Southern Belle Hampering my ‘Buy Local; ethos!

For the first time in three years, I can look forward to my first overseas tour job since March 2020 – it will be travelling to the Caribbean, which involves two short flights between islands.

There is no bigger incentive to diet than having to admit your weight and luggage capacity before boarding. On return from a tour conference to Turkey, in November, my scales and I both groaned and operation ‘cut back’ was set in motion and frankly (to date) is working quite well.

I have no preconceptions that I will be ‘bikini ready’ by February but then I haven’t been bikini ready since 1978. New tour, new round of ‘where are you off on holiday next’, ‘can I hide in your case’ and ‘you are so lucky’. Having involved a couple of my friends in some of my ‘work’ last summer, they now agree that they would not want my job. It took one only an hour to concede!

Fortunately, working 16 hours a day for two weeks straight, continually smiling and visiting fabulous places, with great clients is a joy for me and I can’t wait to get back into the swing of things. The summer will also bring the incoming groups from New Zealand and Australia again and I am excited to see them.

I understand that my work has more influence on the climate than a herd of cows farting but in my defence I am a bore (to friends and clients alike) about buying local, using local services and drinking from the tap!

That’s unlike a hamper which arrived recently. While clearly pushing the ethical sustainable line (I would have been happier with a selection of haggis and sausages) it clearly missed the air miles implication of the following: nuts from Dublin (clearly not grown there); biscuits from Australia and Sweden; cake from Italy; olive oil from Greece; crackers from India; and tea packed in the EU having been flown from Rwanda.

The only product boasting British origin was … popcorn! Presumably made from USA corn. This from a generation who think we got it all wrong! What’s wrong with Scottish rapeseed oil, oatcakes, shortbread, clootie dumpling, tablet, Ecclefechan tart and Irn Bru. Now that’s a hamper. Diet over!