I headed out to the market early this morning because I had plans at 10:30. The place was crazy crowded anyway! The cool morning temperatures probably helped, though by the time I left the sun had come out and it was starting to get humid.

Today I went with a list. It looked like this:
fish
chicken
1 lb ground beef
fruit
cucumbers
cherry tomatoes
greens
2 ears corn

Here's what I actually got:
- fish (mmm grouper)
- chicken (whole)
- 1 lb ground beef (grass fed and grain finished. If I ever get the energy up to try a different market I hope to find 100% grass fed beef)
- blueberries (there was a severe shortage of stone fruit for it being peach season)
- cucumbers
- cherry tomatoes
- swiss chard
- 2 ears of corn
- three little green bell peppers
- a bag of white grits
- a slice of pound cake (for breakfast) and a slice of lemon blueberry meringue pie for Chris
- a loaf of multi-grain bread

So I got everything on my list and then some, but I didn't do too badly considering the great bounty of items spread before me. I also spent almost my entire budget this morning (I continue to blame the fish).

Then I went for a 2 hour bike ride and almost died of wheeziness and exhaustion.

Happy Saturday!

Today was my first Saturday at the North Hills farmer's market since sometime in May. I missed it! When I left the booths were full of greens and strawberries, but today they were full to bursting with squashes, berries, peppers, tomatoes, and summer. There were some notable absences due to the holiday weekend, but I managed to get a good selection of deliciousness anyway.

The haul:
- a pound of little summer squashes that are green on the bottom and yellow on the top
- pint of yellow cherry tomatoes
- jalapeno and habanero peppers (five of these cost me 20 cents)
- a green cucumber and two small yellow lemon cucumbers
- small bundle of skinny rhubarb, the first I've ever seen at the market
- string beans
- two varieties of garlic
- watermelon
- canteloupe
- blueberries
- blackberries
- a whole free range chicken
- some hot sausage from pastured pigs
- cherry hand pie for breakfast and a slice of blueberry cream cheese coffee cake

Now I just need to figure out how to turn all of this stuff into meals because they all kind of look like snacks to me.

Happy summer!

Chris: 1:05:51 37th place
Amber: 1:13:03 50th place

out of 62 participants

Yay! I wasn't last!

We did it!

Honestly, I'm amazed we got ourselves up at 5:30am on a Saturday to do this thing. After that, everything else seemed, if not easy, inevitable. I think there might have been a moment while we were waiting for our turns in the pool when we would have sprinted for the door and gone home, but we didn't. And, as predicted, we were the last ones out of the pool (the last ones in, too) and I was the last to cross the finish line. Because of staggered start times I'm hoping to learn that I wasn't actually the slowest, but we'll see.

Nathan and Robin came out to cheer us on and take lots of pictures. They even walked half of the run portion with me, and Robin did the whole thing. I was so far behind the last person that if she wasn't there I probably would have felt sorry for myself the whole time. Instead we chatted and I made it to the end. Hopefully they'll post pictures soon, but maybe none of me in my swimsuit.

Chris and I are fortunate to have found this great group of pleasant and supportive people who are more interested in having a good time than winning. Everyone was positive and encouraging, and as I passed people on the return portion of the bike route they were all smiles. I even got a biking high five!

In summary, yay!

Chris and I are participating in the Grueling Triathlon of Doom tomorrow, so I won't be able to go to the farmer's market. In fact, I'm booked with something or other every Saturday morning in June. I'm sad I'll miss out on tasty fresh veggies and seeing the offerings change every week with the season, but the summer bounty greeting me in July should be pretty awesome to behold.

So, yeah. Triathlon tomorrow. We tried all three pieces in a row at the gym last night and it worked great (except for the part that we just did a whole triathlon less than 36 hours before the real one). I'm more confident that I'll be able to finish barring a major bike emergency, and I think Chris is feeling better about his abilities in the pool. He ran almost the whole running part on the treadmill! I walked most of it.

We'll see how tomorrow goes! Wish us luck!

Today was the first day in a week that I ate three home cooked meals in a row, and it was lovely. Of course, the reason I wasn't cooking last week was also lovely. Chris and I decided to go out of town for Memorial Day/our anniversary/my birthday. We had a bit of trouble deciding where to go; he wanted to travel somewhere tropical and I wanted to avoid planes and long car trips because they both sounded like work to me. In the end, we decided on Big Mill Bed & Breakfast in Williamston, NC.

