Flitzy Phoebie

I Know There Is A Zucchini In Here Somewhere

2009-07-13T17:59:00.000-07:00

My garden has turned out beautifully again this year, due to double-digging, raised berms, and plenty of composted straw and manure. By this time, most of my garden paths are barely visable, with all the plants bursting in every direction. My corn is taller than me ~ that's over 5'4"!

The plants flanking my corn are borage, which I use in salads. I also stir-fry the leaves. Today it was overcast and cool, so there was no need to water the garden. I spent the afternoon making cheese and yogurt.

A Family Get-Away at Clear Lake

2009-07-11T19:16:00.000-07:00

Imagine: 48 degrees at dawn, warming sun, bird calls...and fresh coffee enjoyed in bed. Ruhiyyih made that possible ~ serving us just as we were waking up.

The family spent six days camping on the northern loop at Clear Lake Campground. This is the outflow from the lake, a fantastic fishing and canoeing location.

There were seven of us - Rue and Annie, Daisy and Daniel, Ruhiyyih, (Matt for an overnight and early morning) and George and I.

Little Daniel came with his new cap.

Shortly after George and I arrived we put up a large screened canopy to be used as a cooking tent. This was necessary as the mosquitoes were more active as the day warmed up. We set up a few chairs inside and I set up my kitchen. Rue brought food too, so we organized all of our stuff in a manner that allowed easy food preparation and clean-up.

The northern loops of the Clear Lake Campground had very few people after the 4th of July. So, we were quite surprised when a fisherman walked through our camp asking if he could clean his fish at the shoreline. Well, he did, and about 20 minutes later he presented us with fish for all seven of us - huge lake trout! He and his son dropped off a plate of sliced sweet onions and some lemons! We discussed how he caught the fish: Use a spinner and a #5 weight, cast upstream and allow the lure to float downstream.

We cooked the trout for breakfast the next morning. I decided to use a skillet rather than risk any mistakes grilling them over the fire. I set out two large skillets, two propane burners, and got organized. Those fish were so big that I had to cut them in half just to fit them into my skillets! Once they were fried (video), I drizzled lemon juice over them, added salt, coarse pepper, and then placed onions and zesty bread crumbs on top. The family watched (video) the whole process. That trout was the best eatin' on the entire trip, and maybe in my whole life! I figure that fisherman was selling his craft, saying "Now, go fish.

Everyone took turns holding Daniel.

Annie is recovering from childbirth, so avoided rigorous climbing. Ruhiyyih stayed behind to keep her company. George planned a hiking excursion every day, with some of them light enough for Annie. She carried little Daniel (only 3 weeks old) in a sling. At night she slept in their van, with Daniel in a small Rubbermaid basket beside her.

Matt drove over from the tri-cities area. He and Ruhiyyih enjoyed an evening canoe paddle through the willow thickets across the river, enjoyed dinner and samores in front of the fire, and then he returned to work early the next morning. This was our first camping trip with Matt along, and his enthusiasm and humor were a delight. Here, he is showing one of several tatoos, this one he designed himself, "Created for Purpose". I can relate to that.

I did so poorly at scrabble that I configured all the letters into my own words when the game was over, making a design the central theme rather than the words.

There was elk scat on the hill overlooking our camp. I collected it, nested it in lichen, and made incense. Once lighted, it makes a nice woodsy aroma.

Someone had strung an orange on a fishing line and suspended it from a pine tree. Hummingbirds came and couldn't get any more juice, so I rigged up another orange nearby using some of our canoe twine and an orange I found floating along the shoreline. I hoped they'd find my fresh orange hanging in the tree. Birds found it, but I was too busy to watch. When we broke camp, the feeder was the last thing to take down. As much as I liked it, I didn't want a single scrap of anything remaining on our campsite. It was clean when we found it and I wanted to leave it that way too.

Our drive home was only three and a half hours on Friday afternoon. That was the only true 'sit-down-time' I had the entire trip. Once home, we spent five hours cleaning the camping gear, reorganizing it for our next trip, and covering all of it with a tarp in the garage. George is home for six weeks, on sabbatical, and we are already planning our next trip!

Happy Fourth of July

2009-07-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

Little Daniel gets introduced (video). And, the family joys barbecued leg of lamb and turkey.

Lookin' Fer Toe Jam

2009-07-04T20:58:00.000-07:00

Gardener, Canoist, Jogger...and GrandMa

2009-07-04T20:55:00.000-07:00

I spent time going through Laurel's Raw Food Cookbooks. Here (video), George caught me listening to the music.

Rue and Daniel

2009-07-04T20:53:00.000-07:00

GrandPa and Daniel

2009-07-04T20:00:00.001-07:00

Annie

2009-07-04T20:00:00.000-07:00

Weekend Guest ~ Matt

2009-07-03T21:47:00.001-07:00

Ruhiyyih Did Some Shopping

2009-07-03T21:35:00.000-07:00

Roots

2009-07-03T21:00:00.000-07:00

Ruhiyyih's Coffee Stuff

2009-07-01T18:51:00.000-07:00

Patio Playtime for Little Ty

2009-07-01T17:35:00.000-07:00

Sarah and her husband Dave came over to visit Taraz (he's known her since they were five years old).

