Our first Persian melon came off the vine this weekend…though not intentionally.

You see, I went out the other morning to test if it was ready~ it should come unfastened from the stem when it is properly ripe, so I put on my green gauntlets (remember the rabbit protectors?), reached down gingerly through the scratchy vines, & heaved it up (it’s the size of a basketball & at least 15 pounds) to see if it would come loose. I was bent over, the melon about 18 inches from my chest, when a half-dollar sized black widow jumped out from the underside straight for my face! I yelped, reared back, & simultaneously dropped the melon over the side of the raised planter, snapping the stem & barely missing Dahlia who had come to “help”, and bolted for the house screaming “RAAAAID!!!”

Sam came running to the rescue clad only in boxer shorts, armed with a pellet gun & a spray can of bug killer (don’t ask me~ it must be a guy thing); unfortunately for him, the falling melon did the job before he could, but he was kind enough to extricate the cat from under the potting table & clean off any “residue” from the fruit before bringing it inside the house.

I sliced & served half of the melon with breakfast, but not before Chris christened it: