A LOST ART You can't find many people today who can tell you exactly when a watermelon is ripe and ready to be eaten! There are no college courses in the school catalogs I see, not even diploma mills on the Internet, TV or printed come-ons offering crash courses in melon-whiffing, rind-rational reasoning, or melon-knowmah karma.
It is what they call a "lost art.
There was a time when every American melon-lovin' family had at least one member who knew all about perfect melons. The more I think about it, however, I remember that the individual who had that particular talent was always an Aunt or an Uncle or distant cousin, twice removed. They had the reputation but were
, as I now recall, not being present-or- accounted for during melon sharing time. Anoher reason for our melon mannerisms concerned economics. We did not plunk down $7.50 each for melons each for melons purchased and a roadside stand, a store or selected from those piled on an overweight watermelon truck parked at the corner of our street...a common site when the melon patches were drooling out some real beauties. You cut a melon. If it did not look right - into the nearby barrel for the hogs. You selected another and another as needed.
Seriously, I know of several good way to be assured of a tasty melon.
The experts say look for a flat, yellowed area on the bottom of the melon. That's a good 'un! Check to see if the vine was torn away from the melon or if it was carefully cut about two inches out; the stub still there - dried and withered. That's a good 'un, too! Either way! I've had "experts" tell me each way is best. The way we always did was as youngster: take a small knife and plug the rascal's green hide Maybe an inch or so squared plug cut out. We usually bought that one anyway. You eat watermelon either to enjoy doing so or to have the right to complain about having done so.
To me, one of the best things to come from a watermelon is the fine pickles which can be made with the rind.
Andrew McCaskey amccsr@adelphia.net 10-5-06 [c-385wds]
