Archive
weekend in review
its getting to be where i’m just blogging about my weekends. my weekdays tend to be confidential. we just had a lovely heavy rain, a little hail, no harm done beyond the straight pipe to one of the rain barrels blew down. i had just put the finishing touches on my outside projects and thought the timing good. i was hot and sweaty and thought the rain would be cool when i went downtown. john’s yaris had a flat and it took me some time to figure it all out, the murphey’s rule about finding all the tools you need. i was going to ride my bike and deal with the tire on wednesday but it wasn’t in the garage so i assumed it was stolen as i also hadn’t been able to find the circular saw. when i called john on the yaris missing lug wrench he told me the bike was in the hallway to the crawlspace. i have vague memories of loaning out the circular saw. if i did i need it back, kevin wants to build some shelves in the garage.
downtown was very wet, it rained hard and there was some hail. i am becoming blase’ about hail since moving here. used to be a big deal. it was fun watching the people. extreme weather brings out the best in people and thins out the crowds. there was glee in people’s eyes or a fierce determination; a controlled hurry. i was soaked, my memories of being hot quickly replaced with soaked to the bone chilly. i got my beans, a pound of a single source columbian that’s better then the other which is kaldi’s passport selection and a pound of the papua new guinea i’ve been enjoying. it may be my last. john is bringing his roaster and picking up an order of beans from sweet marias and is going to teach me how to home roast. can’t wait.
when i walked from kaldi’s to el rancho for a steak burrito and horchata (yum) i was soaked enough to draw looks of concern from strangers. it was all good though, just put the heater on for the drive home. still had the energy to pick up the buns i needed for my burger grilling tomorrow.
in spite of the rain it was a pretty nice day. got a lot done. i planted one of the forsythia i got from henry. i split it in two and put the bigger of the two in my back yard hedgrow. i’m going to put one more in which will connect it with my witchhazel. someday i’ll mulch or plan to turn it into one big bed, its getting closer though. i put the other up by the northwest corner of the house by the other ones. involved me cutting out some shit bush growing by the house and just gave a little attention to the whole area. weeded the little lilacs and noted one of them was wilty, i bet the satellite dudes stepped on it when they were messing around the area. i’m hoping with a little tlc it’ll bounce back.
i pulled out the last lily i had there. it looked like it was starting to get a little web going so i was glad to be transplanting it. the lady who gave them to me told me to move them every year that they depleted a certain nutrient and its proven to be true. there were some little ones coming up near there so i let them be because they’re in a different spot. i trimmed up the other forsythia and its looking pretty good over there.
at that point i hit a wall, and dozed through the tiger game. the kid pitched 8 shut out innings and the tiges are back at .500. when i got up i planted the lily right in the dog run that goes through the strawberries. when i harvested them i had to work to not begrudge the losses to dog trampling. i had to remember i like Fido and i’m glad he has a friend and remember from the first strawberry of the season that every strawberry is a treasure. next year i’m doing fencing. the lily should help and i will put up the fence there if i leave him unsupervised with Olive. nonetheless i got probably a good pint and a half and have enough to make strawberry shortcake for Nance and Peg tomorrow.
i also put in two thai chile peppers i got from the thai lady at the market and i put in another herb whose name is escaping me, hmmm. its a relative of oregano, ah yeah marjoram. i put it in between the oregano and tarragon. i have some dill going there and i thought the established plants would help minimize dog trampling for the baby dills. they are looking good and if half make it i should have plenty for my uses and enough to let some go to seed. that whole plot is coming in nicely and i have been mixing in other stuff in the edges to bring out the bed into a straighter line.
all of the planting was aided by the fresh compost that i’m pulling out of the big wooden bin. its nice stuff, very earthy smelling, could be more finished though because smokey likes to try and eat it still. but there’s a ton of it and it made me nostalgic for dad, it was his last construction project. harry came over yesterday and i got an audible wow when he saw the backyard. its looking good, the tomatoes are coming along and the cabbages are really big. the broccoli has gone to flower which i think is bad but its awfully cool looking.
i made strawberry pancakes for harry yesterday, best i ever made. i couldn’t find the bisquik so i riffed off of an internet recipe from scratch. i whisked 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup brown rice flower, 3 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tbsp sugar, pinch of xantham gum. made a pool in the center and added 3/4 cup i think of milk, a local egg and 3 tbsp melted butter. i melted it in the cast iron skillet and kept it hot for the cakes. i whisked that together and then added as many strawberry pieces as it could hold. fried those puppies up with served with real maple syrup, honey butter & a couple of eggs over easy. a of course a press pot of kaldi’s brazillian. most excellent.
