My First CSA Delivery

Well, here it is: my first delivery from my share in Eight Mile Creek Farm. Here’s what I received this week:

  • Arugula
  • Radishes
  • Broccoli Rabe (rapini)
  • Thyme
  • Sage
  • Salad Greens
  • Garlic Scapes

This being the first week, there’s not a whole lot available, understandably. There’ll be more and more as the summer progresses. I supplemented my box with a few other purchases from the Schenectady Downtown Farmer’s Market:

  • Yellow Zucchini
  • Pattypan Squash
  • Peas
  • Spinach
  • Butter Lettuce

Unfortunately, there’s not a lot of color in this week’s produce selection at the market. I was hoping for some berries or other fruit, but it may be too early for that. I will have to stop at Bowman Orchards on the way home from work one of these days, or maybe tomorrow for some U-pick strawberries! The strawberries in the supermarket these days are awful – plus, they’re trucked in from California, and that’s just wrong.

I will be making the broccoli rabe and peas for dinner tomorrow night, to go with Grilled NY Strip Steak and baked potato. And, I found an interesting recipe for fried zucchini. And maybe some arugula pesto.

Other than that, I’m not excited about preparing anything else I’ve received – I’m pretty much underwhelmed. But, that’s the “fun” involved in purchasing a share – you don’t really know what or how much you’re going to get from week to week.

Something of interest to those of you who may shop (or want to shop) at the Schenectady Farmer’s Markets: they now accept debit cards! Just tell the Market Manager how much you want to buy, he’ll swipe your card, and give you $5 tokens to redeem at the booths. It’s that simple! The farmers will give you change in cash if your purchase doesn’t reach the $5 threshold. Finally! This is really a godsend for those of us who don’t carry cash.

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A few personal notes:

My brother-in-law is recovering from yet another surgery (3 in all), and is again on the road to recovery. If all goes well, he should be returning home early next week. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.

And, my dad called me today to let me know that my grandfather realistically has only a few days left. Dad’s decided to let the doctors take Papa off all the steroids that were keeping him alive, so his suffering can end. Looks like I’ll be headed out of town again this week – hopefully in time to say goodbye. My dad is going through so much right now, I just can’t stand it. Losing both of your parents in the same month – I cannot imagine.

Lately I’ve been saying to myself – “Life is stupid.” It makes no sense – I go through life, working for other people, taking their crap day after day, accumulating things, being so “busy” with meaningless activities, not able to take time to be with my friends and family because work is so “important”, accumulating more things, trying to live a perfect life with a perfect body because society says I’m worthless if I’m not thin – for what?? So I can die? I don’t get it. Maybe my priorities are so screwed up that I’ve lost my way – I don’t know. Watching my grandparents die has really left its mark on me. Life is just so stupid.