22
Aug, 2006

yellow is the color of august

yesterday, i biked through pathways lined with sunny yellow flowers taller than me. it somehow felt regal.

today, a friend shared home canned peaches with me. they are like gold. canning takes so much work and it’s so hot and yet there is nothing that tastes quite as good as a home-canned peach. when i was in college, one of my roommates once shared a jar of peaches from her parents. i am ashamed of how many i ate. but she showed me how good they were with just a dusting of cinnamon…. honestly, i would can my own except that it’s so hard to find good peaches up here (not really worth canning) and if you do find good peaches they are shockingly expensive. i can only afford enough to make peach custard pie. speaking of which…. hmmmm…. did i mention the pie stop on the way home last weekend? i sampled someone else’s peach praline pie (drooling just thinking about it), but i chose a chocolate peanut butter slice for myself. so rich i had to skip supper. there was a layer of melted chocolate between the crust and the filling, then a thick, rich layer of peanut butter (with either butter or cream cheese or something else evil), then a layer of puddingy chocolate and some whipped cream, sprinkled with crushed reese’s cups. deee-lish!

what’s your favorite flavor of pie?

Posted in summer, yum | 3 Comments
20
Aug, 2006

travelogue: weekend at the lake house


it’s amazing how many more interesting weekends this summer has contained now that i don’t work most saturdays. (i’ve also visited the farmer’s market less frequently, but i can make do)

this past weekend, a friend generously opened up his family’s lake house to us for a visit. what a wonderful time we had! i drove up by myself on thursday night (due to a last-minute miscommunication…long, unimportant story) and survived the six-hour trek rather well considering that it was the longest independent driving trip i’ve ever made (hooray for feeling independent!). i also enjoyed a stop at the norske nook for amazing, mile-high pie. the next morning, i went outside and got my first glimpse of the lake. there’s something soul-stirringly lovely about looking at a lake while standing on private property (that you have permission to be on). the weekend was a blur of yummy food (made all the more tasty by days full of swimming in the lake), boating in a variety of crafts, and being in my swimsuit all day long. a few highlights included a run with two friends (who happen to be male and who can run faster than me, but who politely held themselves back until the last 100 yards or so)–we all agreed that had we been running alone, we would have turned back loooong before we as a group were willing to stop–;sitting in a sauna and examining how each of our bodies responds to 175 degree heat and steam (‘you’re not even sweating! look at me–i came in here dry as a bone and i’m dripping!’ ‘oooh! check out the pattern of tiny droplets on my arm!’), then, when we couldn’t stand the heat any longer, running to the end of the dock and jumping into the lake; snorkeling (with a kid-size mask and a cheap plastic snorkel, but still!) along the shoreline and once actually touching the fin of a bluegill (their tails are so irridescently rainbow-y when they’re underwater!); being nibbled by said bluegills when you stand still long enough; funny little acrons with fuzzy trim around the edges of their “hats”; my young, two-year-old friend calling acorns ‘squirrels-eat-them’; going for rides on the pontoon; sitting in the hammock chair and discovering how incredibly comfortable they are; our friends’ dog who had an insatiable appetite for swimming around in the water; and playing cards until i fell asleep, two nights in a row.

