A change is as good as a rest.

If a change is as good as a rest then it must be even better to have a change and a rest.
In this case I have changed the look of the blog, partly because I could and partly because I couldn't work out how to update the old design, and I've also had a rest.
 Rather than risk another Moroccan outcome, in November/December 2010 we spent almost three weeks in France - twelve of those days spent in Paris - and post-Christmas we spent two weeks doing nothing much more than sit on the beach and read.
So now it's time to think about writing again and catching up with everything food related. The garden also looks like a scene from The Day of the Triffids - it is just amazing how plants thrive on rain and sunshine and the various diseases they are prone to thrive on humidity. The tomatoes and zucchinis have succumbed to mildew and the capsicums are a bit unhappy. On the bright side the eggplants look fabulous and there are so many of them that there is a chance we may overdose. The basil is lush and tall and begging to be turned into pesto and the tomatillos and ground cherry have overcome their initial hesitation and now look almost bushy.
If nothing else trying to grow some of your own food makes you much more appreciative of the effort that must go in to producing the abundance in the shops - and how little remuneration there must be for all the work and time involved. And given that farmers have to contend with land which is either parched and desperate for water or literally washing away you would have to question why anyone would consider being a primary producer. Perhaps the inevitable increase in prices as a result of the dreadful flooding in Queensland will make a few people stop and think a bit more about where the food they eat comes from - and perhaps choose not to buy French eschallots imported from Holland or even Spanish red onions from the USA but support someone local instead.