(no subject)
I'm sure I'll eventually get out an edition of the Fluff & Fold Report again, but every time I sit down to try some unseen villain pours my brain full of toxic sludge, and all those lovely words don't seem to be able to get through it.
I think I can manage a mini weekend report, though.
Yesterday had to have been about the most perfect day this summer has produced this year, mildly warm with low humidity, lots of sun and a lovely breeze. It was a perfect day to be outside. It was a most perfect day for a music festival, the Flint Folk Music Festival to be exact.
With a cooler full of snacks and beverages we headed out for the day, arriving at the park in Flint more than an hour before the music was scheduled to get underway. Not wanting to just sit around for that much time when we'd be sitting for much of the next 7-8 hours anyway we decided to check out the Flint Farmer's Market, which is just across I-475 from the park hosting the festival.
Granted, it's less than 1/3 the size of my beloved Eastern Market, but it is a charming little farmer's market with several features I really like. At Eastern Market you don't have much way of knowing who's a local farmer and who's picking up import goods down at the produce terminal unless you've been shopping there since you were a kid and just know everybody. The Flint Farmer's Market has lovely little signs hanging over each stall with the proprietor's name and where they're from. This still doesn't guarantee local goods, but it does make them easier to hunt down. We saw a few California peaches and Kentucky tomatoes (and just why would you even consider those flavorless, textureless atrocities when our local stuff is in season?). Another thing I very much enjoyed was the presence of artisans and craftsman. I wish Detroit would open their market to artisans---it would help fill some of those empty stalls. There has been talk about it on and off for years, but nothing ever comes of the talk.
If we had been going home and/or equipped with a larger cooler I would have been taking home lots of goodies. There was a deli and a cheese shop and several bakeries that had me drooling as well as all those fresh fruits and veggies. And a turkey farm shop that had some excellent prices on turkey products. In the end we just snagged a basket of cherry tomatoes to add to our snacks for the day. They were the first thing we grabbed for when we were munching, and the first thing to disappear. Yummy!
The festival was fabulous. Whether it was because it was free this year, because it was a wonderful day to be in the park, or because this year's lineup included Michigan roots music legends and Grammy nominated artists, they had a HUGE turnout. And the music was amazing. It always is. There's just something about live music. This is going to sound decidedly odd, but even just sitting there in the audience, listening, somehow attending a live show (as opposed to listening to a CD or such) feels participatory.
It was midnight before we got home, and crawled into bed.
Today is a quiet, catch up on chores and naps day. We had breakfast with Paul's brother Russ, and hit the farm stand to buy corn and peaches and tomatoes. The new family is doing alright with the farm stand. I'm glad.
Good news: My blood cell counts are down slightly, so we're just going to monitor that situation for now. Bad news: My blood pressure is back up again (and it was for my gyn appointment last week, too). Dr. Raad is giving me 6 weeks to show progress through lifestyle changes. After that we talk medication.
It turns out that all of our "volunteer" tomato plants are White Currant. Not a single one of them turned out to be the dreaded Grape. I can't decide if this means the ground squirrels liked the White Currants better, and therefore stole more of them, or didn't like them, discarding half eaten fruits. Either way it's a win for us. Those itty bitty White Currant tomatoes are like candy. I can't wait for them to star ripening.
You can only see one tomato plant here. It is nearly 6 feet tall, 7 feet wide and 3 1/2 feet deep. It has grown right over the small volunteer tomatoes underneath it (which are doing just fine under there), and smothered the transplanted lavender. There are more than 4 dozen tomatoes on it that I can find so far. Ungodly! Michigan folk and blues legend Peter "Madcat" Ruth. The man is amazing!
Time to toddle off and finish the laundry.
I think I can manage a mini weekend report, though.
Yesterday had to have been about the most perfect day this summer has produced this year, mildly warm with low humidity, lots of sun and a lovely breeze. It was a perfect day to be outside. It was a most perfect day for a music festival, the Flint Folk Music Festival to be exact.
With a cooler full of snacks and beverages we headed out for the day, arriving at the park in Flint more than an hour before the music was scheduled to get underway. Not wanting to just sit around for that much time when we'd be sitting for much of the next 7-8 hours anyway we decided to check out the Flint Farmer's Market, which is just across I-475 from the park hosting the festival.
Granted, it's less than 1/3 the size of my beloved Eastern Market, but it is a charming little farmer's market with several features I really like. At Eastern Market you don't have much way of knowing who's a local farmer and who's picking up import goods down at the produce terminal unless you've been shopping there since you were a kid and just know everybody. The Flint Farmer's Market has lovely little signs hanging over each stall with the proprietor's name and where they're from. This still doesn't guarantee local goods, but it does make them easier to hunt down. We saw a few California peaches and Kentucky tomatoes (and just why would you even consider those flavorless, textureless atrocities when our local stuff is in season?). Another thing I very much enjoyed was the presence of artisans and craftsman. I wish Detroit would open their market to artisans---it would help fill some of those empty stalls. There has been talk about it on and off for years, but nothing ever comes of the talk.
If we had been going home and/or equipped with a larger cooler I would have been taking home lots of goodies. There was a deli and a cheese shop and several bakeries that had me drooling as well as all those fresh fruits and veggies. And a turkey farm shop that had some excellent prices on turkey products. In the end we just snagged a basket of cherry tomatoes to add to our snacks for the day. They were the first thing we grabbed for when we were munching, and the first thing to disappear. Yummy!
The festival was fabulous. Whether it was because it was free this year, because it was a wonderful day to be in the park, or because this year's lineup included Michigan roots music legends and Grammy nominated artists, they had a HUGE turnout. And the music was amazing. It always is. There's just something about live music. This is going to sound decidedly odd, but even just sitting there in the audience, listening, somehow attending a live show (as opposed to listening to a CD or such) feels participatory.
It was midnight before we got home, and crawled into bed.
Today is a quiet, catch up on chores and naps day. We had breakfast with Paul's brother Russ, and hit the farm stand to buy corn and peaches and tomatoes. The new family is doing alright with the farm stand. I'm glad.
Good news: My blood cell counts are down slightly, so we're just going to monitor that situation for now. Bad news: My blood pressure is back up again (and it was for my gyn appointment last week, too). Dr. Raad is giving me 6 weeks to show progress through lifestyle changes. After that we talk medication.
It turns out that all of our "volunteer" tomato plants are White Currant. Not a single one of them turned out to be the dreaded Grape. I can't decide if this means the ground squirrels liked the White Currants better, and therefore stole more of them, or didn't like them, discarding half eaten fruits. Either way it's a win for us. Those itty bitty White Currant tomatoes are like candy. I can't wait for them to star ripening.
You can only see one tomato plant here. It is nearly 6 feet tall, 7 feet wide and 3 1/2 feet deep. It has grown right over the small volunteer tomatoes underneath it (which are doing just fine under there), and smothered the transplanted lavender. There are more than 4 dozen tomatoes on it that I can find so far. Ungodly! Michigan folk and blues legend Peter "Madcat" Ruth. The man is amazing!
Time to toddle off and finish the laundry.