In this moment I’m grateful for how many fellow humans are showing the fungi some love. Thanks friends.

I’m taking an opportunity to promote an intriguing offering from local Dartmoor based artist Léonie Hampton who is currently The MRC Centre for Medical Mycology’s artist in residence. She’s created a short film called “Our Body is a Planet” that is part of an exploration of collaboration between art and science in the field of Mycology. I intend to tune in online and am curious what other work and projects come from this collaboration. I hope that while the film honours the challenging situations we face there is a healthy balance of the beautiful and empowering. Below I’ve copied the event info and a link to book yourself a free online or in-person ticket for the event – maybe see you there?

Peace and Mush Love,

Chris Forest

Text from the event web page: https://exeterphoenix.org.uk/events/our-body-is-a-plant/

The MRC Centre for Medical Mycology’s artist in residence, Léonie Hampton, will be premiering her film “Our Body is a Planet” at the Exeter Phoenix and online. 

Online ticket holders will be sent a link to this event 24 Hour before it takes place.

The screening will be followed by a discussion about the film’s art/science collaboration between Léonie and Professor Neil Gow, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Impact and Professor of Microbiology at the University of Exeter. The conversation will be facilitated by Sarah Campbell, Associate Director of Arts and Culture, University of Exeter. 

Our Body is a Planet is a short film that challenges the way we think of ourselves as individual genetically prescribed entities, independent from our surroundings. Without fungi and bacteria our bodies and biosphere would not exist; we are in partnership with the microbial world. Our bodies are made up of more microbial cells that our own ‘human’ cells. This symbiotic life sustaining alliance is under threat, partly as a result of the colossal scale of the destructive practices wrought by humans on the planet during the age of the anthropocene.  The delicate balance between living bodies and the world is in danger.  Fungi are being forced to adapt to changing environments and this is leading to an increase in fungal pathogens and the spread of new diseases.  Today, mostly as a result of modern medicine, HIV, and probably climate change the number of lethal fungal infections is increasing, killing 1.5 million people a year. If these practices continue to grow scientists warn that we will face a medical emergency with an increase in drug resistance, and the threat of fungal virulence due to climate change.

Simultaneously there is so much to be gained from the study of fungi; about which we still understand very little.  They offer us collective, resilient, regenerative ways of being that might in turn lead us back to a more balanced partnership with the microbial world and one another. The symbiotic and pathogenic pathways of fungi challenge our animal imaginations and mechanistic modern systems of life, offering new possibilities of how we might learn to “live and die well together on a damaged planet” *

*Quote Anna Tsing, The Mushroom at the end of the World

Image caption: Aspergillus fumigatus, a fungus that plays a major role in composting and regeneration of organic matter in our world, but can also become pathogenic and deadly.

Image credit: Léonie Hampton of Still/Moving working in collaboration with Elaine Bignell’s Team at the CMM.

In this moment I am grateful for the Monday morning abundance and friendly volunteers at the Tavistock Community Fridge and for the warmth of the library which is my office for the day.

Feels good to be back in the office and sharing some more news and stories with you. On Saturday I ventured back into Plymouth for the first time since my gears broke and went on a mission to connect with some people. I spent a couple of days there for the first time since I moved down to this part of the country and found some amazing places, met some lovely folk and got really inspired by all the opportunities I saw to offer my work there. I decided to go retreat to the moor for a bit of rest and integration time before heading back to continue the adventure recharged but my gears broke and I wasn’t able to go back.

On Saturday I visited Farleys Food Coop where I had a lovely chat with one of their customers and treated myself to a discounted loaf of rye sourdough from Heyl Bakery which is very tasty, with a noticeable sour edge which I appreciate. I get a bit disappointed by how little sour flavour I get from a lot of sourdough bread. Could definitely be more sour for my tastes though 🙂

I also dropped into the Buddha Hut coffee shop to say hi and had a lovely connection with Joe who started that business. They’ve recently moved from their first location to a very spacious premises on Cornwall Street. They serve CBD infused coffees and a range of other food, drink and other CBD based products. I have a deep connection with the beautiful Cannabis plant, from which CBD is extracted, so I’m grateful for a space where I can go hang out with folk who share that connection. I was very grateful to Joe for taking me over to visit The Little Hemp Shop’s stall, in the undercover market opposite Buddha Hut, when we discovered we all have a passion for both cannabis and mushrooms. The Little Hemp Shop sells some medicinal mushroom products and Joe seems interested in incorporating mushrooms into what he is offering. That got me dreaming into what opportunities there are for collaboration. I felt like both these businesses are coming from a place of wanting to collaborate for mutual benefit and that really excited me. Buddha Hut serve the coffee that The Little Hemp Shop produce and they both signpost customers to the other business which feels like a really lovely way to do things and definitely the approach I want to cultivate with The Lovely Fungus Company. I’d like to carry on building connections with these businesses (and their humans) and I’m curious to see where that leads us.

Other news is that I have started putting together some offerings related to mushroom cultivation so if that is something you’d like to get involved with or know more about then please do send me a message and keep looking back at the ‘Offerings‘ page.

I’m also considering doing a pre-sale of fresh oyster and/or shiitake mushrooms that can be purchased now and will be delivered in September 2022 (that’s this year). I did a small experiment with this when I was working on Megys Orth Fungi and it went really well so I’m wondering whether to do it again on a bigger scale. By getting the money now and having until September to deliver the product I would gain access to the money now, at a time when money is a resource that I have very little of and none coming in currently. Having the foundation of enough cash to cover my basic needs (I live simply and relatively cheaply) would enable me to focus on building this business and give myself a sustainable, actually regenerative, livelihood to support myself and others long term. Let me know if you want to help by taking up one of my offerings, telling me what I could offer you that would be of value to you or messaging me with any other offers or ideas of how to support me. Thank you in advance – you’re awesome!

