We don’t have many neighbors out here in the far west end of the county, in Yuma Arizona, but those we have are interesting people.
Down the road a bit live Judy & Doug, whose house is set back far enough from the road it hardly qualifies as a “front yard,†but that’s what we call it anyway. Since this is ranch country, ag country, dontcha know, it wouldn’t do to plant grass and waste that good little chunk of land on plastic flamingoes and lawn furniture.
In years past, every so often a hulking creature (sometimes two) of the beef variety would appear in Judy’s front yard, and we’d always say, “Looks like Judy’s bull-sitting again!†This was a great joke when our kid was younger. Kids love those almost-swear words.
We always said it was Judy, since in those days Doug was working up in Prescott most of the time.
Anyhoo, that was the running joke for a long time. Then last year, Doug, who’d retired by then and was looking for something to do with all his newfound time back at the Yuma ranch, started experimenting with a vegetable garden. Fortunately for us, Doug and Judy are generous people who are happy to share their bounty.
Every now and again I’ll come home and find a bag or two of what’s new in the garden. Since Doug started his project we’ve literally had everything from artichokes to zucchini, and I swear we’re getting healthier. It’s also been a lot of fun, because my husband and I both are seriously into cooking, so when we have exhausted or repertoire of recipes, we can. (Yes, we can can, too!) I made a bunch of spaghetti sauce last year that Paul Newman would envy.
We also freeze, or dry, as was the case with a big pile of celery we had one time. Also made some celery salt, which was so cool I gave some to my boss.
Of course we share stuff with our friends in turn. It wouldn’t be so much fun, otherwise. After all, how much can two people consume, even if it is the best stuff in the county?
I’m relatively sure Judy didn’t suddenly go vegetarian. While she is a Democrat, she is more of a classical liberal bent, and not given to sudden radical changers in behavior. I figure they probably had enough beeves in their freezer, and it was just time to pursue something new.
Who knows – maybe Doug & Judy and the rest of us will finally answer the question of what to do with all that zucchini!
Sadly, when the grandchildren come by, the best we’ll be able to do is say that lady that lives there where the big garden is used to be a bull-sitter. Somehow it doesn’t have the same cachet…
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Zucchini bread. It freezes well, can be adapted in many ways from regular to sweet, and is a better gift than the regular veggie.
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