caught me a possum

As if this week wasn't hectic enough! Over the last year, I've tried my hand at gardening, trying to exorcise my black-thumb for a green one and do my daddy proud. Lo and behold I was successful at a few herbs but mainly delicious red tomatoes. Only...I would eye a delicious orb that would be of the perfect ripeness and the following day, when I went to pluck the fruit, I'd discover that it had a gigantic bite out if it. Thus began my problems with Peter Possum. Not only did he eat my crops, he showed me his under-belly and his long rat tail by climbing up my window grate. Not a sight to see at midnight. At least once a week since the debacle began a year ago, have I seen him. He's not afraid to sit and stare, hiss and harass my cats and basically be an all-around nuisance.
I'm an animal lover, first and foremost and after calling around various Philly humane animal rescue and quoted a fat $375, I decided to take matters into my own hands. With my friendly neighbors support, (the whole neighborhood is involved at this point, which kind of makes me like Philly again), we've borrowed a humane trap.
Yesterday I baited the trap with a juicy juicy apple and today, he is there, inside the trap. Tonight, Peter, you will leave the city and enjoy a country life. City living has you far too comfortable and I need to grow my garden.

ADDENDUM: Releasing the possum was the biggest concern I had. I honestly didn't know how to let him out of the cage. Would he be viscous and bite me? After pocketing my identification and my insurance card, I brought him downstairs and into the trunk of the car, covered in a dark plastic the whole time. We took our time while driving, avoiding huge pot-holes and, once we arrived at our undisclosed location where I know for a fact opossums thrive, we shuttled him out to the woods. I in my gardening gloves and long-sleeves with a big stick, and J with nothing but bare hands. Eventually we rolled the trap on its upside and watched our possum, tentatively at first, hop away into the wild. Free at last.

Gordon Loves Greens

Britain's' most famous chef and TV personality Gordon Ramsey has taken his plea for fresh seasonal veggies to the highest place possible. Ramsey, well-known for the gratuitous shirtless shot during each and every episode of Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares and his frequent use of the word bollocks, feels that chefs should be fined if they use out-of-season vegetables for their cuisine. He's taken the issue to Gordon Brown.
See the link here . http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN0949726820080509?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

As a practicing macrobiotic I couldn't agree more. Living in the Northeast my choices for veggies are always limited in the winter months. This year I lived on squash, kale and potatoes for the majority of winter. Living by New Jersey, tomato capital of the East, I can't wait for the first few months of fresh, delicious red tomatoes and sweet sweet corn. Sure, I'm tempted by vegetables of all kind, but have you ever been truly grossed out by a greenhouse-grown, color-injected unripe, grainy, pink tomato? Besides the 'green' aspect of this whole argument, keeping things local thereby reducing emissions to get our food on the table, we are also supporting our local farmers and living a bit more realistically, and truly benefiting from the freshest food possible. Here in Philadelphia, the local farmers markets have all been pushed back to the first few weeks of June, (thank you climate change!) which is when you can see with your own eyes what's local, what's fresh and what's for dinner.