Garbanzo & Rutabaga

Jackie Jackson Terrence - R.I.P.

2011-10-12T15:55:00.001-07:00

One of our dogs left us last week. I picked up his ashes yesterday, accompanied by a pawprint that they made for us that says "Jackson" on it. It's almost a week later. I've been struggling with what I want to say about it, and who I might say it to. I really don't want to tell it to anyone... the thought of posting it on something like facebook is appalling to me. But... I want to somehow leave something somewhere that someone might find so that they could know about Jackson. I would like to memorialize him. I guess we could have a wake for him... and maybe we will, but for the moment... I kind of just want to be alone with my thoughts. I guess that's what blogs are for... being alone with your thoughts in a public forum.

When I carried Jack out to the Vet's car... he was the softest I'd ever felt... and the smallest. I asked for that last option to be with him. To carry him to their car. All 69 pounds of him. If I had tried that when he was alive, he'd be pissed off. Recently passed... I hope that he cherished it as much as I did. That's what has stuck with me the most... how small and how soft. How small and how soft. Sigh... I'm at work and my eyes are hurting from the tears that are trying to come out. This might be something I finish over time.

I met Tracie partly because of Jackson. Tracie lived in Bethel, and she was interesting because she lived far away from me, was an intriguing person, and she had a quirky picture of Jack. Something about how his ears were cocked. He looked like a good dog. Someone with a dog like that must be a good person.

As he fell asleep in our living room for the last time... his ear stayed up. Tracie touched it and commented on that.

Tracie and I met, and it wound up that she was moving into Anchorage in a few months. Eventually I got to meet Jackson in person. I think he looked a bit like Alf. Tracie would never agree, but most people agreed with me when they saw him... if they didn't even confirm it independently. He also had a real personality, not so sarcastic as Alf though... and I don't think that Jack ever ate a Cat.

Tracie and I dated, with our pets (Jackson, Mason the dog and Asia the cat) a part of our integrated lives. We married on December 29, 2007. The site for our wedding was Otis Lake, about half a block from our house. When we got the walkie talkie call that all was ready, we walked with Mason and Jackson from our house and down to the lake. Mason had Tracie's ring tied around his neck, and Jackson had my ring. (Asia wasn't invited.). The dogs were funny. Mason kind of flopped down on the ice, and Jackson sat there politely (mostly) facing the wrong way. They were our ringbearers... and I guess since no one was there to give Tracie away, Jackson did double-duty on that task.

He was almost thirteen years old. Tracie got him eleven years ago. If you look at it right, he did get an extra year. Last year he had a pretty bad cancerous growth on his back. The prognosis wasn't very good for it, but we had the vets take out a big chunk of him... and it didn't come back... at least there.

Jackson really liked to have his legs rubbed. I felt the lump on his left leg the week before he left us. Tracie took him into the vet at 3:00 on Wednesday. He had cancer in his bone that had reduced much of it to sponge. The vet was surprised that he hadn't broken his bone already. She warned us that it could happen in the next few days, or the next week or two. It would be excruciating when it did happen. I got home at 6:00... Tracie hadn't been home long. We talked. We cried. We hurt.

All dogs like their schedules I think. Jackson loved breakfast, with being let outside afterwards. He loved his dinner, ideally with a walk afterwards. Sometimes we're good, sometimes we're not. That night we took him for a walk with Mason, and his limping took on a new significance in our minds.

Jack had been getting older. Other than last year's cancer, he'd had some bladder problems where he hadn't been able to hold it in the house. He also had some instances where he pooped in the house. We couldn't help but laugh at those rare instances, recognizing that things happen when you get older... and because we'd seen the episode of "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" where Danny DeVito left poops for the heck of it. It's not as gross as it sounds. The bladder problems subsided, and the poops mostly. On our walks, he did still kind of poop in the middle of his walking. Wherever, just stop and poop. None of his previous signs of, "I think I'll poop here... sniff... sniff... yep, this is a good spot.". Just... here it comes.

But... age and what it brings can be easy to live with when it's not about pain and misery. He was a happy dog and brought much of the same to us. I can say I've never been around a dog with so much character. I know that we anthropomorphize... but... he had a personality. A dog's personality, but one nonetheless.

