Foraging in the 21st Century

Have you ever read the prehistoric series"The Clan of the Cave Bear" by Jean Auel? If you have and hated it, please don't hold it against me, ok? I love the series even though I don't hold with the Cro-Magnon man theory and evolution and all that business which if I'm honest, is the whole point of the series. I also don't believe in witches (Harry Potter) of talking animal (Three Pigs) but I still enjoy those stories. It's fantasy people! And by the way, the movie version with Daryl Hannah is totally lame so please don't judge the books by that disaster!

A brief synopsis of the billion page series: Orphaned and injured Ayla, a prehistoric (looking like us, no brow ridges:) child is found by a wandering tribe of Cro-Magnon people who call themselves The Clan. Ayla is one of "The Others" whom the Clan avoids at all costs. The tribe's medicine woman takes Ayla in, heals her and adopts her. These people don't have a verbal language but communicate in sign language which Ayla eventually learns. Ayla is cast out of the tribe as a teenager after her adoptive mother dies and she wanders about the tundra (modern day Russian Steppes) searching for The Others, people like herself. At last, after two volumes and many pages, Ayla rescues Jondalar, one of The Others, from the jaws of a Cave Lion and through the next three volumes, the two of them travel across the continent to the areo Europe where France is now. Throughout the series, Ayla discovers how to get fire from rocks, invents a bone needle, learns to fire pottery so it holds water, perfects various hunting techniques, learns to make soap and many other amazing things. The author freely admits to cramming millions or at least thousands of years of prehistoric civilization into one life so she can share as much of her amazing knowledge about prehistoric man as possible through Ayla's story. Oh gosh, I'm just as bad--this is not a brief synopsis (sorry!). (And I don't believe the earth is millions of years old, either, just so you'll know)

I found the story fascinating as it told about cave paintings, prehistoric dwellings, clothing, food, etc. One thing that struck me from page one of the series was the continual search for food that went on. Everywhere they walked, people carried a digging stick for roots and a bag to carry home the days provisions--prehistoric people were continually on the lookout for supper!

In fact, I think until the twentieth century, most people groups were on the lookout for supper! And all I have to do is go to the grocery store.

Which at last brings me to the point of this post!

You know how when you are at home, there's always something around to eat--might not be what you necesarily want, but it's there! But on a trip it is a whole 'nother story!

When we went to England, we were constantly hungry. We couldnt find 'quick stops' and we could only eat at meal time until we learned where to find food! It was horrible--waiting till meal time to eat!!!

Last week, when we were returning from Alaska, I got that same feeling. Yes, there was food in the airport all around us, but it wasn't what we wanted.

In Dallas, I began to feel like a primitive woman, foraging for food. Number one--the food is expensive. Number two, the Dallas airport is a huge oval shape with lots of places to find food, but they are all strung out around the place. Number three, our flight was delayed and it was 9:00 at night and those airport food people want to clean up their machines and go home!

For supper, all I wanted was Pizza and a coke. No problem, right? Wrong. I want Pizza Hut Pizza. I want diet Coca-Cola. Not some off brand of Pizza or Pepsi--yuck.

So. We found a Pizza Hut. Then Molly went to a machine and bought potato chips (another necessity for our pizza pig fest). And then I went in search of a Coke. I walked and I walked, and I hunted and I poked and pried with my digging stick to no avail. As my pizza grew cold, I realized that I was going to have to be satisfied with Diet Pepsi. Bummer. Pepsi just does not have that satisfying burn that Coke gives!

This is the end of my foraging tale. Perhaps it will change your view about going to the store. It's an annoying chore but at least you don't have to dig it up, wash it off, mash it, clean it, hit two stones together for fire and then scrape off the ashes and soot before consuming!

Just pull the wrapper off the honeybun and have at it!

And by the way, read the books for fun if it slightly interests you--you might just love 'em!