the biggest “first” for me the entire weekend was facing my fear of deep water. i’m not sure exactly what it is about deep water (maybe it’s related to my fear of heights?) but it, most of the time, is a gut reaction and something i seem to have very little control over. on the first day we were there, two of the girls and i decided to try to swim across the lake to this little peninsula. they think it’s about a half-mile across. we were escorted by two of the guys paddling a canoe to be something to hang onto if we needed a break and also as a more visible marker for boats careening across the lake. i got maybe a third of the way across and … freaked. i couldn’t find my swimming rhythm, i couldn’t breathe right and everytime i had the fleeting thought of “gee, the water here is really deep!” i got panicky. i stopped to hold onto the boat for a bit and get my bearings and when i saw how far i still had to go, i decided there was no way. so, i headed back to the home shore (i thought that either the boat or the swimmers would escort me at least part of the way, but i think they pretty much just watched that i was ok and then continued over.). the closer i got to shore, the more relaxed i felt. in fact, just turning back to shore enabled me to relax enough to fall back into my normal breathing/swimstroke pattern. i know it’s all in my head, but wow–my head can reallly affect my body too! so i paddled around, near the shore, playing with the dog in the water and trying to get more comfortable with the lake. then, i discovered the solution! the next day, when my strongest swimming friend asked if anyone wanted to swim across the lake with her, i said that i would paddleboat across and then swim back. i brought along my secret weapon (ok, i actually forgot my secret weapon, but one friend who was paddling along with the kayak was kind enough to turn back and grab it for me) and when we reached the far shore, i got into the water. then, my kayaking friend passed over… the pink pool noodle! what a fabulous tool! i pushed the pool noodle all the way across the lake! at first, i just grabbed onto it with both hands and kicked my feet to propel me along, then i tried doing a slight modification of my normal crawl stroke in which i would bump the pool noodle ahead of me everytime i put my arm forward in the stroke. genius! whenever i needed a break to catch my breath–i could hold onto the pool noodle! whenever i had the scary “gee, this lake is really deep!” thought, just brushing my fingers against that plastic foamy surface made me feel more calm! i feel like i completely cheated, but i actually swam the whole thing and i have cleverly left myself a goal for the next time i get to visit a lake. hopefully, we’ll get invited back.

Posted in sporty stuff, stuff that sparks a glow in my soul, summer | Comments Off on travelogue: weekend at the lake house
14
Aug, 2006

little weasel

this morning i got to play with a baby for a few hours. a friend of mine, who moved a few months before her baby arrived, is in town this week to do some research, so she was looking for some childcare to facilitate her ability to study. i happily volunteered my morning and had fun with her four-month-old boy named ivan. the reason for the title of this post is that “little weasel” is their endearment of choice. it’s nothing personal to this kid or anything–they called other people’s babies the same thing before they had kids of their own. he’s a cutie!

Posted in stuff that makes me smile | 1 Comment
13
Aug, 2006

travelogue: door county

mr. happy stuff and i have never had a chance to visit door county and we’d always heard such nice things, so this past weekend, we finally packed up and went to the great northern thumb of wisconsin. we had a wonderful weekend! on friday night, we went to the hands on art studio to enjoy “adult night”. it’s this cool art studio in the woods where you can choose from many different art forms (painting ceramics or metal, doing mosaics, glass fusing, metal working, pottery wheels…) and just make art to your heart’s content! on friday nights they have “adult night” where you can bring wine or beer (if you want), they have live music, and the studio fee is only $6 per person for the whole evening (from 6:30 to 10:00). we chose to explore the metalworking studio. mr. h-s made a really cool set of house numbers for us. i wanted to make a wreath for the front door, but i ended up making a piece of abstract art that i’ll hang on the front door instead. here’s the cool part–i got to try welding! my only regret is that i have no photo of me welding to prove it, all i have is this piece of metalwork, but it was so cool!

afterwards, we were still a little hungry, so we decided to stop in for a late pizza at sonny’s. i may have to go back there again if we visit again. their pizza was some of the best i’ve had recently. my half was topped with a blend of spinach and ricotta and the crust and mozzarella were just perfect!


