Labor Day Weekend

 

"Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work." So said, Aristotle. 

I like something colorful in the shady area by the back steps, and these impatiens turned out nice. I gave them a couple hits of Miracle Grow fertilizer and maybe that did the trick.

After our last almost obscene plum harvest, not a single fruit on the poor tree this year, as it was pruned within an inch of its life. Our neighbor shared these yesterday, thank you W! She uses hers to brew a powerful and interesting plum liqueur, ready about Christmastime.

Maybe a plum cake for us-- I don't care to trash out my new range yet with canning mess.

Speaking of which, cooking is suddenly brighter and easier. Not to mention, more fun. This stir fry came together in half the time and tasted better. It's been over 10 years since I cooked on a real quality range. 

I had a Viking Range once, and top-of-the line in its time. It had a scary infrared broiler and the burners got powerfully hot, but basically just a rough fire machine, lacking the refinement of LG. 

Stuffed with electronics, time will tell if the LG holds up to heavy use.

Enjoy your holiday weekend.  We are sticking close to home.

 

Woo hoo

 

It almost feels like a new kitchen!  Our previous stoves had backs attached, so this is a nicer look. Albert Lee Appliance did a good job on delivery and installation. It's an LG duel fuel range with gas burners and electric oven. Two years ago, we had the electricians put in a 220v outlet for this very purpose. Goodbye, nasty gas oven.

I'm really thrilled with the strong hood lighting, because it brightens not only the burners but also this little piece of counter space where I do all my prep work. How many massive holiday dinners have I prepared right there? So, still a pokey old kitchen, but a big improvement.

We've already put it to work:

Chicken enchiladas last night and peach pie this morning...

Patty pan and pickles

Along with melon, peaches and corn, I bought some big beautiful patty pan squash at Lone Pine. John sliced them horizontally for a "Squash Parmesan" recipe.

 

Summer squash, when it gets large, can be seedy and watery, but these were perfect. Frankly, I liked it as much or better than eggplant parm.

All the local produce in the Valley this week was amazing. It is peak season for vegetables. Many people have huge gardens and they're happy to share the bounty. I made the tomato sandwich of my dreams. 

Karen gave me these cucumbers for fridge pickles, also a pint of precious honey from Bruce's backyard hives. So generous. 

Well, today is a big day. Our new range and hood are scheduled for installation this afternoon. They can take the old grease splattered ones with them! 

A terrible beauty

 

A very dead snake by the side of the street, a few blocks from our house. Of the harmless variety but still gives quite a jolt on a peaceful evening stroll.

It was actually holding its head up, like some creepy taxidermy. The natural wonders of Twisp never cease.

Here's something more civilized. Roma tomatoes I picked yesterday from one potted plant. I bought the antique, made-in-Japan bowl for $2 at our wonderful Methow Valley Senior Center Thrift Shop. 

Yes, I'm home and getting back into the swing of things. Always an adjustment on each end.

The world spins

 

You rarely see a fully grown buck in town, but last night some youngsters showed up with the family groups and caused a raucous. The little bucks posturing and rough-housing like boys on the playground while the does preened and ignored them-- we are all mammals.

Yesterday was glorious and Amanda and I took a long morning walk at Golden Doe Preserve (well, long for me with 13,000 steps by the end of the day.) 

This week everything changes with Amanda starting work and the kids going back to school tomorrow. The summers are almost frantic with activities as people try to get as much recreation as possible into a few short months. There's an almost audible sigh of relief in the Valley as things return to a different kind of busy with life centering more around school and community. 

The upcoming months are busy so I don't know when I'll have the luxury of another week stay. But as our wise dad used to say, one day at a time. Onward we go into a new season.

 

Wonders never cease

 

It has been raining here, gently but steadily, for over 12 hours. You can't imagine how rare that is on the dry side of the state, and in August, unheard of. Unlike Seattle (ho-hum) rain here is an event and the locals are ecstatic. Among other things, it marks the end of the anxious fire season. 

If you are curious about the river, it has gone up about 150 CFS, barely noticeable. 

Of course I forgot to put the lawn sprinklers on rain delay, and woke up to the merry sound of water falling on water. Yes, wasteful, but tomorrow the sun comes back, and won't that be a sight in the clean washed air.

I took Nova up to the barn for chores yesterday, and made a new friend. What a curious and friendly hen, she jumped on the chair and looked me right in the eye, wanting to be petted. Amanda swears she is the reincarnation of her dear old "Lemon."

School days

 

Maya and her best friend at the 6th grade classroom orientation yesterday. To say they were excited is an understatement.

Their two portable classrooms are situated between the high school and elementary buildings. The 6th graders have some classes inside the big high school, as well as using the gym, cafeteria, etc. making it a good transition experience.

One of the great things about the Methow Valley District is all ordinary school supplies are provided free, saving parents considerable expense and trouble. The Walmart in Omak is 40 miles away over the Loup Loup Pass, and the large stores in Wenatchee a 200 mile round trip from Twisp.

I always enjoy going to the school, especially seeing the wonderful teachers and staff interact with the parents and kids-- so dedicated.  Not mention, watching these kids grow up before our eyes.

That is the popular Chinese teacher above, explaining her class to the girls. The 6th graders have one semester each of Spanish and Chinese, then must decide on which language to study for grades 7-12. That seems like a good plan.

Wow. And here's something you would never see in Seattle. Every fall, the seniors get to paint their own dedicated, personalized parking spot right in front of the school.

Pretty

 

The girls have beautiful hair and they wear it in pretty, soft styles. Today is school orientation and they start next week, Maya in 6th (middle school here) and Nova in 10th. That means Nova starts driver education this fall. She is among the youngest in her class with an August birthday, so most of her friends will soon be out on the roads. Oh my goodness. Also coming up, a trip to Taiwan in the spring with her Chinese class. This should be quite a year. 

