jumbles of words

there are summer days that are meant for running and then there are some that are meant for lounging in the cool grass. these photos are from a running around day of enjoying new friends at the Chicago Honey Co-op tomato potluck dinner fundraiser for Terra Madre. a beautiful slice of apiary heaven on Chicago's less than perfect west side.

also the lounging summer fare, a game of scrabble. m only beat me by five points on this one. but i spelled ai, which is a three-toed sloth, in case you're wondering. and vrouw, which is a dutch woman. i picture her with a white hat on, but do what you will in your own mind with such a fun yet reasonable word.

I have taken akin to this line of poetry from Before the Storm by Louise Gluck, so I thought I'd share it outloud:

The mountain stands like a beacon, to remind the night that the earth exists,

that it mustn’t be forgotten.

it's a lovely summary of thought.

my own small urban farmstead

So it's been a few weeks since the last post and a lot has happened! To start with, I went on an amazing tour of City Farm here in Chicago. The farm is situated on a city lot that is in a residential and commercial area that borders Cabrini Green. They have all kinds of goodies growing there, from tomatoes and basil to squash and many varieties of peppers and even honeybees! The tour was put on by Angelic Organics Farm and went from City Farm to the Green City Market and concluded with lectures by the farmer coordinator of the market and then a book reading from Holley Bishop and her book, Robbing the Bees. (which of course I am now reading!) It was a lovely day and we were able to enjoy the full summer sun and the products it helps produce!

I have also been in the kitchen, just a little. I made a few rustic nectarine and blueberry tarts that turned out quite beautiful. But, how could they not, both the nectarines and blueberries have been nothing short of divine this year! I've also been slightly addicted to sun tea. It is that time of year I suppose. The cat however, not so sure about the tea. (ha!)

And, in the garden, I have harvested my first round of peppers, continue to eat the sugar snack tomatoes and am about to take in the first eggplants! All of the plants have new flowers and babies on them, which means they must like the fire escape methods I've been employing. Maybe I'm onto something here!