road trip reflection

For anyone wondering the ginger beer I made in the last post was amazing. So amazing in fact I totally forgot to take photos of us enjoying the stuff. Know this, I was told by numerous people this was the best ginger ale they’ve ever had. What I found out the hybrid ginger bug and champagne yeast made a ginger soda that was deliciously spicy.

Now returning to your irregularly scheduled post.

I began writing a post that had no end in sight. Basically a written regurgitation of the last three weeks of my life. About a third of the way through I realized no one wanted to read all that. I know I wouldn’t have if my friend posted something that long. So I decided to find a happy medium; a little story of the high lights, lessons, an epiphany or two, and a clearer idea of were I want to go in my life. I’ll add some photos at the end.

The Trip

The trip began at seven am. Farewells and hugs. Cue 80’s drama song, maybe something like Berlin’s” Take my Breath Away.” Arizona past by timelessly. Prickly pears cactus, suguaro cactus, and sage brush. Rolling into California we passed the great Colorado river, but it didn’t look as great as one might think. Small, brown, and not the swollen river that only a few hundred miles north cuts through the land. California was timeless too, until we broke into the out lying area around LA. Homes began to sprout up everywhere and the traffic multiplied with every mile closer to the city center. Our stay there was brief  but needed to be so. Separation from a population sprawl had placed a distaste in our mouths for urban areas. Hollywood was lame. After LA we ventured north up the famous highway 101. The salt spray, cool wind, and lush foliage was a refreshing environment to be in. San Luis Obispo was our next stop, a very short one. Some car maintenance, beer drinking, and wandering of the streets and hiking the out lying park called Bishop Peak. Driving to San Francisco was long, slightly confusing, but we made it there only an hour later than anticipated. Our host Sarah(Laura’s sister of Loon Organics) offered her apartment to us, while she stayed with her partner.

San Francisco was sunny, cool, and full of city life. Lots of cars, but also a great transit system and a bike friendly layout. I took my bike out for a two hour ride and toured the boarder of S.F. Margo walked the streets and we visited the Museum of Modern art. Their show piece exhibit was a photography show displaying the people and lifestyles of South Africa during the apartheid. The following day we toured Presido park and the golden gate. The next day we ventured north to Ukiah. The road was twisty turny and the landscape began to change to a conifer dominant landscape. We stopped by the Sea Ranch Chapel to take a break, say a prayer, and breathe. Our communication with the next host was less than ideal, which caused for a change in plans as far as sleeping went, so we set up camp in the hills outside of town and attempted to sleep next to the road, only to wake(assuming we even slept) at about five in the morning to frost and sore bodies.

We hit the road early to venture to Corvallis, Oregon. The drive was long, but the first portion of the day we drove and explored Humbolt county’s Redwood forests. One of Margo’s must sees. Shortly after we stopped in Eureka and bought gas. I accidentally left my wallet on the counter of the gas station only to have it stolen seconds later. This little speed bump was annoying, frustrating, and a test of patience. All was not lost, the police we contacted, and so we ventured on. Oregon welcomed us in with sunny skies and hills covered in their state tree, the douglas fir. Rolling into Corvallis I felt relief and comfort knowing we were in my second home town. Gregg and Stephanie welcomed us in while Brandy, their puppy, said hello by nipping our hands and tugging at the cuffs of our shirts. The next few days I showed Margo around, road my bike, had drinks with old friends, and celebrated Margo’s birthday! Too shortly we headed north to Portland.

Portland was rainy, cold, and everything we expected. I got my third tattoo, a head of romanesco done in the style of a traditional rose tattoo. It was long, painful, and really fun. Something to signify a change in my life. Portland was cute, a little too hipster for me, and the shorter than expect stay there was well justified. From there we traveled north to Seattle.

Derek our couch surfing host was waiting for us on the stoop of his Seattle home. Derek, a native Minnesotan, was warm, welcoming, and ready to share a sampling of the beers of Seattle. Exhausted we didn’t stay up too late that night. The following day we hit the streets on our bikes and toured the city. Parks, sculpture gardens, markets, a Vietnamese restaurant, and a distillery. That night Derek and I chatted about Eating for Equity and the local Youth Farm Project. Derek was someone deeply invested in food and making an impact on the surrounding community. What a delight. The next day with our stomachs full of chilaquiles we headed to the sleepy town of Port Townsend.

