Bigger in Texas

"Cowboy Tuff Chex"

This guy just sold for $165,000 at the Fort Worth Stockyards. He has a record horn span of over eight feet.  "Cowboy" will not end up in a hamburger. The new owners said he will be the VIP of their longhorn breeding ranch.

Longhorns are descendants of the first cattle in the New World, brought by Christopher Columbus and the Spanish colonists. When the Spanish moved the cattle north through the area that would become Texas, some escaped or were turned loose on the open range. They remained feral for the next two centuries and evolved into tough hombres, able to survive in drought conditions on poor vegetation.

As the Texas frontier gave way to established farms, modern ranchers turned to "fatter" breeds that gained weight quickly. The Texas Longhorn stock dwindled, until the breed was saved from near extinction by enthusiasts.

In the 1960's, our Uncle Mark bought two Longhorns just for the fun of it, and they ran around on his Colorado hobby ranch scaring people. He was always ahead of his time, and now I realize they were probably rare back then.

What a delightful cattle breed. They look intimidating, but Longhorns are so gentle and intelligent they are increasingly being trained as riding steers for children, ladies, and of course, cowboys.  But save your money-- trained Longhorns cost more than horses. Who knew?

Almost heaven

The weather is absolutely glorious, as only late September can be.  I know my life sounds like a long string of la-di-da liesure days, but I worked too hard this week, both inside and out.  My heart was tired. So for a treat, I took the ferry to Vashon Island yesterday to ride Moe.

Those tiny lumps off in the distance are the mighty Olympic Mountains-- not very imposing without their usual snow.  I've never seen them so dry and brown, but that's about to change.  We'll have rain and much colder weather by the weekend.

 

I enjoy riding with friends, and there's the safety factor of course, but nothing compares to the peace and solitude of a solo ride with a good horse on a nice day. No need to make conversation or do anything really, except pay attention and enjoy nature in the present moment.

My riding buddy Marianne is off on a horseback vacation in the Greek Islands. I was invited to go with the group of local ladies, and you're probably thinking, what an old stick-in-the mud to turn down a trip like that!

They'll have adventures and stories to tell, but that's an expensive 20-hour journey to the other side of the world, just to ride a strange horse on an strange island. Especially when I have a perfectly good one,  just a 20-minute boat ride away.  I know, where's my sense of adventure? But really, how could riding ever get any better than this?

"Some luck lies in not getting what you thought you wanted but getting what you have, which once you have it you may be smart enough to see is what you would have wanted had you known. ” 

Garrison Keillor

Lake Woebegon, U.S.A

Wordless Wednesday

Moonlight On the Beach
East Hampton, Long Island 
1874
Winslow Homer

Johnny Appleseed Day

"Eat an apple on going to bed, 

and you’ll keep the doctor from earning his bread.”

Old Welsh saying

October is a week away, and we're losing light at the rate of four minutes a day.  After the hottest and driest summer on record, summer takes a parting shot Thursday, when it might actually reach 80 for the last time.

I'm still picking peppers and tomatoes, but after this week, we won't see 65 degrees again until next spring.  The transition from fall to winter here is quick, as the jet stream moves down from Alaska and parks over the Northwest: cool, grey, wet.

One of the great American legends, John Chapman (aka Johnny Appleseed) was born on September 26, 1774. He was a nurseryman and traveling preacher who started out planting trees in western New York and Pennsylvania.

He really should be called "Johnny Applejack," since most apples were made into hard cider-- the original American tipple. Apple orchards thrived and cider was a way to preserve large harvests. It was a delicious drink and important for food preservation.  Cider, with its purifying alcohol, was much safer than potentially contaminated water. Vinegar is produced by fermenting cider, a crucial ingredient in pickling.

Hard cider averages only about 4 to 6 percent alcohol, since cider apples don’t contain a lot of sugar. John Adams kick-started each day with a tankard of hard cider — he once mused, “It seems to do me good.”  He lived to be 91.  Thomas Jefferson loved cider and devoted a large portion of the South Orchard at Monticello to cultivating cider apples. For Jefferson, Americans’ superior apples were a point of pride for the New World.

A Massachusetts survey of 1790 calculated that every citizen over 15 consumed an annual 34 gallons of beer and cider, five gallons of distilled spirits, and a gallon of wine. To put that in perspective, Americans down an average of 3.8 gallons of alcohol a year, about half of it beer.  Americans drink an average of 44 gallons of soda a year.

