Yay, beans!

Whenever someone takes a trip out of the country and asks whether they can bring me anything, my usual answer of late is, “Beans.” Folks must think I’m kidding or something since no beans ever arrive. Until today.

My coworker Greg and his girlfriend recently returned from a much-deserved and even more overdue two week vacation in Belize. This morning Greg presented me with a ziptop bag full of small pink kidney type beans. He purchased them from a Mennonite farmer who had set up a roadside stand near the foot of a Mayan temple. The cooking recommendations include letting the beans sit in the sun for a while and cooking for less time than I would expect. Most of them will definitely end up in the pot (the terra cotta olla, most likely), but a few are destined for a different kind of pot. I’ll be planting some with the hope of making more little beans.

I’m quite thrilled with my beans. Greg doesn’t realize it yet, but he’s made my morning. Thank you, Greg! I very much appreciate the beanie gift and the effort it took to transport them here.