Gadget.

I have often contemplated and shared with some friends that I don’t like having gadgets in my kitchen.  Not only do I not have a ton of room to store them, but I feel like a tool should be multi-functional.  There are a couple of exceptions to this, however, which I will get to in a moment.

I started pondering this again because I read this blog post.  Now, I have always had a garlic press and really like it, but I am afraid that when the one I have wears out that I will have a hard time finding one I like as well.  As a result of reading the post I have chopped my garlic with my knife the last few times and it is really not that big of a chore, so I may convert to being a “no garlic press” household.  But there are a couple of tools I would be hard-pressed to give up.  First, the egg slicer, which was mentioned in the same blog.  Really, if you need sliced of eggs, what other option do you have?  Until I got my slicer (which was just this past Christmas) I always tried to slice them with my sharpest knives, and it was just a giant mess!  Maybe it’s because sliced eggs were more common in dishes from the 50’s, but I still like to garnish my summer salads with them so I will gladly make room for it in my drawer.

My second single-use tool I wouldn’t do without is a ginger grater.  I don’t use fresh ginger on a daily or even weekly basis, but when I do, this tool is crucial for getting the flesh without the hairs.

Now, time for some Super Bowl chili and wings!

BLJ.

I believe it was back in April ‘08 that I mentioned BLJ.

It’s funny, because I generally feel very blessed and I know that I have so much good in my life.  However, it is really undeniable that I have bad luck, which often comes in bundles.

Exhibit A:

December 29/30

This is our frozen toilet.  This was a result from not the first, second or third failed visit from the furnace people but in fact the fourth.  Besides the initial work-up for the season, they have needed to return four additional times and have never gotten it right.  This last time was while we were away at my parent’s for part of our Christmas vacation.  Brother-in-law Jason called to tell us he got to the house and found it at 40*.  It was still hovering there when we got home the next day.  The entire laundry room and back bathroom pipes were all frozen and that led to an almost disastrous flood in the laundry room (thank goodness we were home).  The good news is that Jordan was able to troubleshoot that it was a thermostat wire in the furnace that was loose (aka not tightened properly when they replaced the last part).  The bad news is that with what we have paid these nincompoops since November we could have bought an entire new furnace.

Exhibit B:

December 23-present

There aren’t many days when after school I do not have to either stay for a meeting or run an errand on my way home.  Wednesday the 23rd was particularly sweet because not only could I go straight home and therefore be able to walk Murphy before it got dark, but also because it was the start of Christmas vacation.  I had no last-minute things to attend to, it was simply time to relax, enjoy and finish healing from my cold.  Approximately 45 seconds into my 25-ish minute commute, some A*HOLE runs through a stop sign and this is what I get for Christmas.  The icing on the cake?  I get a call from my insurance company today to tell me that the insurance  company he gave does not have a policy for this guy.  Happy new year??  So we have started out the new year trying to get some things together around that.  In the grand scheme of things I was lucky and it could have been much, much worse. I just have to keep telling myself that.  The real silver lining was that I was reminded that I work in a place where people know who I am and care about my well-being (yay friends!).

Lisa, Jacquie and Cheryl…my comfort and sanity

So here is to the year 2010.  I considered resolutions, but I think I will just continue to try to be me.  Here is your first Murphy shot of the new year…enjoying not only the wood stove, but also a sunbeam.  Can anything be better (maybe not having a stone for a pillow)?

The Stove!

Well here it is, the new soapstone wood stove!  It has been with us a month now and it just now experiencing actual cold weather.  So far, so good!  I don’t know if my mom would want to stay here in the dead of winter yet, but we are getting closer!

If you want to see it in person, come by!  We’ll warm you right up

FF&WGBF

Also known as the Fall Frolic and West Glenville Bluegrass Festival…

We had the first annual one of these on October 17th…it was awesome!  I don’t have any fabulous pictures of it, but I stole these from Adrian’s facebook.

As you can see (or not if you don’t know our house) we set up the stage in the garage, at first because of predicted inclement weather.  However, we ended up thinking it would be a good idea anyway because of the cold and that turned out the be a wise choice.  The rain and snow stayed away so everyone was able to enjoy mingling outside and a stunning show by Shilly Shally Fire Arts!  Music was provided by Ryan and Heather Niver, the McFubar’s and headlined by the Sacandaga String Band.  We are already looking forward to the second annual, so mark your calendars for, well, sometime in October!

