I follow political news on television. I was brought up by politically involved parents who taught me that keeping up with the news was my civic duty, the duty of every citizen living in a democracy.

Not that they would have used preachy expressions like “civic duty.” It went without saying. They had a way of letting you know things that went without saying. A lot of things went without saying in those days, often the most important things.

“Put your napkin on your lap,” my mother would say, over and over again. “Bill and I went outside, not me and Bill went outside.” Or “hang up your clothes, close the cupboard doors, no rough-housing in the house, don’t talk with your mouth full, don’t go up to strange dogs, don’t tease your sister.” The really important rules, the first principles, went without saying. How on earth were my parents able to impress their absolutes on our young minds without saying? Sometimes, of course, we kids would get it wrong, and then they would let us know it. But not in so many words. We’d just know.

So, as I was saying, I follow the national news, but I think that it is probably bad for my blood pressure. A steady diet of politics can be bad for a person’s mental health, causing frustration and despondency.

In other news … the recent collapse of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia is horrifying. According to ABC News: “The tanker truck, carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline … fell on its side and ruptured its own tank. Once ignited, the fuel burned at a high enough heat to structurally compromise the concrete and steel I-beams of the overpass…”

Let’s turn off the television for now, and take heart. It’s asparagus season!

It is also blackfly and mosquito season here in the Adirondacks, despite the yearly Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti) treatments, which help, but don’t entirely solve the problem. We have also been getting a lot of rain, which is good for the water table but which encourages mosquito population. My friend Shirley braves the biting pests to harvest her asparagus crop, now coming into its own after several years. She shared some with me, and it is delicious!

If you don’t have your own asparagus patch or a generous asparagus-growing friend, asparagus is also plentiful right now in grocery stores.

There is controversy even on the subject of asparagus, but nothing to raise our blood pressure to dangerous levels or to make us despond. Disagreements about whether to remove the tough, fibrous ends of the stalks by snapping them off or by lining them up and cutting them evenly across with a knife. Or whether steaming, roasting or grilling is best for flavor and texture. Or how an asparagus stalk should be eaten — with a knife and fork, or picked up with the fingers?

Miss Manners (Judith Martin), when asked whether it is all right to shock dinner guests who are unaware that it is, in fact, perfectly polite to eat asparagus with the fingers, wrote: “… when you consider how few ways perfectly polite people have of causing a sensation, surely you will not begrudge Miss Manners this one.”

My friend Darla, during the course of one of our interminable telephone conversations, shared with me her recipe for asparagus quiche, which is very good. I wrote it down, but now I can’t find it, so I’ll give you my version. Everyone feels free to be a little creative with a quiche recipe, right?

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Roasted Asparagus Quiche

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1 bunch asparagus, about 3/4 lb.

2 TB extra virgin olive oil

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1 bunch scallions, trimmed and sliced

1/2 C. or so sliced mushrooms

2 TB minced parsley

2 egg yolks

2 whole eggs

1 (9-inch) pie crust

2/3 C. half/half or cream

2 oz. Gruyere or Swiss cheese, grated (1/2 C.) and 1 oz. Parmesan, grated (1/4 C.), or 3/4 C. grated cheddar

In an oven preheated to 425 degrees, roast for 12 minutes asparagus which has been trimmed and tossed with olive oil. Cook scallions and mushrooms briefly, just until soft, and mix with roasted asparagus cut into inch-long pieces. Place in pie pan, cover with cheese, cream and beaten egg mixture. Turn down oven to 350 degrees and bake until done.

Have a good week!

(Martha Allen lives in Keene Valley. She has been writing for the Lake Placid News for more than 20 years.)