Thanks!

....to that mysterious person who left a hefty bag of FRESH lychees hanging on my front screen door knob when I was in Okeechobee helping out my Dad! I'm inhaling them plus enjoying sharing them with friends who've never experienced their decadence. I savor the ritual of peeling and eating them. Total food sex.

   And thanks Planet Earth for this sudden rain that arrived moments ago as my yard can surely use every drop...the next few days look hopeful indeed due to activity in the Gulf of Mexico.

  I look forward to teaching my "Cooking What You Grow" class tomorrow based largely on the output of my gardens and my passion for ethnic cooking.....I will show how strategic use of spices can make it easy to turn vegetables and  meats from your urban farm and grocery store into delicious examples of Thai, Mexican, Indian, Chinese, Turkish, Ethiopian, and Italian cuisines. Today I dug up a Caribbean Yam next to a banana plant by my south fence to show why this hassle-free species (Dioscorea) is a staple in tropical regions the world over....slimy when sliced raw but as good as any Idaho potato when boiled, fried or baked.

   Dad is doing MUCH better and is getting what hopefully will be 2 weeks of physical therapy in the less-than-stellar 'Okeechobee Health Care Facility' before going home to either be back to his old self, or receive assistance from home health care, me and his friends and relatives.

   I have a nice mix of tropical food crops for sale in 1 gallon pots on my front porch Honor System plant sales tables out front where folks just slip their cash through the dryer vent in my red office door, including  Holy Basil,  Molokhiya, Ube Purple Yam, Blue Pea Vine, Velvet Bean, African Jack Bean and Cape Gooseberry, all marked and priced on strips of recycled mini-blinds.

  Thank you.   John