The attached is a picture of the biggest summer squash that your editor has grown to date this year. It detached itself from the fig tree it had climbed up and was hanging from when its stem finally broke on December 7. The squash weighed in at 35.1 pounds (or, as my Welsh wife likes to put it, about two and a half stone).  

If you’re wondering why I look so serious, it’s because I was worrying about what to do with the monster. Captions kept flashing in my mind: “I was hoping for a boy,” “My wife told me to eat my veggies,” “You should see the one that got away,” “Merry Christmas, Professor Golledge,” “Size really matters,” “Thirty-five point one, pounds of fun, that's my little honey bun,” and so on, until my arms got tired. 

And, if you’re wondering what this has to do with Geography, I could ramble on about geographic micro climates vis a vis the joys of S. California gardening. But the real point of posting this article is to encourage others with ties to our department to donate similar items of “human interest” for the Events/News section of our web site. While announcements of our numerous and impressive awards and accolades justifiably take precedence, it’s also nice to share some of the everyday life of the Geography team! Ok, apologies for the sermon. Would anyone like some squash?

Article by Bill Norrington