let the container gardening begin

after our trip to the farmers market, we went by summer winds nursery, also in campbell. i had dreams of a huge container herb garden, but given the shadiness of our patio i've scaled back a bit. instead, we got just one herb -- lemon balm -- as well as a fern, coleus, and new guinea inpatiens. picking out the pots and garden gloves was probably my favorite part of the shopping experience. getting dirty with the potting soil was also fun, and the plants really brighten up the patio. we even let howie out on the patio for a bit to enjoy the new "garden." if these plants do well, i hope to expand the garden, but all in all this is making me really excited for the day when we have a house with a real yard.

campbell farmers market

today we went to the campbell farmers market for the first time. i gotta say, it puts my little japantown farmers market to shame. it's about two city blocks of tents, with jewelry, artwork, produce, meat, prepared foods, and a couple live performers. it was a bustling market and had a huge selection of organic produce. i've been missing my oakland farmers markets, so discovering the campbell market was a very good thing. no shave ice or hydrangea the size of a small child, but i did get two bunches of dahlias and one bunch of zinnias for just $10. needless to say, our farmers market basket was very heavy by the end of the visit. and we've got a huge bowl of gazpacho in the fridge right now for dinner.

oh, and an update on my last post: that creepy looking zucchini -- in the middle in the first veggie picture -- is a "bitter melon." i found that out from a farmer at today's market. it can be used in soups and stir-frys. i wasn't brave enough to buy it this week, but still hope to experiment with it in the future.

walk to japantown

this sunday, i walked to the japantown farmers market for the first time since moving to san jose. the heart of japantown is just six blocks away -- about a ten-minute walk. i was happy to get to use my new basket for the first time. san jose's japantown is pretty sleepy, but it's very pleasant. the farmer's market is small and i have to admit i couldn't even name some of the vegetables there (see photos below). but i got a HUGE bunch of hydrangea for just five dollars, and given that we only own fairly small vases we have hydrangea scattered around the house in lots of little bunches. on the walk back i spotted a place that sells hawaiian shave ice -- a treat for which i recently discovered my passion, while on the big island. if i hadn't just bought a lemonade the size of my head i definitely would have bought one. i didn't see lilikoi on the menu but i'll be sure to go back and give their shave ice a try at some point. next weekend: campbell farmer's market. i've heard good things... let's see how much they charge for giant hydrangea.

a lovely gathering

after our trip to apple hill on saturday, i took mike to gather restaurant for the first time. gather is downtown berkeley's gift from the food gods. it opened earlier this year and was a success from the start. from the house sparkling water in creamery bottles to the vegan chocolate layer cake, gather is a treat from start to finish. the vegan charcuterie is the house specialty and it never fails -- yay for roasted corn, grilled bread sandwiches, and crispy tofu skin (whatever that is). yay yay yay.

apple hill

i love that every time i go to garnet sun winery, they have barrel tastings -- at other wineries, barrel tastings are often only on special events. last fall, when mike and i were up in apple hill getting apples for our thanksgiving pie, we stopped by garnet sun and ended up investing in a wine future. with a wine future, you commit to buying a certain amount of bottles of a future wine that hasn't yet been finished. the great thing about garnet sun's futures is that you get to come back whenever you want to visit your wine as it matures and taste it straight out of the barrel as it gets ready for bottling. we didn't do that, so when i got the call from the winery a couple weeks ago that our wine was ready i was quite surprised. we made the 3-hour drive on saturday to pick up the bottles and we're very pleased with our little baby wine, fresh out the oak womb. it was a little eerie being in apple hill when it wasn't the apple season -- the streets are much more scenic without the apple-induced traffic.

san jose wine club

today was my first trip to the san jose wine club in... i don't know how long. maybe three years? it was a joyous reunion. that place is so great. so many great wines -- some of which i recognize, most of which i don't -- at amazing prices. i have to admit i'm a sucker for labels. an albariño that i bought was an old favorite but the others were bought purely on their labels. i figure if they're at the wine club they must be good, right?

welcome to the mynchfinkle residence

we finally got everything packed and all the excess stuff taken away (apparently all you have to do is post "free" on craigslist and the entire world descends on you to pillage your home). the house is finally in good enough shape for some photos! we still have a couple projects in mind to get the place finished, but our goal was to have everything settled in before we go to hawaii tomorrow and we did it.

first trip to the farmer's market

my first morning in san jose last sunday involved a trip to the santana row farmer's market. it doesn't hold a candle to oakland's grand lake or jack london square markets, but i was very happy to find a bolani tent! nothing makes me feel more at home at a farmer's market than a bolani vendor!

welcome to san jose

last weekend was the big move to san jose and it went off without a hitch! except the $1,000 car repair needed on the morning of the move. but other than that, without a hitch! tuesday brought more car trouble, which gave me an opportunity to play hooky and wander around my new downtown on a sunny day.