This is a follow up to my previous post about family farms and CSA's in the Pittsburgh area. It's a little late as our last allotment came at the end of November but I thought I would write a few thoughts on the experience.

First, I have never eaten so much fruit in my life. We consistently got at least two fruits every week. Strawberries, blueberries, cantaloupe, peaches, apples, raspberries! If you want to make sure you get plenty of fruit in your diet this is a great way to do it. You get a nice variety as the summer progresses.

Just got the iblogger app and I'm trying it out from my living room.

I am currently training to run the Rock and Roll marathon in San Diego, CA in June. During my training I have been mapping out my long runs that I do on Sunday by using Google Maps. They have a great tool for measuring the distance of a route right on the map. This has allowed me to map out some fun routes and I have been everywhere from the Zoo to Squirrel Hill to the South Side, Downtown, Bloomfield, Regent Square the Rankin Bridge and Homestead. You name it and one of my runs probably went there.

What is a "Week Night" restaurant?  It's the place you go on a Wednesday night when you and the wife get home late from work and don't have the energy to make dinner and don't want to break the bank while going out. (but still want great food and drink!)  It can also be the place you go on a Thursday night when you want to have a cold beer or a nice glass of wine and a bite to eat to unwind toward the end of the week.

Last night I had the opportunity to attend the annual fund raiser for Pittsburgh Action Against Rape (PAAR) at Solidiers and Sailors in Oakland.  My wife and her fellow residents at Magee sold candy roses at Valentine's Day and organized an event at Firehouse Lounge to raise the $1000 necessary to buy a table at the PAAR event and I was lucky enough to join them. (actually they raised $1700! Way to go girls!)

A while ago I heard a piece on NPR about community supported agriculture. The idea is that consumers pay a fee up front to the farm and then over the course of the growing season they get a share of the harvest. Perhaps one week strawberries are being picked, the next week it is corn and the week after that eggplants. Each week you get a box full of fresh, family grown produce.

Am I the only one that saw Tim Russert on Meet the Press yesterday call Ed Rendell the "Governor of Philadelphia"? The ultimate freudian slip! I thought only those of us in Pittsburgh felt that way but apparently even Russert is in tune with the blatant favoritism the former mayor exhibits for his old city.

Last night my wife and I and another couple went to dinner at Legume in Regent Square, a relatively new French restaurant located on South Braddock.  We had been meaning to try Legume for a few months now but unfortunately they only take reservations for parties of 6 or more and the few times we had tried before we were stymied by extremely long waits. 

Is it just me or is BYOB (bring your own bottle) in Pittsburgh the best thing since sliced pumpernickel bread? I am a big wine enthusiast and while I am not a huge fan of the PLCB rules here in Pennsylvania (a topic for another day) the great selection of BYOB restaurants in Pittsburgh really is wonderful.

When I lived in Rochester, NY my wife and I loved going to this great little crepe restaurant called Simply Crepes. Nothing took the chill off a cold, snowy Rochester afternoon like a warm homemade crepe filled with ham, asparagus and Swiss cheese and topped with a tasty dill sauce.