They've got a 7 month old son, Ty.

Ruhiyyih cannot get her fill of little babies.

Taraz: "Uh, I'm more comfortable if you hold him!"

I made some barbecue chicken, and the 'kids' ate out on the patio. While they were visiting, I made dinner - broad bean soup and cornbread. I boxed up several servings for Sarah and Dave to take home. Now, Sarah doesn't have to cook for her family when she gets home. I told Sarah to come again, so I can see how Ty has grown. He is such a big boy compared to our little Daniel ~ 25 lbs. Just after Ruhiyyih took this photo, I realized I was still wearing my apron.

Federation Forest Hike

2009-07-01T09:15:00.000-07:00

Our daughter-in-law, Annie, hikes with new baby Daniel. (photo: Kathy Hall)

Our family is planning a camping trip through north-eastern Washington the day after the 4th of July. Rue and Annie and their two children will join us, and Ruhiyyih too. We are planning to camp for six-days.

Hike Up To Green Lake on Mt Rainier

2009-07-01T08:33:00.000-07:00

George and I joined our sons Rue, Taraz, and Rahmat for an afternoon hike up to Green Lake on Mt Rainier.

The road up to the trailhead was washed out, so we had a 3-mile hike in, then the climb.

The Park maintenance crew had to clear the trail. Some of the Douglas Firs in this forest are over 800 years old.

We had a picnic at a stunning waterfall. Little water crystals floated in the air.

Taraz, resting after lunch.

We hiked up to Green Lake. Rue and Rahmat had a brief swim...the water was very cold.

I sat on a log, content to watch the guys enjoy their swim. In all, we hiked almost 10 miles that day, then I went over to water my garden.

Ruhiyyih and Matt arrived for dinner and I served steak and salad. Then, I stayed up until 10:00 preparing salads and food for George's lunchbox...always a weekend chore so he is set for Monday.

Paintings By Walter Palmore

2009-07-01T08:21:00.000-07:00

Every Thursday evening we have a Devotional, and Walter brings his weeks' worth of paintings.

The thrust of his work is now mono-chromatic, black and white, and experiments (video) with patterns of lines. More here, on George's blog "Baha'i Views".... and, new Baha'i Rocky offers his own devotional.

Grandson Daniel ~ Two Weeks Old

2009-07-01T07:31:00.000-07:00

Daniel is so calm, and quite the sleepy-head. (photo by Kathy Hall) Rue and Annie joined us for breakfast Sunday morning, to greet Matt and Ruhiyyih. I made salmon fritatta and a polenta-chorizo-tomato casserole. Fruit and yogurt. Taraz and Rahmat spent the night, so we had a wonderful family gathering, with Daniel being everyone's focus. Rue tried several times to wake Daniel, but the little one was just too sleepy.

Ending on a Final Note

2009-07-01T07:00:00.000-07:00

Listening to a Muskogee Stomp Dance (video) at our Reflection Meeting last night ...Toby said our house is 'solid', because the walls and floor weren't shaking!

She's Home!

2009-07-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Morning Coffee With Ruhiyyih

2009-06-26T17:11:00.000-07:00

This is the view from my sofa on the patio, where I read the morning paper and enjoy my first cup of coffee. Come Sunday morning, I'll be sharing my spot with our daughter Ruhiyyih! She has spent 3 years living in Washington DC, and is now returning home. Yes, this has something to do with recently becoming engaged to Matt. She wants proximity!

Way to go, Ruhiyyih ~ welcome home!

Accents in the Garden

2009-06-23T10:40:00.000-07:00

When I work in my garden at Franklin Park there is a little 3 year old girl, Regan, who visits me. She is such a sweet child, and I brought this doll to help keep her entertained while her mother works her plots. It is an old doll that has been tucked into a chair on my front porch, and has been long neglected.

Krissy wanted a photo of the chair, so this is one taken this morning, in a glare of intense sunlight. After I washed and scraped off all the flaking paint and scum I went to the Goodwill and bought a seat- cover, to help cushion my boney butt. I'm not one to sit long, though, as it is easier to keep moving than to try to get up again!

The basket of geraniums is just an after-thought, a way to use up old plants that didn't have a good spot on the patio. In September all the dahlias behind this chair, along the fence, will be in bloom, and I'll try to take a better picture then of the chair, with the flowers in the background.

My efforts have attracted attention - everyone loves salvaging old furniture and putting it to good use. Some of the gardeners hauled in this old picnic table and benches today.

Ohop Lake

2009-06-22T09:06:00.000-07:00

We packed a picnic lunch on Sunday and drove out to Alder Lake to explore the shoreline. But, it began to rain, so we finished our lunch and drove around, exploring the countryside. This is always enjoyable, and we found ourselves at Lake Ohop, right across from the large farm owned by our friends. (They were hosting a Russian Camping Retreat).

People were fishing and putting their boats in the water, so we put the canoe in and paddled along the west end.

This is the outflow from Ohop Lake, very gentle water. Red winged blackbirds called from the cattails along the shoreline, and the sounds of birds(video) were delightful.

