Ah summer. Isn’t it grand? I stepped out the door this morning and the smell of drying grass and petunias assailed me. Then the aroma of ripening raspberries tickled my palate so I stepped into the patch to partake of my morning aperitif.
Nothing sets up your palate for toast and coffee at the Bakery like a few handfuls of luscious, ripe, red raspberries. I paid no mind at all to the scolding robins who were trying to run me out of their private preserve.
I did a circle check of the garden. The flowers are in full bloom and it looks like I’ll have a big enough increase in dahlia tubers to decorate quite a few gardens next year. A long English cucumber was found hiding under the vines on the trellis just waiting to be plucked. And voila! There was the first ripe tomato of the season. Guess what’s for lunch? I must pick up a fresh loaf of toasting bread.
A short time later at the Bakery, Pickle was holding forth on the state of the wild blueberry crop- or lack thereof.
“Nada! Nothing! Zilch! Even Clarence can’t find any,” he bemoaned the lack of
this year’s crop, as he slathered a quarter inch of peanut butter on his toast with all the
expertise of an accomplished brick layer.
“How’s the sweet corn coming, Elliott? Which night should I hit the patch?” he
quizzed brightening considerably.
“Another week should do it. But watch out for the fence. The voltage on it really p…ed off a skunk the other night- literally. Just follow your nose and you’ll find your way into the patch no matter how dark it is,” I advised.
“The charge is three bucks a dozen with all proceeds going to the Rainy River Locum House with payment being strictly on the honour system,” I added.
“The Locum house? What do we need that for?” chirped in Moose, the Debating Table’s chief skeptic.
“To maintain our medical staff coverage. It’s highly important to guys like you and me who are in definite danger of suffering life threatening injuries at most anytime,” I explained.
“Oh!” scoffed Moose haughtily.
“Yeah, if either of us tick-off our wives just one more time…” I explained.
Finally, my annual advisory for all you considerate folks. Evict all the spiders, wasps, mice, raccoons, or other vermin from that abandoned outhouse. Supply it with a few copies of the paper- preferably the editorial page- and put up a welcome sign. With the fresh produce supply hard upon us, you never know when you or one of those neighbours out stretching their legs might get caught short.
Oh, and Pat from Arbor Vita, you are more than welcome to help yourself to some sweet corn. A few ripe ears will really go well with that roast ground hog. Dig up a few potatoes as well.