My mom and the vet were right. Jackson did quietly fall asleep. I was scratching his ears (one of his favourite things), and his eyes got droopy and his head slowly fell to the floor. We cleared a spot in the middle of our living room, and had him on his dog bed. I had his head, scratching his ears, and Tracie was to my left... also petting him. The vet and her tech were fantastic people. The tech shared that she had lost her dog in the past year, and she was crying. What a hard thing to do for someone. To come into another person's house to take away an important and cherished part of their lives. The vet did tear up as well. Sigh... I'll come back to this later.

(a few weeks later)

Four weeks ago today. It's much easier of course, but there's always a space in our house where Jack should be. Lying in a corner of the kitchen when we're working in there. We eventually gave up on ordering him "out of the kitchen". Lying on the floor in front of us when we were on the couch. Less frequently on his dog bed upstairs (choosing to be closer to us). This space where Jack should be always moves around... generally someplace close to us. If you think about it right, this space could be Jack. It's just not him physically. It doesn't matter, he's still there.

One of the things we notice is the lack of noise. Jack was a vocal dog... barks, a lot of groans... and burps. He burped and blew. He had stinky Jack breath. With his groans, you could tell when he lay down. He'd slowly get down, accompanied by deep groans. For some reason, he got to have two beds in our bedroom. One on each side of the bed. It seemed he would fall asleep on one side, and then sometime in the night move to the other. I'd sometimes hear him move over, and moan as he lay back down.

The container with his ashes is on our windowsill in our bedroom. We booked a ticket to go down to Tracie's home in Oregon, and we'll be taking him along. Her family has a beach house and Jackson used to chase the seagulls on the shore there. Tracie feels it's a nice spot. It's also a place where he'll get to be with family. Walking on the beach is always on the list of what to do at the house there.

I don't think I have much more to say... other than if I let myself think about it... I really miss him. I always called him "your dog" when I talked with Tracie... but, he was my dog too.

Oh... when Tracie adopted him, his name was Jackie Jackson Terrence... she kept it.

---
Today is two months... and we still find the holes in our lives that Jack occupied (and still occupies). It's still a bit weird in our house without him, but time does indeed take the edges off the sharpness of feeling... but, the feeling is there still. Just softer.

Hoar Frost

2009-12-14T13:24:00.001-08:00

Each winter we seem to get a period of weather that is perfect for the formation of hoar frost. This year conditions have been perfect!! There has been no wind, the temperature has been around 10F, and we've had higher humidity than normal... so it's been foggy... and amazing things have been happening to most objects outside! It's a winter wonderland...

A few days into it... a light coating on the birch branches.

Spruce needles.

Backyard trellis with frosty hops.

Pine looking like it's been spray painted!

Every view is photo-worthy.

Nice contrast in colour...

Front of our house... nice composition between spruce in front and birch behind.

The crabapples we didn't pick for making jelly...

...looking very cool as frosted bird treats...

Snozzberries, Poutine & SNOW in Toronto!

2009-08-13T20:49:00.001-07:00

Serendipity... almost as good a word as dubious. Both appropriate! A few weeks back, Tracie asked me, "Isn't this a friend of yours?" Indeed! Tyler Clark Burke was being really interesting again, importing something I will refer to as the snozzberry, but she refers to as the mystery fruit. This tiny little berry, alters the way food tastes. So... then the globe and mail has an article about another berry tasting happening at the Drake Hotel in Toronto, and that's where I am!!! So I go! Not only was it fun to see old friends including Tyler, Cheryl and Michael (and meet new ones), I got to have probably one of the oddest and most fun food experiences to date. Warning: if you believe in dietary balance and the consumption of regularly associated foods, do not read on.

Here I am eyeballing the fruit... you might say I'm dubious... or wall-eyed.

Here the other guinea pigs are... various emotions, not sure if any dubiosity is involved here. Perhaps stunned? Worried? Distracted?
This photo makes it clear... there is NO (I repeat...NO) need for being skeptical. These berries work. The best things were probably lemons and limes, which tasted very much like sweet lemonade or limeade. Sour candies tasted like sweet candies. Little pickles tasted like sweet pickles (although, we couldn't tell... maybe they actually were sweet in the first place). Vinegar had a sweet beginning with a more vinegary finish. The most interesting was wasabi. Eating wasabi had a sweet/smooth beginning to it, with some heat... but heat depended on the person it seems. It's all kind of wacky, and left me thinking that different potato chips would have been an interesting experience as well (salt & vinegar, barbeque, wasabi even) although, I have vague memories of there being fruit flavoured chips in the 70's??? There might be a reason it didn't last...

