(Day 4 and) Day 5

It's the final countdoooooooooown, du du duuuuu duuuuu etc. etc. Only 6 hours to go until it's over! Unfortunately, those 6 hours include socialising, which means I'll be the scrooge subversively drinking orange squash in the corner of the bar. Worse still, I won't even have purchased said squash in said bar - I'll have brought it from home - so I'll also be worrying about getting caught. Unless anyone wants to stay past midnight, in which case, it's gin all round...

Apologies for the lack of update yesterday - I was too hungry to write (disclaimer: this may be a total exaggeration and I was actually too busy catching up on Silent Witness and Grey's Anatomy to spare a blogging minute, but probably not). Nothing too exciting to report from today either, except that in celebration of Good Friday (which I think counts as Easter?) I had a hard-boiled egg, followed by my last custard cream, to make almost-a-Creme-Egg. In fact, I have been eating a lot of eggs  - partly in deference to the the upcoming Christian festivities and mostly because it's the only remaining alternative to another tin of kidney beans:

Last night's dinner

Amazingly, I managed the whole of yesterday without consuming a single grain of rice. My second lunchtime pasta and tomato puree creation of the week was so good I even had some leftovers to go with the boiled egg bonanza. Tell me it doesn't look delicious:

NB the photography hasn't done it justice

Anyway - it's over and out for a few weeks. I'll be back with Part 2 - Live Below the Line Zambia Edition: Nsima Nights - at the beginning of May.
 
Finally - here are a few tips (with the benefit of hindsight) for anyone considering giving it a go:

• BUY POTATOES: what can you do with rice? Boil it. What can you do with pasta? Boil it. What can you do with a potato? Boil it, mash it, bake it, make chips, make wedges... Really, the possibilities are endless. I'm having a small weep just thinking about it.
• Buy bread - you could have toast for breakfast, you could make a sandwich, you could have boiled eggs and soldiers. Also, you can eat it straight away (I realise this probably should have been top of my list considering I don't like pasta or kidney beans, even on a good day, but who says common sense has anything to do with it?).
• Basically, don't buy rice or pasta. It takes 2 days to cook, isn't nutritious and tastes pretty rubbish with nothing on it. 
• Fruit and vegetables are an investment. I've probably got scurvy from my lack of vitamin C intake this week.
• Custard creams are always a winner and - I've said it before but I'll say it again - a total barg at 0.31 for two whole rows of them. 
• I think what this all boils down to (no pun intended) is to actually plan what you're going to eat rather than buying a load of cheap ingredients that don't add up to proper meals.

Okay - I'm off to plan the most efficient way to make a sandwich in preparation of 1 minute past 12.

PS. sign up at https://www.livebelowtheline.com/uk - if the fundraising's putting you off then it's okay to choose a low target. I want your round-the-world Live Below the Line photos!



Visit my Live Below the Line for Restless Development fundraising page at https://www.livebelowtheline.com/me/pipcrockett