In other news, Jordan is in the process of extending the wood stove hearth in preparation for our new wood stove that is being installed on Friday.  This is our first home project and was initiated by a failed chimney inspection.  We had the whole conversation about if we still wanted to heat with wood, etc., and ended up deciding it was what we wanted.  Among the problems with the old stove and set-up was that the stove itself was a coal stove and we were using it for wood.  Clearly, we were not interested in burning coal.  This is the model we are getting.  Ours has black trim.  I am looking forward to the warmth it will be providing REALLY SOON!  Murphy agrees, it’s time to be toasty.

Here’s to a happy and healthy week!

oops…

So, May,eh?  Well, in my defense, life gets pretty busy between then and now, and for most of that time I am away from conventional technology.

Let me give you an update.  School ended for the year in June and as usual, and camp started at the same time..as usual.  It was the first summer in the new dining hall/kitchen and it was good.  I had great help getting started in that place.  Thanks to Austin, Annie and Grace!

During the summer, I had two reasons to pause from the normal crazy of camp to mourn and celebrate family.  The first instance was in early-ish in August with the passing of my grandmother Rose.

She was my dad’s mother and the last of his parents, his father died in ‘95 (i think).  As one normally would in these situations, we had good time to remember her and spend time with each other, but privately (I speak only for myself) ponder how life will be now that death causes family to shift.

The following week, a planned family celebration on my mom’s side saw the wedding of my youngest cousin, Ryan.  Once my sister Laura gets married next year, then we’ll all be hitched!

This pic has from left to right, Kara, my step-cousin’s wife, RyRy the groom, Lynne my oldest cousin, and moi.

Summer ended soon after that for me, with a week “off” between camp and school, which turned out to be two days of going to school and three days of getting ready.  This year I am teaching only middle school instead of my usual travel schedule.  So far, so good!  I do continue to grapple with what I am supposed to do with my life, but while I am figuring that out, this is a fine spot.

A couple other noteworthy items.

1.  Jordan’s 1945 John Deere “H” that he helped his Grandpa Fay restore has come to live with us.  

2.  We had a great Labor Day celebration with Jordan’s family and participated in “The Ring of Fire” around the Great Sacandaga Resevoir.  Jordan stepped on a nail while building the fire and therefore we spent 3 hours in the ER…

3.  Last but not least, September 19th was the wedding of our BFF’s Andy and Lindsay in Michigan.  We had a great time celebrating with them and wish them the best!   Now about that present…

…oops wrong hubbies!

Spring Ponderings

Damn, he’s so cute!  I can’t even stand it.  Murphy is always on the quest for a sunbeam to bask in.  Usually he finds it on the carpet or on his perch on the back of the couch.  He must have been desperate this day because he climbed right into the blanket basket.  Ohhh how I LOVE HIM!!  He’s had a busy spring so far, helping out Jordan a lot with yard work and tilling the garden.  He likes to supervise.  He has also had a few ticks already (erg) but thanks to this tool that has been a much easier thing to deal with.  We haven’t yet decided if it’s OK to use the tool on humans.  Murphy has also had a series of shots to make sure he doesn’t get some disease from swampy areas and as a result of those vet visits it has been confirmed that he needs to have his teeth professionally cleaned.  Harumph!  I am a little worried because he has to go under anesthesia.  If anyone has any experience with that, please let me know!

In other springtime news, Jordan got quite a nasty case of poison ivy from all his landscaping.  He’s on the upswing, but boy-howdy…what an oozy mess!  He’s planning on killing it today in revenge.  The trees are blossoming, the grass is bright green, the windows and doors are open most of the time and it is wonderful! Murphy and I took an evening stroll last night to enjoy the sound of the birds and the peepers and the smells of the new growth and the coming rain.  It was such a wonderful thing to enjoy in the short window of time before mosquitoes will take over.

Thursday night I decided to attend an auxiliary meeting at the firehouse.  I thought it would be a good time to check it out to see if I wanted to get involved in that way because they were going to be planning the pancake breakfast for May 17, which I can’t go to because I will be cooking for the first time in my new kitchen at camp!  I didn’t want to get roped in you know, heaven forbid.  It was a really nice group of ladies in a range of ages and very unpretentious, so I am sure I will go back.

In other news, my friends, Amanda and Bill, just gave birth Thursday night to their son, Micah!  hooray and congratulations!!!  

Have a great weekend and a happy spring to all.

Happy Anniversary!