it must have been a day for cooking because i also grilled out a stuffed pork loin and candied root vegetables. the pork loin i sliced open like a swiss cake roll, not bad for my first attempt. i had made the stuffing early and let the flavors merged. i put in a red apple, celery, fresh sage and fennel, sweet onion, couple cloves of garlic in a plain yogurt. after i cut up the loin i seared the outside after patting it with flour in olive oil and more garlic. then i stuffed it and wrapped it with cotton string and wrapped with foil. the vegies were these little white heirloom turnips and baby carrots i did with lots of fresh grated ginger, some sesame oil and local honey. i put a lot of soaked hickory chips on the fire and slow roasted them about 50 minutes, an hour would have been better. kick ass if i do say so myself. also did an all local salad with mixed greens, spinach, radish, thin sliced zucchini, and greenhouse tomato. i made the dressing too which also rocked: tahini, unfiltered apple cider vinegar, agave nectar, an inch of fresh grated horseradish, and a splash of braggs.
all in all a good weekend. i could’ve mowed the lawn before it rained, walked the dogs a second time and perhaps cleaned the bathrooms but there will always some things i didn’t get too. i am learning to be ok with that. i am learning to be ok with just about anything.
chilly saturday
it was a pretty good saturday, rainy and cool, but after a taste of the heat and humidity it was kind of welcome. we’ve had an extra dog for a few days, a short term fostering kind of thing. he’s a scottie that we’ve been calling Gitmo. he’s uncut and pushy so he was running the pack for a couple of days, then they all started calling his bluff. shadow (my brother john’s aussie) kicked his ass john reports. even fido isn’t intimidated now and smoky has been pulling back her lips and snapping her jaws at him. he’s mellowed out now that he’s settled in. we were worried how he’d do with max the uncut old pit next door with only a dilapidated chain link fence between them but they got along fine. max is mellow. Gitmo likes to fetch and with smokey and fido in chase it gets pretty chaotic. fun though.
got out early to run errands and go to the market. saw an old client walking in the rain and gave him a bit of a ride. he was taking a bicycle riding class to earn a free bike. gotta love columbia. it was drizzling a bit but stopped before i made it to the market. stocked up on my local food stuffs. had to go up to a quart on the honey so i could get it in a glass jar. hard to eat a quart of honey before it stiffens, but we’ll do our best. listened to an older lady rave about bee pollen and the suburban type lady standing next to me asked if she ought to get a jar as well. i just shrugged. he had some literature out, “nature’s most perfect food” that i’d seen as place mats a truck stops of my childhood looking largely unchanged. the honey guy, a german immigrant by accent, talked about the vagaries of pollen collection its variance based on flower availability and some years the bees only make enough for themselves.
noticed chicken and beef up substantially, probably following the prices in the grocery store. got some ground round and whole chickens. going to bake one of the latter today. planning on stuffing it with lemon and apple wedges and sage, oregano, tarragon, & wild onions from the back yard. maybe some little pats of butter under the skin. throw in some red potatoes and cauliflower the side. also unfroze some extra pumpkin i froze and baking a pie.
and of course i got my spring veggies, chard, lettuce mix, asparagus, bean sprouts plus eggs. also trying marjoram again, going to ameliorate the soil a lot more. don’t want to pay $3.00 every year. i learned marjoram is kin to oregano and almost bought a cross between the two, but i have more oregano then i can eat already and put it in damn near everything.
after my errands i made chili. nothing better on a wet and cool day. i forgot to soak beans so i had quick soaked some pintos (boil for one minute, let set and hour or so, drain out liquid [less gassy]). i put them on to cook with some red curry powder, salt and cayenne and made john and me some poached eggs and cleaned up some of the strawberry seconds ($2 quart best deal ever) i got for desert.
when the beans were mostly done, chopped up some stew meat smaller and browned with vidalia onion and celery. added some canned tomatoes of various types, a can of kidney beans, chili powder, cumin, jalapeno, some smoked hot peppers, smallish onions with green tops (from the market they’re getting bigger every week), and a little agave nectar to soften the bitterness of the tomatoes. set that to simmer all day, came out good.
hung my clothes on the line even though it was cloudy and cool once i saw the rain was likely done. they’re still out they’re, i’ll bring them in after the wind blows out the morning dew. sarah and trevor came over and we drank a little champagne with strawberries (cleaned up the rest of my seconds and added a cup of my own, more then i expected for only the second pass). after chili and cornbread (thanks kevin, excellent) we went on a field trip to an abandoned mobile home park trevor had eye balled from the highway. the dogs enjoyed the excursion as well. we took a roundabout way home and it reminded me of explorations of childhood.
