Don’t forget to stop at the food pantry yard sale from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, July 28, located on Route 202, across from Friend’s Church. All proceeds benefit the Windham Food Pantry. I’m sure I’ll be going there directly from my stint at the Historical Society. The rain date is Aug. 5.

Have I missed some news item that would explain the exorbitant price of bacon? It seems like pork is one of the more inexpensive meats, but one week a few months ago, the price of bacon jumped unexpectedly. Nothing is tastier than a BLT, and this is the season for the L and the T. But with bacon near $4 a pound, the old standby sandwich can quickly come under the gourmet category. Have pigs gotten smaller? Is there less available to make bacon? We haven’t started importing it have we? Time was, when most farms around town had a smokehouse nearby (necessary to make bacon).

Another expensive item on the grocery shelves is potatoes. I’ve never understood why we, here in Maine, pay so much for spuds when most of them are grown right in our state! Anyone who has ever grown potatoes must, like me, absolutely hate to pay for a couple of dozen potatoes, which in years gone by, could have been dug out of the ground under a couple of plants. I remember in years gone by, my brothers and sisters and I actually planting potato peelings (as long as there were “eyes” on them) and growing our own little potato plants by our old playhouse. Being children, we didn’t have enough patience to let them complete their growing cycle, and dug up the tiny little potatoes before they were totally grown. I guess that’s what they call “new” potatoes in fancy recipes.

Quite a few people around town still have a garden, even though so much development has changed Windham from the rural farming town it was. When I’m parked at town hall, I can see down over the banking to houses on Route 202 and I’ve noticed a couple of really neat gardens. In Boston, where I lived during the 1960s, there is space not far from the Fenway, where people can have gardens. We ought to do something like that in Windham, perhaps in conjunction with the proposed community park, which seems to change descriptions with every turn.

I had thought that the community park would be a wonderful place for some of us older people to go and walk. I’m not sure the younger crowd is aware of the fact that some oldsters can’t walk on uneven surfaces – like hiking trails through Mt. Hunger. That’s why so many seniors go to the mall to walk, or to the local high school when it’s available. But after seeing the presentation of the park plans and hearing the neighbors, I’m beginning to think the park is far in our future.

I thought the idea of a gazebo and summer concerts was great. Lots of other towns and cities near us provide these and it’s a terrific way to foster community spirit. We’re not talking Old Port here, but afternoon concerts, once in awhile. But what was most exciting the other night listening to the presentation was the basketball aspect. I didn’t realize it was still such a popular sport, since the addition of what seems like dozens of others. Windham was historically a basketball town and some of our readers will remember the days when we had a state championship team. Many business owners and adults around town will also remember trying to find a place to shoot baskets, getting together in anyone’s driveway as long as there was a hoop on the garage door! So let’s foster this interest and not complain if the kids make a little noise. As my mother used to say, if you can see them and hear them, you know what they’re doing.

See you next week.