My Own Private TriMet

Sunday, coming back after singing at church - including a three-line Anglican chant solo! - I decided to stop by New Seasons to stock up on carrots and celery and fruit for the week's lunches, so waited for the number 4 Division bus down by one of the city squares with green grass and benches and commemorative statues. The one nearest this bus stop has a pioneer family, the man pointing off towards the West, the woman looking harried, the young son eager, with what I just realized that day is a BROKEN wagon wheel behind them. No wonder the woman looks harried. And in the pavement in front of the statue, surrounding one of Portland's almost-always-on drinking fountains, are foot- and paw-prints of all sorts of animals and birds, as if to commemorate the native fauna's collective "Run away! run away!" when faced with the influx of gun-totin' settlers.

But I digress, as Michael5000 would say. The bus arrived, and I was startled to find myself the only one on it. I can't recall if that has ever happened. Especially since I tend to ride the more popular inner SE routes during peak hours. But the driver and I had a nice chat all the way up Division, and just before I got off the bus someone else got on. So she had someone to chat with still.

The celery was diced and combined with diced chicken from the drumsticks I'd made stock out of the other day, plus some mayonnaise and a good bit of whole-grain mustard with horseradish, and ground black pepper. I grated the carrots and mixed them with rice vinegar, cumin, and cinnamon. The fruit was apples, and they stayed whole. I eat at least one every day. But I'm looking forward to the spring fruits, especially strawberries. The New Seasons insert is in the paper today, and they have Driscoll Farms strawberries on sale, and they're organic - Driscoll has been in "transitional" mode for several years, and I'm glad to see they have their organic certification now. I might indulge, or wait until the Oregon strawberries (MUCH better in my opinion) hit the market. If I can wait ...