saturday, we spent the morning exploring fish creek and egg harbor. in the afternoon, we took our bikes on the ferry over to washington island and biked around the whole island. one of my favorite spots was schoolhouse beach which had smooth, white stones (biggish ones) instead of sand. there was a sign posted that listed a $250 fine for removing rocks, so i took pictures of them instead. we also visited the washington hotel. we had considered staying there, but then we realized that we’d have to pay an extra fee to take our car over to the island and we weren’t sure we wanted to spend the whole weekend up there, so we might have to pay for the ferry to take our car back and forth several times, so we stayed somewhere in fish creek (with nice people, but not so great rooms. they were clean and cozy, but the bed was less than stellar and the bathroom reminded me–in a bad way–of one in my grandparents’ old house) with a better location. while we were on the island, i at least wanted to see the hotel, so we biked there before heading back to the ferry dock. it is a luxuriously simple hotel. i now aspire to stay there. or maybe to someday indulge in their prix fixe dinner ($65 each–ouch!). since i couldn’t afford either a room or the dinner, i chose to ask if they could make me one of their sandwiches to go. the cheapest (and most intriguing) one that i had seen on the menu was made with butterkase cheese and ginger-rhubarb jam. the woman at the front desk said they could make that one up pretty quickly, so i ordered one. she brought it out, wrapped in clear cellophane, perfect for my bike bag (i was dreading trying to figure out how to squash styrofoam into that tiny space!). we headed back to the ferry dock so that we wouldn’t miss the last one out for the evening, and i ate half my sandwich while we waited to leave. yuuuuum. it was awesome. the bread alone was worth it.

when we got back on the ferry, the guy behind us was telling a story about how he’d been on the schoolhouse beach and had pocketed one of the rocks. the tourbus driver had asked him to put it back saying, “sir, this isn’t the 80’s anymore. we can’t just exploit nature whenever we want.” or something to that effect. cracked me up.

when we got back to town, we decided to experience the local phenomenon of a fish boil. i was still pretty full from my cheese and jam sandwich, so i opted to not get the fish (mr. h-s thought it was poor planning on my part, but i informed him that my planning was impeccable–i am certain that i enjoyed my sandwich way more than i would have enjoyed the fish boil!). it is quite an event to behold–giant black kettles over wood fires and a grand finale of leaping flames and billowing steam and smoke. we found that we could actually split the meal fairly evenly between us with each of us eating the things the other doesn’t care for. i had the coleslaw and the cherry pie, he had the fish and potatoes (ok, i had a few bites of the potato–i do like them!) and we each had a piece of white bread and both avoided the dark rye slice.

that night, one of the state parks had advertised that they were the darkest spot in door county and were therefore a perfect viewing spot for the perseid meteor shower, so we drove out to watch them. there was a huge line to get into the park (which flabbergasted mr. h-s), but eventually, we made it in, parked, and found a spot to lie down on the grass. other than the fact that it quickly became clear to us that we had worn insufficiently warm clothing, this was one of the highlights of the weekend. there weren’t tons of meteorites (we heard someone say in a disgusted tone, “they’re not shooting stars! they’re meteors!” as we passed by), but there were at least two that crossed over the entire sky before disappearing. and lots of other smaller ones. it was even more fun than fireworks. everytime one went across the sky, the whole crowd of people gasped and said, ‘there’s one!’ on the second sky-crossingly large one, some people even clapped (which made mr. h-s giggle and say, ‘yay god!’ i thought that god probably likes to get applause every now and then.) i think my other favorite overheard quote was a father telling his child, “shhh! you have to be quiet so we can hear the stars!” it was just fascinating people-watching in the dark.

on our last morning, we decided to have breakfast at the white gull inn. i had cherry pancakes, cherry juice and i ordered a slice of cherry pie to go (when i finally had some room in my stomach when we got home, i tasted it and it was divine!). then we packed up and headed back home. on the way out, we noticed all of the different businesses who like to use “clever” spellings — like the “chal-a hotel” or the “val-a motel” or, my groaning favorite, “laurie’s country calf-a” or mr. h-s’s favorite, “bea’s ho-made jams and jellies” (mr. h-s: (giggling) i just keep picturing provocatively dressed skanky women, all named bea, making jam!).

all in all, the weather was perfect, we ate some delicious food, we biked around, we welded stuff and we had a fantastic weekend. you should go sometime.

