Isn't he darling?

Photo taken at the farm with some post processing.

I think he'll always be a country boy at heart. Thanks for humoring me!

Farmer's market

I love farmer's market. I love the idea that I am buying more direct from the farmers, the freshness of the produce, and the community feel of it all. But more importantly, I think it reminds of me childhood. This was Taipei in the 70s, when there was no grocery store. I remember going to the market with my mom with a wire basket. The market was huge, full of everything--live chicken, live fish freshly caught, food stalls of all sort (yum), and of course there are the fruits/veggies/meats etc. Stall after stall, full of people picking up grocery for the day. 'Course, the market back then (living necessity) is nothing like the farmer's market right now. I think its popularity is growing from the movement of "sustainably grown farming, buy local, be green" all rolled into one. The fancy San Francisco fare is the poster child in my opinion. I love love love going to the SF farmer's market. The colors, the aroma, the people, everything. But, it is yuppiesh and everything is crazy expensive. I never could buy anything there.

Anyhoo, I went to Fremont Centerville Farmers' Market yesterday.

Can you find zdog?

This is one of the smallest market I have been too. The nice thing about it, is that it is nearby me, the price is very reasonable and it is never too crowded. I picked up greens and fruits, and one very seasonal item: zucchini flowers. It can be fried or stuffed, but I like it best simply pan fried with a bit of olive oil and nothing else. Very delicate flavor with a bit of crunch at the tip of the stem. Here they are, in their golden glory after wash and de-stem, before heading to the frying pan...

One word: Y U M M Y

Lastly, here is the little patch of farm next to where I live,

This is becoming a rarity in the immediate vicinity of San Francisco bay area. According to the city of Fremont, it is zoned for high density housing. Sigh. Anyways, I digress. I'll focus on enjoying what it is today. Every summer, the Ramirez will till the land and plant white corn with a small section for misc lettuce, sun flowers etc. They'll open up the little stand by the corner of the road and sell various fruits and vegetables from this plot and the neighboring farms. Totally waiting for fresh white corn, should be available sometimes in July...

2008 Green Fair

Took lightrail down to San Jose downtown today for the Greenfair Silicon Valley. Not quite what zdog and I expected - this is more of a live green products versus green technologies. But I can always count on zdog's ability to scope out the best freebies. Heh.

Here is a little sprout we brought back from the fair,

Coast redwood, sequoia sempervirens.

Isn't it a cutie. I hope it doesn't grow up too fast...because I have no yard to plant it in...

Car ride with Chorizo 6/1/2008.

Haven't been posting. But, I plan to get started again, so inspired by this. Here is my favorite picture of the day,

Car ride with Chorizo 6/1/2008.