Solid answer....!

Happy Birthday: William Dampier (1651 – March 1715) was an English explorer, pirate, privateer and naturalist who became the first Englishman to explore parts of what is today Australia, and the first person to circumnavigate the world three times. He has also been described as Australia's first natural historian, as well as one of the most important British explorers of the period between the 16th-century explorer Sir Francis Drake and the 18th-century explorer James Cook; he "bridged those two eras" with a mix of piratical derring-do of the former and scientific inquiry of the latter.

Dampier's expeditions were among the first to identify and name a number of plants, animals, foods and cooking techniques for a European audience, being among the first English writers to use words such as avocado, barbecue and chopsticks. In describing the preparation of avocados, he was the first European to describe the making of guacamole, named the breadfruit plant, and made frequent documentation of the taste of numerous foods foreign to the European palate at the time, such as flamingo and manatee.

After impressing the Admiralty with his book A New Voyage Round the World, Dampier was given command of a Royal Navy ship and made important discoveries in western Australia, before being court-martialed for cruelty. On a later voyage he rescued Alexander Selkirk, a former crewmate who may have inspired Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe. Others influenced by Dampier include George Anson, James Cook, Horatio Nelson, Charles Darwin, and Alfred Russel Wallace.

Jonathan Swift mentions Dampier in his Gulliver's Travels as a mariner comparable to Lemuel Gulliver, and the novel itself occasionally parodies Dampier's travel books as well as other tales of exploration.

He is cited over 80 times in the Oxford English Dictionary, notably on words such as "barbecue", "avocado", "chopsticks", and "subspecies". That is not to say he coined the words, but his use of them in his writings is the first known example in English.

He recorded the first English language recipes for guacamole and mango chutney.

[Side Note: He was baptised on 5 September, but his precise date of birth is not recorded]

Just Finished Reading: Ultra-Processed People – Why Do We All Eat Stuff That Isn't Food... and Why Can't We Stop? By Chris van Tulleken (FP: 2023) 

Growing up my mother cooked most of our meals from scratch (wonderful substance and SO versatile). She'd be in the kitchen chopping, mixing, heating and produce decent filling meals. She was never a great cook – except maybe for her scones which I miss to this day – but we never went hungry no matter the circumstance. Of course, some of the food was more processed, coming in tins (how could we possibly live without Heinz baked beans?) and sometimes packets (when ready meals started coming out in the later 70's and mother & I started experimenting with curries (which my older brother called 'foreign muck'!) and chillies. But it was only later, when I went to university in the early 80's that I started having what would probably be called ULTRA processed food - essentially 'food' that had more contact with a factory than it did with a farm. After we moved off campus in our 2nd year we ate some very questionable food essentially because it was dirt cheap. After reading this book I now understand more just why it was so cheap and exactly why we kept going back for more. 

In essence I am a lazy eater. Some of my friends are (or have been) very food focused and enjoy both preparing and eating food of a wide variety. Food, apart from the basic need of consuming it or dying, has never really interested me. Naturally there are foods I like to eat and some that I still miss after becoming a vegetarian 25+ years ago, but I don't obsess over it. My brother often said that if he could take a pill each day and didn't need to eat anything else he would do so. I'm not QUITE that bad but I appreciate where he's coming from. Although I do get some pleasure from food that pleasure is not my primary motivation for eating it. In essence, at least to me, food is mostly about fuelling the body. Anything else is, all joking aside, garnish. 

With that out of the way [grin] what has that got to do with this interesting and alarming book? I think that's there's two ways of looking at it – personal and global. From a global point of view, we've seen a significant increase in obesity just about everywhere as well as an increase in the number and severity of numerous other diet related health issues. At the same time (surely not coincidental) is the creation and explosive growth of 'food' that wouldn't be recognised as such by previous generations. Although it might be difficult to PROVE that one actually CAUSES the other – not unlike smoking despite the fact that the link between it and cancer has been clear for some time now – it's not too difficult to show the likelihood of a link. So, there's that... 