Port Townsend is a town in a rain shadow, the day we showed up was no exception to that rule. Sunshine and clear skies. The town was cute, historical, and doing its best at being hip and progressive. The home we stayed at was a communal living home full of late 20 year olds who’s mission was to work as little as possible and being involved in their passions and the community as much as possible. The following day we headed to the Hoh rain forest and experienced a rarity; a sunny day. Moss covered everything and the place looked like it was the inspiration that fueled the creation of Fern Gully. By then we had scheduled things with our future hosts, but soon realized we were a day early. That evening we scrambled to find a place to stay and found a couple to stay with in Olympia. Olympia as a town was nothing to write about, but the couple we stayed with were. Heather and Gordon were two amazingly warm people who waited for us and welcomed us in their home like we had known them for years. Conversation was nothing short of fun, entertaining, enlightening, and easy. Happy hour, communal dinner, and tea time was terrific. The next morning was nothing short of hard to leave. Heather had her homemade jam out and made sure I ate well. Shortly there after we hit the road and made it to Spokane.

Spokane was a pit stop, short visit with little expectations. The couple we stayed with were a little shy and I coined them as the American gypsy family. Traveling artist/musicians who didn’t belong in Spokane, but had to make a few dollars before they moved on.

This is where I’ll skip through the rest of the trip. We were very ready for the road trip to be over. We stopped in Missoula, Bozeman, and Bismarck. All places were nice, but we were exhausted at that point. The final hours of the road trip were wonderful. Garrison Keiler welcomed us back into Minnesota while he chatted about the difference between Minneapolans and St Paulians. The Minnesota accent came through in his and the cast voices. The accent and sense of humor was refreshing.

Some stats of the trip. Something close to 5000 miles passed under our feet. We slept in 14 different beds/sleeping spots. 80% of the trip was in the sun. Zero speeding tickets. And a measureless amount of fun, love, food, and overall awesome shared with my partner Margo.

Lessons

Life is short. Save up and live it while you can. A thirteen month long trip with your partner can be an amazing experience.

Open your doors to everyone and most times you’ll have people staying with you who can become new life long friends.

Work hard at what you do, do what you love, and you’ll always have your head above water.

Epiphany or two

Well, I don’t think I have two right now. With time and more reflection I’m sure I’ll have many more. The epiphany I have realized and that has resonated with me the entire trip is something  like this. To have a happy and fulfilled life is to participate in the community in every aspect of your life. Closing yourself off and living in a box will only separate you from everything and what could have been. Participating in the world wholly allows you to grow and to impact the world in a way that makes a change.

To be continued.

What’s next

For a few weeks I’m going to be turning wrenches and working at a bike shop, then I’m going back to Loon Organics for another wonderful season farming. After that I’m going back to “school” and I’ll be saving up money and starting something like a farm of my own. That’s as specific as I can be right now since my future farm endeavor is constantly evolving.

Photos!

turns out wordpress isn’t making the photo uploading easy so I’ll post them shortly. https://andrewpierre.wordpress.com/2013/03/14/1064/ 

Ginger beer time

Finally the stars have aligned. Tonight I’m making ginger beer. This is my second attempt and I’m hoping it is a fruitful one. Ha ginger isn’t a fruit it’s a rhizome, but let’s banana serious for a second this stuff is amazing. Anyways, the previous endeavor worked, but did not taste so great. The yeast I used on my first attempt was bread yeast and thus my ginger beer tasted rather bready. This time around I have two batches going. One is a hybrid of wild “ginger bug” and champagne yeast and the other is straight up champagne yeast; see photos below. I’m doing a hybrid this time around because I don’t think I have any active wild yeasts in my ginger bug. This skepticism is in part because I don’t see much activity in my ginger bug to indicate any wild bugs doing their thing. So here’s what’s happening…

lots of water, ground ginger, sugar, and lemon juice steeping away in preparation for the addition of yeasts

half gallon mason jars with yeast and yeast+ginger bug awaiting their ginger brew.

 

red star champagne yeast. a whole 75 cents to make something so amazing.

french made grolsch style bottles that I found in the barn.

well… we’re waiting.

 

Margo and I have a little stash of wild things going right now. We’ve both made sour dough bread from our starters and they are freaking awesome!

