smatterings

too hot?? make yogurt

It IS too hot, too humid, and too uncomfortable to be outdoors working.  Except, if you are making yogurt.  This is  perfect weather for getting your culture to do its work.  Heating the milk on the stove, even first thing this morning was hot.  But once I had it cooled down and the starter whisked into the milk, I didn't give it another thought.  Wrapping the pan in a towel probably wasn't necessary.  I always do that, it keeps the warmth in.  No need for that today.  

  

After a couple hours, I checked it.  See how it has set up?  Time to refrigerate.

The hibiscus surprised me this morning..  must feel at home.  At last look the thermometer was closing in on 100 F. 

The jasmine will pop tonight.  I'll be able to smell it through the open windows.  What this little blossom lacks in color and show, it makes up for in a nearly overpowering sweetness. 

Too hot!

 

They're Here!!!

At last! 

All day, I've been checking the feeder.   I woke up thinking this was it, that finally, today would be THE day.  Last evening I filled and put out a new hummingbird feeder.  I left the old one out too, just in case they wouldn't feel comfortable with the shiny new feeder.  At 5 pm, it was time to take a break.  With a drink in hand and my new IK magazine, I headed out to sit on the deck.  Almost immediately, the first male of the season buzzed the feeder. 

How about you?  Are your feeders out?  Check the chart. 

Last night was COLD!  I kept the heat off in the house and my heated mattress pad on.  I'll bet these little buggers wish I'd spent my winter knitting them scarves!

Get your feeders out

A few weeks ago, Tamara wrote to tell me that the hummers were in her neck of the woods.  If mine are on their way, they better be wearing parkas.  Check out the migration map, they are moving up the east coast and through the middle of the country. 

So get your feeders out!  Get ready! The little buggers will need it after the long trip north!

The interesting thing about the migration maps, is that you can compare the progression from year to year.  This year they have remained further south for the central areas and are more northerly on the eastern coast than they were this time last year.  I hope the hummers know what they're doing, because around here, I'm still wearing a coat.  What are they thinking?

I wonder what happened to the little juevie that stayed so long last fall.. will he be the first to return?

spring arrives in the Kingdom

Just ahead of the first storm of the spring, a flock of redpolls flew in. 

Birds were everywhere at once.  I walked through a cloud of wings on my way into the house.  They flew up into the spruce and immediately back to the feeders.

Sammy and I were pretty excited.  The light was poor, it was dusk and the snow had started. 

Spring.. in the Kingdom we celebrated with 12 hours of sleet and ice. By morning there should be nearly a foot of new snow! 
That's what is predicted.  We're into hour 24 of a 48 hour storm warning and it hasn't slowed down.  I think I'll go have a snooze on the floor in front of the wood stove.  There is something about radiant heat..

again.. or still!

Most of my neighbors lost not only their electricity last weekend but also the internet.  As of last evening, the local providers, dial up and wireless were still scrambling to get everyone back on line. Tuesday evening is $2 beer night at the same pizza place (the only one, pizza place, that is) that has a "fast" computer for patrons to use.  Mrs. Paul and I waited our turn.  She showed me this: The Crochet Coral Reef.  A friend of hers, had emailed her earlier in the day (at work) about it.  Seems she had attended one of the meetups in NYC last weekend.  Fun stuff! I know, to most of you this may be old news.  Not to me.  The site links to installation photos, instructions for crocheting these wonderful forms and places that have meet ups to make more.  Knocked me right out of the doldrums!    Good thing too, 'cause today looks like this...

again or still...

No matter, I'm meeting some fun fiber friends for lunch and...!

snowy days

There was a pink card in with the mail yesterday.  A package, too big for my mailbox, was waiting at the post office.  That meant a trip into town.  My yarn order had arrived.

Winter has settled into the hills and we've begun to settle into winter.  It's hard on the cats.  My little old Princess, Miss Abu, had enough sharing the house with the boys and by mid morning was itching to go outside. 

