Adjacent to the Rose Garden

Dear Mrs. Obama,
I know that it's only your first week on the job, and that you and the President have a lot on your plates. But maybe, if you haven't already considered and rejected the following idea, you could take a tiny minute to think about it.

We all know that your new house has an expansive lawn, which, although symbolic, is still a really big, water-sucking patch of grass. Given all of the concerns about global warming, coupled with the rising unemployment rate, perhaps your house -- America's house --might serve as a model for how people can be more self-sustaining. Perhaps when the weather warms up in Washington, you could direct the White House gardeners to rip out a portion of the lawn, and install an organic vegetable garden instead.

I'm not taking credit for this idea, because it wasn't mine. I read about it somewhere when your decision to retain the Bushs' chef was announced. At the time, I didn't give the idea more than a passing thought, but I was reminded of it again this week, when an article in The New York Times brought it up. Hearing the suggestion a second time, a White House vegetable patch seemed like such a smart idea, I decided to weigh in.

According to the current news article, famed restaurateur Alice Waters appears to have joined forces with former White House chef Walter Scheib in a effort to convince you of the garden's merits and get the idea off the ground, or, rather, in the ground. I'm not privy to what Waters and Scheib are actually thinking, but, brainstorming on my own, you'd probably want to involve Malia and Sasha to draw the interest of kids and their parents. I'd get a camera crew to document the garden's development, and send the finished DVD around to public television stations, schools and community centers as a teachable moment.

The country faces so many problems right now, this idea may seem too trivial to pursue. But it's undeniably on message and dovetails perfectly with so many of our national woes. By serving as a model for the country, a White House vegetable garden will demonstrate that locally grown food lessens our dependence on foreign oil, since food isn't transported from distant farms. In bad economic times, homegrown produce stretches finite grocery dollars. In the midst of a healthcare crisis, eating a diet rich in pesticide-free fruits and vegetables is simply a good way to avoid the doctor and stay healthy.

Finally, your leadership on this has the potential to trigger action in local elected officials. In theory, if the Obamas were growing their own produce at the White House in a visible way, local leaders might be inspired to find empty patches of land and work with the property owners to designate them as community gardens. The overages could be traded in neighborhood food co-ops or donated to food banks. In your case, you could share your over-production with the White House staff, especially the employees who just had their salaries frozen.

I know this idea flies somewhat in the face of the traditional feel of the White House lawn, but just say you'll think about it. This summer, when fresh melons and golden corn are growing right outside your door, you'll be glad to have them. But if this notion doesn't pass all of the necessary approval levels, here is another idea: Would you consider installing some solar panels on the South lawn? A little home-based power source would go a long way toward curbing White House air conditioning costs this summer. Just an idea.

Salad Days

Lettuce. Yes, lettuce. I know what you're thinking. Stop her before she starts carrying on about leafy, green salad-bowl produce. Your eyes are rolling. Your index finger is reaching for the keyboard to switch to another website. But bear with me for just a tad. As part of an experiment, I planted a few bunches of romaine, which steadily matured in the yard with very little human intervention. After a few weeks, they grew straight and tall, all without pesticides or other chemical growth aids.

So, I cut a bunch of leaves off at the stem, rinsed them well, and tossed them in a salad. Who knew? Unlike romaine lettuce from the supermarket, my fresh-picked leaves were actually flavorful. They paired nicely with some olive oil and balsamic, but the supporting liquids weren't really necessary. The home-grown lettuce could even stand alone, undressed.

I felt like Luther Burbank happening onto a great botany discovery. Keeping my science brain engaged, I continued along this vein. Travel must be arduous for the delicate lettuce leaves, I thought. They have to endure all that bouncing around in the truck, so far from their roots without even a canteen of fresh water for refreshment.

Then I had a another revelation, which was grander still and placed me squarely with the conspiracy theorists. With certainty, I understood that everyone controlling the lettuce industry -- the growers and the sellers -- were all aware of that lettuce lost flavor enroute to market, but they never wanted us to find out. Instead, they wanted us to buy the cardboard lettuce shipped from Salinas or from Mexico, and keep us in the dark about any other salad way of life. Finally, I concluded that, given how easy it was to grow, buying lettuce from the supermarket was not that much different from calling an electrician to replace a burned out light bulb or sending one's sheets and towels out to be laundered, acts that were so indulgent, even if one engaged in them, one would never fess up.

That was a few weeks ago. In the interest of full disclosure, I have since purchased lettuce from the supermarket -- okay, more than once. The problem is space. I didn't really devote enough garden space initially to achieve a daily supply of home-grown leaves. But at least now I know that growing my own salad is not only possible, it's incredibly easy and tastes so much better. Best of all, after you pick a head, it rejuvenates itself and grows again, which means I have more lettuce on the way.

You have to try this. Plant some lettuce as soon as your local climate permits. You won't be disappointed. You'll finally understand the expression "salad days" and why it means "the best time of life."