Walking around town

Monday I walked 6 miles, preparing for a trip out west later in the fall.   I left the neighborhood, walking along a fairly busy road through my small town.  If I don’t focus on the road and the cars the walk is pretty. I cross a bridge over Turkey creek waterway and as always I stop to enjoy the view.  As I stand on the bridge several cars pass by, but I pretend I am alone and can’t hear them.  A little bit further down this busy street I turn into an older section of town and walk in peace beside 1950’s era homes.  The yards are green, and the homes smaller.  I see several healthy gardens, and am jealous.  My garden has expired in the heat and I am waiting for cooler weather before trying again.

 Turning with the street I follow the train track through town.  Although I don’t see a train on this walk, a huge cargo airplane flies overhead, loud enough to drown out any other sounds.  The walk ends at our town park and boat ramp.  This is one of my favorite places to be.  I always see water birds, egrets, herons, sometimes bald eagles and alligators.  As I walk along the drive a car stops so the driver can talk to me.  He rolls down his window and leans over.

            “I don’t want to scare you , miss, but I wanted to tell you I saw three coyotes out here the other day.  I called the city and told them.  You be careful out here, OK?”

            I thanked him and walked on, not afraid or worried.  Coyotes are very common in urban areas.  They are not generally dangerous to people.  The road is bordered on one side by baseball fields, and on the other by dense trees.  I notice something pink, and while thinking about the man that was upset to see wild animals in the park, I look at a huge pink shopping bag, empty water bottles and other trash.  I think we have the wrong idea of what we should fear.

            The walk was enjoyable, hot, and worth every step.  It took most of the morning because I took my camera.  Once I was back home I regretted not picking up the trash.  It only takes one person to toss trash and ruin the landscape, but it also takes only one person to pick up the trash and make things better. 

A tiny lesson learned from a night on the beach

Last night my husband Kevin and I went to the beach.  It was a beautiful evening, the sun was setting and brilliant colors lit up the sky.  The air was soft after a very long hot day, and the water was gentle and cool.  He and I walked down into the water, and once I reached knee deep I began worrying.  I worry about the dumbest things, and what I worried about then was how cold I would get after being in the water.  The air was cooling, and it was quite breezy.  I wanted to swim and relax in the water, but I was hesitating because of what may or may not happen after the swim.  Finally I relaxed, dove under the water and had a very nice sunset swim.

When we came out of the water it was chilly, the cool breeze against our wet skin, but that was ok.  It wasn’t the kind of cold that I dread.  We sat in chairs as the stars came out, then eventually walked back to our car.  How very stupid it would have been to not enjoy the swim because I knew I would feel bad afterwards, especially when I didn’t feel bad in the end.  Do I live life that way?  Do I worry so much about what may come after, that I am afraid to enjoy the moment?  I know I do, at least at times.  It is smart to consider the consequences of our actions, and sometimes we do make bad choices.  At the same time it is not smart to live in fear.

How do I apply this lesson to my life?  I am not sure.  We have a song on a CD in the car right now, and the lyrics say, “If I live the life I'm given, I wont be scared to die.”  This has become one of my favorite songs, and every time I hear it I begin thinking about that verse.  I need to live my life, and participate, and enjoy.  Sometimes I will get hurt, or make bad decisions, but at least I will be doing and participating.  Do not be ruled by fears and doubts.  Get in the water, and enjoy!

My mini-pet garden

This year after testing my soil I made a garden plan.  The first thing I wanted to grow was some kind of peas, to help the soil and of course, to eat.  At my local hardware store I found snow pea seeds, and planted them in my backyard.  In the winter and early spring the backyard gets enough sunshine to garden and about the time the peas are done, the trees leaf out, bringing shade.  I used tomato cages for the peas to grow on, and waited.  In the front containers I planted salads, spinach, butter lettuce, and chard.  The salads were the first fruits of my labor, and nothing in the world beat walking outside, gathering leaves, and preparing salad for our supper just minutes before eating that supper.  the peas grew, and I planted onions beside them.  As the air warmed we began picking the peas and eating them right in the pods.  At first we only had a few peas, so I added them to the salads.  As more peas became ready I steamed them with store bought asparagus, and made a meal of the two.  We never had an abundance of peas, but we had enough to enhance our meals.





Now the lettuces are gone, and I have planted tomatoes and cucumbers in the same pots.  I added compost to the soil and mixed well.  I am also using miracle grow, because I know my soil needs so much help.  I hate using the chemical fertilizer, but don't feel like I have a choice with the dirt I have been given.   When you grow in pots the dirt is even more important.  Quality soil, compost, and drainage is important.  These pots dry out fast, and so regular watering is important.  What better way to have a front yard garden, without having to tear out all the grass.  That is what I really want to do, but it is hard in neighborhoods.  So right now I have a pet garden, with just a little fun enhancement for dinners.