This doesn't relate to the berry so much as it shows a bad camera angle can really affect a photo. And bad timing. While in reality it was the feeding of a spoonful of vinegar... it magically appears like someone making a goofy face while being knuckled in the kisser. There were a few foods that miraculously tasted like... themselves. I guess nothing can make brussel sprouts better?

Then... when flavours began to return and tobasco tasted like... tobasco... we went to the next stage of the "dream trip to Toronto"...

Tracie is going to kill me. She was upset enough I was getting to try snozzberries... without also getting poutine... and good poutine with veggie gravy at that!! When she had poutine, she wasn't impressed. This was pretty good. The veggie gravy was tasty, the potatoes were real, and the cheese curds were fresh (enough?)!

Biodegradeable bucket and forks too!
Here's me... and poutini!Ahhh... poutinis...

And now, for something completely different...
...and then to show that hell froze over and all of the stars were in alignment... in 30 degree Celsius weather, it snowed... and stayed on the ground... for the people filming on Queen Street. It kind of broke me though... you mean sometimes when I watch movies there are fake things in them?

Ahhh... friends make the world go round. A great evening...

Fresh Bread

2009-08-08T10:43:00.001-07:00

There's something slightly unfair about being awake earlier on the weekend than during the week. I took advantage of that this morning to bake bread for breakfast. Shortly after Tracie got up, the bread was waiting... with some raspberry jam from (many thanks to both of our moms for the plethora of preserves in our cupboard... one of our favourite things to have).

Quickie

2009-06-10T22:01:00.001-07:00

What I started last weekend:
Stay tuned for more info on Tracie's first brewfest

What I hope to do again soon:
Harvest fresh mint
Combine with cream, sugar and some eggs

and make FRESH MINT ICE CREAM!

Kitchen Aid Mixers and Microwaves

2009-05-25T10:10:00.000-07:00

Tracie asked me this morning if I would be baking rye bread so often if we didn't have our kitchen aid mixer. No. This is one labour saving device! Also, we bought a convection microwave oven. Having a microwave that has some power to it is kind of awesome. It cooks things quickly, and has the added feature of being a microwave oven. The scale in the photo is also pretty good. Weighing ingredients has a benefit for baking especially (so I've been told).

Tracie is working on a quilt for a friend who is leaving Alaska for Colorado. She's a good friend and a wonderful person - Kelly Kane, best of luck to you wherever you are. We'll see you in beautiful Colorado!

Pete Briggs Picks up Pigs

2009-05-22T18:03:00.000-07:00

Tiffany (a good friend in Bethel) asked Tracie to pick up some piglets for her from Wasilla and put them on a plane to Bethel. She has interesting requests sometimes, but this one wins. So, Peter got to pick up two porkers, package them up in the truck, and pull their posteriors back to the palacio. The two piglets are pictured here:

Their prickly, petlike parent is pictured here (700lbs of pure pork):

We've been told we will have a lifetime supply of delicious things from rural Alaska now! Smoked salmon bellies and the such... mmmm...

And for those that don't know... there is a Dr. Seuss poem that starts "Pete Briggs pats pigs". This is now a true story. This Pete Briggs has now patted pigs.

Tracie took them for their flight to Bethel last night at 2:00am. They got to go through the MVP line, and I hear the inflight movie was Babe (or Charlotte's Web?). Maybe fate will be kind to them... =)

Ryebread

2009-05-18T13:27:00.001-07:00

One of the best things I've baked (and continue baking)... rye bread... thanks to Grethe's recipe by way of mormor. We normally cook two big and two small... and give one away to some lucky person each week. It might be you...

(I've added 1/3c wheat berries, 1/3c steelcut oats, 1/3c powdered flax, and 1/3c gluten... the last seeming to help with the crumb of the bread??)

