Corn on the Cob

Ah, seasonal eating. Mister and I don't usually strive too much for particularly seasonal eating, but there are some things that are available only at certain times. Any holiday food, for example. I could make rice pie at any time of year, but I only do at Easter.

But corn on the cob. Oh corn on the cob. I believe it is one of my favorite foods! That's right, it might overtake potatoes. And that's saying something. But whereas I eat potatoes in all shapes, varieties and recipes, corn on the cob is just that. I've talked about corn before, and how much I love it and can devour bushels at a time.

One of the fabulous things about this summer has been my working at the Farmer's Market every Wednesday. I've become close with a lot of the vendors (there's nothing like holding down someone's tent in gale-force winds to bring people together!) and there's the fabulous vendor discount.

Like my corn. The farm that I get my corn from (my farm does not sell sweet corn) refuses any payment. This is two weeks in a row I got a half dozen ears for free. I asked this week if they'd let me pay, and the response was that as they have even more corn now, it's even cheaper for them to let it go free. Since I love it so much (and they have GREAT corn), I won't push it. But I will offer to pay every week. :-P

But I love my market. There's N, the lady who runs the bakery stall across from my tent (we wound up discussing music and fanfiction this week -- K, she's the one that I got that amazing Harry Potter fic from). There's E, the super friendly lady who runs the wine booth that teaches violin in her spare time! There's the gang at K -- they sell fruit and different veggies from my stand. I love love love their fruit. It's a guilty pleasure. There's the folks at H -- where I get my corn and where we all buy lemonade during the day. The vendors pay $2 for a HUGE plastic cup of lemonade, and there's free refills. On a day in the 90s, that is very highly appreciated! There's Farmer A, who has a stand next to us, who is so adorable. I've bought his honey and it's too die for. There's the lady at W Meats -- I buy the best bacon in the world from her, and occasionally eggs. I used to get it at $4 per pound of bacon (it's $9 normally), but now I just trade produce for it. There's any of the fine ladies who work with S -- the Mediterranean food vendor that I worked for. It's always nice to check in with them. D, the market manager always has a smile on his face and is pleasant to work with. There are other stands, but aside from a smile and a nod to them, I don't really know them well. But it's my market. Best decision to work there!

Farmer's Market 5/30/12

So yesterday was my first shift volunteering at the Farmer's Market. I absolutely loved it! The stand that I was working for was selling greens, some turnips and radishes, hot house tomatoes, and lots of plants. Tomato plants, flowers, herbs, squash, eggplants, cucumbers, lettuces and cabbages.

I learned a lot, not in the least how to tell the different greens apart! I saw so many of the people that I know. When I was telling Mister about all the people that I know who stopped at my stand (including two of my baristas, my old landlady, old customers from the ice cream store, etc.) Mister said that it's a sign that we've lived in this neighborhood for a while! Even the people that I didn't know, I certainly recognized. There's something comforting about knowing "your people". And this neighborhood is certainly very community oriented.

I also chatted, while on break, with the owner of a new local brewery, and he was super friendly and was telling me about some of the fun things they offer on the brew tours. Jalapeno beer anyone?

Unsurprisingly, I'm damn good at running a booth and moving swiftly through a line. My new boss, C, seemed pleasantly surprised with my work and stated that it was nice to see such enthusiasm. Considering how much of an "interview" process they had (she didn't ask my name, I had to volunteer it -- AND practically push my information on her), I'm not surprised that she didn't know my predilection for such work.

One thing that's nice about working a booth is that most of the other vendors offer a vendor discount. I got the best bacon in the world for half price -- so I spent $4.50 a pound. I'm willing to PAY the $9/#, but half price is amazing. I will buy a pound a week, because as we eat it in one sitting, we don't need much more bacon than THAT in our lives.

I'm getting paid in credit amounting to $10/hour and any money I don't spend goes towards a winter CSA share. So in order to help my bookkeeping, I'm going to tally it up here as well.

5/30/12
Worked from 10:00 am - 7:00 pm
took one 15 minute break (paid)
bought: 2 baby bok choy at $2.50 a piece
Lemon Balm potted plant at $3.00
3 pop corn cobs at 3/$1
One head of greens in trade for hummus at $2.50

Earned: $90
Spent: $11.50
Credit for day: $78.50
Overall credit: $78.50