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  • Last Day of School; Mom Cries for No Apparent Reason

    getting on the school bus

     

    It kills you to see them grow up.

    But I guess it would kill you quicker if they didn’t.

    ~Barbara Kingsolver

     

    Here is the last time I will see baby girl as a kindergarten student; she will return to me as a first grader.

    Knowing my oldest is in middle school next year– or driving in three years– doesn’t make me feel nearly as old as knowing my youngest is a big girl now.

    And I know that the years will only go more quickly now, that they will make friends, join teams, have homework and jobs to do, and they will need me less and less. I’ve always raised them with this in mind– that you parent so that you will no longer be needed– but still. I find myself all teary in spite of myself.

    You want them to grow up. Of course you do. You want them to grow, succeed, build families of their own.

    But oh, you want to keep them small and snuggly and with music in their laughter.

    I knew being a parent would be hard. I never suspected it would reduce my icy self to blubbering like an idiot walking home after putting my child on a schoolbus.  Please tell me I’m not the only one.

  • Newark Co-op Farmer’s Market

    There is no love sincerer than the love of food.

    ~George Bernard Shaw

    One of the highlights of my week is shopping at the farmers market at the Newark Co-op off Main Street. It’s like visiting with friends, plus I come home with all manner of yummy goodies and the satisfaction of supporting local farms and businesses. The kids go with me, pick out what they want, pick out what new things they’re willing to try, proudly unpack and show their dad the weekly haul, help create that night’s meal with as many of these fresh ingredients as possible. It’s a nice way to end the weekend.

    When I first started going to the farmers market– I guess it’s two years ago now, how time flies– there were just a handful of tables. Things have really picked up and expanded and now I spend my Sunday afternoons, not just with my kids, but with a growing and vibrant community.

    Our first stop these days is at the Wood Fired Pizza table, to put in our order for lunch. Yesterday I opted for spinach and feta, Jeff went for everything BUT spinach and feta (green pepper, onion, sausage, pepperoni). YUM. The pizzas are made to order and then baked in a beehive oven on the back of a Ford F250. Local peeps, you’ll want to “like” Wood Fired Pizza on Facebook for updates on where to find them and what toppings will be available.


    Then, Maverick needs to have his weekly fix of Papa’s spring rolls.

    Papa’s is a pastry shop that is located four blocks away from where we used to live in the city, and I can’t believe we didn’t take better advantage of the good things to eat. In addition to addictive spring rolls, Papa’s provides baked goods (often sugar or gluten free), breads and strombolis, cakes, and an assortment of lunch-y items, from soup to lasagnas (eggplant or meat) to dumplings to tempeh to gelato. A lot of these options are vegan or gluten free.

    The first thing I ever bought from Papa’s was a Quiche Lorraine, so this nice man is forever nicknamed “quiche guy” within our family.

    Papa’s also does wicked tasty wedding cakes, FYI.

    Then it’s time for some local Eve’s Cheese, fruit and jams from Lockbriar Farms, veggies from Maple Hill Farm (they are located right near us and use draft horses rather than tractors, and their veggies are oh-my-god so cheap), salad greens from Calvert Farm and fresh eggs from Whimsical Farms. Over to Farm Stuff for herbs as needed, and homemade potato chips when they have them (they sell out fast and sometimes it takes me a while to get moving on a Sunday morn).

    I like to buy from as many vendors as possible just ’cause I’m like that, but definitely each table has its strong points. I can’t claim favorites as to the people, though- they are all just as friendly as can be.

    There are also artists, crafters, vendors selling plants and wool yarns, Big Sky Bread, and occasionally tables selling organic dog biscuits or worm tea. And oftentimes musicians. And on special days, like yesterday’s Summer Festival, you get local restaurants (Home Grown Cafe), a Slow Food table (more about them tomorrow), sunflower planting, something called Dinner Thyme Personal Chef Service that looks interesting (and had crazy tasty kohlrabi salad to sample), and lambs and face painting for the kids.

    OK, now, I have to stop and talk about the face painter, Mr. Brady.

    I go to a lot of kids events and I’ve seen a wide range of talent in the face painting category.

    This guy was a freaking artist and really nice. He’d been painting all day and was obviously hot (people, it was HOT on that asphalt, I was dying), but he somehow had Cass comfortably chatting up a storm while he decorated her arm. The detail was incredible and he finished it off with just the right amount of glitter to make her dance with delight (given that she chose to wear her black motorcycle boots, she cut a comical figure).