Mormor's 90th Birthday

2009-05-17T14:30:00.000-07:00

This is who it's all about. Mormor. Mormor is one of the most important people in my life. So many of my memories growing up have her as a part of it. The small but so important things that make us who we are. She'd read to me, and she still tells me how much I looked forward to learning how to read. She'd get me to do things for her (like pull some metal wire garden bed fencing out) and be so appreciative. Being around Mormor made/makes me feel like I could do anything, and anything I did would be right. Her honesty and compassion are so contagious, and her voice is the one at the back of my head when I need to make the right decision. Food is probably one of the keys to our relationship, and importantly, helping her with it. Whether decorating gingerbread men or helping her make vanilla kranse, like many third generation kids, I learned a lot about Denmark through eating. This is a good kind of learning, and sticks with me. I just pulled a few loaves of rye bread out of the oven, and having a slice smeared with butter (the Danish have one of the best concepts... teeth butter. Where when you've bitten your bread, you can see teeth marks in the butter) reminds me of her and my childhood. Oddly enough, as a vegetarian, I think that I will still say my favourite food would be mormor's rye bread with liver paste and pickled beets. I get to forever remember how good that was. I think I could go on for so long about how special she is to me. At her birthday party I had so much to say to her, but found myself at a loss for words... and much tears. I'm even tearing up a bit now. It's such a good feeling to love someone so much that wanting to tell them how much they mean to you is almost impossible. While I wish in some ways that I was more articulate speaking in front of my family, I know they understand. Even if I had prepared what I was going to say, I know I would have been no better off. She's my mormor...

So... I finally sat down today to print photos, burn CDs and assorted things to send out to the family. April 6th was my grandmother's 90th birthday and we had the first family gathering where EVERYONE was there! It involved two great parties and much family! I can't think of a better reason for celebration than something involving my mormor!

This is the whole family! A better bunch we would not have been without our Mormor!

These are mormor's girls: Chriss, Elizabeth and Grethe.

Mormor's grandkids: Michael, David, Sarah, Peter, Ian and Paul.

Chriss and her family (Tracie, Peter, Chriss, Amanda, Michael and Nicholas).

Grethe and her family (Brooke, David, Grethe, Larry, Paul and Joanna).
Elizabeth and her family (Vance, Elizabeth, Ian and Sarah - looking very scandinavian indeed).
And Mormor and Nicholas. Knowing that another generation is under the influence of a mormor (mormormor?) is a good thing. I know that Tracie and I very much would like to introduce mormor to our kids (when the stork brings them). And to quell any potential rumours from this, we would like kids but no buns in the oven yet. =)

Thank you for reading this post. I can't think of a better or more meaningful subject.

Garden & Flor

2009-05-16T23:01:00.000-07:00

The office is moving on up... got rid of various area rugs, and just installed Flor tiles. Makes it look a heck of a lot more professional. They're a great modular tile with a whole bunch of options. I need to check my estimation skills though... we wound up with more than we needed (I drew the tiles the wrong size in AutoCAD... big brain fart). Better than too few though. We'll figure out a way to use what we have left on our side of the house...

We also worked in the garden on a very lovely, sunny day. We found some pieces of a garden shelter that we have repurposed as trellises ( I heart Craigslist)... so, are trying kiwi vine, hops, and woodbine vine. Tracie planted the garden beds with a whole bunch of veggies. We set up some lines for peas to grow up. Some bush beans too... and potatoes. We've hit the limit for the amount of mulch we can use in the yard, so no more shredding leaves and chipping branches to compost. Rather than being one large compost pile, the other side of our yard is now scheduled for landscaping.

Bike to Work Day!

2009-05-15T10:16:00.000-07:00

So, I work from home... but somehow managed to bike to work today! Tracie signed us up for counting bicyclists, so Tracie, Laura and I went down to the Seward/Chester trail intersection and counted! And... as fate would have it, we have our first chilly/wet summer day (after weeks of awesome weather). But, we're tough and the census was done...

Biking away from work to count and then come back to work.

My lovely Tracie.

The awesome Laura.

And me...

To those in Anchorage that work outside their homes and bike to work... way to go! We're hoping the new city Bicycle Plan makes it easier and easier in the future (and safer).

