Done With the Gardening Guilt

The time has come for the persimmon tree to meet its executioner- me! I've thought long and hard about it and it's time to make a sensible decision rather than a silly one.

I LOVE the fact that we had a mature fruit tree in our backyard when we bought this house almost five years ago. The seller (who then became our neighbor) told us that it was his mother's tree and she used them in baking all the time. They certainly are a beautiful fruit and quite expensive in the grocery store.

Well, all I can say is that I tried. I tried to fall in love with them. I tried to make them fit into our lives. I tried to make them palatable. I failed. The final straw broke the other day when I picked the only three fruits on the tree left after the squirrels meticulously dropped them on the ground all season long, took one bite, and then fled in search of water- or gasoline- with which to clean out their mouths. I know that persimmons must be left until almost mushy ripe. These ones seemed close and, as the tree no longer had leaves on it, I didn't see them getting much riper. I brought them in the house, cut one up and offered slices to hubs, kids and FIL without saying anything about them.

My FIL made the best effort of pretending that it tasted like real food. My daughter stated that it felt like all the spit was being sucked out of her mouth. My son spit the bite back out onto the plate (nice manners on the kid), and hubs promised to help with with the execution.

The persimmon tree simply takes up too much real estate in our backyard if it's not going to provide food. I'd rather have a lemon or peach tree in its place. So down it will come this week. If the former owner/neighbor asks, I'll tell him that it was terminally ill. Or fell down. Or something....

Do You Believe in "American-Made"?

A recent blog post by homestead goods retailer Lehman's got me thinking about the how cheap "cheap foreign imports" really are. This is my response to them:
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Is "American-Made" Worth the Cost?

The Lehman's blog post today was different. It spoke about the company's struggle to provide American-made goods while also trying to give customers the best prices. Lehman's has always prided itself on selling mostly domestic products.
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There's Something About Baking Bread...

Everyone has an activity that helps them cope with stress. For me, it's baking bread. There's something about the rhythmic motion of kneading and the yeasty earthy smell that makes me feel that all is right with the world again. Perhaps it's the surety that such simple ingredients will produce a consistent puffy reaction and become something more than their sum. Or maybe just the knowledge that good filling sustenance has been made this way for centuries.

Whatever it is, I welcome it into my life. The scent of baking bread draws family to my kitchen and seems to encourage discussion, laughter, and togetherness. Breaking bread together at the dinner table is a habit I hope my children will carry on with their own. And I hope that, no matter how far away my family is from home, remembering being in mom's kitchen and watching bread bake in the oven will always give them strength and make them smile.