Today Was Lughnasadh

For accounting purposes, I’ve been on vacation this week, and this was officially my last day of “work”, after which I can consider myself truly free of that company, that job. It won’t be true, of course, but it will be slightly more true than it was yesterday.

This is the holiday of First Fruits, the beginning of Harvest. So on that theme, it’s a good day to retire. In cooler, damper climates, the customary foods for this holiday are blueberries, blackberries and apples. I’ve heard that there are people here in town that grow blackberries; I’ll have to look into that. Meanwhile, I have different first fruits, prickly pears, and here they are:

If you look closely, you can see how harsh this summer has been, and what these plants will do to themselves in order to produce their fruits.

Thirsty Prickly Pear Cactus

These nopales (pads) should be thick and plump looking. The fruits are also a bit on the small side too, but sweet & juicy as ever.

The plants aren’t the only ones feeling thirsty. Something has actually been gnawing on the cacti, but as you see, you really can’t squeeze a cactus and get water out. Imagine how thirsty you’d have to be to chew on a cactus!

Chewed Prickly Pear Cactus

And this poor barrel cactus looks like it’s deflating.

Deflating Barrel Cactus

I usually get somewhat more rain than folks down in town. This year has been extra dry though. It rained a bit today but not enough to really help much. At least it cooled us off for a while, and that was good.

Single Post Navigation

← Older Entry

Newer Entry →