Summertime ills.

Oi. I wish I had something more exciting or happy to report other than that I've apparently come down with some bug, one of those indecisive ones where you're not sure if the symptoms you're feeling are a precursor to something else, or if it'll just fade away (with LOTS of vitamin C and ibuprofin and throat lozenges)... And I got into a minor car accident over the weekend which was scary and stressful more than anything (everyone was fine), but I get rattled pretty easily by that sort of thing. Which, in this case, may have opened the flood gates for some kind of cold that was lurking, just waiting for my immune system to let down its guard for a moment.

Have a cold? Eat fresh food!

I found a smattering of yummy organic produce at the grocery store on my last visit. The closest natural/organic stores are all small, independently-owned outfits in the area, and unfortunately they are all the furthest away from me, so I often have to make do with the nearby Festival Foods, if only because their organic/natural section is the biggest in the area outside of a full-blown specialty grocery.

Festival happened to have some pretty tasty, and reasonably-priced organic produce the other day, so I snatched up a few things and couldn't resist the apple pretty much immediately. It's amazing how the appearance of organic and "regular" produce compares sometimes. Sometimes it's surprising in a way you wouldn't expect: the organic pear is bigger than the other one, or the organic bananas are actually cheaper than the other ones. It's rare to find organic produce cheaper than the other stuff, but it's happened to me on occasion. In this case, my Gala apple was definitely dirtier-looking than the Gala apples in the regular section. The other Galas were bigger, and they were also incredibly shiny and firm and exactly the same size. This is the sort of comparison I expect.


Is it sad how easily I can fall in love with a piece of fruit? Anyway. It was awesome.

In other news, a small grill appeared mysteriously on my back porch -- a gift from my sister, I think, since they had an extra one. So I may be trying my hand at grilling FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER. :) There's an asparagus-wrapped-in-prosciutto recipe that's been floating around that I'm just dyyying to try.

The big local farmers' market starts up this coming Saturday! I will not be here! I will be in Door County on a fundraiser bike ride! But you can bet I'm still going to stop by any of the numerous independent markets up there and try to procure as much local bounty as possible. The excitement is mounting...

And today I also purchased a blender. Finally. So I can make tasty smoothies and... more smoothies...