This Week's Market - CORNY!

Last week's Market ended up being so amazingly busy (thank you, thank you, thank you!) that I didnthave much of a chance to take photos.

[OK, I didn't have any chance - I took no photos. The one above? We'll call it August MATS stock.]

I did, however, notice the light hitting the melons just so, and the way the tomatoes looked like piles of jewels on their tables, and how the eggplant (so many different kinds of eggplant!) glistened, purple/black or white or lavender, and the peaches and nectaries, so orangey-red and begging to be cobblered... I noticed all of that, but didn't capture it. You'll have to come out this weekend and see all of it for yourself.

There's a lot going on this weekend at the Market. The U of I folks are back - welcome, students, faculty, and staff! I know it might be hard to roll outta bed on Saturday mornings, but the Market is one of the best places to be on the weekend. Peoplewatching and fresh-baked goods aside, it's a great place to pick up some of your fresh fruit and vegetable needs for the week - and they're all grown here in Illinois. I think you'll find we have some of the finest food grown anywhere. Time to stock yr fridges!

Other stuff to check out:

- This weekend's special event is Sprouts at the Market, where kids ages 3-8 (younger kids are welcome to participate, though the activities are not geared toward super-young children) learn about farms and food and nutrition. The theme for August is corn - we grow a lot of it here, the Urbana Sweetcorn Festival is coming up next weekend, and it's in just about everything. Kids will have the chance to taste corn in several of its many forms, learn about what makes corn so good to eat, inspect corn plants from tassel to root, and have the chance to ask participating corn growers any questions they may have about, well, corn.

The event, which is from 9-11, is free and open to all kids and their caregivers. Registration is at the City tent, located at the NW entrance to the Market site, or you can register at any of the satellite tables within the Market. Everyone visiting all the stations will receive a Certificate of Participation, which is good for 15% any purchase at Art Mart Toys through the end of the day.

- Additionally, we're hosting a Bloodmobile from Community Blood Services of Illinois out at the Market - if you're interested in participating in this blood drive, the Bloodmobile will be on walnut Street (the blocked-off area of just west of the Market) from 7:30 until noon.

- As if that weren't enough, several animal rescue groups will be out at the Market this weekend in our Community Group Row, raising awareness about their activities. Everything from greyhounds to birds will be represented - check them out!

- Last (but certainly not least), I expect Urbana's Fire Rescue to be out with one of their trucks, asking patrons to help "fill the boot" for MDA. They'll be in the Walnut Street area as well.

Here's a Market Menu for you - check out the Market merch, which is also for sale at Common Ground Food Co-op:

See you out there!