The Genuine Article

OK. I know this only my second post and I am already breaking my own unwritten rules but please bear with me. The event I am about to describe preceded the dead deer incident but it definitely merits mention in my blog. Here's the deal. So we're driving through the town of Oshino, foraging for food at farm stands when we come across a hand-painted sign that read "Morokoshi ippon Y110" (corn Y110 per ear). So we take the plunge and park the car. After a minute or two the farmer shows up. And what a farmer he was! This guy was strictly "Central Casting? Send me one 'farmer' please." He had an ear-to-ear grin (no pun intended), a bandana around his neck, and a straw hat to top it all off! Plus he was pushing a .... WHEELBARROW! Yes! An actual wheelbarrow! After taking this all in, we requested 10 ears of corn. The farmer told us that he would be right back .... he just had to go and slice them off the stalk for us! While Farmer Joe was off wielding his sickle, Abby went into the greenhouse to pick cherry tomatoes straight off the vine. Standing in neat rows, each plant was laden with clusters of the luscious fruits in various states of ripening. Nature's bounty at its best! Upon his return, the farmer opened each ear to make sure we weren't buying any extra protein. Then he gave us a raw ear and had us each take a bite. So sweet and juicy! Finally he apologized for the high price but assured us that this would be best the corn we had ever tasted. And you know, I think he was right.