Well, one year ago today, Jordan and I along with a crew of family and friends moved us up into the hills of West Glenville into our first home together!  It has been a wonderful year of getting to know the area and the community and we are feeling quite at home.  Some of you may have followed some of our experiences here on the not-updated-nearly-enough blog, some of you have heard stories and some of you have been a part of the stories.  Although I don’t have specific stories for today, I wanted to make sure to commemorate our one year.  So here are a few pictures to give you an idea of what’s happening here.  Come visit anytime and see for yourself!

Picture #1  Our neighbor tapped a few maples around the property and gifted us with a whole quart!  It’s awesome.

Picture #2  As the snow melts off the mountain, our stream has been rushing!  It has been wonderful to crack the bedroom window and listen to the rush as I go to sleep.

Picture #3  I can’t ever remember to flip the pic before I upload it….but, when the ice slid off the roof one sunny late winter day, it scared the bejebus out of us and smashed the stairs.  Currently under construction.

Picture #4  This was the remaining wood as of a week or so ago.  The shed is empty now, and we have about two fire’s-worth left in the rack on the porch.

Picture #5  Jordan taught himself to prune trees!  We are hoping they will give a few apples in the fall and aren’t too traumatized.  One tree was growing a basketball.  Hmm…

Picture #6  Jordan had built most of a compost bin in the fall.  We had an incident with some hot ashes a few weeks ago…thus, it was destroyed.  Luckily, it is almost rebuilt already!  Jordan has been hard at work to get things in shape here…we are so lucky to have him!!

Change

A couple of weeks ago, Sarah Maria and I went to camp to snowshoe.  While we were there we checked out the progress on old Suits/new Fenny…

  

 

 

So here is the state of Suits at that time.  Almost all appliances have been removed…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Except for old Hobie…

 

 

 

 

 

 

And today I get to head back up to Speculator to help Chris decide where all the NEW stuff goes!!!  I can’t wait!  It’s definitely a sign of the coming summer…

 

 

 

 Here is New Hobart

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the new ovens!

 

 

There is more, but instead of talking about it, I want to get to it.  So I will update more later!!

Some Things That I Love About Winter.

I love all of the seasons.  It’s a wonderful thing to watch the world cycle through all of them and it’s often difficult to choose which one is the best (Autumn wins by an inch).  Here are just a few things that I especially like about winter…

I enjoy hot drinks, especially tea.  I start each morning with at least two cups and then often a couple of cups of hot water later in the day.  Occasionally I will throw in a hot chocolate or Tang…warms you up from the inside out!

 

My winter boots!  I figured out last week that I have owned these boots for 15 years!  I got them when I first started teaching outdoor ed because they were rated to -40*!  They were VERY warm.  Since then, Sorel was sold to Columbia (I think) and the replacement liners (which I have only had to get one pair of) aren’t quite that warm.  But they are definitely still my favorite winter staple.  I wear them everyday to work, and more often than not, will leave them on all day because 1) I will still be cold and 2) I travel between schools and so it is easier than always changing and 3) they are highly fashionable and go with pants AND skirts!  Don’t tell my co-worker I said that, she will vehemently disagree.  I bought Jordan a matching pair a few years ago.  Cute.

An excuse to eat more…one has to prepare for the hibernating months, right?  I was in Hannaford the other day and right by the register where I was waiting (those clever marketers) was this chocolate that I had never seen.  Bread and chocolate???  Only my two favorite things!  This chocolate is DELICIOUS!  I would highly recommend it to everyone.  I wasn’t sure what to expect, but what I got was rich, deep dark chocolate riddled with tiny nuggets of salty, crunchy french bread.  It’s a small bar but I actually made it last for two days!!!  I could go for another right now….

Finally…

Who could resist a warrior husband wielding the giant ice spear flanked by his fierce, faithful steed!  Ahh… the long nights of winter do crazy things up in the hills of West Glenville.  Hope you are having as much fun as we are!

The Things I Really Enjoy

For Christmas I got many lovely gifts from many lovely people for which I am very thankful.  This post is brought to you by two of these gifts, the great digital camera from the in-laws, and the fiber hand carders from my Santa.  I have been waiting for the carders for awhile, and I can finally start making yarn from the bags of wool I have stashed in the corners and crevices of the house.  I can’t wait!

Today I started tackling the wooly mound and here is the proof!

This is a picture of my carders…

And here is my partial basket of rolags…

Once I got finished with my first pile of wool, the entire basket was filled!  So very exciting!  Next I will either dye it or spin it, depending on what my expert suggests.

Now if only I can figure out a way that I can stay home and do this all day and STILL get paid from my job…hmmm….