don't panic, i'm a naturalist

i'm all gradumated and stuff, which means i have a shiny new certificate and a fancy new hat.

and the girl scout council is wasting no time making hay, because if you thumb through the program guide the words "with a Vermont Master Naturalist" are sprinkled liberally throughout, which makes me both proud and a little terrified.

i'm having fun preparing for events that are still five or six months away. f'rinstance there is a wildflower tea party coming up in october, which will be the end of goldenrod season, but i have made garlic mustard pesto (in my freezer) to serve along with other spring delicacies like knotweed pie and violet sodas.

i hope to make touches like that be the difference between "that was cool" and "WOW that was cool."
it isn't hard to do if you put some things by, like the violet syrup or the knotweed purée.