Cider vanished from the American landscape during Prohibition, when many cider orchards were burned to the ground by die-hard temperance advocates. Even after the repeal, cider never recovered, although recently has been making a comeback.  Still, cider has only a one percent share in the massive beer market.

I can't help but think, more hard cider and less soda would make us a happier country.

Mahlerians

Mahler's Resurrection Symphony

While the rest of the country was watching football and national anthem dramatics, we were at Benaroya Hall listening to Mahler. 

Mahlerian is an actual noun in the Oxford English Dictionary, meaning an fanatical admirer of the Austrian composer and conductor.  The 232-page manuscript (a book, really) of Mahler's second symphony recently sold to a Mahlerian for 6 million dollars.

The precious score is unaltered since it was first written by the composer, including his own deletions, alterations and annotations.  This was the first (and probably last) time a complete symphony written in Mahler's own hand was offered for sale.      

Mahler's Resurrection Symphony is a massive work requiring a huge orchestra and chorus, running almost 90 minutes without intermission.  All those performers require a stage extension, and when that happens our 4th row seats become first row.  This gives us an intimate view of the cello section, assorted feet and knees, and of course the guest conductor looming over us on his pedestal.

 

Giancarlo Guerrero is the Grammy award winning Music Director of the Nashville Symphony Orchestra. His conducting was so animated that at one point his baton actually splintered, and a small piece lodged in the back of his curly hair for the rest of the symphony.  First row seats might not be ideal, but it sure gives you a unique perspective.  Maybe they need to put up those safety nets, like at the ball park?

It was a beautiful fall weekend.  And like a Mahler Symphony, the month of September is over too fast.

The first day of autumn

It is the summer’s great last heat,
It is the fall’s first chill: They meet.
–Sarah Morgan Bryan Piatt

Autumn officially begins in Seattle today at 1:02 pm.  The cool, rainy weather this week felt like a preview, but we'll get another nice sunny break with temperatures back in the 70's.  Lovely weather.  There's a new long term forecast out, showing La Nina conditions trending in the Pacific ocean, which usually means a wet and cool winter. Well, what's new?  For now, there's a perfect and busy fall weekend ahead.  

I'm going over to Vashon Island this morning by myself.  My regular riding friend is off traveling, so I'm meeting up with a lady I met at the barn recently.  She is very nice and also rides an older horse.  I'm awfully cautious (OK paranoid) about who I ride with.  Everyone has a different idea of fun on the trail, and gosh, people do reckless things on horses.  I told her my idea of a fine trail-ride was "no excitement" and she agreed. 

The Ukes are playing a gig on Saturday night at a Catholic Church luau that's apparently been sold out.  How can a church event be sold out?  Anyway, only 8 of us (the first ones to RSVP) are playing. The pressure is on.  I've been practicing "Little Brown Gal," "Pearly Shells" and other great Hawaiian hits from the past.

I forgot to mention on the blog that a Seattle Times reporter surprised us at our regular Monday song circle a few weeks ago.

CLICK HERE for the article.  She did a good job showing the group's fun diversity.  Anyway, amazing what a little publicity can do.  The following week 10 new people showed up.  I don't know how many will stick with it, but it's nice seeing the group grow.

Finally, on Sunday afternoon, switching musical gears big time to Gustav Mahler.  Our first Symphony of the season.

Have a good weekend!

William Morris

I'm crazy about William Morris designs, so I had to buy this too-nice-to-use-in-the-kitchen-towel at Murchie's Tea Shop in Victoria.  It sure looks pretty with the last "Just Joey" roses I cut yesterday.

Speaking of Victoria, John found an interesting article on the history of Fan Tan Alley. Click here.  The Chinatown district is somewhat gentrified, but still manages to retain quite a bit of local character, similar to our "International" District.  (It's not considered PC to say "Chinatown" in Seattle.)

Hopefully the little neighborhood can somehow be saved in the middle of the Victoria construction boom. High rise luxury condos were going in everywhere downtown and along the harbor.  Many of them purchased by (you guessed it) the Chinese.

 Fan Tan Alley, Victoria

Autumn arrives

We had such a nice time in Victoria, we're already planning our next trip.  In February, the Pacific Opera is presenting La Boheme, and the dates happen to correspond with our 25th wedding anniversary.  We were lucky last night to get seats online for the Sunday matinee.

