Subscription

Last year I decided to finally stop mooching off of some else's New Yorker magazine subscription. My family and friends have been generous and patient with my frugal nature, but I decided to go ahead and sign-up anyway. The magazine now arrives weekly. I get a good update on current events (Talk of the Town), a peek into big city dining to see what's hot in the food world, and then on into the meat of the magazine with investigative reporting and in-depth analysis. I relish it. Even though the majority of articles are great, I always skip over some stuff. Out of ten articles, I'd say I  read all but two or three. As I said before, I am a frugal person; sixty bucks a year is hard earned. Well worth it though. Especially Micheal Pollen's latest article about plant "behavior"; I sink my teeth right into that one.
After the last CSA harvest last year we asked people for feedback. The response was very positive-- lots of glowing comments about interesting varieties of vegetables, freshness, and overall value. There was some constructive criticism too. Generally, people have vegetable preferences, favorites and not so favorites. People whose aversion to beets was not conquered by our once a month harvests.

This is how they sell beets in Ecuador-- wrapped in banana leaves.

Once I started subscribing to the New Yorker, I started thinking more about the CSA as a subscription. We don't expect everyone to love every vegetable we give out. Just as the editor of the New Yorker doesn't expect me to read every article. Some articles just don't interest me, like the beets for some of our CSA subscribers. The New Yorker will not convince me that opera is all that interesting. Once in a great while I actually think the quality of writing in the New Yorker is lacking-- an overly glowing appraisal of some actor... I would hope that the quality of our vegetables is unsurpassed is all respects, but I'll let you know when that perfect bug-free season arrives. We certainly aim high and try our best. In the meantime, we hope you join the CSA for another season. Every year we improve, every vegetable is grown using the best organic practices we know, and every harvest is curated with as much attention as the editor of the New Yorker might give each week's issue. And if you have a friend who has been mooching off your share, tell them that the real deal is worth it!

Valentine's Day winter wedding at The Danforth Inn in Portland. No, we didn't grow any of the material. But we're keepin' skills sharp nevertheless!