Back to Alaska

2009-05-10T19:38:00.001-07:00

Was in Oregon last week (after Vancouver) and spent time at the Oregon Garden for a workshop on Green Infrastructure. The Garden is great, and it was fun to see all of the species of plants there that we can't use here. Kind of like a zoo... for plants... I guess that's the definition of something like an arboretum...

Also saw Frank Lloyd Wright's only building in Oregon... the Gordon House. Suffice it to say, it's quite inspiring to see good design...

Then I got to hang out with the Johnson famdamily. It was fun to see Victoria's softball game, Wilson's baseball game (and playing catch with him...), and Madeline getting all crafty with friendship bracelets (and taking photos). Suffice it to say both Tracie and I think we have neat nieces and nephews (Nicholas on my side included... Thomas the train-type picture below sent by Amanda).
Victoria up to bat...

Wilson warming up (getting ready to serve some killer pitches to unsuspecting small people)

Madeline with the good ole 'me taking picture of you' camera shot.

Michael perhaps glowing even more than Nicholas... "if only I had Thomas when I was a kid..."

It was great fun to see the Krauthoefer/Johnson clan briefly while I was touring through... including two stops at Burgerville!!! (Tracie gets jealous...)

It's nice to be back at home though... I like my Tracie.

Peter & The Mad Hacker Skill Set!

2009-05-03T17:01:00.000-07:00

Shhh... don't tell Tracie I'm posting here as well. I'm in Vancouver, and decided to take a Tracie shot of a meal... =) Little ahi tuna burgerwiches with sweet potato fries... and a good beer.

The Vancouver skyline is kind of unique. The buildings are skinny and tall. Each floor has something like 1-4 apartments/condos on them. It keeps the skyline a bit more open, and really has a neat effect.

I was actually in Vancouver for a reason too... a Canadian Society of Landscape Architects board meeting. Oddly enough, I'm the representative for the Northwest Territories (it's where I'm from originally). One thing I've spearheaded is a Video Challenge... see this for something we did as an example: CSLA Board Video

Rockin' Robin

2009-04-19T15:50:00.000-07:00

We recently acquired a couple hundred 45's from an old jukebox and a box of lp's....

On Saturday we decided to splurge and get a turntable from Costco (the kind that you can hook up to your computer to digitize your albums) so we could listen to them. It's the best $99.99 we've spent in a long time.

Peter played DJ and I sang and danced and eventually settled down to weave. It was so much fun we're thinking we may have to have a dance party. The most exciting thing is I now have a legitimate reason to paw through all those old albums at Sally Ann. I can't wait for our next "date."

Spring Hello

2009-04-16T21:40:00.001-07:00

The sun is back...I am happy. It's been a busy winter. We installed a reclaimed white oak floor, re-insulated some walls, visited the Oregon family and the Canadian family, built and carved an ice sculpture (Peter did that, with hot chocolate, pizza and chisel support from Tracie), planned the kitchen remodel and started acquiring elements, changed jobs (Tracie), and more. Rather than bore with a catch-up, I thought I'd dive right in with where I'm at tonight.

Inspiring me-
Weaving.........Peter made me a beautiful bench (not pictured here though, how silly of me) and I've been using it. By golly I will finish that table runner in time for your birthday mom!

Cauliflower.....this has been the year of roasted cauliflower and I cannot get enough of it.

Planning the garden....Peter is journaling the arrival of green throughout the yard and I am fantasizing about the kale, chard, broccoli, carrots, dill, beets and more.

Rye bread and most things Danish....Peter's been making the bread and I've been eating it--delicious with last year's pickled beets and Dubliner cheese.

Bike....probably foremost on mind is how much I'm looking forward to my non-winter commute, hoping to switch vehicles on Monday (melt snow melt!).

Inspiration

2008-06-07T10:04:00.000-07:00

I am posting away from home and feeling bad because it has been so woefully long since my last post.

Anyhow, finding inspiration with the arrival of summer so thought I'd update you all on a few favorite things going on at the moment:

-my 4 new raised garden beds (the official engagement present according to Peter)

-a surprise visit from Teresa (she gives the best hugs in Alaska)

-visit from Mom and Dad (with Sleeman's Honey Brown from across the border and delicious Oregon Pinots in tow)

-guitar lessons (complete with recital at the end of the summer, must pick a song and get to practicing)

-exquisite letterheads from RG 164, Records of the Office of Experiment Stations

Speaking of which....back to work

We're Back

2008-03-13T19:11:00.000-07:00

Quebec

Banff

Ottawa, Montreal, Calgary.............