Falling off the food journey wagon

Apple Omelet with free range eggs and free apples!

Orange juice and home made bread snack, only the orange peels remain!

My first week of trying to eat better, aim a little higher at the locavore lifestyle didn't go exactly as planned.  As I mentioned in the last blog I need to study my soil type first.  At a local big box garden store I bought a soil test kit, and immediately began playing junior chemist.  As a child I loved the chemistry sets we got as gifts, although instead of following directions my brother and I enjoyed just mixing anything and everything together to see what would happen.  We are both still alive and have all our fingers, so it couldn't have been too dangerous.  With the soil test kit I tried hard to mix correctly, follow directions and keep backyard soil and front yard soil separate.  I learned that both areas are very light on any useful chemicals.  The highest score was for potash, which includes potassium and can come from ash.  Phosphates barely registered.  I then, happily, added more soil and compost, and began dropping my little winter seeds in the ground.  We should have good salads, peas, spinach and herbs.  Or not.  My gardens are always a wonder to me.  Whenever I see little green little buds sticking out of the earth I am shocked and surprised, even if it happens every year.

The cooking side of eating better was less successful.  I like to try recipes that are simple but different.  I want fresh home cooked food, not boxed mixes, and I want food appropriate for the time of year and our location.  The other night I cooked beer and cheese soup.  The description sounded so good, and warm soup would be perfect for a chilly winter night.  Even in the south we get those sometimes.  Not being a beer drinker I bought a single fancy bottle.  I chopped veggies, made broth and cooked.  The cheese called for was just cheddar, and I shredded a bowl full.  I mixed the shredded cheese with flour as the recipe said, then slowly added it to the broth and veggies.  I added the beer and began mixing and cooking.  All I achieved were gloppy mounds of unmelted cheese, and a bitter taste from the fancy beer.  My son walked in, took one look and offered to collect pizza from down the road.  I agreed and had to pour it all out.  We ate pizza and watched mystery tv reruns.

My friend that owns the chickens brought us a gift from Florida, of fresh ruby navel oranges.  I am loving my fresh orange juice.  I used my bread machine to make a loaf of onion bread, but only I liked it.  I loved it, but I can't eat an entire loaf.  It made good croutons though.  I made corn muffins with pickled jalapeño peppers my mother in law prepared last summer from her garden.  That made me happy, but they were too hot for me.  Others enjoyed them at a super bowl party, so that was fine.

I still eat cereal at breakfast, with cardboard wheat chips covered in sugar, and one day this week we ate mac and cheese from a blue box, and we enjoyed it.  Even so, the plan stays.  I intend to eat better, and to feed my family better, and to not worry when we fail and fall off the better food wagon.

Hurry up spring, and See you at the farmer's market!

Free Apples, and Deciding to become a Locavore.

Free Apples! And a new food journey!

No one wanted the apples

            The other week my husband came home with two bags of free apples.  He had attended a conference, and lunch was provided.  The lunch included green apples, and no one wanted to eat them.  Who knows why, but the next day I found two grocery bags of apples on my counter. 

            I spent a day making apple butter, one of my favorite things to put on biscuits and toast.  My husband cored and peeled tons of apples, and I cooked them until soft.  Next I pressed the apples in a colander, keeping the mashed parts for later.  We then cooked the creamy apple with sugar, cinnamon and spices until perfectly soft and tasty. There is no better perfume for the home than cooking apple butter.  I filled my jars, and pressure-cooked them.  Now we have a pantry full of apple butter.  The extra mash that was left over went into apple cinnamon muffins for breakfast. 

Apple Butter!

            Another afternoon I cooked apple crisp, and we devoured that dessert in one day.  I stewed apples as a side dish and saved the leftovers.  The next day I saw a recipe for apple omelets, which seemed strange.  I cooked it, and fell in love.  I will eat this again.  My last use for those leftover stewed apples was when I mixed them into cooked oatmeal for breakfast.  I still have 3 lonely apples in a bowl, but I think I have run out of apple energy. 

Oatmeal with stewed apples mixed in.  Tasty!

            I have been reading a book about food, how it travels so far across the country just to give us fresh raspberries in winter, tomatoes on our hamburgers all year long, and lettuce every day.  The book is giving me a lot to think about in how we eat and shop, and I am thinking I want to be more of a locavore.  I have friends that are vegetarians, friends that love meat or choose to eat raw fish.  I am going to be a locavore.

One difficulty I face is that I am having trouble gardening here in my SC yard.  I think my soil has too much phosphate in it.  After all, I live near an area that had a phosphate mine, and a local road has phosphate in the name.  When plants have too much phosphate in the soil the plants look healthy, grow well, and never produce the fruit.  I get lots of lettuce, carrots, and some broccoli, but my tomatoes, eggplants, cucumbers and peppers never produce. 