3rd best drinking water in the world
its been a really beautiful saturday. started it with a really good papua new guinea light roast from Kaldis. very yummy and read the paper, such as it is in this brave new world. kevin and i went to the market and got lots of great stuff: spinach, mixed salad greens [has little baby bok choy], asparagus, arugula (a smaller package a little goes a long way), and some other salad stuff. also got a pack of orange marigolds for the tomato patch and a Patric chocolate bar. hit them up for info on slave labor in the harvest of cocoa and they said only on the Ivory Coast and they don’t buy from there. i got a frequent buyers card in case they’re good. also got some apple butter.
stopped by nancy’s garage sale fundraiser and it was nice seeing everyone gathered for a good cause, got some books (mostly for work), some lavender dryer sachets, and wrapping paper. made steal cut oats in the rice cooker with some raisins. john was unimpressed so i’ll probably work them out of the rotation for the foreseeable future as kevin’s not much of a breakfast guy. though he is into the local bacon i also got at the market this morning and am going to make up tomorrow with some grits and eggs over medium.
it was beautiful weather wise and got two loads of laundry done on the line and managed to finish digging out the bed by east side of the house. i’m out of finished compost so i just added coffee grounds. the dirt there was pretty decent so they’ve had some stuff there before but its been a minimum of 6 years since it was worked. there was a lot of maple tree roots i had to dig out. i dug up the lilies i move every year out of the front yard and planted them around the perimeter and then put in 8 brusel sprouts [thanks erica who sprouted them from seed and even delivered] . i think they should look cool together and i am hoping to use the lilies to keep the dogs out. i’ve got a couple more brussel sprouts i am going to weave into where the strawberries fade out buttressed by more lillies. gonna put in the rest of the lillies inaround the most dog trampled strawberries. speaking of one of them is pretty red so i should have my first one in a few days or so. can’t wait. i almost bought a $6 pint of them at the market but decided to wait for my own. got many gallons last year and there are more so i am optimistic.
my neighbor henry flagged me down while digging up lillies and gave me a couple of forsythia bushes and lopped for me. after seeing the ungainly clump that i put in the ground a few years ago from him he must’ve figured he’d better just do it for me. his yard is looking amazing, really coming along. i’ve got a fair chunk of stuff to get in the ground, wouldn’t mind mowing my lawn but will probably wait on that.
john has all three rain barrels operational now, hopefully. he added a washer and it seems like we’ve got it now. we walked through the garage and talked about an organizational plan. john has been knocking out the projects. he got a dog waste compost set up in the back corner of the yard that is really great. buried a garbage can surrounded by rocks with holes in the bottom. add poo until there’s enough and then added 1/3 of a package of septic tank conditioner. “i’ve never bought a bottle of bacteria before”, john said. has a lid. might move the hydrangia out into the new dirt pile by the composter to make room for the second of mom’s rose bushes. it will be nice to get them in the ground on mother’s day.
be kind to our one big mother, you know the one with oceans and stuff.
then i cooked dinner. parboiled crocker apple brats also from the market in Flat Branch brown ale, made red potato packets with red onion, and asparagus packet with baby garlic, green onion, a little tomato, lemon juice and a little olive oil. also did a nice salad and kevin got brat buns which were very festive. i served it with my first batch of sun tea with green tea and a bag of ginger.
i got a little too much sun but it was probably good to try to adjust to the coming heat. spring has been wonderful but summer temps are rolling in.
maydayeve
what a beautiful day and oh how i love spring. it was just gorgeous today, mostly sunny and low 70s with some rain in the future so i was pushing to get stuff in the ground. i have been doing a bit of gardening most days and had finally gotten all my memorial plants in the ground. as the tulips go post-peak i have been pleased with some other stuff stepping up its game. the gerber daisies are going to dominate the grave area with a lot of lower stuff when i cut back the tulips. in the shade bed all kinds of things are going on in violet; spiderwort, wild sweet william, violets, jacob’s ladder, and another one, plus columbine, some lilies are still going, ragwort’s coming on, and the irises are getting ready, plus the annuals i put in.
this morning i worked in the bulbs left over from a tulip, dafodil, fresia arrangement into the herb garden so i gave a good cultivate and feed to the tarragon, oregano, and connected some sage that had spread out into the lawn into a new larger bed. i put them in close to the herbs figuring that in early spring they’ll all still be little and i can get the flowers without using any space. i wanted to have the fresia by front window so the scent could waft in the front window but i had tulips in the mix and i wanted them on this side of the fence so the dogs could defend them from the squirrels. although stubby, the bob-tailed squirrel and notorious eater of tulips got hit last year so maybe i’ll try front lawn tulips some day. while i was messing in the herb garden i found more parsley and i planted dill and cosmos up there as well.