Democracy Blues Cont.

2008-02-06T09:34:00.000-08:00

Double poop. Apparently they never enforced the "must be on site by 6pm" rule last night. I could have participated after all.

Democracy Blues

2008-02-05T19:31:00.000-08:00

I am so disappointed. I just spent an hour trying to get to the Democratic caucus. I was so excited to participate.....but apparently so were the other thousands of Anchorage democrats in front of, along side, and behind me on Debarr Rd between 5pm and 6pm this evening......
In the end we all missed the 6pm registration deadline. Poop. Funny thing is, I was still (and am still) totally undecided. Guess now I wait for the decision to be made for me.
Happy Super Tuesday!

Happy New Year!

2008-01-03T12:42:00.000-08:00

I have been a bad blogger as of late, but here are some photos to keep you coming back.......

Yep, its official. I'm a wife.

Thanksgiving.....

2007-12-07T13:45:00.000-08:00

Five hours of cooking, too few photos but a few glimpses-

Homemade potato/cheese/jalapeno Pierogies for starters....

Bethel Cranberries for sauce........

Turkey Underground.....(Homemade Seitan and stuffing covered with pastry dough) and my feeble attempts to decorate the top with a turkey. I only know how to draw a turkey using my hand, so it looks like a handprint (the knife blade is covering the turkey's head)....

A nice mellow candlelight evening with just the two of us for dinner......(well five I suppose if you count the 4 legged moochers)

Hope yours was just as lovely!

Getting in on the game

2007-11-17T19:25:00.000-08:00

Seems my sister and her family are getting in on the blog thing, check my sidebar for links to their freshly created blogs.

I have been soooooo very bad about posting these last few weeks. I started working again, I'm now an archives technician at a government agency I won't name here. It's enjoyable and very low stress thus far. The only slight difficulty is the getting up at 6am part. I'm not really a morning person (as my family may well attest). I'm hoping this job will help me decide if I truly want to be a librarian (or perhaps I should rephrase), rather if I truly want to invest all my time and salary for the next 2-3 years in pursuit of an MLS degree. We'll see.......

We finally got some snow, but this photo is from last year I have to admit. No, the lake is not yet frozen this year (and yes, I am getting pretty worried that it won't be by Dec. 29, so if you're coming you may want to bring a canoe). The snow is a welcome change, it brightens things up and quiets the road noise a bit. I'm looking forward to more, hopefully sooner rather than later. I'm anxious to get out skiing on the trails.

One Down, Sort Of

2007-10-30T13:11:00.000-07:00

One 2 1/2 year old unfinished project complete. Aren't they beautiful? Some of you may not appreciate the color selection, but then you probably never cared for the colors I painted my house in Bethel either.

It feels great to finish something that I'd kind of given up hope on ever completing. I guess I need to thank Oona for getting me going again. After seeing her post on the slippers she was making, I dug mine out and got her to help me figure out where I'd left off on mine. I probably should have asked for a wee but more help though because it appears that over the course of 2 1/2 years, not only did I lose my place in the pattern, but I sort of forgot which style of slippers I was making....was it high cuff or low cuff?

Oh well, now I have one of each! Yep, I goofed on the second slipper and made a high cuff one, thinking that was what I had made before. But it wasn't. I knew this was an issue before I felted them. I knew it was an issue two rows into the orange cuff, when the slipper I was knitting had more rows of purple between the sole and the cuff....but I was lazy. I didn't rip it and fix. I figured felting was a forgiving process, perhaps with some stretching I could make one match the other....but it wasn't as forgiving as I'd hoped. And now there's no way to rip and fix.

Live and learn......at least they are done, sort of.

Uncle Ted

2007-10-25T14:44:00.001-07:00

Laura, Get Away From the Internets!

Spicy

2007-10-25T13:07:00.000-07:00

Goodness, I guess its been a while since I posted. So much for those goals......