To be a locavore, and to eat more from a garden, I have to have a garden that produces.  This is the problem to solve this season.  At least now I can grow the lettuce and leafy foods.  Another way to be a locavore is to visit the local farmers markets, and that is my plan for this year.  Just like the windfall of apples we received last week, I will plan my meals and snacks around whatever we find at the local markets. 

            Another way to be a locavore is to support local businesses.  I love my coffee, and if I have to I will walk all the way to Costa Rica to buy beans. Perhaps a less drastic plan is to buy coffee beans that are locally roasted.  The beans grew somewhere else, but being locally roasted means the flavor is fresher, and not lost on the long trip north. 

            The best example of lost flavor is in the rosy red tomato.  I have no idea how or why people eat mushy cardboard tomatoes.  It has to be because these people have never tasted a right out of the garden, bursting with juice and flavor, warm from the sun, tomato.  There is no better experience on this earth.  Just ask John Denver who wrote an entire song about Home Grown Tomatoes.

The fine ladies that are giving me fresh eggs

            Another free windfall we fell into has been fresh free eggs.  I have been taking care of a friends chickens while he vacations on a large ship.  Every day I let them out of their pen, feed them dried worms and move planters over so they can attack the bugs that scurry away.  While they are enjoying the freedom, I take their eggs.  As it gets dark they climb back into their roost, and cozily settle down for the night.  I have looked in the roost as they settle down, and somehow they remind me of my family settling down in a tent when we camp.  I guess it just looks cozy.  Then, I take the eggs home and make omelets.

            Food is good.  It should be enjoyed, eaten as fresh as possible, and be recognizable as food, to steal an idea from another book.  Enjoy! 

Where would I like to travel?

What kind of question is that?  It is like asking what would I like to eat in an all you can eat buffet?  I want to travel, well, everywhere.  But there are a few places that rank higher, or perhaps rank sooner on my list than others.  I have become fascinated with Ireland.  I love the idea of Scotland.  I have always wanted to go to Finland.  Of course, as a former Spanish Literature student, I really want to go to Spain.  In each of these countries I want to drive around, eat food and meet people, and mostly, I want to hike.  I want to walk all over the countryside, experience the weather and the walkways, the mountains and the lakes, and feel the dirt under my boots.  I want to photograph hills and clouds and waterfalls, lakes, rivers and rainfalls.  I want to experience the country. 

Right now I am not in a position to travel overseas, but I can dream and plan.  I read about places to explore, and I try cooking foods from the different countries.  I look at photo books, blogs, and travel diaries.  I listen to music, and play with learning the languages.  If I never make it to any of these countries, I will have at least learned a few things and inspired daydreams. 

Ireland is a green country, full of fields and rainy days.  I could eat potato and leek soup, bangers and mash, and corn beef all week long.  Everyone speaks English, but in some areas of the country the Irish language is growing strong.  To say hello is to say “God to you,”  (Dia duit) and the reply is “God and Mary to you.” (Dia is Muire duit) I tried for a time to learn a little of the language, but it is a hard one, with complicated pronunciation rules and lots of consonants.  I still play around with the language, but I cannot imagine chatting in Irish right now.

Scotland has always been a misty country filling my dreams.  Bagpipes inspire me, and I can see me traipsing over mountains and dells, pipes filling my ears and green grass under my feet.  The castles and moors have to be interesting, and I am hoping for a chance sighting of Nessie. 

I have a friend from Finland.  She lived in the USA for a while, and she spoke so warmly of her country, and was such a strong ambassador of all things Finnish, that I have to visit someday.  I want to see reindeer in Lapland, watch the Northern lights and enjoy a Summer solstice of eternal day.  My camera is ready to take photos of the boats out on the waters, and of the many lakes.  I want to relax in a sauna, but I do not want to jump into icy cold water.  Music and art is very important in this country, and I look forward to enjoying both while there.

My Spanish dream is to walk el Camino de Santiago, and to eat and visit all along the trail.  I want to live life slowly, in beautiful surroundings, walking everywhere and enjoying nature.  I want to stop in little towns, eat the local meals and rest under the stars. 

For now, I enjoy the city where I live, and the state it is in.  Everyplace is worth discovering, and exploring.  I walked today around my neighborhood, on a chilly but sunny day.  The sky was so blue I couldn’t stop staring at it, and enjoying the contrasts with the green bushes and trees.  I walked to the local library, checked out a book and walked home.  It was a pleasant day.  Adventure and enjoyment are found wherever we choose to find them, whether walking through Spain, or our own hometowns.  I will never give up on the travel dreams, but I am not waiting around, I am enjoying every day in whatever location I find myself.  Adventure is what we make it.