The Teeming Worldwide Mailbox and Baffling Bags

Thanks to friends from all over, I was able to put up HP's recent mail on the door where he can see it, having read the messages to him multiple times, and reminded him who sent what and where they live. Talking is very difficult for him now, but he managed to say "such.....good...people" when we were talking about this collection.

So I thought you'd like to see, from Calgary, Minnesota, NZ, Toronto, the Outer Banks, and locally. This doesn't count the lovely letters and packages and emails from BC and points west and north! you can't know how huge this is for him, in his small world, to know that people took time and effort to send him good wishes and news and information and lovely stamps.

I was going to picture him looking at the collection, but he fell asleep in mid setup, so that's for another time.

I haven't talked about food in a while, though we have been eating all along, but today it's a nice cheese and ham and tofu and three egg omelette with roasted french fries -- potatoes sliced as for fries, but drizzled with olive oil and all kinds of wild spices, and roasted at 375 till tender and a bit crisp on the edges. Fresh fruit dessert as always, and the apricots are coming in, always nice.

I scored a wonderful volume at the used bookstore -- the Cranbury Bookworm, where the Dollivers made one of their first forays into the Big World, some time back. I found a compilation of five books by MFK Fisher in one volume, for the princely sum of five dollars, what a bargain. A buck a book, come to think of it.

Enough reading for a long time. She's an endlessly funny and very very good writer, and keeps the recipes down to a minimum, because she's interested in the art of food and eating and the part it plays in life.

And the latest fruit buying expedition at the Asian store, where the produce is second only to the local farm, which isn't open in the mornings. The Chinese checker, no, that doesn't sound right, the lady at the checkout had a wonderful time with my handmade shopping bags, really liked them.

Asked if they were knitted, and when I explained, no crocheted. Puzzled look, language barrier, and I went on, you know, made with a hook, and I did the hand motions, ahhhhhh clear now. Did they wash and could you put in dryer? yes, to both. Are they strong, why not knit? because crochet stretches to accommodate the food and it's strong. I didn't add that I was in the mood to crochet anyway at the time. She cracked up laughing when she couldn't find her way into one bag because the stripes were vertical and she assumed they must be horizontal, so she was trying to open the sides....saying to herself, hm, stripes wrong way here...

I had no idea I was creating comic relief when I made the bags, but they are a lot more fun than plastic. And MFK would approve