Subject: The ultimate game

From: [email-masked] (Jeff Owens)
Date: Wed, 12 Apr 1995 07:48:14 -0400

The rain is keeping me inside again (groan), so I'm sitting
here thinking about challenges, games, and trying to identify
the ultimate activity.  This has led to a review of past sports,
college, carriers, chess, bridge, hiking, volunteering, and
so on.  It is fairly easy to identify some of the attributes
to look for.  The game would have to be endless, have ultimate
variety, be competitive in a constructive way, provide a meaningful
product, be available at any age,  contribute to one health and
enhance our need for security.

The  game which meets all these criteria is probably obvious
to everyone.  It is a game which we have been playing for 20
years and have never moved past amateur status.  It is game
available to everyone, but only a few decide to take the game
seriously.  I call the game food production, but to others
it is simply kitchen gardening.

Every so often I think of myself as an expert is some phase
of this game, but a rude reminder comes along and punctures
my inflated ego.  Last week one of those rude awakenings 
occurred and it is still bothering me.  Our pantry is starting
to run out of some items, and the garden has very little to
offer this time of the year.  The wife was craving fresh
vegetables, so she gave in and bought fresh broccoli and
some other vegetables.  Being stubborn, I grumbled, but
enjoyed the fresh produce.  The problem is that we are
surrounded by fresh vegetables.  The bracken fern are
sprouting everywhere, the nettles are just coming up,
most of the weeds are edible, and here we sit not having
the mental conditioning needed to play the game.  It is tough
admitting that one is an amateur.

Is it just laziness, lack of information, or poor habits?
Maybe it is living in a society which no longer recognizes
the hunter-gather lifestyle as viable.

Jeff (vote with your lifestyle)

---

From: [email-masked] (Jeff Owens)
Date: Wed, 12 Apr 1995 19:49:14 -0400

Donald E. Bowen wrote:
> A favorite was Morell Mushrooms in beef brain.  Wild onions and
> fiddle head ferns were early treats.  A friends mother used to make a stew
> from whatever wild game and wild greens were available.  Usually it was
> rabbit and thisle.  One local treat that I could not handle was barbequed
> snapping turtle.

  Wow, this is a part of life that few get to sample today.
  I wish that my early education had included and
  introduction to wild foods.  We had mesquite trees and
  cactus, but mother refused to cook with them.  Now people
  are finally beginning to understand the value of native
  plants and animals.  Hopefully, the schools will help
  remove the stigma from wild food.

  My one achievement in wild food gathering is with berries.
  We make gallons of jelly each year and have it on fresh
  bread each morning at breakfast.  If you ever get another
  one of those barbequed snapping turtles, I'll trade you
  four jars of jelly <grin>.