Farmers Markets and Me

This is a picture of the Farmers Market that takes place on Thursdays in Downtown Los Angeles. I began going there while working in the LA Times Building, and I continue to make weekly jaunts down to the market when my schedule allows. I usually buy a couple of slices of banana-walnut bread for Saturday morning breakfast, some veggies, some fruit, maybe some jerky, and then usually a tamale to eat there, while reading. It's a nice ritual that I can feel good about, in terms of eating organic and locally.

I've been attending several other farmers markets in Los Angeles. Wednesdays at Barnsdale, Sundays in Beverly Hills, Saturdays in North Hollywood. I've never been to one I didn't like.

I don't remember going to farmers markets as a kid, really. I'm sure San Jose and Palo Alto had them, but I remember going to swap meets more. Farmers markets are more popular now than even ten years ago.

What I usually do when I go to the Farmers market, any of them, is get $20 from the bank. When it's gone, I'm done buying things. That way I can't get anything too expensive (yes, that soap smells good, but I already have soap) and I won't get so caught up in buying fancy pansty vegetables that I buy more than I can eat before they go bad.

They're also a nice way of staying abreast of what's in season. Of course, it's also wise to be knowledgeable about that. Years ago I went to a farmers market in Santa Monica with a friend of mine in, I think, January. She bought some strawberries, and then we went to another stand, where a hippie-ish looking guy was selling organic veggies. He looked at the strawberries and asked where they were possibly growing them - the moon? My friend turned as red as the fruit in her hands. I've been careful to only buy strawberries in the spring and summer since then. Although the other day, I did buy some heirloom tomatoes, even though I'm pretty sure their growing season is the fall. Oh well. They're too tasty to pass up.

I'll update on more farmers markets as I visit others. There's a new one on Thursdays at Hollywood and Western I should check out ...