Thanks for reading this and I look forward to sharing some more exciting news and stories soon. Feel free to send me your mushroom and fungi stories – that’d make my day really special.

Peace and Mush Love,

Chris Forest

In this moment I am grateful for being able to drive backwards and for having a fire in my van to warm myself up on a beautiful frosty morning.

So, after a week of stress from having convinced myself I was going to have a mechanics bill running into the hundreds of pounds (or more!) at a time when I’m very cash poor I finally dropped Ivan off and went for a walk in the park to await the verdict. A deep breath upon returning to the garage and I was given the news that £33 later and a cable tie to make extra sure (they didn’t even charge me for the tie) and I can use my reverse and 5th gears again. What a relief and thanks to my mum for covering the cost of those repairs with a bit extra for some food and firewood to keep me going.

My lesson from all this has been the power of the stories we tell ourselves. I spent a week waiting for my time at the garage telling myself the story that it was going to be expensive and a big hassle which was a stressful thing to be waiting for and in this case totally untrue. I could have told myself the story that I didn’t know what the cost or time of repairs would be, I’d got the earliest slot I could at the local garage to find out what the situation was and until then I could do the best with still being able to drive forward and get stuck into the work, and play, I want to be doing in the world. How different would my week have been and what might I have achieved if I’d told myself that second story? I don’t know and at times I was telling myself that second story and I did get through the experience and even managed to launch this website despite the many challenges I’m experiencing at the moment.

The exciting news I want to share with you from today is that I launched a new ‘Offerings‘ page on the website which is where I will be displaying the fungi based products, services and experiences I am currently offering. On that page you will find details of a fungi and tree themed experience of connection and nourishment facilitated by me in a woodland setting. I’ll do another post just about that offering soon but do take a look and if you’re interested then please send me a message.

Lastly I’d like to make a request for you to tell me what fungi based products, services and experiences you would like to have access to. There are so many things I could do but not all of them are necessarily what the folk I connect with through this business actually want at this time. So please let me know what I can offer you that’ll get you excited and bring something of real value to your life. That’s the work I want to be doing with you and our fungal friends.

Peace and Mush Love,

Chris Forest

In this moment I am grateful for friends, family and fungi. I’m also grateful for my love of alliteration.

Yesterday evening I had a very supportive and celebratory phone call with my friend Sanna who is probably my biggest cheerleader with this journey of starting a fungi based business. Thanks Sanna and to my sister, mum and various other friends who I spoke to over the afternoon and evening. When times get more challenging I’ve learned that I’m far more able to meet them and make progress when I have social connection and a few words of encouragement. Hugs definitely help too.

This afternoon my van/home is in the garage to work out what’s broken on the gears, how much it’ll cost and how long he’ll be out of action. I’m grateful for offers of a place to sleep if he needs to be kept over night and I’m still trusting that I’ll find a way to pay for the repairs. It’ll be good to know what we’re dealing with and I’m keeping my fingers and toes crossed that the bill is on the cheaper end of the spectrum. Wish us luck!

Over the next few days I will be working to launch a few offerings for some nourishing experiences of connection with fungi and fellow fungi lovers. Keep a look out for posts and a new Offerings page that will be appearing as things develop. I’m excited to see how they land, who’s interested and what grows from them.

Have a beautiful and fungi filled day wherever you are and whatever this day brings you.

Peace and Mush Love,

Chris Forest

In this moment I am grateful for public spaces, particularly the Tavistock Library where I’m able to use the internet and launch this website.

The photo above is of me (Chris Forest) woodchip mulching some wild garlic at a market garden in Cornwall. Last year I started Megys Orth Fungi which was my first attempt at setting up a business that would enable me to create a livelihood for myself, based on my love for fungi. I learned so much from that journey and although, for now, that project has been let go of, this new year brings my second version – The Lovely Fungus Company. It’s all about showing the fungi some love and having a lovely, nourishing connection with each other – you, me and the fungi.

At this point I’m looking to put together some products, services and experiences to put out into the world and see what’s of most value to the folk I connect with. Together we’ll build this business from doing that work. I intend to keep this blog updated with progress and what’s coming up and would love to focus on building a mailing list to create a mycelial web of connection with fungi loving people who’d like to engage with me and this business in some way.

If you’d like to come along with me on this journey I’d love your company and connection. Please send me a message or sign up to the mailing list on the home page). Any questions, feedback, offers of support or collaboration and any lovely fungus stories you really want to share are very welcome and encouraged.

That’s it for this post and means I’m nearly at website launch point. I hope I can celebrate and let this be one of many celebrations that come from working on this project. I’m currently working out how to get my van (which is my home) repaired and ready for action. As I’m currently supplementing my food from the local foodbank and definitely don’t have access to the cash to get repairs done things can feel a bit stressful and overwhelming at the moment. I could easily get lost in that and not celebrate the achievements of the day and I’m going to do my best to make sure I do make space for it.

I’ll end with some deep and heartfelt gratitude for all the people, known and unknown, who are supporting me through this challenging time and have got me to where I am today. Gratitude also to the fungi and for the life we all share.

Peace and Mush Love,

Chris Forest