Līgo Haibun Challenge #9…bridge

Ese, of “Ese’s  Voice”, has set us a challenge of writing a haibun including either the word “bridge” or “fountain.”  I chose the former in a paean to spring’s wealth of fruit.

 

I stand by the kitchen garbage can eating cherries. Pull out the stem, toss it away, pop the cherry in my mouth. The decision: roll it around for mouth feel, enjoying the coolness and smoothness before eating it OR eat it immediately, savoring the juicy summer taste of it before spitting the pit (or letting it drop) into the can. I’m hungry and the taste is exquisite. It’s Sherlockian eating…elementary, my dear Watson…just eat and spit, eat and spit. The pits make a satisfying sound as they hit the takeout container that held the ribs my husband brought home from a work lunch, pork ribs smoked over applewood, then glazed. The leftovers reside in the fridge until tomorrow.

Spring is an orgy of fruit, beginning with strawberries, segueing into raspberries, blueberries and blackberries; delicacies that are the bridge between the stored or imported fruits of winter and the in-season, freshly-picked indulgences of summer. Outdoor markets are awash with heaping baskets of colorful fruit, perfect for al fresco lunches, submarined in glasses of champagne or sangria, or eaten greedily out-of-hand from bushes or baskets.

 

Phoneography Challenge: Macro (from the desert)

If you follow my blog, you already know I’m on vacation in the Phoenix, Arizona area with limited internet access.  My first entry for “Macro” is from one of the cactus plants in my parents’ natural yard.  The spines don’t deter the birds, however, and there’s a next not far from my photo of one of the cactus fruits.  Serendipitously,  the location of the spines reminds me of some bizarre (is there any other kind?) of costume Madonna might wear or a space alien who clutches victims to her voluptuous bosom, stabbing them with the poisonous spines.

The second, more prosaic but still beautiful, photo is of the buds of a hyacinth that I didn’t get out of the pot and into the ground in time and which decided to bloom again during the winter.  Both photos were taken with my iPad and only cropped.

The Friday Foodie

I know, the Weekly Photo Challenge will be coming today, but I have these delicious photos to share with you first,
calorie-free to you, as this is the virtual world of food.

Here’s something we had a few night’s ago: cool grapes, crunchy yellow carrots from the farmers market, elk sausage to die for, Baby Buche from Mackenzie Creamery (http://www.mackenziecreamery.com/) on wheat crackers, soft, sweet dates, and crunchy almonds.

Yesterday, on the way back from a doctor’s appointment (one confirming that Bill is as of now, cancer-free), we stopped at a farmers market we’d spotted on the drive in. We bought a few things but the biggest score was the half-price, plump, gorgeous blackberries.
Since the market was almost over, the berries were on sale and we bought two pints. We used them as a topping later.

When you have food, you need something to drink and today at the thrift store (at 75% off), I found just the right vehicles for my tea, Wedgewood on the left and Helichrysum on the right (both English bone china.) Oddly enough, a china cup makes an enormous difference.

Feel free to stop by. There are plenty of blackberries left and I have lots of tea choices.

Just peachy

Spoils of this week at the farmers market…

One day I would have all the books in the world, shelves and shelves of them. I would live my life in a tower of books. I would read all day long and eat peaches. And if any young knights in armor dared to come calling on their white chargers and plead with me to let down my hair, I would pelt them with peach pits until they went home.
–Jacqueline Kelly, The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate

A little something

Pooh always liked a little something at eleven o’clock in the morning…Winnie the  Pooh, by A.A. Milne.

Hunger is the best sauce.

Hunger is the best sauce in the world.  ~Cervantes

My husband says this all the time and it’s moved into our family lexicon.  But it’s true; hunger is the best sauce.   Here are some favorite food pictures and food sayings…all calorie free for you today. Indulge.  It’s summertime and the living is easy and delicious!