On a more personal level I don't think that my eating habits are producing any obvious health related issues. I've had eczema (for example) all of my life – it runs in the family – and these days any flare up is a rare occurrence and (normally) quickly relents. Nothing else comes to mind. I did gain weight from my 40's onwards – after being the same weight for decades no matter what I ate – but that's likely to be metabolism/age related rather than diet. I've gained some more weight since retiring but, again, I think that's mostly activity rather than diet related. Like most people I do eat 'junk' from time to time knowing that it's not 'real' food. I used to be a great fan of Pringles – which, interestingly, gets its own CHAPTER in this book – but haven't indulged in a while (and probably never will again after reading this!). I still eat crisps (or 'chips' to my American readers) probably more than I should but I think I need to odd 'vice' to tide me over. It's not like I'm living off them. So, although I do periodically indulge in UPF (Ultra-Processed Food) I think I do so in moderation. [Side note: despite knowing the chemical concoction that is the MacDonalds 'strawberry' milkshake I still low-level crave it every time I pass a MaccyD's....] 

One of the things I will be doing going forward is spending more time READING ingredients lists on the things I buy (or am thinking of buying). The author gives some rule-of-thumb ways (some I'm sure are a little tongue in cheek) for spotting UPF: It comes in a plastic bag; it has more than 5 ingredients [Side note: My local supermarket sells its own brand Tortilla chips that has 3 – Maize flour, Rapeseed oil & Salt... and they're SUPER cheap too!], it has a LONG shelf life, it contains flavours, colours or both. It's not hard and fast that its UPF if it has one or two of these but if it has more than two... it's probably not real food. 

I'm only really scratching the surface of what this book covers and I'm missing out evidence of environmental damage, transportation costs, pollution, unknown or long-term health risks, damage to existing local or indigenous food supplies, control of what we eat by a handful of GIANT corporations... and so it goes. I think that the fact we call it a food INDUSTRY kind of gives the game away. Although I don't think that this is as life changing or impactful as some of the blurb comments make out, I think it'll encourage people (including me) to ask many more questions about what we eat and what it's doing to us and our world. More on Food and Health to come (as they're two subjects I know FAR too little about). Recommended unless it might tip you into paranoia!  

Welcome to September. We Made It! I hope that you enjoyed my Summer of Pop Culture. As the kids go back to school here this week I'm dedicating (as usual) the month to all things School, Education, Learning & Teaching related. Lets go LEARN something!

Just Finished Reading: Till September Petronella by Jean Rhys [53pp] 

This was a small collection of four short stories dominated very much by the titled work which ran to 35 pages. Although well written and very 'visual' I did struggle with it more than a little. Essentially (without given too much away) it revolved around the eponymous Petronella who had just arrived at a cottage 'in the country' - AKA outside London – at the invitation of a male friend presumably with the intention of 'having a good time'. Another couple was already there but Petronella quickly soured of the idea and managed to get a life from a local farmer to the railway station and went back to the city - with the farmer hoping to meet up with her next time he was 'in town' presumably for a 'good time'. That was essentially it... Which I thought was more than a little flat! 

Other stories – all well written – revolved around a wife getting revenge on her recently departed husband by destroying his beloved library on a bonfire in the garden and an old woman who is deprived of her LONG hair (which she loves) during a stay in hospital. Again, these stories fell rather flat as they all seemed to lack a recognisable narrative 'flow' despite, I'll say again, being well written. 

The only story I really liked was the last one – a mere TWO pages long – called 'I Used to Live Here Once', where the main character returns to a childhood home in the West Indies and is presented with an unexpected revelation. The 'twist' at the end caught me completely by surprise which I liked!  

Will I be looking out for any more of her work? Possibly not... but its always good to dip a toe to see if a new author will appeal. Reasonable.