in the afternoon i pulled off the plastic from the tomatoes and basil and planted a six pack of cabbages i got at the market this morning. nice market by the way, my first this year, with leaf lettuce, kale, green onions, radishes, green house tomato, cucumber (one of those long asian ones but young and tender, yumm) [my salad tonight with goddess dressing] and little tender asparagus [cooked in a packet with the baby garlic i also got, thinly sliced red peppers, and redwine vinegar; nailed the sweet and tangy thing i was going for] and grass fed ground round [added chopped oregano, basil, and garlic and grilled over hickory chips].
the cabbages i mostly ran in a row in my second bed east of the tomatoes. i planted one up close to the lettuce, figuring it’ll finish and allow the cabbage to extend into its space. this part of the bed was still pretty clayey below 14″ so i added three inches of compost to the bottom layer and and two inches to the top which wiped me out on the home made stuff. the big compost is 2-4 weeks away from being done so i’ll have to either go without and just fertilize (i got some fish stuff on clearance last year and stepping up my nitrogen game. the garlic i blasted doubled in size in 4 days and is twice as big as the control group which i blasted today) but compost also changes the character of the soil which my clay yard needs.
i planted rows of radishes on each side of the cabbage because double digging all that space is hard work and the cabbage will grow into the space when the radishes are done, goddess willing. i planted the other two around the lettuce, which at least one more head will be done this week. i left last year’s okra stalks up as a dog deterrent. i also cultivated the basil (thanks jane), broccoli, tomatoes (thanks eric), and lettuce. i put up the little fence and hit everything but the new stuff (it got plenty of compost)and the lettuce (hope to eat soon) in that bed with fish juice. the dogs were definitely intrigued pushing the fence in a bit (descented my ass).
i also got some laundry on the clothesline and cooked out on the grill. perfect spring day. tomorrow house cleaning and i’m gonna re-mow the back yard if it doesn’t rain. please rain, i’ve been a little under the weather but felt good to push myself a bit anyway.
kumquat curry chicken
Its been frenetic for this blogger and haven’t had a chance to post in ages. I made a trip back to Michigan and Ohio, blew up my truck, brought Johnny Watson back with me for a house rehab (the house not johnny) and so have been occupied from rise to bed all day every day and for the foreseeable future. And yet faithful readers in my 20 minutes of downtime before work i want to tell you about kumquat curry chicken, a collaborative effort of two nights ago.
In a blender put in 3/4 pint of de-seeded kumquats, , 1/2 cup vidalia onion salad dressing, 1/2 cup water and pulp that shit up. Take 3 large chicken breasts clean and wash and remove excess fat. Pound with the hammer down to 1/2 inch and chunk up. Season 1/4 cup olive oil with 3/4 head of garlic and 3/4 cup sweet onions. Brown the chicken add most of the kumquat puree (save the rest for a salad dressing on another day) and simmer with a lid on to keep the temp up. Hope you knew to start the rice cooker after the blender and before browning the chicken with 1/2 white rice (for the kids and old people) and 1/2 sprouted organic brown rice. Put in a little extra water (plus butter and salt of course) so the brown rice gets good and done. Meanwhile slice an organic carrot into some frozen peas with some mrs dash and basil and set to cooking. when the rice switches to warm mix in some smooth peanut butter to thicken (you can use tahini if you haven’t made salad dressing out of all of it like i have). you want enough in to make it creamy but not so much that you get much peanut taste just a tiny little mystery hint. Citrussy goodness. I needed to add salt but it was so flavorful some didn’t notice. Good, largely good for you, and quick enough for a weeknight if you’ve got a little help and a lot of good company. Pairs well with Pepsi Cola. For best results pull up all your linoleum and underboard. Standing on springy mossy smelling plywood makes you think you’re cooking in the deep forest.
thanksgiving menu
After a 5 day holiday its time to wake up tomorrow and return to regular life. The 9 1/2 hour horror show that is the typical monday these days. Its a good time to sum up and most of that summing up is cooking.
I really started the weekend before by making corn bread and chicken stock. The corn bread I doubled the recipe on the corn bread box and added the left over grits from breakfast. That made them moist and good but it didn’t really dry out as much as I would have liked . I cut it up into squares a couple of days before Thanksgiving but should have done it the day I made it. I tossed it in the oven a couple of times on a low temp to dry it out further.
