And they said it wouldn't last!

Ha! We made it through one year already! And what a year it has been! We still haven't been on an official honeymoon and could only muster energy for a quick day trip to celebrate our first anniversary, but it was a lot of fun. We went to Dunwich Heath, a nature reserve along the North Sea coast in Suffolk. It was the perfect time of year because all the purple heather was in bloom along with the yellow gorse...it really was a sea of purple as far as the eye can see! Then, when we got tired of that view, we headed down to the rocky beach which seemed to stretch endlessly in either direction. It never crossed our minds to bring swimming suits with us but we wish we had as it turned out to be one of the warmest days of the summer (maybe it even got up to 80!). As we were about to leave the nature reserve a troop of traditional English folk dancers, called Morris Dancers, showed up as if to help us celebrate! Then we went to the nearby beach town of Southwold for dinner. But first we encountered the idea of the English picnic hut. All along the boardwalk runs a string of little, brightly-colored, huts, which one can rent for the day or week. We have discovered that the English cannot tolerate being more than 5 minutes from food and a cold, sandy picnic lunch simply will not do. Inside the hut is a primitive kitchen and some seats so the English can get out of the sun before they turn into lobsters or, more likely, get out of the rain! Next time we go to the beach, we're definitely getting one of these. Here are a few pictures from the day and you can also check out Our Albums to the right.

Why I am loving the Organic Box Scheme

I recently attended a talk entitled "Reconnecting Consumers, Producers and Food" and was inspired to rethink where, why, and how we get our food. I already do my best to grow my own vegetables, make food from scratch, and buy as locally as I can, but this talk really opened my eyes to the problems that supermarkets create. For example, because giant supermarket can fix prices as they see fit, farmers can't make a decent living anymore. And about 30% of all produce farmers grow is thrown out because it doesn't fit supermarket standards (ie. peppers that are a certain size and shape). Furthermore, since supermarkets want all of their produce to be identical, farmers only grow a few varieties of crops, letting all the other seed varieties be lost!

So, now we are getting our produce delivered to our door once a week by local organic growers! We've joined the Cambridge Organic Food Company box scheme and the above picture is part of what arrived at our door on the first day. One of the best things about this scheme is that it is a big surprise what we will get! Yesterday I got a weird purple vegetable which Google Images has identified for me as Kohlrabi. Anyone have any good kohlrabi recipes? I'm excited to expand my cooking skills!

The Curious Case of Paul, Sarah, and the Perfect Cambridge Weekend

After a week of sub-par weather while Matt and Lindsey were in town which only left us time to bond, cook, and play with Buddy (is there an icon for a fake exasperated sigh?) we were absolutely shocked to have decent weather while Paul and Sarah were in town! Paul and Sarah had just spent a week in Scotland and London where the weather was miserable but it somehow smiled upon us for the weekend. (Those of you who are regular blog readers are probably sick of hearing me talk about the weather but those of you who have been here will understand how absolutely crucial good weather is!)

We spent Saturday touring Cambridge, taking Buddy (who was at once clean, fluffy, and charming) for a walk, and having a nice dinner (albeit during a downpour) at D'Arry's Wine Shop. Sunday dawned bright and sunny so we took a tour of the newly-completed building at the IOA (pictures and tour of George's new office will follow) and then took out a St. John's punt with a picnic for the afternoon. We had to bail about an inch of water out of the bottom of the punt with a dust pan before starting but managed to keep a stiff British upper lip all the while (but, ah well, nevermind...) Paul, Sarah, and George were all "brilliant" punters and we even decided to lug the punt above the locks to extend our tour. That evening we caught the tail end of the Cambridge Summer Music Festival and saw the Clare College choir perform the Faure Requiem and a John Tavener piece, Ex Maria Virgine, which had been commissioned by the choir. As an added surprise, the composer was even there to hear the performance! So, Paul and Sarah got to see the Cambridge highlights including punting and music and took off on Monday morning before the true Cambridge colors (ie. grey) could show themselves! So, if you have visited us and didn't get this experience, here it is for you in print :) Thanks for visiting Paul and Sarah! It was a great end to Visitor's Season 08-09!

Shakespeare in the Park

It is too bad that no one appears to be enjoying this feast of Pasta Fagioli soup prepared by Matt and Lindsey! After one rained out evening (which we spent instead eating Indian food and seeing Harry Potter) Regina, Ben, George, Lindsey, Matt, and I finally got to see the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival's production of The Merchant of Venice. The play was fun but the picnic was better because it was both more savory and warmer!