After yesterday’s depressing story from Natural News on the number of children on prescription drugs, I was cheered this morning by a rather more upbeat report that the UK is at last following in Japanese footsteps and is installing ‘senior playgrounds’ in public parks!
The first one, featuring low impact exercise equipment such as stationary bikes, cross trainers and a sit-up bench, appeared in Dam Head Park in Manchester two years ago – and now a new one has opened in Hyde Park in London. The theory is that ‘seniors’, who still need exercise to keep them fit and healthy, will not use gyms either because they are too expensive, too difficult to use or too noisy or because they find hordes of young people pumping iron somewhat intimidating. Whatever the reason, I think it is a great idea – along with the Boris bikes! Roll on senior outdoor living!!
The other thing that has cheered my new year is rediscovering seaweed as a condiment… I have, of course, known about seaweed, mainly in the guise of Seagreens Arctic wrack, for years. Fantastically healthy and generally a good thing and I have, on occasion, used their dried seaweed as a condiment. But hard though I tried, it never really seemed to quite do the business for the dishes in which I used it.
However, just before Christmas Simon Ranger who runs Seagreens, dropped by and reminded me about their mineral salt, which Cressida had reported on in the summer. He left me some literature and a pot of their 50/50 seaweed condiment and sea salt from Cornwall – and I am totally hooked. The salt part of it is seriously eco-friendly (see our report), the seaweed part of it as nutritious as seaweed always is (see Seagreens site for more information) – but the knock out bit is the taste. While I struggled to get any real flavour out of the seaweed on its own, the combination of the two is magic – saltiness, but with a whole other dimension!
If you don’t believe me, try for yourself – a mere £3.50 for 100g pot from Oceans of Goodness or from discerning health food stores…
Now what will tomorrow bring?…..
