Johnny calls me Crunchtina

I'm embarking on a new era, one where I enjoy mornings. As you know from yesterday's Five Senses, I discovered the Bayou City Farmers' Market in my search for healthy, fresh, raw milk. My aid in searching was the Real Milk site, which led me to Houston organic Yahoo! groups, and finally to raw milk in the big city. Johnny and I actually set our alarm on a Saturday morning, rolled out of bed, and hopped in the Honda Element. We set Johnny's iPod & iTrip to African music (West Africans in particular have perfected the art of music) and zipped down the Magic Road (Westpark tollway) to the Bayou City Farmers' Market tucked into one of my favorite regions of Houston.

The weather was picturesque: 80 degrees, breezy, low humidity, brilliant sunshine, and blue sky. We pulled into the parking lot and spied 20 little white tents full of Granola goodness. With a Barnes & Noble Virginia Woolf tote bag over my shoulder, we walked up to Reed Family Honey Farm. I could have gone crazy-nuts in this tent, but I restrained since I purchased raw honey at Whole Foods earlier this week. I was content with a tube of honey-hemp oil lip butter and two honey-beeswax tealights. I should say here that Reed's is the best lip balm I've ever put on my puckers, and y'all who know me well also know I have tried A LOT of lip balm. We sampled Preferred Bird of Texas's chicken (all natural, raised without antibiotics and added hormones) and Gardener's Corner peppermint tea mixed with natural fruit sugar. Again, it is the best peppermint tea I have ever imbibed, even from my overflowing tea shelf. I grabbed flyers about Pila Teas which are straight from Sri Lanka. We purchased blueberries from J.D.'s Organic Farm and picked up our order of raw milk and butter from Stryk Jersey Farm. All the while folk singers Smythe and Taylor sang and strummed.

Wearing my imitation-Birkenstock clogs and immersing ourselves in that scene, we tapped into our inner-hippie, mine a result of my Mom's Health Food Phase when I was very young. She read the exact same information about raw milk and desperately wanted to purchase a cow for our backyard. Alas, our Spring Branch home did not sport wide, open pasture out back so we did not adopt a cow. But I digress. I am grateful for Whole Foods and modern-day grocery stores as much as the next guy, but today was a blessed revelation. Instead of a grumpy or indifferent cashier we met, shook hands, and talked to the very people who sweat and toiled over honey, produce, dairy, and meat. After reading Ch. 2 of Crunchy Cons, I realized that we were previously eating disgusting dairy & meat and supporting corrupt agricultural industries. If you knew, you would understand my drama. Now we are purchasing healthy dairy and meat, extra thankful for God's provision of food on our table. And we are proudly supporting the agrarian tradition, farmers caring for God's creation - land and animal - the way He designed.

We will be in Austin next Saturday, but we will happily wake early the next Farmers' Market Day for that peppermint tea, chicken, lamb, beef, eggs, basil, more tealights, more raw dairy, and lip balm for friends and family. Then Johnny will need to wrap a blindfold 'round my head and lead me back to the Element for our budget's sake. Did I mention we are joining Central City Co-Op next week? Or that I found Houston Farmers' Market, and Midtown Farmers' Market behind I-must-eat-at-T'afia's restaurant? Thank God for Rod Dreher - his book gives me comfort that I'm not alone in this country.