The stock I made out of neck and back & organs of a local chicken that i simmered with a couple of bay leaves for 4 hours. I kept it in the fridge and scooped off the condensed fat. I also added the broth from any veggies i cooked during the week. I had intended to use it in the dressing but when the cooking got into a team sport plans changed.
The day before I pulled one of the pumpkins off the front porch and pealed and chopped and seasoned and cooked all the flesh. I used a lot of fresh ground spices, nutmeg, cinnamon stick, anise star, all spice, and fresh ginger. I figured letting it sit over night the spices would mix and instill themselves in the pumpkin. I ended up underspicing by a considerable degree. I probably didn’t fully realize just how much pumpkin i was dealing with. I also baked some pumpkin seeds with salt and a little lime, they were delicious. I left a few for the compost i’ve had good luck with volunteer pumpkins.
I also brined the turkey. I put in the cooler with 2 gallons of water a cup of sugar and a cup of kosher salt. the turkey i had ordered a couple weeks ago from some local farmers and then picked up on Tuesday at Cafe Berlin. I got the biggest one they had 17 lbs. more because i wanted to ensure i got a female more than i wanted a giant bird. I had to put it in the cooler on its side and it ended up bruised on one side. There was a little talk on facebook about brining and its done to both clean it and tenderize the meat. When you buy it in the grocery store its already packed in salt water.
The day of I started cooking a little before 7. I rinsed off the turkey and patted it dry. I rubbed it inside and out with olive oil and stuffed it with 2 local pears, 3 big cloves of garlic, and a white onion. I baked it at 425 for an hour and then backed it off to 325. Pretty much according to the directions from the farmers. I baked it upside down both to keep the breast meat moist and because it was too big for the roaster pan.
While it was baking Brenda put the neck and organs boiling with a half of a pack of celery. I added maybe 4 tbsps fresh picked white sage and maybe 2 of oregano plus a bay leaf and we boiled that for about 3 hours. Someone turned up the fire or I would have let it go 4. Brenda combined that with the cornbread and some more fresh sage and I roasted some fresh chest nuts and diced them in and that was it.
Early on in the day i made pie crusts. I found a gluten free recipe on line. folded in shortening into rice flour. i was regretting not getting lard, supposed to make crusts flakier. I made one the same way with wheat flour it wasn’t any good. I baked them for about 20 minutes with the turkey. two i did with pumpkin. added some egg, brown sugar, and condensed milk. My sister Betty had sent a quart of minced meat from my grandma trapp’s recipe so i made a minced meat pie as well. it was excellent. one of the better gluten free deserts i’ve had.she had also sent down some gluten free cranberry bread. we broke that out with coffee in lieu of breakfast since we were having a giant meal early.
Then got the stove top stuff ready. Cubed up some red potatoes from the market for mashed taters. Made them pretty classic with whole milk and butter and fresh ground pepper. Brenda made gravy out of turkey drippings, corn starch and I pulled up a horeradish and cleaned it up. Freshly grated it was good. Don’t think I’m going to prepare it just keep it fresh in the freezer and grate as needed, just like I do my ginger.
We also did butternut squash also mashed with brown sugar, butter, and roasted walnuts. The sweet potatoes i did in small cubes cooked on the stove top in the water from the pumpkins. I grated in extra star anise and fresh ginger and added butter and Springfield honey. they were a little mushy from scaling up the recipe.
Brenda and Heather brought a Panerra cheese bread and we chunked it up and toasted with butter and garlic powder. Did a relish tray with my dill and bread & butter pickles, black and green olives. I opened a chilled can of whole cranberries, fluffed with a fork and it was dinner. I was most appreciative of the teamwork. Everyone jumped in to help which made it really nice and allowed us to eat a couple hours earlier.
