
3. Put the rhubarb in the pan with just enough water to cover it. Simmer on medium heat until the rhubarb has fallen apart, stirring occasionally. The consistency should be thick but still easily pourable. If it's too watery, simply simmer for longer.
4. Place the chicken breasts in a glass dish. The chicken should fit fairly snugly, leaving enough space for the sauce of course. Don't worry about defrosting them first if they're frozen as they are going to be marinating overnight.
5. Let the marinade cool a little before pouring over the chicken. When completely cooled (as to not damage your refrigerator) cover the dish and place in the fridge for roughly 24 hours.
6. Preheat the oven to 165

   °C (Gas Mark 3/325

   °

   F)

7. Remove the covering, then place the dish in the oven for 45 mins to 1 hr, or until the chicken is cooked completely (you don't want to get food poisoning!)
8. Serve the chicken with a few spoonfuls of sauce, or alternatively pull the chicken apart with a fork and mix until thoroughly coated in marinade.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! If you make this recipe, please let me know in the comments or, alternatively, email me. If you post a picture on instagram make sure to tag me! Knowing that other people like my recipes fills me with joy. Thank you ever so much for reading and goodbye until next time :) ~Jay

Concerts I've Been To

In my life I've been to three concerts; I went to a McFly concert when I was very young, Summer's End Lincoln music festival in September 2016 and a Skillet concert in Camden, London in December 2016.

The first concert I went to was my sister's birthday present - a McFly concert. My Granddad bought three tickets to see them live at Lincoln Castle. I can't remember much of it, but I remember that my sister was very happy. My granddad got us both matching t-shirts and I think I may still have that t-shirt somewhere!

The second time I went to a concert, it was a music festival! My mum bought two tickets to go to Summer's End Lincoln 2016 as a 4-month-late birthday present for me. Some of the bands playing there included Shed Seven, Ocean Colour Scene and Dodgy. We got there fairly early, so we managed to get a front row view the entire 10 hours!

The latest concert I went to was Skillet on the 9th of December 2016. They were playing in Koko in Camden. We spent the day looking around Camden and found a delicious vegan buffet. None of us were vegan at the time, but it was the best priced food around and it tasted amazing! At the concert, the atmosphere was so positive. I had a brilliant time, despite being stuck behind a pillar at the back of the room! I'd definitely recommend seeing Skillet live.

I'm going to another concert soon, too. I have a ticket to see Bon Jovi and Manic Street Preachers play live in June this year. It will be amazing to see Manics live for the first time ever. They're my favourite band! My blog is even named after one of their songs. Seeing Bon Jovi will also be great.

Why Have I Been Away?

I haven't written on this blog in quite a few months now. I'm currently writing a post on what happened. I'd been in the middle of writing something in October 2018 but then I had a bit of an accident! Since then I've been recovering. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me (or comment below!) and I can answer them in my next post. I'm hoping to return to writing blog posts soon and hopefully will upload 1 to 3 posts per month!

Thank you for reading and goodbye until next time! ~Jay