So earlier this summer, Peter introduced me to pickling carrots and beets. Little did he know the food preservation monster he was creating. Since then, we've done more carrots and beets (though sadly not as many as I'd like), pickled peppers, cucumbers, crabapple jelly (from our tree) and last night, this hot pepper jelly:

I know its probably not something most people who knew me as a child would think I'd make into jelly, but we had all these peppers from our box, as well as the obligatory onion laying around and it sounded interesting to say the least.

My mother is probably reading this, jaw dropped in amazement because I was the kid (and lets face it, college student as well) who subsisted pretty much on cheese and bread, or cheese and pasta, or any other cheese/starch combination. I did not eat vegetables, except potatoes (duh, cheese and starch), cucumbers, corn, and beans. I ate the same thing everyday for lunch throughout junior high school-- refried beans and (you guessed it) cheese in a tortilla, and the same thing everday for lunch in senior high school-- two rice cakes with peanut butter (and no healthy PB back then, I was all about the jif) and a kiwi fruit.

I branched out into meat in college, steak only at first, and then in Bethel just perhaps 4 years ago, I tried my first hamburger (oh god was it good). I've slowly incorporated more and more veggies to my diet, first red peppers, then broccoli, then eggplant, spinach etc. This year was the first year for beets, which I love more than life itself when they are mashed up with potatoes and fried into little patties, or mixed with shredded cabbage and carrots and a little blue cheese. I could fantasize about beets all day....Dwight Shrute does at least have beet farming going for himself.

But back to the jelly and food preservation....Last weekend we were at Title Wave, taking a breather from tiling the floor. Normally we get our coffees and head over from Kaladi, I beeline for the knitting and sewing books and Peter heads to architecture. Well imagine my surprise when I discovered the knitting and sewing section is now located next to the cookbooks, which means I will likely never make it into the other side of the store anymore. As I perused the shelves, my eyes were drawn to the spine of this gem, and since I had a gift card burning a hole in my wallet I snatched it up. The book is great, she's got explanations for all those things that you've always been told to do/not to do, and there are a number of recipes with very clear directions for how to properly process and preserve.

The book is put out by Storey publishing, who also did this favorite of mine, as well as recent books by the harlot. They emphasize down-home, do it yourself type books and I think I may be turning into one of their biggest fans. I've been pouring over the canning book all week, planning my next foray into food preservation and I'm thinking I might need to add a pressure canner to the wedding registry (which I am keeping by the way).

Now, since the theme of today's blog is food preservation, everyone please think good thoughts for Tiffany, who is presenting and interviewing in Fairbanks this week for a big old grant from Alaska Marketplace to make chum salmon jerky goodness for Alaskans. Good Luck Tiffany!

(Not) My Priority (anymore)

2007-10-09T13:45:00.000-07:00

Thank you Board of Game for not advancing the Nelchina non-subsistence area proposal. Now, if you could kindly remove the income requirements (subsistence does not equal welfare), and re-establish a rural priority, we'd all be just dandy!

Hungry Teresa? I'm heading down to the freezer right now for some much appreciated dryfish.

Last Night

2007-10-06T20:22:00.000-07:00

There is something so nice about a Friday evening spent in the kitchen. Upon opening thursday's veggie box, I was delighted to find these beautiful eggplant and spinach and knew immediately what I would do with them. A few months back, a certain pizza place (in too close of proximity to our house I might add) informed me they would no longer be making my favorite pizza, the eggplant parmesan. So, after a trip to costco to indulge in a bottle of good red wine, I devoted last night to creating my version of the perfect eggplant parmesan pizza (and a small batch of eggplant parmesan proper for the freezer).

Any solo cooking event is greatly enhanced by good music and the Dawson-inspired playlist I hastily made provided the perfect soundtrack. I can't remember exactly who / what was on there but ESL, Feist, Neko Case, Old Man Luedecke, Jenny Lewis and Carolyn Mark were on there...and for some funky fun, a little George Michael, G. Love, and of course, Beastie Boys.

