Friday, February 27, 2009

Life in the Fastlane

I work in a basement.  It doesn't really look like one, and I have a door to the street level right by my desk, but it is a basement.  I know because I don't get very good cell phone reception.  Today when I picked up my purse to go home, I immediately got several beeps from my phone.  4 messages left after I had missed the calls.  No reception.  OK, I don't need to get personal calls while at the office, however, it is irritating.  Today I was glad I missed one of the calls.  My son's car had broken a shock.  He was stranded and needed a ride home.  Fortunately, this guy can use his head and began calling relatives until someone was able to come and get him.  Hooray to family, what would we do without them.

Friday, February 20, 2009

End of the Week


Finally, a long week has come to an end. I happened to see something on Oprah that made perfect sense. To reduce clutter in your house, spend 10 minutes several times a week with one area of the house that needs de-cluttering. Cupboard, closet, etc. We all have an extra 10 minutes and once you've fulfilled your obligations to "the living environment" you can spend the rest of the day relaxing and doing nothing. Just what I'm going to do tonight. (I already did my 10mins!)

Monday, February 9, 2009

Wanna be hip?

Wanna be happening? Check out this blog. It's definitely worth following. Brian has a soul connection with the goings on of the Portland hipsters.

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Hope

Robert Redford was quoted as saying, "Can we hope that with the shedding of winter's skin and the joyous bloom of the new season's greening that our world, our country, can see new light, love and laughter as winter's villains and the horses they rode in on leave the scene?"
How many people think he was talking about something other than the weather?   
I'm hoping.

Saturday, February 7, 2009

It's a Beautiful Morning!

I just went outside and smiled.

Actually, spring is just around the corner and I'm getting excited about it.  I do have some vivid memories of a Valentine's Day snowstorm, but I'm hopeful we are over the worst of winter.  Not just for me, but I've got a lot of tender shoots popping up all over my yard.  The trees are beginning to grow again.   I was reminded by a friend this morning, that I had promised a favorite pickle recipe.  Going through my pickle recipes and typing it out, really got me charged about spring/summer, my favorite time of year.   I thought others might enjoy this too, so I'm willing to share.

It truly is "Summer in a Jar".


Quick Baby Garlic Dills by the Quart

This recipe yields one quart, so you can multiply if you want to (no more than 7 times per batch though). It's designed for home gardeners that pick and pickle in the same day.

I have found that Asian markets tend to have pickling cukes when other stores do not....of course, I live in Oregon.


1 quart pickling cucumbers: thoroughly washed, blossom end gently scrubbed off (this maintains a crispy pickle)

2 fresh dill heads or you could use 2 T dill seed if you really had to

1-2 fresh hot chilies, halved

2 or more garlic cloves

1 bay leaf

2 t pickling salt (no iodine!)

1 cup distilled white vinegar


Wash jars and keep hot until needed. Prepare lids as manufacturer recommends.

Pack the hot jars with cucumbers, then fill with the rest of the dry ingredients. Pour one cup vinegar into quart jar. (If you're making 2 pint jars, use 1/2cup per jar..duh, but that's what the recipe says) Now, fill the jar with boiling water so there is ½ inch of space at the top of the jar. Wipe jar rim with a clean cloth and attach lid.


Process by placing jar(s) in a canner filled halfway with warm water. Then add hot water to a level 1 inch higher than jar(s). Heat the water to 180-185 and maintain this temperature for 30 minutes.


You just made yourself some pickles!