Loving New England

I am so happy that I moved back here. I love that small farms still thrive here, and try to do the majority of my veggie shopping at farm stands. Today I am going to visit an organic dairy farm store. It is possible to support a lot of local businesses -- at least local farms. I have also found some small ethnic grocery stores (Polish, Russian, Italian and panInternatonal) where I shop. And there is no better cheddar in the world than Granville Cheddar. (And I used to live in England, so I do have a wide field of comparison.)

I even buy my soda and seltzer from a small independent soda company.

I plan to visit some of the pick-your-own farms later this season to pick tomatoes, peppers, apples and peaches so that I can freeze them (or food made from them). I should also be able to get a 50# bag of onions to slice and dice. Time to buy that small freezer. It is a way to economize, and also a way to increase the quality of winter food.

Everyone is frantic about the anticipated cost of heating this winter, and I am already planning to put plastic seals on many of my windows -- I may also get a new front door. The market for pellet stoves is brisk, but they are also anticipating a pellet shortage, and a consequent price leap (if you can even find pellets). So much for that option. I'll just throw what I can against decreasing any drafts and closing off rooms I don't use. And will bundle up more.

Everyone here is cinching in the spending belt -- lots of folks have lost jobs or are just heavily hit by the increase in food and fuel costs. I'm doing OK, but being much more careful than usual, just in case.