How sweet they are...

Another year has come and gone. I know everyone says this, but it's amazing how quickly time passes. My Christmas presents included a new scanner that will scan in negatives. The first 20 years of parenting, photos were taken with 35mm film. I have all those negatives and my mission for the coming year is to get them on a hard drive somewhere, then CD's. The kids' baby books are fading and my heart would be broken if I couldn't go and look at all those pictures. It takes several minutes to scan and upload 4 photos, so this will be a slow process. I am going to scan most of them but be very selective about the ones I tinker with.

Monday Night

Getting ready to go on vacation in a couple of weeks. Our plans involved going up to the San Juan Islands and biking around a few islands. Unfortunately, the economy has taken it's tole and Bill has become unemployed. Camping will have to be the vacation this year. We may still go up north if we can find some camping spots. Neither of us is very familiar with the area, so we may end up camping in an open field. Regardless, we'll have a good time.

Memorable Weekend

Wow, did I have a great weekend. Once again, there are just not enough hours in the day nor days in the weekend, even a three day weekend! We all went to Gearheart, OR to go clamming. Those Hominids were practically jumping into our buckets. What fun and good eating. The little cottages we rented were awesome to say nothing of the couple who run the place. It's called Gearheart Ocean Inn. Kathleen and Roy couldn't have been nicer and more welcoming. We spent our first evening with them and many of their friends at a huge bonfire on the beach. Lots of fun and wine, unfortunately it didn't make getting up early the next morning to dig clams any easier. Monday, however, was a total blessing. After sleeping in, the sun woke us up and just as we were pouring our first cup of coffee, got a call....get your buckets and guns an come down to the beach, there're clams all over. 1.5 hours later, another 3 limits. Yummers!

Cant wait to do that again.

Getting back into the swing of things.......

Obviously I haven't been paying much attention to the blog.  I've had a lot of adventures, good and bad since the last time I posted.  I can't believe May is almost over.  My baby has turned 24!  We had a wonderful seafood fest for him.  On our way back from Lake Quinault in Washington, we stopped and bought some fresh oysters, smoked oyster and razor clams.  Yummy.  Seafood is Morgan's favorite.  Grandma brought an icecream cake and with a shot of Absinthe after dinner, he had a very happy birthday.

My other son has recently returned from a 2 week tour of the west coast with his rock band.  He had a great, but exhausting time.

I've recently spent some time in Las Vegas, won virtually nothing, but had an excellent time.  Lots of sunshine and relaxation.

I'm hoping to get back into blogging on a more regular basis.

I'm baaaacccck!

All I can say is this was the perfect Day!

How can I go to sleep tonight after such a wonderful day. Unfortunately, time marches on. Here's to many more of these beautiful sunny, relaxing days.

Left, Right, Blue or Red

Why do we always take sides? How come I almost always see shades of gray where others clearly see black or white? Surely we have been around the block enough times to know that there are two sides to every story. We have more in common with our neighbors, co-workers, fellow citizens of the world, than not.
Jeremy Courtney moved to Iraq to work for an aid organization. After seeing countless children suffer from congenital heart disease in a country that cannot provide the necessary surgery, he started an organization to raise money to send the kids to America and fix the broken hearts. One way he raises money for this project is by selling shoes made by Kurdish families. What's so special about the shoes? Check out this website and see how Jeremy demonstrates his refusal to take sides. They even sell shoes for those of us with two left feet!
It takes effort and practice. Try being right without making others wrong.

Wearin O'the Green

Nothing says Happy St. Paddy's day like an Irsih Coffee. (Well maybe a couple of Irish Carbombs pounded down in 10 mins!)

Here's the best recipe I've found.

Cheers!

The Irish Coffee

Originally prepared by Joe Sheridan at Foynes “flying boat" terminal in Dublin , commonly known now as Shannon Airport . Joe and his Irish coffee later found a home at the end of the Hyde Street cable car line on San Francisco 's waterfront at the Buena Vista Cafe.

Never use canned cream in an Irish Coffee. Whip your own cream without sugar by placing a stainless steel bowl or pitcher in the fridge until it is very cold . Start with very cold heavy cream and whisk or whip to just under stiff so the cream has no bubbles and will still pour slowly. Always sweeten the coffee using brown sugar or brown sugar syrup. Finally don't drown the drink in coffee, about 4 ounces is all you need. Try to find the classic stemmed Irish Coffee glasses, because of their size they will force you to use the right amount of coffee. Those are the tricks we use in the business to make drinks bartender proof

1 1/2 oz. Jamesons Irish Whiskey

1 oz. Brown Sugar Syrup

Coffee

Lightly Whipped Unsweetened Cream

Combine Whiskey, coffee and syrup in an Irish coffee glass. Ladle one inch of cream on top.

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.

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!)

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.

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.

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!