from computer fast to thanksgiving feast
its been a little minute since i’ve posted anything. i was without a computer. i broke my power cord in the same place that i broke the last one so i decided i needed to change my computer usage and it took me a few weeks to get my desk moved and set up in the spare room so i could try to move most of my computing and all of my plugged in computer time in the office. but what i found was i kind of enjoyed not playing on the computer. freed up some time which i promptly wasted reading novels, re-read snowcrash and the diamond age both just as good a second thoughtful time through. floated the lemine river the last 12 miles before the the 2 miles before the mouth of the missouri. loverly it was. saw a beautiful bald eagle, piliated woodpecker and great hawk and great blue heron sitings. floating is a misnomer though as if we would have allowed for current we would probably still be there. there were places were the leaves had fallen and they just stayed there, very beautiful. patches of color but mostly bare so you could see through the woods like you can in winter. some pretty bluffs. nice big easy river. not a lot of motor boats on a cool fall day. dad finished the new compost bin. its a lot bigger a square plywood box framed with two by fours and a plywood bin. today at lunch i raked leaves and layered them in with the house coffee and scraps and started shoveling in the top layers of my compost that’s been going. i think there’s probably a fair bit finished down below and i’m gonna mix it in to make the leaves go faster. should have enough capacity to hold all of my fall plant material at once. i want to use the compost to turn up a couple of beds hopefully of spinach, lettuce, and kale. still need to harvest the horseradish but its still green so i’m letting it grow. i bought alcohol to process the witch hazel tincture, european style not distilled like i’ve always used. i’m waiting for it to lose the rest of its leaves and i’m going to prune off suckers. also have a pretty darn local thanksgiving feast in the works. brenda and heather are driving down bless their hearts. i ordered a pasture raised bobtail white, next year i’m going to heritage, but i’m excited nonetheless, littler than a factory bird but realer and there’s only going to be four or so. plus i’m gonna do mashed taters, red if there’s some left. i’m going to hit the market first thing. i’m also doing sweet potatoes cubed and cooked in a little water in the cast iron skillet with spinach, fresh chopped ginger, freshly ground star anise & nutmeg (my bastardization of a recipe i had at Jack’s Steakhouse on HT3’s b-day dinner [a very cool affair with live piano, a beef mushroom wine soup, a wine soaked local streak, the sweet potatoes, and a baked alaska for two{suitable for four}]). and butternut squash with brown sugar, butter and roasted nuts (not pecans this year’s don’t come out for two more weeks.) cornbread dressing with fresh roasted chestnuts and the nasty bits of the turkey (neck and organs [i love my family]). some type of cranberry dish, maybe just the canned kind (not the tube though). also will have the homemade bread & butter pickles that get better and better as they sit. got a bottle of a nice italian red. taking the day before to cook. sightseeing and an AA meeting on black friday, the first day of winter market with brenda and heather (those pecans i mentioned and a breakfast burrito) and then see them off with two days of weekend to clean up and deal with leftovers and relax before the grind. life is sweet. i am blessed and looking forward to a full holiday season at my own home for the first time in my life. greetings to the national christmas tree which is winding around wyoming enroute to columbia to spend the night at the holiday inn. sorry i won’t get across town to get you a commemorative ornament. know that i love you just the same.
complaint free me
Last week was long and challenging. I’m working around a couple people’s work schedule and just working more in general. I went in last weekend and got caught up a bit which felt good the first part of the week when i could knock out some little things because i didn’t have the constantly existing backlog. Last session Wednesday I fell behind and then never got a chance to get caught back up. Jamming all day every day and falling a bit more behind. I’m not complaining just painting a context for where i was at friday afternoon when a co-worker asked if she could incorporate acomplaintfreeworld.org bracelets in her group. How it works is you where a bracelet and every time you complain you move it to the other arm. You do that until it stays on one wrist for 21 days. She said its 21 days because scientists say that’s how long it takes to form a habit. I questioned that. Sounds more like folk wisdom. She likes the gratitude angle and I do too. I asked her if gratitude has a downside. If it does we didn’t know it. I discussed venting, and she offered a venting exception, which I pooh poohed. Venting has a dark side, the rehearsal for a blow out. It keeps negative emotions alive when sometimes they just need to pass I told her. I said there has to be a way of letting off steam without complaining and I put it on. I said I would probably have to wear it for years. She said she ordered a 100 for when it wears out. It was late in the day and served as a nice reminder. I would’ve complained twice before leaving work if I hadn’t been wearing it. The bracelet was working. After work started to putter around the yard, beautiful day and a lot of projects to do. learned dad hadn’t eaten yet except for some candy. so i didn’t garden but got right on supper. i was already complaining and switching the bracelet. Dad had talked about cooking together because he had gotten all the stuff for walnut crusted chicken breast and a broccoli side dish out of Wednesdays Columbia Tribune. I washed the dishes and Dad talked about his day. Amy had come over with Olive Oil to play with Fido and Dad told me the blow by blow. Olive stayed over while Amy went to the dentist. she brought a box of tea and a bag of starbucks house blend. I’m pretty thankful for Amy. Comes over twice a week and hangs out with the popster for puppy play dates. I read