RELISH - A GLORIOUS DAY - MICRO BURST

A dozen half-pints of home made/canned zucchini relish earlier this week. Two gallons of mead on the cook; honey-orange and honey-blueberry. So it is a start to new seasons. The leftover drippings from the relish was tested on lunch hot dogs and was simply scrumptious. 

We used this recipe without the curry powder and a little more sugar. I did find that this is a basic recipe with some variations. We like the relish on the sweeter side. Taste test it while it is on the simmer. 

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A GLORIOUS DAY

Mid-afternoon, mid-week. A warm wind blowing all day and the wife said it felt like the warm, home woodstove outside. 

It has been half a year since I have felt this warm throughout. No chill teasing on the cusp of being comfortably warm. The wind did not drill an icy hole through layers of clothes. Instead, it bathed like a hot tub or long hot shower does and then kept on giving afterwards. 

We spent several hours sitting outside, in the direct sun for awhile and then in the shade. Good time for easy conversations about the times of our lives. These moments are given from time to time and I think this is what we try to purchase on a vacation. But this was better as it was right outside our home. It cost no more than the effort to go outside. Because it has been so long, it was better than good. This day will play for awhile erasing some of what I have written of winter these past months. 

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GAS PRICES

Gas prices up here in New England. A fill up is noticeably more than a year ago, but not $7.31/ imperial gallon (.8 of U.S. Gallon) A carbon tax come home to roost in Vancouver, BC.

Folks who commute and motor commerce at $7.31/ imperial gallon and prices projected to increase this summer. 

Gas prices like these are good lessons for us down south. 

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DINNER IDEA  Give this a try. 

This is billed as a one pan healthy sausage and veggies dinner. Do not let the healthy part scare you away. 

We followed the recipe and only changed the oregano to a dry Italian spice we have in the cupboards. We also used frozen string beans as the "fresh" ones at the store had gone bad. We will add a little more sausage next time.

Use your hands to turn/roll the end mixture so that everything is well coated. We did add one more turn of regular olive oil before it went into the oven.

This quick meal idea is guest worthy and for kids just home from school. Supplement with warm rolls or pasta, butter and Parmesan for more mileage.

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MICRO BUST

We were hit with a micro bust from a passing storm front just before 10 PM Friday night. Intense rain hit against the west side of the house along with a thirty-second screaming wind. Then quiet as a mouse. I have never heard the wind scream before, but it did Friday night. 

I told the wife to get her flashlight while I battery powered up the two Ryobi lantern lights. One slight flicker and the power dropped off. Our local provider called this a power disturbance and wanted us secure in the facts that extra crews were in our area to help. We were reassured that this was just a power disturbance and not something more. But old folk call this a power outage. 

It has been awhile since we have had a "power disturbance." The home was black as black. But for a gentle breeze, the quiet was to behold. We opened the front door and sure enough, the Mink Hills were also black and not a light flickered. Come to find out Saturday morning that a micro burst cut a swath west to east knocking out one of the main feeder lines to our town. No McDonald's, no gas stations, no Dunkin Donuts and no market. Our little town had 1100 folks with out power experiencing a power disruption. 

This lasted 16 hours and in that time, we were able to practice some living w/o power. Generator was hooked up. The portable solar panel generator was also put in place yesterday morning to top off its batteries and to charge up all of the Ryobi batteries. 

The water pump was up and running and both the fridge and freezer operated normally. The price of our little gas generator has paid for itself many times over in convenience and in no loss of food in either appliance. No worries for all needs of running water, toilet flushing, showers and general everyday water usage. 

But it is an inconvenience like this that can cost those without generators a lot of heartache and money in spoiled foods had this lasted several days. Water shortage becomes a problem when the power first fails. Whether it be for drinking, flushing, washing or cooking. Toilets become an early issue and those problems multiply quickly. 

I think many folks may not realize the seriousness of times like this when a major daily convenience is lost, regardless of the reason.

Worrying about these kids of situations and acting on being ready is paramount. More so in these times we live in.  

Photo at left is the top of a rotten tree knocked off by the micro burst. These are often called "widow makers". 

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ONLY IF YOU MISS MIDDLE SCHOOL

Yep, I laughed. The fellow laughing so hard that he had to bend down on knees would have been me. I have no control when my funny bone is struck just right. Ya just gotta keep a sense of humor. 

MAMMA DUCK YEARLY TREK WITH BABIES


This ranks right up there with puppies.

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Unprovoked knife attack.

I leave you with this quick current story. In keeping with last words here each week revolving around staying away from crowds, keep your heads up and out of electronics, I see more stories like this world wide. What to do?

Travel together and have each others back. If you are alone or with your children, keep alert and pick movement and places that make you/yours a harder target and/or that gives you perspective from a distance. 

Live life and do what you want to do, just add a higher state of awareness in the process. 

Thanks again for the visit and make this a good week. Keep your cell phone in your pocket from points A to points B.