We've had a nice time yesterday, browsing around Winthrop and Twisp, took a walk on Amanda and Tom's property, had lunch at the local taco truck and then a big dinner here at the house. I was so tired I slept eight hours with some very creative dreams, which I won't bore you with.

John and Mark are leaving today, but I'll hang around through the weekend. I'm looking forward to seeing my friend Karen. It might rain on Saturday, always welcome. Fingers crossed, the Methow Valley may have escaped worst of the fire season this summer.

Running on low

 

I'm at the house this week, recharging my batteries. The Methow River is running at only 330 CFS, a seasonal low. To put that in perspective, it can easily reach 15,000 CFS during spring run-off. This channel through town can handle a tremendous flow which is reassuring (somewhat.) Just don't Google "historic Methow River floods photos."

Not a fan of jumping into cold running water, our little swimming hole finally looks inviting to me, but after a blistering summer, there is already a sense of seasons changing. It is much cooler than the last time I was here and still dark at 5 am.

Besides, I'd rather enjoy the river nice and dry from here. John is coming over today (Yes! The lord returns to the manor! ha!) and our friend Mark is driving up from Portland for a first visit to the house. So the next two days should be busy and fun.

Stormy weather?

 

Nothing on the radar yet, but the local weather folk are all excited about a strong band of thunderstorms coming up from the south tonight. A unusual weather pattern for Seattle. Maybe a fast inch of rain, which would be welcome, except the ground is so compacted and dry it will mostly run off. Our basement stairwell sometimes fills with water if it rains too hard, too fast. Something to keep an eye on tonight, although not like there's much we can do but bail out with a bucket.

It's been a busy few days. Yesterday morning we went appliance shopping and picked out a new LG duel fuel range. That means electric oven and gas burners. It also has an air fryer feature. I use a propane LG in Twisp, not as fancy as this new one, but I like the brand. We also ordered a new stainless steel hood to replace the wimpy one installed in the 1990's, now crusted with old grease. That should be a nice upgrade for the kitchen, although will likely make everything else look shabby by comparison.

We canned a batch of corn salsa this morning, which of course trashed the top of the stove. There's no way I'm going to kill myself getting that cleaned up. They can  just think we are slobs when they haul it off in two weeks.

Have a good weekend!
 

Tomatoes Galore Day

 

That would be today, August 15th. Eat a tomato. 90% of Americans don't get enough fruits and vegetables. 

One summer back in the 1950's, our parents grew a small field of tomatoes just for Campbell's soup. We thought that was pretty exciting. Ancient history now, when corporations actually sourced produce from individual family farms.

Well, lookee here. I have a retraction on that blog from a while back, saying mean things about our Beefsteak tomato. Yes, the plant is a sorry sight, but that's mostly my fault for not putting a stronger trellis in the pot. But these tomatoes I picked yesterday, although not large, are dense and meaty and taste absolutely nothing like those from grocery store.

We opened our last jar of spicy corn and tomato salsa, so I might use these special Beefsteaks to can another batch this weekend.

Addendum

 

Oh, my gosh. Amanda just sent this picture-- they visibly grew overnight.

(Not AI generated!)

Brave new world

 

Amanda's Cinnamon Queen chicks have outgrown the safety of their brooder box in the shed, so the time has come to venture out into the big world.

In the meantime, the old chicken run became overgrown with squash plants going crazy in that nutrient rich ground. 

After living in a box, the little hens must feel like they landed in Green Oz. Or died and went to a chicken heaven jungle. Certainly, yesterday was the best day of their lives. 

Cinnamon Queens (also known as Black Sex Links) are a fast-maturing breed, so if all goes well they should start laying delicious eggs in a few months. Good luck!

A subtle change

 

I made strawberry crepes on Sunday in honor of the Paris Olympics. 

The secret to using pancake mix for crepes is adding eggs and lots of milk to make a really thin batter. Spread a few tablespoons around in a little blob of butter, then flip it after a few seconds. Done.

Speaking of the Olympics, out of the 329 events, it seemed like volleyball was on whenever I turned on the TV. Other than snippets of this and that, we didn't watch much. There are 329 medal events and some of them pretty bizarre, so they can't cover everything. But it would have been fun watching some of the more esoteric events, like speed walking and pole dancing.

Our Seattle weather made an abrupt about face, going from hot sunny days to cool and cloudy. Sometimes it burns off by afternoon, but there's an unmistakable feel of summer winding down. 

Big birthday weekend

 

 

Happy birthday Nova (Saturday) and Amanda (Sunday.) Fresh off the wilderness trail, next stop the Gorge Amphitheater overlooking the Columbia River in central Washington. There they met up with a group of Methow friends to camp overnight and see an outdoor festival concert.

The headliners were John Mellencamp, Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan on the Outlaw Music Festival Tour. Legends, indeed, when you wrap you head around the years of enduring appeal.

Bob Dylan's folk music phase ended about 12 years BEFORE Amanda was born.  In July 1965, he walked on the stage at the Newport Folk Festival carrying a Fender Starcaster in place of his acoustic guitar. To the confused audience, he announced he was going back to electric.

"Our music" (hard not to think of it that way) has entranced two generations and counting. Nova likes the Beatles, Billie Joel and others. Talk about staying power, with kids listening to music that was written 60 years ago. When we were teenagers, the equivalent would have been playing our grandparent's songs from the turn of the century, as in, 1900. Hilarious thought.

Anyway, glad everyone had a good time and now home safely to catch up on some rest.