Holidays

The produce business hates holidays.  July 4 is a wonderful holiday, reminding us of the mostly wonderful country we live in and which many people around the world aspire to.  However, if you make a living by growing, selling and trucking produce, July 4 is a nightmare.  By the middle of the week before the 4th people are already thinking about it.  They switch from their normal diet to one which seemingly consists of hot dogs, hamburgers, beer and an occasional ear of corn and a slice of watermelon.  So, healthy eating is the first casualty.  Then truckers have some internal calender which, like the swallows of Capistrano demands they return home, unless enticed by large amounts of money.  Finally, there always seems to be a glut of salad items which are not in demand dietwise (see above).   So desparate shippers consign lettuce which leads to low prices which leads to more consignment.  This cycle repeats until the shipper starts receiving bills instead of returns.  Meanwhile, half the receivers change their hours for the holidays which leads to complaints from the trucks, if there are any.  You get the picture.   Fortunately we won' t have to go throught this again until Labor Day.