( This gets long because I start talking about food. )

It's the first day of our week-long vacation today, though we don't go out of town until tomorrow. The only reason I headed to the market this morning was to pick up some meat for the freezer. I rediscovered why I normally go around 9:30. Today we slept in til 10ish and by the time I got to the market everything had been picked over. The chicken people were out of chicken, there were no pork sausages left, and my favorite baker had sold out and gone already. I still managed to get some pork chops, the last grouper fillet, a loaf of wheat bread, and two coconut bars from the German baker. We'll miss market week #8.

Back next Sunday!

I just made strawberry jam!

(Posting this to all of the social networks I frequent because I'm just that excited.)

Last year I could buy something from every farmer at the market and stay within my budget (and come home with a good variety of veggies, besides). Now I find myself skipping almost half the tables there in favor of the people I feel most loyal to. I'm hoping that I'll branch out once summer comes and spring's lettuces, onions, and strawberries give way to more variety of fruits and veggies. Not that I'm complaining! I love my farmer's market.

Today:
- heirloom lettuce
- two mini baguettes from The Bread Shop, which we'll use as rolls with our...
- spicy pork sausage, from a new pork vendor
- snap peas, chard
- broccoli, asparagus
- beef chuck roast
- hothouse tomatoes (Chris came with me today and picked them out)
- strawberry rhubarb hand pie & tropical buttermilk pie (with coconut, pineapple, and lime)
- pear & blackberry cake cookies plus two pretzels from the German baker
- vanilla cashews & cinnamon roasted pecans (yum)

We didn't pick up any fish this week because we aren't planning on being home for dinner Friday night. We also didn't get any strawberries this week because we're going strawberry picking today! Chris took the day off and everything. We already have plans to make a strawberry clafoutis for breakfast, strawberry wine, and maybe some jam.

Now we just need to recover from those huge pancakes at Pam's Farmhouse restaurant so we can move from the couch and go to the farm.

My first responsibility at work every morning is scouring the local newspapers for articles relevant to North Carolina's schools. After doing this for a few months, I am convinced that the Fayetteville Observer is the most depressing newspaper on the planet. Just scanning their local news headlines every morning gives one the impression that they enjoy reporting on death and mayhem, because somehow even the very occasional neutral story ends up sounding sad and pathetic.

A typical example (bolded for emphasis):

* Hope Mills woman honored on "Regis and Kelly''
* Fayetteville police apprehend murder suspect
* New leader knows 7th Special Forces Group well
* Hennis lawyers allege witness tampering
* As soldiers for a day, spouses take a leap
* Whiteville man indicted in wedding day wreck
* Elizabethtown man dies from beating injuries
* Virginia fugitive arrested in Fayetteville motel
* Restaurant owner charged with ID theft
* Fayetteville woman charged in fatal wreck
* JFK Center gets new senior enlisted adviser
* Spring Lake police scandal leaves jumble of emotions
* Job opportunities scarce for new graduates
* Cheers and Jeers for May 9
* Fayetteville State approves building contractor
* N.C. Bar Association honors Grannis
* Work begins on 2nd downtown roundabout
* Study says recovery from autism possible
* NASCAR driver Jeremy Mayfield, two others fail drug test


Today, though, things were a bit different. Take a look (also bolded for emphasis):

* Gasoline prices rising again
* Robbers attack gospel choir teen, then apologize
* $1,140 bottle of vodka sold in Hope Mills
* Woman run over; friend charged
* Cumberland ABC board sees big profit for fiscal 2009
* Robeson storm damage estimated at $800,000
* Robbery victim pursues suspects through gunfire
* N.C. confirms 12th case of swine flu
* Robeson Smart Start disputes audit findings
* Fallen lawmen to be honored Wednesday
* Tea party, hat show planned in Laurinburg
* Horse owner sues Cumberland County
* Fort Bragg Green Beret featured on TV show
* Investors' lawsuit accuses pair of loan fraud
* 3 Fort Bragg soldiers leaving for new commands
* FSU nursing decision supported
* Cumberland school board approves $455.2 million budget
* Raeford robbery suspect sought
* New Hope shelter to help city's homeless
* Robeson schools OK optional furlough days
* Leaders salute community involvement at banquet
* Bill encourages cord blood donation
* Cheers and Jeers for Wednesday, May 13
* Bad times drain Social Security, Medicare coffers

It's not a dramatic difference, but just enough that I noticed. Maybe these couple of days of sunshine have improved an editor's mood?