So right now I’m waiting for things to cool down so I can add the ginger to the yeast. Then once those are mixed I’ll be bottling things up and waiting and waiting and waiting.

Two weeks is too long to wait. Maybe I’ll make a batch of alcoholic and non alcoholic. I’ll keep you posted.

 

Vacay coming to a close

Sunday December 30th. Well we all made it past 12/21/12. Thank goodness. For a bit there I thought this whole farm internship stuff was in vain. Well turns out it wasn’t and now I can rest or actually not rest and really plan for the future.

Margaret and I have had a lovely break. These past days have been great and I’ve been getting some much needed rest. Turns out the little transition between Loon and here wasn’t enough and I was beginning to burn out. So the ten days off are doing me great! And I took care of some needed car maintenance  Thanks to this experience post Sleeping Frog Farms’ internship I’m planning to take a month off between here and Loon so I can get some rest, amongst other things.

That doesn’t mean life on the farm hasn’t been a positive one. I’ve been enjoying myself and am really looking forward to having the hoop houses covered and ready for spring plantings. Not to mention all of us interns really have a great time together and we have a new lady named Dora who is a joy to work with. She a local Tucsonian with a background in local urban farming and community building groups. She’s really smart, great sense of humor, and she’s comes from a whole different background than a majority of us interns. I’ve had the opportunity to learn a little about her native heritage and practices. Truly a beautiful lifestyle that leaves me admiring her and wanting to learn more about her people.

Come next post I’ll show you what kind of veggies are in season. It’s been chilly here so most of the crops are all tucked under blankies and plastic sheets. With the coming weeks things will slowly warm up.

Here’s some shots of our vacay thus far.

entering an unknown world called Mexico. Good food there!

what a lovely beach

 

Cow remains in wood canyon, Patagonia, AZ

Graveyard near the farm that I finally explored

Lake Patagonia

Refreshments enjoyed at the Sonoita Winery. We took home a bottle of their SyraZ

 

 

 

 

It’s been a hard days work, well more like week.

So I’ve been here a whole week. It’s been good. Lots of hard work, great evenings, and great conversations.

I work with a lot of people compared to Loon. Five full time intern ladies, two part time intern ladies, a half time intern guy, and four farmers. We have days off throughout the week so everything is always happening on the farm. The pace here is much slower, but that doesn’t mean they’re any easier. The sun here, even in November, is intense. An eighty something degree day still is quite hot. Thank goodness the air is dry. If this was Minnesota humidity then I’d be in a living hell. Well actually I wouldn’t be here. I’d be off someplace else.

What to talk about…

My partner, Margaret, and I have been doing well. We have made an effort to be doing different jobs when we can, but personally I enjoy working along side with her, even if her beautiful smile and wonderful sense of humor is somewhat distracting. The other ladies here are great. They’re full of ideals and opinions, interested in so many things, and are really interesting people who come from all walks of life. The part time guy intern is a joy. Him and I bounce snarky comments off each other and then team up on other people. This usually turns into a good time or someone gets a little pissed off. oh well.

The sunsets here are gorgeous. As are the sunrises. The temperature swing here is nuts. It can be in the low thirties at day break and by lunchtime it’s eighty-five. That usually means throughout the day you’re constantly pulling off layers.

Last Saturday we went out on the town to celebrate Halloween. I dressed up as a bearded lady, Margo was a raven, the others were Dick Tracy, Frida, a calculator, a milkshake, and Lance/Neil Armstrong.  Here’s a group shot.

Halloween group shot. Top row: Emily, Amanda, Ellison, and Kat. Lower: yours truly, Rachel, and Margaret.

 

Other than that things are good. I can already tell March will be here sooner than later. What the future hold is anyone’s guess. I think a meandering road trip back to Minnesota is in order.

Good night ya’ll thanks again for reading!

On the farm

Hey Ya’ll.

I’m on the farm finally. Things are good. Lots of adjusting for me, but that’s how you grow, right? The heat is amazing. However the sun is pretty intense. I do appreciate the sun in the morning when it’s chilly.

So what’s new? hmmm… Well let me tell you about my days thus far(the last two days). I’ve been harvesting, cleaning, tending the chickens, and meeting our goats. What crops? Okra, tomatoes. cilantro, white sweet turnips(which seem an awful lot like hakurai radishes), and turnip greens. I’m again the minority at the farm. The ratio is five to two when it comes to ladies vs men. Not a bad thing at all. It makes for wonderful conversations and lots of pop music that I never listen to.

