Who do you pay?

First and foremost it is Veterans Day and a heart full THANK YOU to all the Veterans out there!  I would not have all the luxuries and choices I have today if it weren't for your incredible commitment and sacrifice.  Simple words can not really express my gratitude.

I woke up early this morning to get the applesauce going.  We've had 1 1/2 bushels of apples sitting in our house for about 3 weeks now, they have made it into lunch boxes, crisps (our favorite!) and even an upside down gingerbread cake as I await having enough time to make and can applesauce. 

While peeling and slicing the apples I decided to watch the movie Ingredients.  This is a fabulous movie about the local farm movement.  I was excited to see many new to me faces and a few faces I've come to recognize in the last year - Joan Dye Gussow and Alice Waters in particular.  I read Joan's book This Organic Life earlier this year, it is a beautiful (and at times sad) story of her life as a organic home gardener.  As of the taping of the movie Ingredients Joan hadn't bought vegetables in over 10 years, she grows everything herself in her 1,000 square foot garden.  I will be adding her latest book, Growing, Older to my Christmas wish list.

But as I watched the movie, it is a quote from Greg Higgins that hit me the most "You can pay the doctor or you can pay the farmer." 

This comment was especially fitting as I reflect on a conversation I had last evening with a couple regarding their household budget, one of their top questions to me was "How much do you think is appropriate to spend on food?" 

There are 2 key responses to this question - (1) I firmly believe how we spend our money is a reflection of our values. (2) Who do you want to pay, the Doctor or the Farmer?

I was honest with them - in our household this is one of many of our budget catagories that is out of line with many Americans.  I buy local food, supporting our local farmers and our local economy.  Not 100% of what comes in to our home is local, I do have to keep the peace with my spouse, and I haven't learned how to make my own tea blends...yet.  Surprising to many though, buying local food in season and preserving is WAY cheaper than buying what you want when you want it.  For example, I bought a bushel of the best, sweetest red/green peppers from the farmers market for $10 this summer.  You know what, I have about 3/4 of that bushel preserved in my freezer.  I would say, bought this way the peppers were less than $0.25 each.  Try to buy a pepper in January at the grocery store for that price!  These peppers will be gracing our plates all winter and spring long. 

The way we make this work in our budget though is we cut back in other areas.  We don't have cable TV - we have an antenna and Netflix (streaming only! - that whole Netflix change-up is a huge debacle that I wont get in to here!), no home phone and only the basic internet broadband service available.  Our cell phones are just that, phones - no texting, e-mails, games, fancy ring tones or the like.

Want to occupy something?  Occupy your local farmer's market this weekend - YES they are still going strong, even here in Western NY!  And be amazed at the quantity, quality and variety that awaits you!  Hearty winter greens are so flavorful when kissed by a frost!  Eat up!