We approached a little dam, so turned around. We sure didn't want to get caught(video) in any rapids or tumble over rocks.

As we paddled back, we noticed an old submerged Adirondack chair. I figured we could haul it up and see if it was worth saving(video) - it was! (No EASY task, getting that heavy chair into the canoe, but as I held on to cattails, George pulled it into the canoe!) We took it home, I cleaned the scum off, and now it sits along the grassy border at my garden at Franklin Park. I've wanted a chair for my garden, and this old wooden one fits just right!

Progress In The Garden

2009-06-22T08:01:00.000-07:00

When the Metropolitan Park District gave me an additional garden plot at the end of April, I scrambled to get the plots organized, trenches dug, and seeds planted. In some cases, I purchased small 'sets', vegetable starts from the local nursery. I had to start my corn this way, giving it a head start...right now it is shooting up phenomenally, due to the way I planted it, with rows of compost and manure between rows, and banked with grass clippings.

Many Russian ladies garden all around me, with some plots devoted entirely to potatoes or tomatoes. They garden communally, with all of the ladies tending everyone's plot. Three sides of my plots are bordered by the Russians, and I appreciate this because they are very good gardeners, keeping their plots neat and clean. In this photo I'm squatting next to my wild borage. It went to seed in my garden last year. I saved the volunteers, so I can add the leaves to salads.

Thinning my beets; I pull the largest leaves off the plants and use them in salads. Last year little mice ate through most of my golden beets, so I didn't plant them this year. Cilantro and basil seedlings are just starting to sprout in one of the inner rows. Night-time temps have to routinely hover around 50 degrees to get these sprouted.

Kids and families are frequently walking along the nature trail bordering the garden. People stop to visit, and several people have asked if I'm planting the dahlias that I planted last year. Old people from the retirement home stop by to look at the garden on their daily walk. Many of them have windows overlooking the garden - they keep an eye on who comes and goes.

I weed and water different parts of my garden every day, spending at least two hours a day on the project. Kale and mustard seedlings in the front here. The mustard has club root, so I've not thinned them out. Once this fungus gets into a garden it is difficult to grown cabbage, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, etc. The soil must be dormant for five years to eradicate the pest. Our garden co-ordinator says that a soup made from boiled rhubarb leaves can be poured on the planting rows before setting seed, and that it helps to kill the fungus.

My kale seedlings....so pretty when a water spray covers them in the morning. I'll be doing a second crop of these in the fall, so I have winter-overing plants. Then I'll pick them all winter.

I've planted just a few flowers to attract bees for pollinating my zucchini. They are planted in compost that has been layered in grass clippings. This is a way to extend a growing berm, and the grass decomposes throughout the summer.

Collards are doing great. The fuzz in the background is sweet fennel.

Rows of curly mustard, broccolini, onions and lettuce. I have 26 tomato plants this year, for sauce and drying.

We spent several weekends hauling in horse manure from the riding stables in Spanaway. The stuff is free, u-haul. I've spread it along all my pathways to provide mulch. It makes for some soft walking! I'll dig it into the soil into the fall, letting it deteriorate through the winter. This pathway serves my leeks, onions, summer and winter squash, green beans, eggplants and corn.

The Focus Is On Learning

2009-06-22T07:48:00.001-07:00

George took these photos over the weekend at a meeting focusing on teaching and expansion of the Baha'i Faith.

Taboli Salad with a Twist

2009-06-22T07:00:00.000-07:00

Normally, taboli salad is mostly fine wheat grain, but I put seven different raw vegetables into my food processor and made a mixture that could be added to the wheat salad to lighten it up. It is flavored with za-attar, a spice I bought at Akka, and olive oil. It looks like taboli, but it really is shredded vegetables. I layered kale, lettuce, and green onions and put the salad on top.

Our three sons went up to Mt. Ranier for a hike over the weekend. Both days were free to the public so the place was packed with visitors. They drove to a remote trail that and had an all day hike, coming home absolutely famished. I brought out some east-Indian lentil soup, naan buns with home-made cheese, and they chowed down.

Rue has two monthes off during 'maternity leave', so he has some well-earned time off. Last week he came over and I taught him, Daisy, and Taraz how to make 'farmer's cheese' and yogurt. Taraz filmed a little of it, and Rue took notes. Within an hour and a half both had been prepared, and the yogurt incubating. I cautioned Rue about squeezing out too much of the whey to speed up the process - it will result in a grainy cheese much like Parmesan, great for sprinkling but not for spreading on toast or buns. For this type of cream cheese there has to be more moisture. A feta-type of cheese is made when the dripping is allowed to continue for several hours. All three outcomes are a real treat, and depending on what type of cheese is needed the cheesemaker will watch the dripping/squeezing process.

The left-over whey, about 2 1/2 quarts, was used for the east-Indian lentil soup. And the yogurt is used in the naan. I gave Rue a spice blend that I prepare from scratch to use on the top of the buns. It is a wonderful blend of dark red paprika, oregano, cayenne, kosher salt, coarse pepper blends, and sesame seeds. I find that mixing my own blends from fresh ingredients is cheaper than buying them blended.