It was a beautiful morning for the farmer's market, and I was one of only a billion people who thought so. The place was kind of packed. Of course, it's kind of fun with lots of people. That means that lots of kids are running around on the green and their parents can sit on benches and enjoy the band (bluegrass today). I don't mind lines at my favorite tables because it means everyone wins. After 45 minutes of humidity and waiting and running out of money, though, I was ready to go home.

Today's loot:
- 3lbs of grass fed ground beef for tomorrow's Mother's Day cook out
- another grouper fillet (our favorite fish so far)
- broccoli, asparagus, and zucchini from an impossible farm that straddles growing zones
- strawberries and onions with looooong green tops
- a spinach-like asian green whose name I have forgotten
- a loaf of experimental sourdough bread from The Bread Shop (the last one because it's way yummier than their previous sourdough from a dry starter)
- lemon chess pie (for sharing) and a strawberry rhubarb hand pie (for breakfast) from my favorite baker, who returned to the market this morning after a layoff during which her family adopted a little boy from Guatemala (one of the aforementioned kids running around on the green)
- cinnamon roasted pecans and vanilla roasted cashews (soooo delicious)
- a bavarian pretzel with the last bit of change in my pocket

It was a good morning.

P.S. Note the absence of lettuce. That's because I still have a bag leftover from last week.

Afternoon update - Bad news: it seems the mystery Asian green is a relative of mustard. Maybe Chris will eat it.

A phone number at Gold's Gym headquarters may be the most elusive thing on the internet. But I have one: 1-888-824-2331

I don't know if you can call something you've only done twice a hobby, but I've biked 10 miles in the last two days and I'm excited to go explore more of the city in search of the perfect longish stretch of bikable road. This, to me, sounds like an impending hobby.

So, Chris and I signed up for this crazy triathlon in February. The race itself is in June. After we signed up we realized that we neither owned bikes nor had easy access to a pool. Fortunately, Craigslist exists to help with half of that problem. We bought cheap bikes that don't really fit us several weeks ago and proceeded to park them in our living room.

Then, a couple of weeks ago, my ex-boss Jess and I set up a biking date for this past Saturday. She invited me out to Durham to try out the American Tobacco Trail, which is where the biking portion of the triathlon will be happening, anyway. I figured I'd try to make it the 6-mile race distance and see how I did, then I would know how much training I'll have to do this month to get up to the full distance. But you know what? I did it! 6 miles! I was so proud of myself.

Chris probably felt left out since he's doing this triathlon with me but couldn't come on the biking date, so Sunday we took the bikes back out, parked at the entrance to Schenck Forest, and headed (downhill) toward Umstead Park. The uphill climb back to the car was tough; my bike doesn't quite fit me and I'm terribly out of shape. The ride was worth it, though.

Later we used Google pedometer to calculate our distance and it looks like we went about 4 miles! Only 8 of those were uphill (felt like it, anyway). Also, check out the awesome USGS topo map feature on that site. I may never use another mapping utility again.

So now I have a bike, a bike rack, and a map of the Raleigh greenway system. I may not have many muscles or a cardiovascular system worth mentioning, but biking is great fun even without them.

Next up: swimming. I'm a bit terrified of that portion of the race.

If salads are your thing, get yourself to the North Hills Farmer's Market immediately. The place is positively bursting with lettuces. We're not a big lettuce family though we did start trying to eat more salads last week. I guess we'll be building on that effort for the first week of May.

What I got:
- heirloom lettuce and arugula
- head of lettuce that's a hybrid of butter lettuce and romaine
- broccoli
- purplish spring onions
- strawberries
- beef soup bones & a pound of pork sausage
- Black Drum fillets
- a packet of chipotle pepper flakes (from the guy who sells stone ground grits) to put in my next batch of grits or cornbread

Poll #1391809 Choosing a vacation
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

If you had a week off and some money saved up and could only choose one type of vacation, would you:

Today was the first time that I had to go to an ATM while shopping to get more cash for the farmer's market, and I blame the fish. I also got a call from Emily this morning because she and the baby were on their way to the market and she hoped I would still be there. So I put my food in the car (in the parking deck, so sun wasn't a problem) and bought a cone of cinnamon roasted pecans from a vendor and a vanilla frappucino from Starbucks and waited for them. It was a beautiful morning. The market was packed with happy people browsing, talking, and listening to the band play on the green. This market is the highlight of my week.

