It's the berries

Time for my annual ode to Spooners berries. Strawberries have been here for not quite two weeks. Oh my gosh, I sort of forget every year how fabulous it is to have the real thing. Not grown in a hot house, not trucked in from California in a behemoth refrigerated truck. No, sir. I mean the ones grown right here in Western Washington, about a stone's throw from my house, picked by hard-workin' folks, and offered up fresh in pints, half flats and flats without ever seeing the inside of a refrigerator. You can buy 'em at the Farmer's Market, you can buy 'em right outside of a local grocery, or best of all, you can buy 'em from Spooner's own stand on the Yelm Highway. It's on the way to work and/ or the gym. Oh, darn. Guess I'll just have to keep eatin' 'em.

I bought two pints this morning (just as I did last Saturday) and I'd post a picture, except I ate 'em all. Maybe later, eh? They are so sweet, juicy and perfect. No sugar necessary. I've had some vanilla yogurt along with, but the best bite I had was the one I plucked out of the box and ate on my way to the car. Eventually, I'll freeze some to have on cereal after the season is long gone. But not yet. Not yet.

And even then, there are blueberries, raspberries and marionberries yet to come.

By the way, did you know?

• Strawberries are the only fruit with seeds on the outside.
• The average strawberry has 200 seeds.
• Strawberries are the first fruit to ripen in the spring.
• Americans eat 3.4 pounds of fresh strawberries each year plus another 1.8 pounds frozen per capita.
• Strawberries are a member of the rose family.
• Over 53 percent of seven to nine-year-olds picked strawberries as their favorite fruit.

From Heart of Washington