Fortuitous Finds and Olfactory Offerings

I guess I'm on a bit of a picture-roll here. One of my recent best days happened not coincidentally on a Friday. Needing a lunchtime walk, I took the precedented but uncommon step of catching a bus out of downtown area, allowing for decently long one-way walk back with allowance for critical cheese-shopping along the way. Partway through that walk, I noticed what appeared to be a trail-sign in a location where I'd never known of any trails existing. This was a great find, a modest-sized sidehill greenbelt just outside of downtown with what seemed to be a user-created informal trail system. Everything seemed to fall into place to the point where I half expected a candid camera to pop up. I had a nearly-finished book with me (exploiting bus escape from city), and all of a sudden here was a bench in scenic forested spot, with birds and squirrels the only potential distractions! Well, aside from fantastic city and distant mountain views.

Book finished, I plodded on, only to encounter what has become for me one of the most incontrovertible proofs of Spring (validating my shirtsleeve garb): skunk cabbage in bloom. This is a terrific native plant (Lysichiton americanus) that loves wet, boggy areas. I suppose the happy hours I spent exploring a regrettably now-filled little swamp/wetland after gradeschool may have implanted it on my gray matter.

Buoyed by that great find, I reluctantly followed trail to its' end and resumed paved walk, headed for the cheese cellar. I selected a couple modest European selections, a nice sheep double-cream and harder basque number, and asked after a washed-rind (these stinkies top my personal list at the moment). Dennis was quick to alert me that they had an almost super-ripe Epoisses. Ahh, my favorite! So I passed on the gorgeous-looking slightly-runny Munster, knowing that my fellow domestic caeseophiles are not nearly as keen on the stinkies as I.

As if the lunch-hour were not enough of a stunning triumph already, Teresa quietly comped me on the Epoisses, with whisper that I might be the only customer enthused enough to appreciate it's over-the-edge ripeness!

Time to buy a lottery ticket! A week's worth of good tidings all rolled into a lunch-hour.

May it happen to you.