Time of mellow fruitlessness

Because the radiation treatment I am presently undergoing is likely to harm, temporarily, the lining of my gut, I have been told to follow a strict diet. Out go fruit and vegetables, bread, smelly cheeses, spices, pretty well all the reasons for finding Mediterranean life rather agreeable. In come prodigious quantities of bland stuff: rice above all, pasta (not wholemeal), couscous etc., but without the bonus of a nice tasty sauce. The effect, in terms of reduction of what is politely termed 'bulk residue', is quite dramatic. To top it all, I have to consume very large amounts of water. So what time I save in cutting down on solid evacuation I make up for and more in the other, liquid one.

Protein inputs, on the other hand, have to be increased substantially, but not fried or greasy. However, when this means putting up with simply baked, plain, ultra-fresh mackerel, stiffly straight off the boat, it isn't too much of a penance. Even without the horseradish or gooseberries...

Other than that, morale is good and time spent on the boats is uplifting as well as healthy.