I apoligize

So sorry to let my anguish at another snow day go against my innate optimism. I was also vaguely rude to a customer no service agent. I apologize to her also. Well, I never said I was perfect.
We had snow again today, but I didn't let it alter my habits at all. Going to work was sort of a race against the freezing rain that I'm not sure ever came. No windows in my squirrel cage.
Here's a photo of my happy place.
I've got my new Wii fit out of the box and have been looking at all the options. I am just amazed at the technology that is out there and can't wait for more. My friends think I'm turning into a total geek. Maybe I am.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!

Need I say more. Supposedly celebrating the January Birthdays tonight (three including me).

The Good Old Days

I've just been killing a little time on the "net" and found the funniest web site. The author is James Lileks and although he's written several novels and is a columnist for several newspapers, what I really enjoyed was the book he's written about recipe books from the 40's, 50's and 60's. It's not enough that the pictures are incredibly horrible, but his commentary is hysterical. There are several different recipe books he's highjacked, but check out 10 PM Cookbook for a nice change of pace. Being a child of the 50's, I can really relate to some of these cooking trends, especially the jello molds.

How quickly they forget

I know I just had a birthday, but come on, I'm not that old. Apparently it's been too long since I posted to this blog (4 long days) because it took me about 15 minutes to figure out how to post this little paragraph.
I've been so busy this week that nothing exciting has really happened.
I'm looking forward to this weekend. Planning a 5 day weekend in Palm Springs to tide me over until my favorite time of year. Spring!
I've been invigorated by the inauguration. If only we'd paid this much attention to our government 8 years ago. All the good energy coming out of this election just emphasizes the fact that we have to experience the bad to appreciate the good.
Hail to the Chief!!

Happy Birthday to ME!!

I woke up this morning to beautiful blue skies and wind whipping so hard shakes were flying off my roof. An exhilarating way to begin another year of my life. That's just the kind of energy I like to try and maintain everyday.
Last night I had people over for dinner and about 30 minutes prior to expected arrival, we lost power! Never fear, all those candles I've gotten as gifts, bought because they smell so good or just happened to have, were pulled into use. There really isn't anything nicer or more calming then candlelight. Since I cook with gas, dinner was not a problem and after about and hour and a half, the power came back on. It was kind of sad to have to blow the candles out. I actually left a few burning. Something like a power outage sure makes you appreciate what we have. Imagine having to read, do homework, or even wash the dishes with out light or electricity.
I think I'm getting a battery powered lantern for my birthday.............

Learn something new every day

They say to keep your mind sharp, a person should challenge themselves frequently buy learning something new. This could be a huge project, like getting an advanced degree (congrats again-you know who you are) or frequent small challenges on a daily basis. Today I discovered a trick that I'm sure will benefit me in the not so distant future. However, like in the Wedding Singer, I wish I would have know this 3 weeks ago!
Apparently, adding liquid dish detergent to warm water, then pouring it over your iced walkway, porch steps and/or driveway, will melt the ice then keep it from refreezing. Homemade de-icer.
Not only have I slightly decreased my mental aging process by learning something new, but now I won't fall and break an aging hip.

Thought for the day............

So what have we learned in 2 millennia?

"The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled,
public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be
tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be
curtailed, lest Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to work,
instead of living on public assistance." Cicero - 55 BC



Evidently..... nothing.

Darts

Driving home tonight, I noticed a store that sold only darts and dart supplies. It's been there at least 18 years and I think has expanded at least once. I got to thinking about darts. Is there some secret darting club? What would it be like to be a goalie for a dart team? How the heck does someone make a living running a store that is exclusively centered around darts? I know of a few places around town where darts at played along with drinking beer. I have started brewing beer, maybe I should sell darts as well.

Softipper Darts

6360 SE Foster Rd
Portland, OR 97206-3609
Phone: (503) 771-0735

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More snow?

Just when we thought we would have a bit of a break, here comes the snow again. Not as much, but just as inconvenient. We tried all morning to get Morgan to work and finally at noon, the chains got us out and him to work. We ended up having a fiery hot lunch at Fire on the Mountain in NoPo. It was pretty nice sitting at the bar along the street window and watching the rain, then snow, then hail, then brilliant sunshine. We slogged our way back to the car and ran errands the rest of the day.

Piped in Music

Our goal for the evening was to listen to live music in a quiet (and now non smoking) location. Interesting how everyone else seemed to think Jan 1 is a holiday. Oh yeah, so did I. Couldn't find much out there in P town. We ended up at....you guessed it a McMenamins. The unusual part...we ate at Chapel Pub and listened to 80's music played on a funeral home organ. It took a few bars to decipher the songs, but Michelle (the Beatles), The Night they Drove Old Dixie Down and Stagefright, to name a few. The food was the usual good, the company fun and the music....we'll probably go again as the keyboardist from the Decemberists will be playing there on Jan 15.