Opera in Victoria will be a nice mid-winter treat, especially since we didn't renew the Seattle Opera this year. We'll take the Clipper up again and stay two nights in a downtown hotel so we can walk everywhere.  February is low-season, so I can't imagine it will be all that crowded.  Sounds relaxing, and now we know the good places to eat. 

I'd originally planned a more ambitious winter trip to Hawaii, trying to use my Alaska Airlines perks. I gave up after many wasted hours searching for condos (the nice ones sold out) and flights (all wildly expensive.) It was just too much work and trouble. Apparently even six months isn't enough time to plan for the popular winter destinations.  So many people traveling these days and competing for the same few places.

It's raining in Seattle! The first real rain since June and you can hear the parched ground slurping up the moisture.  It's also chilly-- we're about 10 degrees below normal.  However, the first weekend of fall looks perfect with sunny skies in the 70's.  Good thing, because John has an outdoor project.

We came home to this sad sight on Sunday afternoon.  A kid smashed a hole in our fence with a GUITAR, and left it laying on the sidewalk in front of the house.  Really??  Did he think he was Jimmy Hendrik or something??

A few nights ago, someone threw a pumpkin on the front porch, waking me up with an awful fright. This is becoming a very strange neighborhood.

Victoria BC sojourn

We left at sunrise Saturday on the Victoria Clipper, a catamaran passenger boat that makes the 86 mile trip to Victoria in about 3 hours. Crossing the Strait of Juan de Fuca can be rough and I stocked up on seasick remedies, but the trip was as smooth as driving down the freeway.

A friendly local greeting at the Laurel Point Inn. 

The Clipper vacation package included a bus tour of the city and a visit to Butchart Gardens on the outskirts of Victoria.

It was beautiful as always, but so crowded on a warm Saturday afternoon with groups of tourists.   You can't tell from this rose garden picture John managed to take, but it at times it felt like more people than flowers.

At the end of a long but pleasant day, looking happy at oyster happy hour...

And a sunset view from our hotel room overlooking the Victoria inner harbor...

On Sunday, new adventures.  The day finally arrived to visit the world-famous Victoria tourist attraction, "Miniature World."  We missed it on all our previous trips.

Miniature-themed dioramas and displays representing historical times and fictional worlds. Nova and Maya would love this.  We did too! 

All that mini-excitement worked up an appetite, so we walked to the Chinatown district for lunch.  Fan Tan Alley is the narrowest street in Canada. The alley was originally a gambling district with restaurants and opium dens. These days of course, it's a tourist destination,  with small shops and galleries, including the most expensive umbrella store in the world.  It was raining lightly by then, and John found a $10 brolly at a Chinese souvenir shop instead.

We went shopping after lunch,  and took a rain check on the Rolling Barrel.
Looks too much like work.  

A fleet of little water taxis called "pickle boats" crisscrosses the inner harbor carrying passengers.

Adorable. We had to ride.

So we went to "other side" for dinner at a brew pub on Sunday night.

The Pickle Captain.

Another dramatic sunset on the ride back to the hotel...

Then a final stroll along the waterfront to see the 3,300 lights on the Parliament Building. 

One last indulgent breakfast, and it was time to cruise back to Seattle laden with tea, chocolates and new hats.

New kid on the block

Western Scrub Jay

It's unusual seeing new bird species in Seattle backyards these days. Sadly, my bird list from the 1990's is full of interesting birds like woodpeckers, grosbeaks, wrens and pine siskins. Oh, the things we once took for granted...

Yesterday morning I noticed a large, light blue bird in front of the hedge.  I assumed it was Stellar's Jay, but this new guy didn't have the signature flashy head crest.

My go-to bird ID book is the 1996 edition of "Birds of Seattle," but I couldn't find a picture like him.  Weird. So I cast a wider net in the "Birds of the Puget Sound Region" and there he was: Western Scrub Jay.

Portland was once the northern end of their range, but like Californians, they're invading from the south, following a landscape that’s urbanizing and opening up. They like our drying climate and the oaks we've planted as street trees. Humans have basically laid out a path for their expansion. 

I got out the welcome wagon and threw him a handful of Costco almonds, which he gathered up pronto. One of the most intelligent birds, Western Scrub Jays have a brain to body mass not far behind ours, and they can remember over 200 different food caches.

Well, we're headed North with the jays this weekend, looking forward to our mini vacation in Victoria, BC.  My computer is taking a staycation, but I'll be back on the blog next week with some new pictures.  Have a great weekend. 

