Today was a green day!

Though I am used to driving my gas-guzzling truck all over central Iowa, today offered me a rare opportunity to leave that sucker parked in the garage all day long. There was not a cloud in the sky when I headed off to work on my bike, and the rest of the day was amazingly perfect, as well. Between good weather (a rare find around Iowa these days) and only having to work at one job (and the job was in Ames!!), I gave the environment and my credit card a break.

The commute was a little different than what I would have liked due to the flooding, but it still worked out well. The neighbors probably are thinking that I am nuts, though. I rode one bike to and from work, then came home and headed out for a run. After a quick transition, I came out of the garage on my tri bike and headed out for a training ride. Another quick transition later, and I headed back out for another run!

After my workout, I grabbed my other bike again and took off down the road into town. Tuesdays are the distribution days for the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) that I am a part of for the first time this year. I get a vegetable share from Iowa Fresh Produce, a fruit/berry share from the Berry Patch Farm, and a half gallon of skim milk from the Picket Fence Creamery. This is the third week, and the food so far is amazing.

My fridge is overflowing with four or five types of lettuces, spinach, strawberries, rhubarb, and radishes. As more things come into season, the greater the selection. It's kinda like going to the farmers' market, but someone has done all the work for you! I just show up, pick up my shares, and head home. The rest of my Tuesday nights are spent washing, cutting, slicing, and generally preparing the food so it is really easy for me to grab when I am ready to eat it.

Tonight as I rode home along one of the very few streets with a designated bike lane (who knew??), I am sure I got more than a couple second glances from the people driving past me on the way home. I was wearing the RAGBRAI cooler backpack loaded down with with my milk, veggies, and a bunch of tall stalks of rhubarb sticking out well above my head. I was barely able to get it all jammed into the backpack; I may have to figure out a better way to transport...

I decided to do the CSA thing this year for a number of reasons. I've been gradually working on improving my diet over the last few years. The hardest part for me has always been incorporating more vegetables into the mix. The CSA offers me a big variety of very fresh, high quality food grown locally at a very reasonable cost. My goal is to try everything I get, eat something from the CSA in every meal, and give some of it away - even though I am eating nearly everything in sight these days, there is still so much food every week!

I've been enjoying some great salads every night. The strawberries are amazing (and I'm planning a very yummy strawberry-rhubarb dessert soon!), and I am absolutely loving the milk. I'm sure that my mother who had to basically force-feed me veggies and milk as a child is falling off her chair with shock as she reads this...