You Can’t Get There From Here

At least, not easily. Sometimes it’s how we feel about all the long and winding roads in our part of the county. Roads that are lovely to look at, but make it slow going if you want to get to another nearby town on an errand.

Two examples in the last couple of days involved traveling to Olney. A fellow blogger lamented the fact that getting to the Olney Theater requires driving a very circuitous route. For me, as I was signing up for my winter CSA, my two options for pick up were Columbia or Olney. Olney is closer to me, as the crow flies, but is longer over the roads, and takes almost twice as long to drive than to the Columbia pickup point.

Olney market Sunday mornings

I suppose that is why I find little enthusiasm among friends for heading over to the year round Sunday market in Olney. It isn’t an easy trip across Rte. 108. It meanders and winds and seems to take forever. We can take a more direct route, using either Mink Hollow or Brighton Dam Roads, but you have to know the territory.

I decided when signing up for the CSA to make Olney a second choice, and I’ll cross my fingers that we get the minimum number of members to keep Columbia going all winter. I love our winter CSA, particularly the meat share, the bread share, the cheese share and the pantry items.

Yes, we get repetitive vegetables. Samples from last year’s omnivore share, where we got a pantry item, a meat item, and a cheese item with our vegetable delivery every week.

January 2015

February 2015

March 2015

April 2015

Carrots were always there. Mushrooms, too. I know I can get most of these items at the year round markets, but I like going to the CSA pick up point and chatting about recipes. I also like supporting the farmers through the winter. Over 100 of the Amish farmers that supply our CSA count on us to keep them solvent.

If we don’t meet our minimum, I may be heading over the river and through the woods to Olney. Fresh food all winter is a big incentive.