Pho weather

Dad is enjoying his first bowl of Pho soup after class at UNLV this week. Another Pho convert.  Not that long ago, we didn't know what it was, and now Vietnamese street food has gone mainstream.

Marji sent these pictures which made me suddenly crave Pho, now that the weather is cooler. Julie, let's make our Pho lunch date soon!

This bowl looks exactly how I like it, vegetarian with big chunks of good stuff and impossible to eat without a lot of splashing and slurping.   (Tip: wear brown.)

John's favorite Seattle Pho restaurant is Tran Brothers, only because they serve a complimentary cream puff with every bowl. Probably a legacy from the time when France made a cultural impression on Vietnam, leaving them with a love of good pastry and baguette sandwiches.

You can get anything in Las Vegas, but probably not a free cream puff with your Pho. Gotta come to Seattle for that...

Uncle Sam

September 13th is "Uncle Sam Day," one of the most iconic and recognizable characters in the world. Those are a couple of the nice posters I pulled from the Google stew of scary, warlike images.


The Uncle Sam story goes like this:

Sam Wilson, a meatpacker from New York, supplied barrels of meat to soldiers during the war of 1812.  To identify the meat for shipment, Wilson prominently stamped “U.S.” on the barrels.  It wasn’t long before the soldiers dubbed the grub a delivery from Uncle Sam.  As such nicknames tend to do, its popularity spread.

Well, three cheers for the mighty rich United States.  Our sister-in-law Rebecca was rescued by cruise ship and is on her way back to Florida, after a hurricane aborted vacation in the British Virgin Islands.  The situation is looking desperate down there and I feel for those still stranded and especially the poorer folks who call it home.

It will be a long time until things recover.  Ivan caused similar catastrophic damage to Grenada in 2004.  When we went to visit Amanda while she was serving in the Peace Corps on Grenada, the trauma of the hurricane was still fresh in people's memory.  A storm like that is something you probably have to experience first-hand to really appreciate, and I hope we never do.

Whiff of fall?

I can never resist these monster mums that Costco sells in September for only $12.  If you pick one with tight buds, they last for weeks and look so pretty and fall-like on the front porch.  Although I have to remember water it every couple of days, since they're so big and the pot is mostly roots. A giant, wilted mum is a sad sight.

Yesterday was probably our last 80 degree day of the year. And on Sunday, we might have the first significant, widespread rain in over 3 months.

Of course I'm happy about that, except as luck would have it, we planned a weekend trip to Victoria, BC months ago, back when it seemed it would never rain again.  We're taking the Clipper up early Saturday morning and go to Butchart Gardens in the afternoon.  After that,  I don't care if it rains on Sunday-- there's always the museum and all kinds of indoor tourist attractions.  Like shopping.

Well, time to get in gear.  I decided to make a last batch of tomato-pear chutney this morning with all our ripe Romas. 

Water, water everywhere

Except for bone dry Seattle.  I didn't water the grapevine this summer (I never do) and the few grapes it produced are shriveled up from lack of moisture. Now, that's dry weather. There's going to be some disappointed raccoons on the block, but I could care less about a few sour grapes-- I never do anything with them anyway.

The weekend passed pleasantly, except for the hurricane anxiety and concern for our relatives affected by it.  As far as we know, everyone is OK, but there will be some stories.

We went to a nice 60th birthday party on Saturday and the rest of the weekend was consumed watching television storm converge (me) and watching football (John.) Two games, best forgotten asap. And how many idiot reporters have to stand in wind and rain to show that hurricanes bring bad weather?

This has been a fabulous summer for growing vegetables, providing you water them, of course.   The flowers hog up all the prime real estate in my beds, but we grew dozens of hot peppers just from two potted plants. And hundreds and hundreds of cherry tomatoes from one big pot. It takes a while, but I'm finally getting tired of eating them.  So it goes with a glut of garden produce. Oh, what I wouldn't give for the taste of a sun-warmed cherry tomato when January rolls around.

Oh yes, I also cooked up an enormous batch of salsa with a generous gift of tomatoes from our friend Terri's garden.

I froze it in small containers instead instead of dragging out the canning paraphernalia.  I hope we like it because I made enough to last about 6 months! I can always use it up in Mexican meat stews and chili.

Finally, some sweet pictures Amanda sent me of Nova and Maya having fun at the Okanogan County Fair this weekend.