Farmer's Market Fridays - 8/26/11

Oh, Farmer's Market Fridays...I knew from the start that what we shared this summer had an expiration date; however, that didn't make our last day together any less difficult.  Next Friday I'll be back at work and I don't have a Friday off until long after the market has ended for the year.  (But sometimes I can only get doctor appointments on Friday mornings - cough! cough! - so we may meet again.)

It was sad to say my good-byes to all my Friday friends - Chuck at yoga (though I can see him other days during the school year), Mike from Avalon, Amy and Charlie from Living Stones, and Farmer Glen from Chelsea, MI.  Of course either Katie or my mom will continue to pick up our CSA share, so I'll still get that each week.  And if I want a date bar I know my mom would grab one for me.  It just isn't the same as being there, though.  And all the potatoes and carrots that my mom could get for me from Farmer Glen just won't cut it when I don't get to hear him say, "Take 'er easy!" when we say good-bye.  sigh.  The memories.  I wore my sunglasses so no one could see my tears.  (Just kidding - the real tears will come NEXT Friday when reality sets in.)

I'm thankful that it was a perfect summer day for my last one at the market.  All the produce was bright and bountiful.  I sort of wanted to buy everything but managed to exercise great restraint.  (Our refrigerator only holds so much.)  I bought a huge watermelon from Farmer Glen that I'll cut up for Brian's birthday dinner on Sunday.  I also bought 2 quarts of the amazing peaches to share with Katie so I can make peach crisp.  Mmmmm, I can't wait!

Flaming Fury peaches from Kapnick Orchard

A HUGE watermelon from Farmer Glen

In the CSA share today we got the following:

• 2 bunches of beets (1 red, 1 golden)
• 2 bunches of kale (1 red curly, 1 dinosaur)
• 4 big tomatoes
• 3 jalapeno peppers
• 2 Thai peppers
• 1 cantaloupe
• 2 summer squash
• 2 patty pan squash
• 2 bell peppers
• 2 eggplants

CSA share

By the time I had all that, plus the watermelon, peaches, a package of cookies for Brian, and 2 date bars*, I could barely carry everything back to the car!  I definitely got in my strength workout for the day!

Since we've gone to Starbucks the past few weeks, my mom and I went to Panera Cares today for our coffee.  Since they're non-profit, it's always nice to go there and give a little extra to help out those who don't have enough money for a good meal.

I'm going to head out now for my run and then cool off with a refreshing Banana Chamomile Smoothie.  Maybe I'll sit out on the patio, sip that, and do the crossword puzzle.  Yes, that sounds like a great thing to do on this gorgeous summer day.

Happy Friday!

*The 2nd date bar is for my friend Aaron, who has been dropping not-so-discreet hints about me bringing one to boot camp for him on Saturday.  I thought he might need a little motivation to get out of bed in the morning!  This is also a test to see if he actually reads my blog posts.