Hi all,
As a fan of alliteration and the unbelievably catchy Sesame Street Letter of the Day song, today's post is brought to you by the letter P.
Prose Promotion
Up first is Prose Promotion. This is my unpaid endorsement of the the Young Adult fiction novel How I Hacked the Moon, by my friend, R. A. Dines. I was an advance reader on the book and some of my feedback made it into the final version. In particular, I made suggestions as to what sort of slang/curse words the kids on the moon might use. For what it's worth, my 10-year-old gave the final published version a thumbs up.
Positions
I'm looking to fill an open position for a principle or senior mechanical engineer. The job involves 3d-printed product, so experience with testing and validation is a big plus. Experience with med device could also be valuable. If you're interested, or you know someone, send me a resume!
Paw Paws
The final P is for Paw Paw, which is a type of fruit that's native to North America. I'd never seen one or tasted one, when I learned through a news clip that a small shop in my neighborhood (that normally sells foraged mushrooms, among other things) was carrying them. Of course, I had to try one. I immediately rushed out of the house, down the street, and went to purchase a paw paw, only to find out that the last one had been sold earlier that day.
This lead to an 11 month wait as I periodically talked about paw paws, researched paw paws, wondered if I could grow my own paw paws, debated growing from seed or purchasing a sapling or even a mature tree, and generally obsessed over paw paws for the better part of the year.
I knew that paw paw season was approaching and started anxiously checking the store to see if paw paws were in. This past week, the wait was over! My paw paw quest was complete!
I'd heard them described as a flavor that was a cross between a mango and a banana. I'd go a step further and say the texture was like a cross between a mango and an avocado - smooth, creamy, and scoopable with a spoon. The flavor was like a mixture of mango, pineapple, banana, and lychee, with the lychee notes as the most prominent.
They ripen off the tree and get softer and mushier, sort of like how a banana turns brown, as it (over)ripens. I had a few fruits at different stages of ripeness, and I definitely preferred the firmer fruit. I also preferred chilled out of the fridge over room temperature.
Also, I saved seeds! Apparently, the best way to propagate them involves chilling them in the fridge for at least 3 months. A few years from now, maybe I'll be growing my own paw paws.
That's all for now!
Best regards,
Sam Feller
p.s. If you need another earworm to get the Letter of the Day song out of your head, the chorus to Way Down Yonder in the Paw Paw Patch has been living in my head rent free for the past year.