    My boys were bummed I wouldn’t let them get painted too (there were other, younger, kids in line and did I mention it was HOT?). I was bummed that he’s not local, just visiting, so I couldn’t talk to him about maybe designing my next tattoo. Especially when he asked me to read the back of his business card–

    “We’ve entered as strangers, and soon we have friends.”

    “That’s what it’s all about,” he said. I wasn’t confident enough to guess this on the spot like that, but I looked it up when I got home and confirmed it- that’s a quote from Harvey, one of my favorite movies as a kid (anything starring Jimmy Stewart, Katherine or Audrey Hepburn, WC Fields or the Marx Brothers safely falls into the category of “one of my favorite movies as a kid”). It goes like this:

    Harvey and I sit in the bars… have a drink or two… play the juke box. And soon the faces of all the other people they turn toward mine and they smile. And they’re saying, “We don’t know your name, mister, but you’re a very nice fella.” Harvey and I warm ourselves in all these golden moments. We’ve entered as strangers – soon we have friends. And they come over… and they sit with us… and they drink with us… and they talk to us. They tell about the big terrible things they’ve done and the big wonderful things they’ll do. Their hopes, and their regrets, and their loves, and their hates. All very large, because nobody ever brings anything small into a bar.

    Farmers markets are like that too. On the surface, we’re just getting our food for the week. But we warm ourselves in something bigger than that. Our ideals, and our health, and our community. Our kids. It’s a hell of a lot to put on a business card.

    If you’re lucky enough to live in West Virginia, I highly recommend you consider Mr. Brady for your next birthday party, or event, or whimsically punk rock tattoo design 🙂

    Is that beautiful or WHAT? Cass cried when she had to wash it off. I had to take lots of pictures first so she could show her friends.

    Anyway, that’s how I spend my Sunday afternoons- focused on food and family. Usually a little less drama and introspection based on body paint.

    Do you frequent a farmers market? Do you find they’ve profoundly affected the rhythm and focus of your weekends? I’m hoping that the vendors will speak with me a bit so I can give you a profile on each of them, look for that in the weeks ahead.

  • Today is World Oceans Day

    Filthy water cannot be washed.
    ~African Proverb

    Today is World Oceans Day, but I hesitate to say “Happy World Oceans Day!”
    The theme for 2010 is “Oceans of Life;” ironic when new images of death by oil keep surfacing.

    It’s hard to celebrate the beauty and vastness of the ocean while we sit and wait word on whether the oil gushing into the Gulf can be stopped anytime soon. How soon and to what extent our coastlines will be affected. And yet, because of this tragedy, educating ourselves on the complexity and wonder of the ocean, and what we as individuals can do to protect it, is even more important.

    For starters, we can go to the Ocean Project website and take the “Seven Cs Pledge:”

    THE SEVEN C’s:

    1. Commit to making a real difference
    2. Conserve in my home
    3. Consume consciously
    4. Communicate my interest and concerns
    5. Challenge myself daily
    6. Connect in my community
    7. Celebrate our Ocean

    All well and good, but right now wildlife rescue efforts need MONEY.  Consider donating to the National Wildlife Federation.

    If your kids are worried or confused about the oil spill, here are some tips about talking to them about it, courtesy of Ranger Rick.

    I think we would all feel better, though, if empowered with actions that make a difference. I just don’t know what that action is yet. For a while I was angry, but as the days stretch out into weeks and months– we are on day 50– I am feeling more and more helpless. Our oceans are being taken away from us and especially from our children.

    No, wait. There IS something we can do.  We can eliminate dependency on oil produced in the Gulf of Mexico. And we can do it by reducing our driving by about 5.4 miles per day. (And we’d STILL be using 500% more gasoline for travel than they do in Europe!)

    That is not a misprint or a joke, the breakdown happens here. Please, please, please, share that article with your friends.

    5.4 miles per day. Maybe carpool a few days a week, or schedule your errands all in one go.

    Feeling empowered yet? No? Maybe fire off a letter to BP letting them know your intent, and how you’re climbing up on your soapbox and yelling from the mountaintops. Telling them you’re enraged by their lack of foresight.

    That made me feel a little better, anyway.

    Happy World Oceans Day.

    Maybe not a day of celebration- more of a call to action.