Becoming a locavore... or not

I almost always read books to completion, even when I don’t especially care for them. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle compelled me to break this rule. Even though I have really enjoyed all of Barbara Kingsolver’s novels, and I am a strong proponent of the ideas she espouses in AVM, after a few hundred pages I simply got tired of being harangued by her constant lectures and self-important ruminations. I love the way she writes, but wish she would stick to novels; also her writing gifts do not extend to her daughter and husband, who somewhat annoyingly co-authored the book. Kingsolver and her family committed themselves for one year to eating locally and writing about the experience. Everything they ate (with a very few exceptions) was grown or raised by them, or bought from local farmers. Living on a farm in Virginia made it possible, but it still wasn’t easy.

Imagine doing it yourself. First of all, no bananas, no coffee. Where I live, no oranges. And you have to eat seasonally, something that I think is a great idea but also difficult. I love things like winter squash, kale, and other winter greens, but no salads all winter long would be almost unbearable. Garrett and I do a pretty good job of buying almost all of our meat locally from farms that raise their animals humanely and sustainably; and we pick and freeze or can fruits and vegetables all summer long. And I love to go the farmer’s markets and buy really fresh fruits and veggies, and artisanal cheeses from local farmers. But that’s about as far as I want to go.