Notable:
- london broil from Meadow Lane Beef (Emily picked up some ground beef)
- ground chicken from S&L Farm (too expensive, won't do that again)
- butterflied trout from the fishermen, flown in from Colorado (I'm going to stuff them with whatever's left in the crisper drawer on Friday)
- heirloom salad greens and arugula
- kale
- rainbow chard
- strawberries
- asparagus (I'm making soup this week) and those awesome garlic leek things
- a small flat of mini bell pepper plants
- a loaf of ciabatta from The Bread Shop (they had me at samples)
- more tasty pastries from the German bakers, this time lemon squares and a tart cherry cake

I also picked up some literature this week:
- Franklin County is sponsoring a locavore dinner during it's farm tour May 16-17. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased from S&L Farm at the market.
- Jackson Farm and Pamela Clark at the Thyme Savor are teaming up to offer Victory Garden classes, which will include both cooking and canning. I have a schedule for May and June and would love to go. Classes are $35/person.
- I scouted out some pick your own strawberries places and came home with directions to the farm where I bought all my hot peppers last year. The woman who works there is very nice and that heavily influenced my decision. There were many strawberry farms to choose from, but I enjoy my relationship with this one. Hopefully we can find some free time to do that soon.
- I also brought home a copy of Edible Piedmont magazine which is tormenting me with its articles on shallots, rhubarb, and ramps -- none of which I've seen at the market so far this year.

"There's no evidence of the Lincoln Memorial if you look the other way and refuse to turn around. But if you care to look, it's really quite impressive."

- Jim Carrey, Huffington Post
The judgment on vaccines is in??

Note to commenters: Be pleasant to each other. I know and like you all and you may have to meet in person at some future occasion so don't say anything in a tone you'll regret.

I'm posting this here because I don't like to post notes on Facebook.

( movie list )

Another great haul at the North Hills farmer's market this week. There were more vegetables this week and some strawberries, but the bread people weren't there. Or maybe they hadn't arrived yet -- I got there just after it opened.

This morning I achieved a goal that I set for myself after reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle a couple of years ago: to buy asparagus from local farmers while it's in season. I plan on having it with my bagel and eggs for breakfast this week. Might need to make myself up a quick hollandaise sauce to go with it.

Haul:
- 1 lb of beef short ribs (for the smoker)
- 1 lb of NC coast red grouper (for Friday)
- a giant beef liver, the result of a misunderstanding with the other beef vendor last weekend (if my cat won't eat it, what do I do with liver? Anyone have any non-livery recipes to recommend?)
- kale and chard from Double-T Farm
- daikon greens (yum) and pea shoots (double yum) from Edible Earthscape Farm
- strawberries! and asparagus!
- giant garlicky leeks
- a plum pastry (for Chris' breakfast) and a pretzel (for me) from the German bakery

I'm putting together a nice meaty and cheesy menu for this coming week, the first after Pascha. This is fun!

Today was opening day of the North Hills farmer's market and I dragged myself out of bed early so I could get out there before the liturgy of St Lazarus this morning. I'm glad I did! It was so much fun seeing all of the familiar faces of the farmers I hadn't seen since the fall. Everyone was friendly and happy and they all had amazing food (and other things) to offer.

This morning I came home with:

- a potted basil plant for Chris
- a pound of pastured ground beef, also for Chris
- three pounds of spicy sausage from pastured pigs (I'm sad because my favorite pork people aren't going to be back this year, so no more bratwurst for us)
- a bag of chicken wings
- eggs from Chris' boss' chickens, who happen to be near the farmer's market
- cake and a pretzel from the new German bakers at the market (yum)
- cinnamon swirl bread and hamburger buns from Pittsboro's The Bread Shop
- beets and cilantro from Edible Earthscape Farm
- chard, kale, and broccoli rabe from Tom at Double T Farm (we had a winter CSA with him that just ended last week)
- carrots from the only African American farmers at the market
- stone ground yellow corn grits from a guy in Rocky Mount
- a promise to buy some fish next week off of the new fishermen at the market: Southport Seafood Company
- a goats milk soap sample

It was a good haul and a great way to spend the morning. Can't wait to go back next week!