Posted in laugh, stuff that makes me smile, summer, yum | 2 Comments
09
Aug, 2006

forgetful me

my brain has been dropping a lot of details and appointments lately (can anyone say, “end of the summer library program”?) and that’s most of the time not a good thing (many apologies to my softball team whose last game of the season i completely forgot about on monday night. oops!). but today, i forgot that i had made lunch plans with a good friend of mine and i packed a not-so-great lunch of leftover sloppy joe (sans bun–i was going to try it on regular bread), old corn on the cob and overripe peach. then, my friend showed up at the library and it was like a little surprise i’d left for myself! we went to a cute little restaurant a few doors down from the library and had yummy sandwiches and fun conversation for an hour (i ended my meal with a bite-size sample of the shop’s key lime pie–just the right amount!). that corn-on-the-cob can just get one day older.

Posted in fun stuff, summer | 1 Comment
08
Aug, 2006

silly stuff on tv

ok, so tv is evil and i try to avoid it … sometimes. but sometimes it can also show very funny things and can be fluffy brain candy when i need some. on rare occasions, even commercials can make me laugh (click on the crab) but only if they’re not over played. currently, the only tv show i watch with any regularity is the daily show (it’s where i get my news). last night, it was a re-run, so mr. h-s and i switched over to adult swim on the cartoon network and watched a few ‘toons. we discovered at 11:00 that apparently they are now showing peewee’s playhouse (i assume they are old re-runs of the show–i don’t think paul reubens is making new ones. if so, then they should update carlos’ workout clothes). i used to watch this show all the time with my sister. we even taped it and once had a peewee marathon over thanksgiving when the cousins came to visit (oh my aching head! the peewee giggle rang throughout the house all weekend!). last night’s episode was one i don’t remember ever seeing (they all sort of blur together). the secret word was “out.” hmmmm… anyway, the part that made me laugh out loud (and don’t judge me–it was late at night!) was when he went over to his giant toy mess and pulled out a pair of “giant underpants”! which was precisely what they were. giant tighty-whitey underpants. then he proceeded to put them on his head, wrapped up like a turban, then he pulled them down and around “like a nun!”, then he stuck his arms through the leg holes and pointed out that they could be worn like a “suave vest” or, you could further pull the edge down so that it was around your butt and have a swing! oh the irreverence.

Posted in laugh | 1 Comment
03
Aug, 2006

of rats and mice

so last night as i was cleaning up some beets to pickle them, i noticed that the roots on them looked just like i would imagine the tails of the three blind mice to look (am i a children’s librarian or what?). i tried to figure out if i could work that into a program of some kind and discovered that i had the three blind mice tune in my head. but not just any version of it–i had the highly synthesized theme music from “radar rat race” stuck in an endless cycle in my brain. have any of you played rrr? it was an old computer game (the kind you played on your tv!) that was my first introduction to the addictive quality that some video games can have on me. i played until the crease between my thumb and forefinger was sore! and the music went over and over and over and over….

in case you were curious, the beets turned out pretty good (although they did stink the house up pretty well, much to the chagrin of mr. h-s), but i think i’ll play around with the recipe a bit more before i post it here…

Posted in fun stuff, library stuff, stuff that makes me smile, yum | 1 Comment
01
Aug, 2006

black raspberries

last weekend, grandma happy stuff packed up some of her famous jam for us to take home. it’s well known that a jar of her strawberry jam would be lucky to survive the week if it were opened, but this last visit to her house was the first time i’d had a chance to taste any other flavor of jam. she had made a small batch of black raspberry jam and it was so yummy! the flavor took me right back to the summers right after college when i would sneak into the local woods (college-owned land, i think) and pick wild black raspberries. they taste so different than the red ones! my fingers would have tell-tale stains on them, but i’d have a bucket full of berries to freeze or eat on cereal or whatever. grandma told us that she had seen some black raspberry bushes when she stopped to buy a few things from a roadside produce stand. when she asked if they ever sold those berries, they asked her how many she would like when they got ripe. she ordered 4 quarts and they called her when they had been picked. she said, “i didn’t know that the berries were made of gold!” apparently, they were a bit more pricey than she had been anticipating, but they were so good! and you really don’t see the black raspberries as often as the red ones. and raspberries are so delicate! plus, as she pointed out, you don’t have to take out a pit or remove the stem or anything–it’s just pure fruit.

anyway, she was generous enough to send one of these jars of “gold jam” along with us and this evening i ate it with yogurt, blueberries, and peaches for my dessert. and oh, miss barbara, was that ever good.* i also enjoyed fresh corn on the cob and a cheese and tomato sandwich–with a very odd but delicious cheese–sharp cheddar blueberry! yum yum yummers. i love summers.

