It was the culmination of several weeks work. Planting, watering, fertilizing, and moving pots around a wooded lot to find the sun were all required to get to where I needed things to be. The Woman Whose Garbage I'm Responsible for was responsible for most of the work, but that isn't important. Guy Clark said it best, "Only two things that money can't buy, and that's true love and home grown tomatoes." My tomtoes were almost ready.

I like good food more than most and have had several memorable dining experiences. Suzy (The Woman Whose Garbage I am Responsible For) and I shared maybe the best overall meal in my life at Louie's Backyard in Key West a few years ago. Perfectly cooked, incredibly fresh fish, fried plantains, great drinks, and chocolate cake served on a wooded patio overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

I ate twice my limit of ribs one afternoon at Dreamland in Birmingham with Chad, my son. We drank beer and ate our regular portions plus the slab we ordered for him to take home with him. We consumed all this while watching a bunch of college kids eat like they had been marooned in Ethiopia for a year.

They were impressive. After eating more ribs than is humanly possible, one of the guys used the last slice of Merita to wipe the sauce from his cheeks and then he ate the bread. It was amazing.

Commander's Palace in New Orleans has wonderful food and impeccable service. The waiter brings a fresh glass of water halfway through your meal. It is nearly impossible to get a bad meal in the Big Easy. You get better food at the mall in New Orleans than you can in most cities' best eateries.

I've shared fresh cooked vegetables with kinfolks and strangers, eaten a homemade Mexican meal, and had chicken fried steak in Texas. My crazy Uncle Kay served me my first mesquite grilled beef when I was 11. And I have eaten a truckload of Aunt Dana's chocolate pie.

What I'm trying to say is I am an expert on food. I know what's good and what isn't and can appreciate when care is taken in the preparation of a meal. I'm not much for fancy stuff and would rather skip a meal than substitute "healthy ingredients." I've learned to eat things I didn't get exposed to as a boy and have an open mind about trying new things but still like food fried, sweet, and fresh.

Which brings me to last Tuesday. It wasn't easy. Suzy suggested we use existing hamburger buns. I told her she spent too much time in the sun while kayaking. Fresh, soft white bread is the only acceptable kind. I did allow her to talk me into using mayonnaise made with olive oil. I wanted to go find a small jar of Bama but decided to make do.

I spread the mayonnaise on the bread and then cut the freshly picked home grown tomato and lay a couple of slices on the bread, one overlapping the other. Salt and pepper and a glass of milk completed the deal, and I was in tomato heaven.

Commander's Palace couldn't have done any better.