Unsettled

It has been a week or two of UNSETTLED--as in weather that cannot decide if it should convey the thought of hopeful spring or insist on clinging to winter.

We've had various dealings in the works--or perhaps I should say that J. is in full-blown 'wheeling and dealing' mode--a trait that is prevalent in the males of his family.

[I should be used to this--but I always react by feeling unsettled and distracted.]

 A certain amount of traipsing about accompanies these ventures.  Sometimes I'm along for the ride, at other times I obstinately refuse to budge.

Yesterday after an appointment in town J. decreed that we might as well drive to Casey County to the Mennonite-owned natural foods store.

It is always a treat to shop there.

I needed 50# of unbleached flour, various dried beans and rice, some bulk herbs and seasonings.

We also brought home a 50# sack of raw sugar--the last bagful lasted us over two years.

This morning I. helped J. to decant flour and sugar into airtight containers which we store in the basement.

Next door to the bulk foods store is a greenhouse and produce shop owned by the same family.

Although it is early--and the weather too chilly for planting--I needed the cheering thought of thyme plants and a rosemary to replace those which perished in the bitter cold of January.

The plants are still tiny, but I will tuck the thyme in the ground as soon as there is a less bitter day.

The rosemary, 'Arp', is a variety which has proved to be more cold hardy than others.

It will be potted on in a gritty soil mix.

J. spotted a flat of hot-house tomatoes at a reasonable price.

That's a lot of tomatoes for a household of two!

Part of the top layer was presented to M. and G. before we brought the box home.

J. picked out some choice ones to take to friends this morning.

The same friends often share eggs from their flock of hens--we have an informal barter where-by I share baked goods in return for the eggs.

There was a fund-raiser at M.'s workplace, so he came home with a flat of strawberries--strawberries traded for tomatoes.

I will leave you to imagine our menu possibilities for the next several days.

A word of thanks for the comments left on my previous post.

I've not had much time at my desk to respond or to comment on the posts of blog friends.

My desktop PC went today to the shop where data will be transferred to my new unit.

I'm letting that familiar PC go with regrets--it is about 7 years old and has been trouble-free, but the looming obsolescence of XP finally nudged me to update.

I retrieved my laptop from G.and found that my email program had gone missing.

Think 2 hours of frustration while I attempted to cope with a missing password and security code.

I was able at last to work through J.'s laptop and email address to establish a new password--where-upon my email program miraculously appeared in duplicate!

My skills for coping with technical issues are limited--I know patience will be required as I learn the quirks of the new PC.