Well, the recession is still going strong, so the recession gardens should be, too. Have you checked out the rise in food prices? A lot, I'd say, everything is going up, and packages are being downsized right and left. Oh, well, as R.E.M. sang, "It's the End of the World as we know it, and I feel fine." Well, I would if I didn't have such a deer and vole problem!

Uh... yes you would - in a heartbeat! I do agree with Joe that there have been some hiccups along the way especially in 06 but that was the exception to the rule. Let me clarify the "Free Stuff" comments with the Latenight with MTPS Top Ten List 10. The swap is free. (No admission fee try getting into most events for nothing). 9. Parking is free. (I pay $10 to park a mile away when I go to a UT football game!) 8. The lunch is free. (You do need to bring something though.) 7. The lecture is free. (How many lectures and seminars can say that?) 6. The Q & A is free. (Ok the lectures, seminars and Q&A at the Bass Pro Shops Spring Classic are free but most arent.) 5. Hanging out with the nicest folks in the World is free. (How often do you get that opportunity?) 4. Spending the day in a beautiful scenic surrounding is free. (Alright, most public parks are free but to reserve space isnt.) 3. The information from extremely knowledgeable people is free. (The knowledge you gain at a MTPS is pure GOLD.) 2. Swapping plants is free. (You do need something to swap with though). 1. and the side entertainment of watching me unravel and go down in flames twice a year is always free! (Not that its worth much either.) By my count, thats a whole bunch of FREE STUFF!!! Looking back to '06, two years after the fact, makes me now realize that it really wasn't THAT bad! Yes it was a logistical nightmare for a lot of us but lord knows it could have been MUCH MUCH MUCH worse; it could have been a total unmitigated disaster. But thanks to the regular members that stepped into the breach as well as several first-timers (Martha in particular) that helped save the day, I think that it was salvaged to be one of our finest hours. We took what could have been a terribly chaotic situation and made the best of it that we possibly could. Personally I feel like it brought a lot of us closer together sharing a traumatic event. It kinda gripes me that what gets lost is that Marty gave an incredibly excellent lecture on TN native plants! So considering that we had four times what we were prepared for show up... it was ok. That doesn't mean that I EVER want to go through that again; my heart and nerves simply wouldn't take it!!!

For years, our volunteer fire department has had a fish fry on Friday nights between Memorial Day & Labor Day. It's open to anybody & is widely attended by both year around locals & our seasonal boating community. There's often so many people they park on our property & walk down to the firehouse for their fish/chips. When we don't want to cook on Friday nights we always know where to get a good dinner! Our VFW has two fund raising steak feasts during the tourist season. Those guys are great with their grills & every year have something new & fun to go along with the steak. Our Congregational church is filled with avid gardeners that volunteer time to maintain a specimin garden across the street from the church. Every spring & fall we have plant sales. The sales has become well known & draw people from both CT & RI. Funds raised go to help our sister church in South America. The Catholic Church holds an annual bake sale on their lawn facing the main drag through town. They draw such a huge crowd you can't get downtown until after the sale is over. DH walks down & brings back a selection of goodies for our brunch. The Church also holds a yard sale mid-summer. The Episcopalian Church holds a very large dinner on Thanksgiving. It's grown so large that they request help from other local congregations. We've participated a couple years by driving to pick-up people who otherwise would not be able to attend, eat dinner with them, & then see them home safely. Anybody is welcome at the dinner & there's a donation box but I don't think this event is really intended as a fund raiser...more a community service. Various organization like the Lions, Chamber of Commerce, etc. hold events & proceeds go back to the community in the form of park benches, repainting fences, planting flower boxes, & organizing/conducting our Friday Night At The Movies at the River Walk Park. It's really a fun event with a large outdoor screen & big sound system. People bring blankets, chairs, picnics, & the kids. Great community fun thing to do after you've filled up on fish/chips at the firehouse. Every week, the Seaport holds some type of event ranging from a Food Fest that takes over the town to an antique boat/car show, lobster bake, a bonfire, toasted marshmallows & singing sea chanties evening, Moby Dick Marathon (community locals take turns reading Moby Dick straight through around the clock...this is an annual & much anticipated event), a ghost ship evening held in October, tug boat regatta that is hugely popular with the kiddos. Many of these events are free to the public but if money is raised part of it goes back into the community so they're not just to support the Seaport although G@d knows our national museums certainly need all the support they can get in this age of electronic entertainment. The Aquarium also holds almost weekly events...some just for fun & others educational. Like the Seaport, a portion of any proceeds goes into the community. With two such large institutions it's sorta hard for small organizations to compete. There's literally something happening every weekend that draw crowds. Many of those people also drop by a bake sale, etc. Oh, on most Friday nights there's a local organization selling popcorn & peanuts at movie night in the park...not the same organization every week though. /tricia

I set out at the beginning of the quarantine to bake bread 5 days a week and deliver to various people. Started out on March 16 making 5 small loaves and taking it to single friends. And they were so appreciative, I did it again the next day with other friends.....and they thanked me profusely.....and I continued, with special attention paid to people who are doing things for others during these hard times. 7 weeks I have done this. For the first maybe 4 weeks I could come home from delivering and grill a steak or make a pasta meal or do a curried chicken thing or make a big chef's salad.....but this last week, I am lucky if I can fry an egg. I dip a few lettuce leaves in dressing and eat and call ti salad....open a can of salmon and plunk it on a plate and add some lemon.... But I will continue the bread for a while more.....Maybe I'll feel like making a nice meal again soon.