Erin, I live within spitting distance

from one of the finest farmer’s markets in the area. And I am ashamed to say that I rarely take advantage of it’s close proximity. Since the Buy Local Challenge started, I have been to the DuPont Farmer’s Market twice and each time I go I think to myself, “Now, was that so difficult?” I can safely say that if it weren’t for the BLC, I probably wouldn’t have made it this summer at all. Which led to this train of thought…

For me, there is a deeper aspect to this challenge than deciding on my groceries. I consider this a challenge to DO SOMETHING. I am not a doer. I’m a dreamer. I’m a talker and a thinker…but I have to kick myself to DO ANYTHING. So this is a big step for me because to commit to buying local, you have to do a lot. You have to GO to the farmer’s market instead of the Safeway up the street (both are the same distance from my door, where is the logic?!?). You have WASH the food instead of tearing open a plastic bag of frozen veggies. You have LOOK for recipes instead of finding the appropriate dipping sauce for the frozen chicken tenders you just bought. You have to COOK the food instead of ordering Chinese. You have to PRIORITIZE your life instead of letting fresh food go bad in lieu of happy hour ½ price burgers and $.25 chicken wings. But I think most importantly you have to TELL people about what you’re doing and how it’s affecting your life, your eating habits, your wallet, everything.