Tonight and most Fridays is the Farm Family Feast. Tonight we’re having mac and cheese, soup, some sort of pasta dish, and braised greens. Other than tonight, dinner is much less organized. It’s a free for all and if you have left overs it’s the maker’s choice to share or not. Different and is too taking some adjusting.

What else… Hmmm… Monday I’m going on an exploration bike ride into the hills. I’m thinking four water bottles, a sandwich or two, a flat kit, and some music. I’m going to head north and just ride until I’ll get reasonably lost and then I have to retrace my steps. Luckily there’s enough sand around here with little traffic that I can do that. I’ really hoping a see a rattle snake or some other southwestern wild life.

Sorry for the quick post, but I need to eat and socialize.

Sleeping Frog Farms

So here I am. Well not permanently just yet. The agony of waiting to see Margo and the farm was too much. I reasoned with my self, checked in with my sister and decided to rent a car and drive to the farm. That may have been the best decision I’ve made in while. The drive from Santa Fe took seven hours. Four of which I could have done without. The monotony of the desert sets in and the road becomes timeless. The minutes go by but the scenery does not. I’d look forward at mountains and it would take so long to reach them. A new thing for me was I experienced what an actual mirage looks like. I saw expansive lakes shimmering and mirroring the sky. I saw a single mountain slip into two little mountains. The land is truly a desolate place, that in my opinion should really be left as is. There is life there, but I don’t think humans have a place there.

Rolling into the town south of the farm, I stopped by a grocery store to get Margo a gift and to bring a few things for everyone to share. Beer, flowers, and chips. An obvious choice. A random guy looked at me, while I had the beer and flowers in hand and smiled saying, “Beer and flowers, eh? Sounds like you’re headed somewhere good.” To which all I could do was laugh and say, “yep.” I was too excited to make conversation.

I arrived at the farm after a squirrely fifteen mile drive down Cascabel rd. There’s a roller at mile marker six that Margo and I hit going the other way the following  day at sixty and had the front drivers side wheel off the ground. As I pulled into the driveway I knew Margo wouldn’t recognize me in the rental. I parked the car, looked around, and one of the owners, CJ, was walking up to the house. I introduced myself and he led me inside the house to clean up and get a drink. We walked back out, headed to the pack shed where a few of the ladies were working. CJ introduced me and all I could so was just smiled hugely as I was in anticipation of seeing Margo. Rumor has it she was over in the green beans harvesting. I walked into the field laying low. Maybe about fifty feet from where she was. I saw her head with a sun hat on bobbing up and down. Her eyes met mine. And she was like, “Oh my god! what?!?!?” We began to walk towards each other and then passion took over. We began running. We hit each other and all I could do was let the tears run from my face and say, “I’m here.” Quite possibly the best hug I’ve ever had. Then the kissing. Also amazing. She was crying tears of joy. I couldn’t help but hold her face in my hands and keep checking to see if this was real. It was so wonderful. After our reunion we walked hand in hand back to the beans and started chatting like I had been there all day.  We finished the bed and headed back to the pack shed. She showed me how they ran the show and then I began meeting everyone. We finished the evening chatting more and cleaned eggs for market. Then we all headed inside for dinner. Dinner was a great time. Beet burgers, cooked greens, and pinto beans. I love farm dinners. Simple, pure, and always delicious. I had the chance to meet the owners, chat a bit about things, share some beers, and finally sleep with the lady I love.

Sunday started out early in the morning by going to the Cascabel community building, where I had the chance to meet all the locals. Artists, professors, and ranches. An eclectic group of people, who were incredibly warm, talkative, and a joy to be around. This was also my first taste of Arizona, and I must say this place has it’s own beauty. Great smells, amazing wildlife, prickly plants, and beautiful rocks. Around ten we headed back to the farm, gathered some things and headed to Tucson. Tucson, a cool town in it’s own right, is huge and hot. They have a coop, great mexican restaurants, an anarchist book store, and a neat bike shop with which has a transplant from  Oregon who is into dirt road bike riding. We had some good food, did some store browsing, but most of all just enjoy each other’s company. That night I felt inspired to make dinner, so I made butternut squash quesadillas. A few people were out at the bar, so dinner was low key and really nice.