through the recipes and decided to chop up everything then start the water for the pasta. i was chopping the walnuts when dad came to cook to. said i should crush the walnuts with a pop bottle. I told him advice wasn’t help and swapped the bracelet. i said i would just cook. the chicken called for chicken breasts pounded down to 1/2 ” thick. salt and fresh ground pepper on them. then you dip them in egg white and roll them in corn meal with cayenne. back in the egg white and then roll them in chopped walnuts. fry in olive oil until done. the broccoli dish called for boiling some pasta for 5 minutes, add broccoli, finish boiling pour off all but 1/4 cup add 2 tbsp olive oil and a clove diced garlic. the chicken took a lot longer than i anticipated and my rice pasta fell apart. sliced some maters, a black plum, yellow teardrop, what was supposed to be a green zebra but they keep turning orange (orange zebra?), and a store bought with some cottage cheese. Dad was trying to tell me about amy and michael’s date night, i told him i was busy, he said what, i yelled i was busy, 2 complicated dishes after a long complicated day i could not listen too. i couldn’t move the bracelet my hands were gooked up with chicken gook i totally lost my composure. i took a breath decided to complain again so it was on the right wrist and just get ‘er done. supper was excellent, the chicken really out of this world. the broccoli was tasty as well even dripping in gloppy rice scum. dad was complimentary. said he could see where i was coming from. it was really sweet. saturday though i got going rehashing friday night to sarah and harry. made my point about venting. there wasn’t anything unresolved, we talked about it fine, i was heard, it was acknowledged. the next day gripe was resentment pure and simple, with no need. a few more incidental complaints then i hit a stride. today complaint free, even though dad told me “quit complaining” when i was telling him he shouldn’t be buying the dog junk food treats. that was just telling him my view on our shared beast even if he knew and even if i’d said it before. mostly though i’ve just been a bit more positive. It’d be easy to take out my frustrations on dad, he’s around, it can be frustrating as i start to pick up even more of the upkeep of the house. but it wouldn’t be right. it wouldn’t be what i am about. i am looking forward to hitting day 3 tomorrow and being more grateful and less resentful.
weeding and wild onion pottage
It was a beautiful sunday here in como. What I love most about fall here is how spring like it becomes with little delicate shoots coming up that this yankee always associates with spring. its a bit of hope as the days get shorter and the nights get colder. My lettuce is doing surprisingly well considering how dog trampled it is. One of Fido’s set piece runs goes right through the middle of all three rows. One of the two surviving chards looks like its going to do something protected by the okra, which continues to produce. I wish I would have thrown plastic over the main bed its gonna be cold tonight. Mom’s ficus is outside too, Dad talked me down from rearranging the living room and bringing it in today. Its gonna warm up tomorrow night he says. I had other things to do and didn’t get in the garden until late. the sunny part was in the beds along the privacy fence. my best find was about 10 little coreopsis coming up in a place i’ve never gotten anything to grow. the daylillies i planted are doing well, the ones that came with a place have boomed back and i think i am going to split a clump maybe two and move into a sunnier spot, maybe by myrtle’s myrtle. a hillside of lillies seems lovely. the ragwort continues to spread and i dead headed the rose tulips the only thing blooming in the backyard besides the rose of sharon flanking the hidden gate. I had seriously turned the compost yesterday so it cleaned it up to get a nice tier of plant stuff and had a bit of a mix of green and brown. considered raking but will wait until the redbud completely loses it. Outfront a couple of asters are booming the periwinkle blue ones and a vibrant purple one. I’m gonna move the purple one in the spring it was crowded got weedy and fell over. Its a crazy purple clump hanging over the corner of my driveway. quirky but not what i was going for. while i was weeding i noted the wild onions which i thought (correctly) would be excellent for pottage. I took most of a cup of lentils, 1/3 cup white rice, 2/3 cup brown rice, 1/2 cup of olive oil, 1/3 tsp salt, and almost 3 cups water, plus a couple of bay leaves from the mom’s tree of the guy at MO Wildflowers Nursery and maybe 3 tbsp wild onion greens. did it in the rice cooker, very good but a bit el dente for dad i think. He was mute on the meal but ate it. Next time 3 1/2 cups water and i think it will be it.
potpourri with hummingbird
Its an extremely beautiful day, high 82 low 58. Its dried out some from yesterday’s rain. a hummingbird comes and eats at one of my flowers out front. just magically beautiful and i am still inside. lions and tigers and bears oh my. orioles as well. couple of one point games. i also have pumpkin stuff (my front yard volunteer pumpkin, fresh ground cinnamon, allspice, clove, star anise, and nutmeg, pet milk, bake at 300 for an hour, sprinkle with honey and bake another hour) in the oven plus a mess of hot peppers roasting to be frozen for winter consumption. That with the load of laundry on the line its alright to be inside. after the games and the oven planning on biking my overdue books back to the library. I rode to the market yesterday. I was observant to how it was different then driving. I bought have as much stuff and spent more than twice as long there. I was more thoughtful in how much i wanted something and conscientious not to forget anything. Sarah rode her bike over and we rode together and we walked our bikes til where our paths separated. Rode back along Again Park and it felt good to be riding again. I’m 7 miles towards getting my recumbent. If I can demonstrate I am going to ride a lot it would be better for my back. My most thoughtful physical therapist thought bike riding was how i bulged those two discs. i also don’t want to put out the money and space and then not ride.
