Albuquerque Independent Business Alliance

Last week I picked up my first Los Poblanos Organics Harvest Box. I loved it, and my number one reason is Flavor, with a capitol F. That wasn't my number one reason for starting. Buying local and avoiding chemicals in our food were the motivations for starting, but if I continue to do it, it will be because it tastes great. I'm looking forward to another box of flavor bombs next week.

I've been thinking for awhile that it would be good to buy local produce. My wife, who buys most of the groceries, already goes to 2 stores each week, and asking her to go to a third would probably not be good for my health. I'm lazy and I don't like driving places, or, well, leaving my home. So if buying local produce means making a special trip to a growers' market on the weekend, it is unlikely I'll do it. Lame, but true.

A dispute over pricing has led to Amazon making books published by Macmillan unavailable for sale on its website. In a world of huge,conglomerated book publishers and sellers, readers and authors are the causalities of such clashes of the titans. This is a wakeup call for people to turn back to their local, independent book sellers. Despite the rumors, they are not extinct, though they are endangered. Albuquerque is lucky to have more than one. Page One and Bookworks spring to mind.