Today we slept in, had a great breakfast that was some left overs and farm eggs. Delicious. And took things easy. I took a look at a farm bike and deemed it irreparable in it’s current state. Only because it needed more love that the current resources could provide. oh well.

That brings me up to now. Another mellow evening and then I head back to Santa Fe to retrieve my car and all it’s belongings. Then come Wednesday I hit the road and I’ll be all moved in by Wednesday night. Fingers crossed of course.

Here’s a few shots of the drive and the farm.

I’m thinking this is in southwest New Mexico

My first sunset at the farm

A shot of Benson, AZ

 

 

trying to make the best of it

Let me first say, I wish I was working. I like time off. I like pursuing interests. But I like being busy with work and getting out to the fields. I miss it. I miss Margaret a lot too.

In an effort to stay sane and see what Santa Fe is all about I’ve been cruising the town by bike. It has been pretty frustrating sometimes, because I get lost, turned around, or find my self riding down a one way the wrong way. Buildings and businesses here are not laid out like ones in the midwest. Which confuses the hell out of me and I tend to stare way too much without stopping causing me to get into all sorts of riding mistakes. Also riding bikes around, regardless of the plethora of bike lanes, isn’t something people really do. Maybe because people get sick of getting flats. I’m on my fifth flat. I wish there was a more out and about scene of bike people so I could drop in and say hey. I’m not giving up yet. Maybe I just haven’t been to the right part of town yet.

Enough brooding. Things aren’t all bad. I do enjoy getting lost. That’s when I find myself stopping to smell the flowers, searching the Pinon trees for pine nuts, believing in my intuition, and seeing more than just what’s directly in front of me. Here’s a few images of my days thus far.

The downtown Santa Fe skatepark bowl. Look’s old and flowy. Wish I had my skateboard.

A nice shot up from the Buddhist temple Upaya that I visited today.

someone thought this was a lemon cucumber, but the skin is much too hard. I’m having trouble finding out what it is exactly. After taking this photo I cut it open, it’s meat was stringy like a spaghetti squash, smelled like a citrus, and was bitter to the tongue.

 

nice shot from some random bike trail up in the hills.

Another trail shot. A cyclocross bike on this was fantastic.

A huge sticker stuck to the side of a relay box for the commuter train.

 

 

And so Ends my Internship at Loon Organics

Saturday and Sunday last week were days where I started to sort through my things to see what I needed to bring to Arizona. It was really nice just to sit down sort through things and full fill my OCD needs. Caroline spent the night at my Papa’s with me Friday and Sunday night. These last few weeks have been bitterly cold at night, so any chance we have to retreat to the warmth of a house, we’ll take it. Thankfully this week Laura’s mother Jackie invited us to stay at her house. Monday night was mild so I did get to sleep in the Mallard one last time. That night I shed a tear knowing I’ll miss those fake wood panels, pea green cushions, and the fambly of mice that ate my underwear.

The week was long. It was also our last CSA and Loon Organics does not let down in the amount of produce per CSA box. Even with the freezing nights we had plenty of squash, various brassicas, herbs, and tomatoes in the box. I finally had the chance to harvest Romanesco, Cauliflower, and Broccoli. I really enjoy the search for the perfect Romaesco. That vegetable is by far the most beautiful and interesting looking vegetable Loon grows. But I’d still say that brussel sprouts are my favorite crop to harvest. Something about wielding a sawzall and taking the stalks down is really fun. Once they’re down and you begin clearing the stalk of any leaves you look down the stalk you can see the sprouts spiral. Nature’s fascination with math is so very cool.

It dawned on me Tuesday how much the farm has changed over the course of the season and gone back to looking like it did in April. Laura called it out on Friday. “We started our season in the green house and isn’t it fitting that we end our season in the green house.” And so the cycle completes. I love it. I also realized this week how much I love farming. It’s hard work, takes a lot of planning, you need to research constantly, stay on top of tasks, and some how produce beautiful and plentiful crops. Rural life is really nice too. Quiet when it needs to be. A wonderfully awesome close network of friends and neighbors. A an old world way of life, something I romanticized in my head for years only to find out it’s not some idealistic path. Sure there are some perks, but overall it is hard and not everyone can do it. I know that after this season it’s the career for me.

Somethings I learned over the course of the season. Soil biodiversity, planting succession, seeding, transplanting, weeding, setting up irrigation, building a hoop house, driving a tractor with precision, the array of varieties of vegetables, finances, implements, harvesting, post harvest handling, and how there’s about a million different ways to run a farm.

Then came Friday. After our work days end I cracked open a beer and double checked I had everything loaded in my car. In my head I was wondering how hard Caroline and Hannah would cry when we said our good byes. When the time came to say good bye, it wasn’t they who were crying. I was the one trying hard not to break down, but the tears flowed from my eyes. Those two are such great great friends, almost sisters to me. It was the first time I’d ever been really close with women who weren’t people I was in a relationship with. It was rough, but I know I’ll be seeing these two down the road. They’re two friends I’ll have with me throughout my life.

To end things here’s some photos from the last week on Loon Organics.

Caroline cleaning the cut down brussel sprouts.

Our wash bin full of teeny broccoli

Cheddar cauliflower

Washing our cured squash in the green house.

There was a manure spreader in our woods that nature was taking back to the land. The tree had grown around this chain.

Caroline hugging Toby

Our market stand today. So fall.

In the near future I’ll be on the road and beginning a new internship in a polar opposite climate. New challenges, new crops, new practices, and new people! I can’t wait. Then come spring time I might at Loon for another season. Who knows.

My last day

My last day as a twenty seven year old. Age is something I try to think little about. Age isn’t something I judge anymore. As I’ve grown older the age gap between old and young people seems irrelevant. Maybe younger people haven’t seen as much of the world, but I know plenty of older people who also haven’t seen that much. It all comes down to how people view the world and what kind of experiences they’ve had throughout their life. Growing older isn’t a positive or negative change in my eye. It’s more of a fact of life. What I can look forward to for my borthday is the three of us interns are going out for dinner, feasting on apple pie, and hot tubbing!

This morning was a cold one. Something near thirty-two degrees. The frost was heavy in the shade. The spinach was glittering in the early sun. And our breaths were little clouds from our noses and mouths. I was tasked with getting the curing onions out of the bar. The light peaking through the walls was really something. It was like walking into a cathedral with the sun shinning through stain glass windows. Here’s a photo that does my experience little justice.

 

The rest of our day was fairly routine. Lots of harvesting, packing our CSA boxes, but one change to our day is we spent all afternoon harvesting potatoes. I think we hauled in something close to four-hundred pounds and there’s still another sixty or so in the field.

To let loose from being bent over we all indulged in something sweet and a shared bag of dill pickle chips. God bless Minnesota and it’s northern taste. I’ll miss it when I head south for the winter.

Squash, squash, squash, chainsaw

Mornings are cold

Fall’s cold chill is knocking

Harvest all we must.

 

The reoccurring task on the farm lately has been harvesting squash. Like our watermelons, tomatoes, and cantaloupe, our squash crop is massive.  The quantity of fruit is beyond counting. After this morning’s CSA pack and load, Caroline and I set out to our high squash field to retrieve the squash Laura and Adam had cut and piled Saturday. They had harvested on Saturday evening, on their anniversary no less, because the night’s low was forecasted to be in the upper twenties. Frost burn on squash doesn’t affect the fruit’s taste, but aesthetically it discolors the skin and doesn’t look to appealing. They cut as many squashes, piled them in a long line, and covered them with a bed cover fabric known to us as Remae. Here’s what we found when arrived.

 

To clear three quarters of what you can see took Caroline and I the better part of three hours. Needless to say we both got our fair share of hard work and I can only imagine my arms will be sore tomorrow.

After lunch we joined forces with Laura, Valerie, and Hannah. We cleared the rest of the pile in the field, cut the remaining fruit from the vine, and loaded everything into the green house so the squash could cure. Here’s a few more photos.

With the added help we harvested everything and now the fruit can cure and can become the sweetest things ever.

I celebrated our squash harvest with a delicious squash stew with apples in it. It was a tad bit sweet, but the warm soup is excellent for these ever colder nights.

I’m really looking forward to ending the season. The work, people, and the farm is so good, but sleeping in a non heated trailer is becoming a tough task. Most because when I wake I don’t want to get out of my cocoon. Happy fall everyone! Take advantage of any summer time veggies you can still buy at the farmer’s market. They won’t be around for much longer.