Of Pears, Covetousness, and Crack Cocaine
I suppose "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's pear tree" is included in the "...or anything that is thy neighbor's," huh.
Down the street, next to a rather disheveled apartment building and smack dab next to the sidewalk, is a beautiful pear tree loaded down with almost perfectly ripe pears. The girls and I take one or two each from the ground and sidewalk each time we walk past. Lately, I've become brassy enough to take mine from lower-hanging branches. I've seen no one outside the building lately, or I'd ask permission to pick a few bushels, but I'm not yet brassy enough to knock on one of the doors to do the same.
Time's a'wastin'. I fantasize about dressing in black and climbing the tree at two in the morning to lighten its load, but I won't do it. Permission, permission, I need permission.
Any advice? (And don't dare call me coward for not knocking on an apartment door. I'm a sensitive soul, is all....)
p.s. An apartment a few houses down from ours was the scene for a drug bust a week ago. Crack cocaine and marijuana! This bit of misleading news makes our neighborhood sound far more exciting than it really is, though. It's a nice street in a nice town, and, usually, trains passing and pears ripening are the most noteworthy news to share.
4 comments :
No, no, no . . . you tell John that it is the husband's job to be brave and provide for the family and that he should go knock on the door and ask permission. So you push him down the street, give him one last shove toward the front door . . . and go run and hide in the bushes (or the pear tree) while he rings the bell.
Well . . . it would be worth a shot, wouldn't it?
P.S. -I'm envious of the pear tree too. It looks wonderful. We once had one very pathetic and small pear tree on our properity which in all of its years of existence produced maybe two pears. It was struggling on with only one living limb when I finally put it out of its misery. I should really look and see if I can find any variety hardy for our cold valley. (A big problem is having the blossoms survive the spring frost.)
I suggest you shake it while no one is watching at let the girls gather them. No one would EVER yell at such cute girls as those picking the pears that have fallen!
Seriously though, by the looks of that tree-I would swallow my pride and plead-and maybe offer a jar of whatever I make in return. But DEFINATELY take the girls with you...a loving mother with three children in tow-how could anyone turn THAT away?
Off subject: I asked Holly about that pumpkin butter and she said she canned it with no problem. They are still eating from last years batch with no problem. Now for YOUR advice. Leah got me a pressure canner at a yard sale. It needs a new seal. If I get it a new seal, do you think I should try it out or do you think I should get it 'checked out' first? I was kindof counting on the canning of pumpkin butter to be in the water bath-not realizing that it is low-acid. Oops.
Rundy,
I'll push him toward the door, and then when someone answers, he'll point to me cowering behind the tree trunk and say, "That skulking girl is my beloved wife, and she has something she'd like to ask." You're right, though, it's worth a shot!
My sympathies about your deceased tree. I'll have to ask my mom what pears my Grandpa grew in his hilltop orchard. I know it's not identical to your valley's bizarre climate, but they grew on a windy, cold (until summer) hilltop pretty well.
Rebecca,
I can't shake the tree! It's too big! I'd have to bring a ladder or climb it in order to reach more than a few pears, which makes clandestine picking much more difficult. Sigh.
As far as the canner goes, my mom had to replace the seal on one of her canners a few years back and has been using it without problems since. I've had no personal experience with this, so I defer to her. :)
The pumpkin butter info. can be found here. I think this source advises against canning pureed pumpkin and squash even in a pressure canner, as the pH value of some home canned and even commercially canned pumkin puree was too high to kill the bacteria. Of course, people have canned it for years without great incident, so I'm not too worried. You should probably add some lemon juice to it to increase the acidity a bit, though, depending on how safe you want to play it. I might just freeze some for us and can batches for gifts right before Thanksgiving so that people can put the jars straight into the refrigerator for munching.
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