Hurry Up and Wait

Elections used to last about 6 months. This last presidential election was 2 years long. It used to be that Christmas shopping started after Thanksgiving, but now Jingle Bells are ringing just after Halloween. Everything is being marketed so much earlier, be it candidates or sweaters. So it was with a bit of annoyance and a dab of wistfulness that I found the first seed catalog in the mail before Christmas. That should be January. Definitely not December. It should be a rule. And yet, I have an eagerness to start my perusal.

It's not like I don't have plenty to do in the winter. Besides a full time teaching job, I am an avid skier who skis every weekend at Camelback in the Poconos and occasional weekends in Vermont. I'm planning a Vermont trip for weekend after next, as a matter of fact. I have way too much to do to be thinking about seed catalogs. But I am.

It is painful. I look through every catalog and make a wish list. Ridiculous. Even if I planted one seed from each wishful seed packet, I'd never have room in my garden for everything. So I start paring down. Do I really have the growing season and space for globe artichokes? What seeds do I have from last year, and are they viable? I compare varieties from different catalogs and look for similarities. I check number of seeds per packet and the cost. Are organic seeds an option? I check shipping charges, looking for a deal. Eventually, I try to limit myself to ordering from no more than 2 companies. It is a long process, but one I am totally engrossed in. But not yet.

Seed catalogs are for January. No sooner. It's a rule.