I haven’t finished the tale of the detroit trip. On Labor Day the neighborhood came alive, there was a union headquarters near and a lot of folks with signs and t-shirts showed up for a while and we realized we were there on the one day a year trumbul comes back to life. We got the great coffee and i had a pretty authentic ham sandwich at Le Petit Zinc. The bees were back but bothering others. Tre’ and Jeff enjoyed their crepes.
We drove down Trumbul to the Trumbulplex. No one seemed around and the flyer about the political poster exhibit didn’t have times. Trevor flagged down a hipster in black leather pants and matching lipstick who claimed to be a neighbor but said she would get somebody. Somebody turned out to be Ashley who had met Jeff at the bakery (Farmington anarchists is a small pool, I think we had both of them present). The NIRS no nukes bumpersticker caught my eye and took me back to the ’95 fermi protests, I remember picking and dropping off stuff here, might have caught a show but i don’t think so.
The exhibit is cool. An Emma Goldman flier is probably my favorite. Ashley is very friendly, the only resident involved with the theater. she gives us the garden tour: bees, chickens (used to be more til a bunch got heisted), there’s a huge rain catch (500 gallons?), and a great garden plot, orchard, more garden plots. I have an apricot. its yummy but a little early. Ashley’s plot looks great. Awesome cruciferous veggies, better than you can grow in como.
After the tour we drove back grand river to hang out in farmington. met the littler kids and chilled out a bit. learned a friend is an internet meme (note to self: need to check on that). relaxed. walked down and got ice cream. said goodbye.
pleasant flight back and goodbyes to trevor at the airport. some shuttle mishaps but am finally delivered to my truck. on the road home, what a great trip.
The warning lights that had come on in the drive out were on and stayed on. In Wentzville the old truck lost power had it on the floor 65, 60, 55…on the side of the road just in front of a junction to another highway. I tucked my laptop behind the seat (key broke off door at KC airport & can’t lock it anymore) and took my backpack. I walked up the highway and then along a fence until i could squeeze under the fence near a washed out area.
I walked towards a motel not begrudging my lack of a cell phone. adds a little adventure to life. I walk into the lobby the desk is unattended. there is a note to ring bell or call a couple of numbers. I ring the bell. no one comes. I ring again no one comes.
I walk out on the service road weighing my options. I start walking west on the service road it curves away from the highway and i take the first right and walk in the dark country road. I walk 4 miles and get to a gas station. she lets me make a local call on her dieing cordless and gives me the number of a tow company.
He picks me up and takes me to my truck. He grudgingly lets me make a call on his cell and i leave a message for dad asking him to pick me up in Wentzville if he gets the message. He tows me to Dan’s Foreign Auto and I write out a note on what happened and he drives me to the Super 8. He declines me a second call so i don’t tip him. The hotel clerk begrudgingly lets me make a long distance call. Dad is enroute.
We get home late and I am glad I took the next day off work. Slept in and mowed the lawn. was glad to be home where its not so cold and the landscape is not so haunted with sadness and loss. after some days Dan reports he can’t find anything wrong with the truck. Dad runs me out there right after work on Friday and we are rushing to beat the 6 o’ clock close time. We make it and talk to Dan. The warning lights come up and Dan has me show him. Its the alternator brushes. That’s why it comes and goes. i am now rushed to get it home before dark so because the car is questionable with the lights on.
I drive. I am uncomfortable with my rush of thoughts with the abbreviated overwhelming work week. I risk some radio to share the cab with NPR. Until the warning light comes on. then i am left alone with wild thoughts. I note my 20 oz pepsi impulse buy. it was for comfort in a maybe the truck will make it maybe it won’t. I think about neil stephenson’s comments on sugar water in “Anathem’. I decide to write and come up with:
I’m going to drink a bucket of sugar water
And yak into my new jeejah,
And drive my old fetch across the highways of life
Remembering the fuel trees.
And when my journey is finally over
And I am safe at home at last
I’ll think about the present future
What the world will be when it’s past.
Will our numbers keep on growing
While our resources start to where thin
With less and less of god’s creation
And more and more with sin.
I like the start of it and hope i can go further with it. The lions just lost a heart breaker, should’ve been a game winning touchdown. At least the tigers won there’s. win or lose its time to wrap this up and get out and enjoy some perfect day.
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