A bit of a Sad Day

I found out today that my marvellous Veg Shop has had to close the business due to circumstances beyond their control.  This makes me think the Landlord has put the rent up again which has put the shop out of their reach.  It was not a big shop.  However "Carolines" was run by a family of huge hearted people brass tack honest people and the veggies were good and superior in a lot of instances to supermarket stuff. They even reduced the seconds not in full flush items off in reduced bowls of £1 a bowl.  At one time they used to run a business from home and then moved to the shop in Peterborough 33 years ago. A small family run business which I chose to use because I got more for my money and better quality stuff. I hope they start selling again from home as they really know their stuff.  Since they moved here I have used them regularly.  Knowing them for that long we got to know each other well.  I shall miss them and the access to the really good quality veg they provided. Proper veg.  Especially at Christmas as the shop window often used to be dressed up Victorian style with the stalls outside and the hustle and bustle of the local community going to them to buy. Particularly impressive with the lights in the windows as the day turned into dusk and they used to leave the lights on a timer on the window display as well. They sold flowers and also did wreaths and bouquets as well. I am really upset about this, one could say gutted. I am/was planning to do quite a bit of preserving towards the end of the month and that now seems to have passed me by for the time being unless I can source similar produce from other sources.  

Peterborough does not have a proper market these days. The actual under cover market site that had been there for years and which was originally the Livestock market was sold off to build private flats. Probably something to do with the fact that Peterborough is now a University City and looking to expand on that front again. Peterborough has gone the same way as Lincoln and I am not impressed with that at all.  They have some little wooden huts down Bridge Street in Peterborough which is off the Market Square which now constitutes the market.  Not a proper market by any means and not very big. Peterborough was granted the right to hold a market in the Market Square.

A sign of the times is what it will be put down to on the food front but also there is another issue here with Landlords putting up rents astronomically but the services and standards of the accommodation are not increasing.  Many people are being put into a "Catch 22" situation because of this which I find immoral and greedy.  Especially when one family has owned many, many properties over the years all mortgage free and yet have done very little to maintain them. They are just taking advantage of what is termed a financial opportunity but at the sake of putting others in a dire situation.  

The Landlords for the Veg shop and other shops along the row are owned by Doctors.  Our rent for the property we are in has in the past 11 months alone gone up £100 extra per month and then another £50 last review date.  but possibly it is the structure that people are having to exist within that really needs changing.  This is not just about supermarkets and the power they have to charge what prices they like at the expense of the grower and the middleman.  

To my mind the quantities food is available in at the supermarkets is not really enough quantities for people to feed themselves properly.  Then you have all the excessive packaging.  People just want good food not manicured, but honest healthy stuff to feed their families with.  I shall have to have a recce to see if I can find a similar source of veggies and fruit in the quantities I want to be able to buy.  If it means going out of town to do so then this is something I would do.

I prefer to use independent businesses where I can as you get more for  your money, relationships are nurtured and they are part of your community. A much more personal and realistic approach.  Community is about people helping people.

Sorry am on my soap box a bit, but I do find it disgusting. At the end of the day people want to get by, pay their bills, feed their families and breathe.  They do not want too much, and yet even this it would seem is too much!

After finding out that the veg shop had closed, I had gone over to purchase some goods and found a sign in the window, we ended up going to the Butcher to get a few bits and put food in our bellies for this week and next week.  

On the way there, we also stopped off for a small walk for Missy who seemed to be loving being out in the fresh air although she does not move very quickly these days and it is more of a waddle with her and us taking a few steps and having to wait for her bless her.  We do try and get her out though for a little stretch.  It always makes her sleep heavy when she gets back these days thouugh.

Have come home with a hefty Chicken which I am hoping to get at least three meals out of a roast, a pie, a stew and some stock, scraps for the animals and maybe some sarnies.  It is a beast.  Was not cheap but is well packed on the meat front.  Have also come away with some stewing meat, some Sausages, white pudding, a whole Haslet and a couple of small steaks which we have not had for quite some time.  Also bought veggies Cabbage, cauliflower, Broccoli, Runner beans, leeks, celery, cherry tomatoes and a tray of eggs.   I must mention, that I do eke my veggies out quite a bit, keeping them in the fridge if half used and adding some wrap and then using that up within a couple of days or meals being determined with what veg is already part-used.  I hate waste.  What is half-used or the leftovers often dictates what we have to eat on any one particular day.

I then when we came back went to the local Co-Op and came back with some carrots, onions, potatoes, and frozen peas.  I also bought some lard for making pastry.  So I have the basics of providing quite a few different meals like flans, quiches, pies, stew, stir fries, fry ups, soups, etc. by just being sensible with my choices on the veggie fronts and my base ingredients.

Next year I am having my veggie garden come hell or high water. However I have a lot to do a very big mountain to climb.  Come on Tricia pull on those big girl panties and get stuck in!

Shopping took precedence today though although am going to do a couple of hours of ironing later on.

No set meal this evening as we are not really hungry after the big pizzas yesterday, some of which is still in the fridge. So it will just be a pick n mix job with whatever is going.  I have sausage rolls, cheese and onion rolls, cheese and crackers, pate, pickles, chutney etc. and the pizza to graze on in the fridge.  There is also some cake as well so plenty there to eat.

So feeling very sad for the loss of the veg shop, but grateful that we have meals for the next fortnight or so until payday. We make selected choices to try and get a treat now and then or to maximise the amount of meals that we can get out of something.  It has been working well and means that we are eating relatively well as a result.  Food is not a compromise but a necessity.

Oh and we checked out what was left of the laminate that we used in the bathroom.  There is not enough for the main part of the bathroom and so shall buy that new at end of the month and get that done then.  However there is enough for my Pantry floor. Therefore very blessed to get two small floor areas sorted with some free laminate.   That is what I call a double blessing.

Right back to the ironing.

Catch up tomorrow.

Pattypan

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