Last night’s meetup was just me and Steve, but he gave me some hints as a Meetup veteran on how to get things more active, so that’s on the agenda.

Last night’s sleep was pretty poor. Add to the normal wakeups the fact that it’s awfully hard to sleep with sticky things all over your chest and wires and an electronic box to contend with. This morning was very hard, plus I couldn’t take a shower. I find it nearly impossible to start the day without one. Oh, well.

So tonight I wanted to make Chickpeas and Chana Dal with Mint Sauce, but I wasn’t able to find mint at the ShopRite. I figured I’d swing by the Stop N Shop on the way back from the doctor’s office. They didn’t have it, either. So I drove up Fischer Blvd. to the Foodtown. Nothing there, either. On to Hooper Ave/Brick Blvd – Berry Fresh Farms didn’t have cut or potted mint, but they had lovely Jersey tomatoes, strawberries, and peaches, so I indulged on those. Back on to Brick Blvd, up to the A&P in Brick Plaza. I found a nice bunch there for way too much money, but I’m set for dinner.

Even though I’d gotten what I needed, I had caught a glimpse of a sign across Brick Blvd. for “World Farmer’s Market”. . .I had to check it out. I’m very glad I did, because it’s one of those little markets with lots of hard to find ethnic produce, spices, sauces, etc., bakery bread, veggies and fruits that aren’t coated with wax and are priced lower than the supermarket. . .I now have a place to get dried chipotles, fresh herbs, bean sprouts that haven’t been wrapped in a plastic bag for weeks. . .You have to be kind of used to these places. They’re not immaculate like a good supermarket (NOT the Foodtown on Fischer Blvd.), and the shelves are not rearranged several times a day to look pretty. I’ll tell you, though, I’d rather shop there than in a store that has piped in music and infomercial TVs at the checkout (which the Pathmark in Toms River does, which is why I won’t go there again) loudspeaker announcements, and talking self-checkout registers (TR Pathmark >and< Brick A&P) that take more time to check out two items than if you stood behind someone with a full cart at a regular checkout. I can even avoid most of the worst traffic by taking Old Hooper instead of Brick Blvd.

What can I say? I get excited about good fruits and veggies and herbs and spices. I’m not going to apologize. Yum.