Back to the fields

We met up with Jen + Lucy in the fields yesterday for a quick picking party. It doesn't take long to fill your bucket with these big berries. Had to check out the adjacent mint field because it smelled so good. It's harvested for oil and then the stems are composted... it makes great mulch.



So for a few weeks now it will be the blueberry's turn. Cherries are almost done.



I do enjoy the relative ease of picking blueberries. It was a nice, not-to-sunny morning, and it seemed like half of Corvallis was out in the fields. I will say, I was a little struck off guard when a couple folks whom we didn't know started picking off the same bush as us. It's just never happened before. The more the merrier to get the job done, I suppose.



This morning's parking lot transaction scored me 9 dozen jars from a highly organized, dedicated canner off Craigslist for $25. Looking forward to peaches and maybe tomatoes. The jars alone are great. They'd make perfect glasses for a big summer or fall party.



My hand, in the new header, is holding what's currently available all in just our yard or nearby neighbor's. A variety of cherries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries. I keep hearing lines from Jamberry run through my head. "Burried in berries..." "Raspberry Jazzberry Razzamatazzberry..."

Now it's raining. A lot. We heard the longest roll of thunder I think we've ever heard. Seriously lasted longer than a minute, for sure. I love when the sky takes over and I don't have to worry about watering for a day or two. Love it. Toshiko looks like a wet rat. Not pretty.

Oh, and we got a new vacuum. So far so good. It has a little light system that tells us when an area is dirty and when it's clean. Needless to say, it took a while to get from red to green in this house, but we hope it won't take so long from now on.