Tomato season!

A few months ago, I bought my first home. About one month ago, I moved in. A few days ago, I bought tomato plants from a lovely vendor at the city market. A few hours ago, I planted them in the garden in my back yard!

I ADORE tomatoes fresh from the garden. I love tomato and cucumber salad tossed with onions and olive oil. I love juicy, sweet cherry tomatoes in my pasta. I really, REALLY love picking a ripe tomato right off the vine and taking a big bite. Summer is going to be a wonderful thing this year. I even love the smell of the plants themselves.

First of all, the back yard is divine. It's perfectly sized and adorned with a raised wooden deck. I've already daydreamed of a bunch of parties, cookouts, and other summer celebrations all centered there on the back deck. My ultimate plan is to post some tall iron poles, from which I'll hang sweet little lights strung from side to side, making a canopy above our heads.

Just imagine, brightly painted galvanized tubs FULL of cold drinks, someone's ipod on a great summer mix, and a platefuls of portabella mushrooms sizzling on the grill! Mmmm!

But, to continue my story about tomato plants, I first felt like I had to mow the lawn, to give them something attractive to look at while they begin feeling at home in the middle of the three raised gardens out back, so I did just that. As I planted them in the ground and covered them with water and soil, I gave each one a little greeting of, "Hello, baby plant. I'll take good care of you and you'll grow tall and have loads of fruit for me to eat. We'll look out for each other. Welcome to the back yard!"

And now, as I'm in the house writing this, I hear the rain falling on them, making them feel even more happy and willing to give me tomatoes...they're weeks away, I know...but SO worth the wait.

This Saturday, I'll be visiting the market again to get BASIL!!!!! I'm looking forward to making tomato, basil, and mozzarella pizza, and home made pesto!

dreaming of springtime

So, remember back a few months ago, when it was November, and we all hoped for at least "one good snow storm this winter!"?

And then, merry Christmas to us, we were bombarded with a ginormous amount of snow. And then we got more. And then...we got even more. It even fell into this pattern, this rhythm (Tuesdays and Friday/Saturdays), and I've never seen anything like it!

I thought it was absolutely beautiful. And there was something fun and adventurous about walking to work every morning while navigating the streets and climbing the little hills of snow on the sidewalks that hadn't been claimed as belonging to anyone, and had therefore remained snow-covered. Sure, I fell down my "driveway of doom/steeply inclined ice-death-trap" at least once per morning, and even had a few intense and embarrassing, if not a little dangerous, falls in front of oncoming rush-hour morning traffic. But it was all just so GORGEOUS, especially while it was falling at night.

I would open the blinds, and turn on the porch light, and the cat and I would take turns looking out of the windows and glass doors, watching it endlessly and silently cover the ground, the solar lights in our back yard, the car... And then when it hung to the bushes for days and laid on the trees like heavy, lazy blankets, it was a pretty impressive, visually stunning bit of loveliness! Walking around this town during a snow shower is a particular kind of magic, I think!

But now, the aesthetic appeal has definitely worn off, because now it's filthy and just SO unattractive! There's mostly mud, sand, and black smoke from all the car exhaust mixed in with brownish yellow wet stuff that used to be snow. It's no longer pristine and sparkling. Instead, at this point, it's mostly just depressing, like an old worn out old hound dog that refuses to just give up and die, um, or melt. I'm over it!

Which brings me to my little daydream: it's one of sun dresses, like this one from Pinup Girl Clothing, over which I'm currently lusting, and it's about meandering wanderings downtown without any purpose whatsoever. It's full of warm breezes, and daylight that lingers into the evening, well past 6pm. It's about people-watching...when spring starts getting into swing, we're all like bears who've come out of hibernation, and hours of amusement can be had sitting at one of the restaurants who have patios.

Ah, and the BLOOM FACTOR: the tulips! Let's not forget the tulips. And don't even get me started on the lilac bushes.

But, it's refreshing and fun to observe that some people around here have maintained a sense of humor about all this snow that just doesn't know how to take a hint.

Someone told me that there is an actual class at UVa in which they are doing scientific and mathematical calculations to predict when that 50 foot mountain of snow in Barrack's Road Shopping Center is going to melt. (My bets are on mid- to late-May.)

And also delightful is the fact that the church on Park Street had even given in to the spirit of frivolity that a snow event can cause. I LOVED the "join our flock sign, surrounded by a mass of pink flamingos leading up to the doors of the church. So amusing! Well, done, church on Park Street!

I guess I can deal with it for a little longer. Maybe we'll get another huge snow storm...in which case, there's always hot chocolate, cookie baking, and snow-person constructing to look forward to. :)