Day 1 Results. Not.

Today was supposed to be the first day we again tried to eat local. The Illinois Products Farmers' Market opened today, so it seemed like the logical time to start. However, after my interview with Kathryn Rem, in which I told her that we would start on May 13, it occurred to me that there were only two problems with my plan:

1. The Illinois Products Farmers' Market is held in the evening, 4:00-7:00. In other words, after breakfast and lunch are but dim memories. Makes it a bit difficult to eat local for the first 2 meals of the day.
2. My dad and step-mom were arriving today from Texas to visit for a couple of days. This means going out to eat. Another strike against eating local!

So I wouldn't really call today Day 1. (I won't be calling tomorrow Day 1, either, since we'll still be entertaining company. Let's talk again on Saturday, shall we?)

We did make it to the farmers' market and pick up some local food. Here's what we got:

• Strawberries (Livesprings Berries & Produce, Chandlerville)
• Eggs (Bear Creek Farm & Ranch, Palmer)
• Challah Bread (Central Illinois Event Catering, Elkhart)
• Mesclun Mix, Waldmans Dark Green Lettuce, and Cherry Belle Radishes (Oak Tree Farms, Ashland)
• Colby Cheese (Ropp Jersey Cheese, Bloomington)

Dawn and Lando had never been to the evening farmers' market, since I normally just drop by on my way home from work, so it was a good opportunity for them to come along, as well as my dad and step-mom. This let them see everything, but it also meant that I didn't spend as much time chatting with people as I normally do. I did get a few photos, so I'll try to get them posted soon.

Oh, we went straight from the farmers' market to a restaurant for dinner, with our purchases in an ice chest in the trunk, but I had to eat a strawberry as an appetizer in the parking lot. It was good!

Comments

[David Bloomberg]

Mmmmm, challah bread. And the strawberries there were good too (I bought one quart each from the two vendors, including the "seconds" for only $2.50 from one because they looked just fine to me!). Also picked up a HUGE bundle of green onions for just 75 cents.

[Darla]

Hello, I remember reading your posts last yr and enjoying them. However, how can a septic tank fail and why did it take so long to fix? I have lived at several places with septic tanks including our farm and sometimes the septic tanks get full (they must be pumped out), or get out of balance, so you put new digester into it, or a very old tank needs replaced (cracked, rusted, etc). What in the world happened to yours? Anyway, good luck with your quest to eat locally. Fun times ahead.

[Wally Hartshorn]

Hi, Darla. It isn't really the septic tank itself that fails. What happens is over time the leach field eventually becomes clogged and stops absorbing water at a fast enough rate. (The previous owner apparently wasn't even aware that she had a septic system, so it's unlikely that she maintained it properly.) In our case, the system was 37 years old, so its time had come.

It was 2 months before the new system was installed, in part because there was a bit of a delay while we investigated hooking into the city sewer system, but also because it just would not stop raining! We had 11 1/2 inches of rain in October, another 3 1/2 inches in November, and 4 1/2 inches in December! That's a total of 19+ inches of rain, when the average total for that 3-month period is less than an inch.

Over on my other blog, you can read all of the details (complete with numerous photos) in 2 posts called Life without a Septic System and Septic System Saga.