When the music was over the pizza was ready and not only did it prove to be healthier than the original (almost entirely whole wheat crust, baked breaded eggplant instead of fried, and only 1 oz of cheese), but absolutely delicious as well. I'm sorry, but I was thinking with my stomach when it was ready and did not pause to take a photo. The rest of the evening was spent working on beastie the blankie and watching Fast Food Nation, an interesting movie. Funny it had the same effect on me as the book. When it was over, I really wanted French Fries. The ending of the movie is not for the faint of heart however, and it (along with today's beef recall) will keep me off meat for awhile.

Tonight I'm supposed to meet up with friends to see The Whipsaws play at Blues Central but since I've still got half a pizza, half a bottle of yummy wine, half a blanket to make and at least 5 hours of instant viewing on ye old netflix account, I think I'll stay in again. Sorry guys, I'm old and lame......or maybe I just miss all the quality movie/cooking/knitting time I used to spend this time of year back in Bethel.

Inertia

2007-10-02T18:33:00.000-07:00

I feel like the dogs today. I'd love to just lay down on the couch and nap a bit. It's cold, outside and in and I want to snuggle up with a down blanket, good book, and cup of hot chocolate.

Guess I'll have to settle for down booties on my feet and hot chocolate while I work.

Oregon, My Oregon

2007-09-27T14:42:00.000-07:00

Another highlight of the summer was a trip to Oregon to see my family. This is Wilson, nephew extraordinare, showing off his increasingly rare find (partial sand dollar) and very sandy hands. I spent the first few days of my trip in Newport, which was a treat as I hadn't been to the beach house in the summer in about 3 years.

Midway through my trip, I met Peter in Seattle and we drove up to Kelowna for his cousin Paul's wedding, with a sidetrip to Edmonton to visit his Mormor. We had an enjoyable day visiting with her and the wedding was lovely. Peter had to return back home after the wedding so I dropped him back off in Seattle and returned to Portland for a few more days.

The drive to Seattle and back was a lovely excuse to quell my fast food desires--I ate at Burgerville twice (spicy black bean gardenburger and thick shake made with real, plump, local, berries- how I love thee).

When I returned, Mom decided we should look for possible Oregon wedding locations, so my sisters and I piled in the car and off we went, perusing wineries and miscellaneous country locales. We went up to Hopewell to say hello to my Great Grandma Scoggan, and out to Sheridan to visit the church my mom went to growing up (she claims they say she was the second best organist they had). It was pretty fun, despite the sweltering 95 degree temps, I hadn't driven around on those country roads in many years. Portions of the last two days were spent looking for a wedding dress (successfully I might add) and registering at Crate and Barrel, though now that I've read this book, I'm thinking of canceling the registry. We'll see though (it would be nice to have matching dishes for once).

Now I must leave to go get to work on Winter Goal #3....................

A New Beginning

2007-09-25T23:13:00.001-07:00

Another attempt at this blog business, though no one except Laura or Peter would know that. Today was the first day it really felt as though winter was on its way. A brief glance out the window this afternoon resulted in a sudden pang of excitement (its going to snow soon) and sadness (summer is definitely over and by the looks of it, fall is near to done too). The mountains were more than dusted, the snowline now nearing the houses on the highest-up bits of hillside. In honor of the changing of the season, here's a photo from the summer highlight trip to Yellowknife/Great Slave Lake. I have no idea actually where this was taken, somewhere along the Alcan between Ft. Nelson and Whitehorse (yes, that really narrows it down, doesn't it?)

As always, I'm hoping to accomplish a lot this winter and so I'm publishing the list here, so that all you readers can hold me to it.
1) Ski at least 2 times a week (as long as snow conditions allow), either classic or skate
2) Do the Tour! I will minimally do the 25k, but ideally I'll do the whole thing, classic or skate
3) Put in at least 2 hours a week at the loom
4) Do at least one cabin trip
5) Finish a knitting project or two before I start any new ones
6) Plan the darn wedding
7) Start writing letters to friends again
8) Eat all the fruits and vegetables in our box every week

I know that I will have more but that's a start. Its sort of like my New Year's resolutions, but I guess I prefer to make Equinox resolutions (look for the next set come March).

Peter went to Homer for a few days for work so I'm going to watch a movie now with Jackson, the as-of-late incontinent, on one side, and Mason, he who desperately wants to be walked, on the other. Asia, fat cat, will no doubt nap on my lap.
Cheers for now.