Thursday

When will I stop my morning routine of cleaning the garden first thing in the morning? Before animals, before breakfast, before anything at all? I look forward to that day and I do think it's coming soon! The number of spent lilies is down significantly. Still, today I clip and clean. And admire the tail end of a lily run!

Okay, animals. Your turn now. And then comes breakfast, which today is just a brief munch on some fruit...

... because I have a real breakfast date downtown -- with my friend from New Mexico. We have a meetup on the Capitol Square and I think it's a splendid morning for riding Alpine Blue over to see her. (Unfortunately, I estimated my ride to be at 30 minutes and it took 40 and so I was late, but she is a patient soul!)

(My plate tells me to stay curious so I will!)

It's always grand to spend time with her and we put in a number of hours sipping coffee and then walking around the Square. Just before noon, I'm back on my bike, pedaling home.

And now we are finessing the bike details: I learn to recharge the battery. Ed attaches the beautiful basket that Karolina, my Polish friend had brought over during her visit last summer. And we add a mirror. And now I'm set! Me and my wheels, ready to explore the world!

Or, a bit of it, here in south central Wisconsin.

In the afternoon Ed and I go to the market. Honestly, I want to ride over (this new love of biking will pass, I'm sure, so I have to seize the moment and fly with it while it lasts), but the market expedition is one Ed and I share and since he's on his motorcycle, I forgo the bike and hop on behind him.

A few words in the matter of corn. Because, you know, we are in the thick of the corn season. (For some growers, the season lasts about 6 weeks, some push it out a little longer.) If you've lived here long enough, you'll know where the good corn is, and where the great corn can be found. For us, the season starts with Alsum Farms Sweet Corn -- sold on the Square each Saturday. With irrigation, they produced a nice crop of quite good corn. It was a lovely start to the season. This year, I also bought Bee Charmers corn early on, and though typically she has corn with a nice, delicate kernel, her first batch was too small and too young. Just okay. Then, our farmer down the road, Stoneman, has exceptionally good corn, but the drought really toned things down this year and I've not seen much of his crop -- it sells out quickly and I'm not sure how it measures up. Natalie, our framer and gardener  from the local market, has really tasty corn that's especially great for freezing (off the cob) for that delicious Thanksgiving (and winter-long) corn dish you're craving. And Tipi, our CSA farmers, have a fabulous corn that's fresh and sweet and delectable. Especially the variety they're packing into boxes this week. I mean, so much to choose from, where do you even begin?

I decide to start shucking for the winter with Natalie's today, and I save Tipi's for family dinners this weekend. So I have a lot of corn to work with! Now you know how I am spending my evening today.

This, my friends, is what living in Wisconsin is all about: tear off, clean up, shuck, freeze, bag. Many, many times over. I smell of corn.

See you tomorrow!