There is a hole, an entrance to a snow cave, the space that is under the deck, where the cats can stand on frozen, uncovered ground, and apparently, even a spot where they can roll in the dirt.  She tried, as we do everyday, to take a small walk to the barn and back.  Too much loose snow, she raced me back to the house and stood waiting by the door. 

By late in the day, we too needed a break.  I ordered pizza and we set out for good local draft beer and some company. 

need I say more?

Saturday sky

The cats sense a difference in the air.  At seven they press themselves against the glass door and cry to go outdoors.  It has been warm and wet, a mix of rain, sleet and wet snow for days.  This morning is dry.  Change perhaps?

walk with me wednesday

Overnight the ice thickens, melting out just a bit during the sunniest days.  The patches of open water have completely disappeared.  The pond can be traversed by the lighter animals.  I watched a mink skittering on the ice, making it's way to the island.  A mink weighs only a few pounds.  We worry about the heavier animals.  Ice is deceiving.  One spring we found a heifer floating.  Poor thing must have fallen through unnoticed during one of the first snow storms, the hole quickly covered over.   

I found this trail leading onto the ice.  There will be many more soon.

The palette has changed.

freezing apples

The hills are aflame.  You can't feel the autumn, not today, not yesterday.  This is Indian Summer.  Last week I slid on the icy deck, this week I am in shorts.  Everyone I talk to is waiting for winter.  They mean cold temps.  Northerners don't fare well in the heat.  Seems they revel in the snow and here, the bitter, bitter, cold.  Neighbors tell me that it isn't the cold that makes winter long, (I might disagree after a while on that point) but it is the endless darkness.  Days in the north are very, very short.  You have to prepare.  Think knitting, wood for the stove and apple pies.

I mentioned putting up apples and was asked how to freeze them for pies.  Simple.  Peel and core the apples.  Slice them up the way you like them.  Bag them in freezer bags, enough in each bag for a pie.  I like to put 7 cups of apples in each bag.  Then add to the bag about half the amount of sugar and spices that you will want to use in your pie.  Shake it up.  Make sure to squeeze as much air as possible out of the bag as you seal it.  Freeze.  That's all there is to it.  When you want to bake a pie, pull out a bag and let it mostly thaw, add the remaining sugar and spice and pour it into your pie shell.

If you don't add much sugar, it's great to have frozen apples for adding to oatmeal, or using in a pork dish.  I keep tons on hand.  Great for topping popovers for Sunday breakfast. 

When I was a child, I was told that a girl isn't ready for marriage until she can peel an apple, making one long unbroken peel. Today, as I peel apple after boring apple, I amuse myself by peeling each with one long peel.

seasonal flavor

Every season has it's flavors.  The end of summer, when the corn is full and the tassels brown, is the time for Chicken Corn Soup.  As a child I remember my Grandmother gathering quart mason jars to take with us to the local church fair.  I don't know what kind of car she had, but I remember one with running boards (that was before she got the hot red Thunderbird).  We'd bump along the dirt road from the farm to the black top, eventually turning off onto a steep winding hill, heading down to the bottom and the Paddletown Church Chicken Corn Soup Festival.   On the church lawn, not far from the headstones, sat a huge iron kettle of soup, cooking over an open fire.  There may have been other things to eat, chicken maybe, and corn, but what I taste, when I think of those times, is the soup.  Bowls to eat there, and jars filled for later. "Careful" my Grandmother would instruct the server, " don't screw the lids on tightly 'til the soup cools."  There were games.  I wonder if anyone still runs a three legged race?  Some of the kids would walk in the cemetery.  We all had relatives there.  We'd read out the names, calculate ages, and try to figure out familial relationships.  Funny thing, memory, and what kinds of things are triggers.. a nip in the air, a good ear of corn..the first red leaf..

My  father once remarked that everyone has their own "ethnic" food.  He's right.  Bet you can guess what's for dinner.