*this is a classic line from a story told by my great aunt when she wanted us to know how spoiled and privileged we were. it involved a family of children during the great depression when she was a schoolteacher, who enjoyed a glass of milk (shared by my aunt) mixed half and half with water so that they could all have a sip. there now, don’t you feel spoiled too?

Posted in summer, yum | 1 Comment
01
Aug, 2006

an extra day

most of the time, i really enjoy having fun stuff all planned out for my days off, but sometimes it’s nice just to have a day to catch up. mr. happy stuff and i both had monday off, but he forgot and went to work anyway (which apparently turned out to be a good thing–it was crazy there!). so we were back from our trip and i didn’t have to be at work yet. i got in a trip to the bank, the dentist, and lunch at our favorite little cafe with mr. h-s. i also had time to work on some crafts, hang up my new hammock and put a few coats of paint on our new windows (which are just wonderful, may i say…). i felt much more relaxed going to work today.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on an extra day
30
Jul, 2006

poo on my shoes

ok, i didn’t actually get any poo on my shoes, but i just liked the sound of that as a title and i could have gotten poo on my shoes if i hadn’t been careful–and yet it was a happy thing! this past weekend, i spent some time at a bed and breakfast in amish country with mr. happy stuff and his side of the family. we were there for a cousin’s wedding and chose to sleep at a b&b instead of trying to crowd in with family. it was a lovely little place and we were the only ones staying for the weekend, so we pretty much had the run of the place. speaking of running, the title refers to the run i went on the first morning. lately, it seems that every time i go out of town or have houseguests for the weekend, i gain a couple of pounds that just stick around even after the weekend is over. in a meager attempt to offset this phenomenon, i went running. i only lasted about a mile and a half (so incredibly muggy! and rather warm. ugh.) but i got my heart rate up. i passed one amish buggy (they didn’t wave) and there was evidence on the road of other buggies (my favorite euphemism of the weekend was “horse apples” –it almost sounds tasty!). i had to dodge as i ran. the smell reminded me of visits to my grandma’s house when i was a kid. one of my famous lines was something to the effect of always being able to tell when we were nearing the end of the 13 hour drive when i could smell the cow poop.

anyway, the b&b was nice. the breakfasts were very large and yummy (maybe toooo large, really) and the beds were comfy. we stayed up late last night playing “hand and foot” (a card game that seems to take about 2 hours to play, no matter what) and laughing. i also spent a lot of the weekend snoozing, which was also nice. today for lunch, grandma made us a big spread–including two kinds of homemade jam: strawberry and black raspberry–yuuuum! she even sent a jar of each home with us.

oh, plus we got to have some of our favorite local ice cream. they had a new flavor that i hadn’t tried yet–toasted coconut–which is now my new favorite flavor.

on our way into town, i stopped to visit a friend i haven’t seen for about 3 years and, as always, we had great conversations and picked right back up on our friendship. i got to meet her two sons (a 2-year-old and a 6-month-old) and we went blueberry picking!! (i had really been hoping to go do a little blueberry picking, but i had pretty much given up hope of squeezing it into the weekend, so i was thrilled when she happily offered to pack the boys up and drive over to the blueberry u-pick.) we stayed for about 20 minutes and i picked more than i needed (so i shared some with her) and ate a few as i picked. i love blueberries. i love reconnecting with good friends.

Posted in summer, trip down memory lane | Comments Off on poo on my shoes