Writing Log - Miscellaneous Day

* Posted Saturday writing log
* Updated a dead market in my market listings
* Read FFWSmallMarkets
* Read FundsforWriters - had a useful article with links to markets for articles about writing
* Read AbsoluteWrite newsletter
* penthius freewriting, "War Weather: Science Fiction
* Found a rejection letter that was never processed--it had fallen behind my inbox. I was wondering why they hadn't responded yet! Argh.
* Submitted "Good Help is Hard to Find" to Cemetery Dance--wow, it's been a long time since I've submitted to a place that still requires snail mail submissions.

Twittered Today

• 22:48 @opheliac9 Interested in getting a house? I hear it's a good time to do it. #
• 22:52 Being relieved the painkiller finally kicked in. Physical rehabilitation exercises? Hurt. A lot. (That's supposed to be a good sign.) #
• 23:24 @gorillagirl An old friend then? Or your acquaintance from the coffee shop? #
• 11:30 I dreamt of waterhorses and indoor lakes and old murders remembered. #
• 11:31 Time for phone calls: insurance bastards and store opening with worthwhile door prizes. #
• 11:40 OK, is this year just the CSA tipping point, or what? #
• 12:05 "With great reverence, he committed the greatest blasphemy of his life." - Now *that's* a good opening line. #
• 12:11 Neither OpenOffice nor Firefox dictionaries recognize 'patchouli'. Not made for hippies, I guess. #
• 12:40 @cvalenti Nope. #
• 12:40 @cvalenti It *is* the correct spelling. #
• 12:50 Wow. Already paid for a story not going to be published until June? Fantastic. #
• 13:17 @nemoren Better than flying monkeys? Ooo. #
• 13:56 Time for another physical therapy appointment. Woo. Will also drop off a (snail-mail!) story submission along the way. #

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New Story, Chat with Sign Painter, etc.

So far, today has been a mostly good day.

I didn't have to go in to the day job (always a good start), so I slept in a bit and got a fair chunk of writing done. Critically, I started actually writing "Tree of Life"--always the hardest part of a new story. Also, usually the worst writing. In this case, that bodes well for the rest of the story, because I think I might win for awesomest opening line ever.

I called the insurance people again, and they said, no, you won't actually owe tens of thousands of dollars, your information and that document must have just crossed in the mail.

Physical therapy today involved lots of electrodes and biofeedback. It works surprisingly well, but I could learn to hate blinky lights that beep at me.

Walking home, I had a chat with the sign-painter decorating the windows of the corner store nearby. It has sat vacant for a few months now, ever since the candy shop-that-wasn't opened and closed its doors in the space of three days. Soon it will be home to one of those catch-all urban corner "stuff" stores--cell phones, urban fashions for ladies and men, copies, and faxing. I complimented his work, and he told me that he was also a tattoo artist and showed me some of his sketches. Then he asked me a "confidential" question about whether I indulged in what sounded like epinephrine but was actually some sort of tea (ideas, malcubed?). He said it was better for you than cigarettes, but I told him I didn't indulge in those either. Besides, he had few teeth, so I'll reserve judgment. I said no, and went on my way with a "God bless you, baby," farewell. Soon it will be summer, and I'll be walking more, and will have more random encounters.

And now I'll be researching a CSA, the idea of having a share in which makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.

Interested in a CSA?

Edited to add: We've gotten a firm partnership for a CSA share (mischief03 and yanni85), so we don't need somebody to split a share anymore. But feel free to keep using comments in this post to network with each other, as there seems to be a lot of interest. The webpage listing all the Minnesota (or close Wisconsin) CSAs is http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/csa.html.

What a CSA is.
Community Supported Agriculture. Basically, you pay an upfront fee and get a split of the farmer's harvest. They get some protection against price fluctuations and weather disasters, and you get a variety of extremely fresh organic produce on a weekly basis through the growing season.

Personally, I love the idea of getting a weekly surprise box filled with tasty, fresh, organic goodness. I get warm fuzzies at the idea of supporting an independent farm. And it's an excellent way to ensure we eat our veggies (I hope).

We are looking for another household to split a CSA share with. A single share is way too much food for any two people to eat. Unless a) they are vegetarian, b) never eat out, and c) are willing to can/freeze/dry large quantities. Splitting a share is also far more economical than buying a 1/2 share.

Things to consider when looking at a CSA share.
Growing season - most CSAs offer June - October deliveries. Some have extended seasons. This was one of our considerations.
Variety - Some places have more varieties, some offer more fruit, some even add flowers. A lot of places offer separate cheese/meat/egg shares, but those are beyond our budget for now.
Drop-off point - We'll probably be choosing one in Minneapolis.
Standard prices seem to be $900-$600 for a full share, and $500-$400 for a half-share (purchased directly from the farm, not split).

Our Finalists
These are places that we would like to get a share to, but can only afford if we can split a share with somebody else. Now, I confess to laziness--I only looked at those CSAs that had a website. I did not call every single one to get pricing and so on.

Harmony Valley Farms - Our first choice (And we're going to get one there!). Also the most expensive option, but their extended season goes from May - December. That's a lot. They have decent variety and good drop-off points. A split share would cost $415 each.

Philadelphia Community Farm - Quite close, only 1 hr out of the Twin Cities. Gets bonus points for also being an education/conservation farm, and for having another super-long season (if you buy the option) - April - November. They have a standard variety, nothing special (except the maple syrup). No fruit (most shares include strawberries, raspberries, and maybe a melon or two). A split share would cost $325 each.

Featherstone Fruits and Vegetables - Lots of variety, lots of heirloom plants. A regular growing season (June-October/November). A split share would cost $300.

Earth Dance Farm - Very good variety including herbs, apples, and plums. Some harvest festivals (most places have these). This would be my first pick on variety alone. The drop-off would be at our house--or yours, if it works out as more convenient overall that way. Standard growing season. A split share would cost $260 each.

We'll be making our final decision before the end of the week, so if you're interested and willing to make a commitment, please let me know. We've had some people who are tentatively interested, but only tentatively.

And to everybody else? There's a good chance that even a half-share will be more veggies than we can handle, so...expect dinner invitations in the peak of harvest season. And expect veggies.

(no subject)

( I'm getting hungry looking at my own journal layout. )