A day of Rest...

i lied!!.. but i actually didn't do very much... picked a few ripe tomatoes, pulled all my broccoli and brussel sprouts and several kale plants.... damn aphids terrorizing my garden... what were they thinking... besides.. mmm nice organic veggies... good old organics, even the bugs grow well... it was cool this morning, as it was yesterday, but warmed up this afternoon... t-shirt weather.. not so hot you can't be outside, and not so chilly u need to be bundled up...
i went to daughter's house and the cute peachick has a name and thinks Mommy is her... soo Sidekick is a happy go-lucky little chick... eating well, likes crickets and anything that moves... yay!!! the other poor little fellow passed away yesterday and his body was recycled to the pine snake... our loss and the snake's gain...
have been watching CNN for the Hurricane Gustav news.. make me glad i'm here, and that the hurricane force storms that we have in the winter are nothing compared to Atlantic hurricanes...
i wish everyone well and hope that it passes by without much trouble... to see a whole area of millions of people evacuate was amazing....

Beets......

are done...... so for now all my canning is finished.. woohooo... the tomatoes are ripening on the vine, but slowly...





i've had to cover them the whole season... never got the cover off.. but what is coming is good... so i guess i can't complain about them... just not the quantity i was hoping for... but since i got 2 cases of tomatoes, mixed paste and regular, i okay with whats there.. nothing like a fresh picked, pop in your mouth tomato!!!

last night i picked a couple of cabbages from the garden, the green cabbages are tiny, but the red ones are okay and look much better... i only have a few, but hey, a few is better than none...


i'd like to move the one garden spot and put it closer to my house.. maybe next spring... when i have more energy... LOL... i have big plans... now to find someone to build them.. i want a small greenhouse next year too... i'm getting some decent peppers this year, but only because they've been covered and treated extra special... the eggplants... well, they will make nice compost ;) .... thats all they are good for.. but compost is like gold, so i won't complain!!!

Baby Peacocks and mama Ducky...

and did i mention... a snake!!! Daughter phoned this morning... welllll i guess mama Ducky has been sitting on some eggs..... a LOT of eggs... and no, none of them are hers.... a bit of background on Ducky... she was given to my daughter from our vet's office... someone had tried to have her for dinner, and someone else had rescued her in mid 'throttling'... and she had this Z in her neck for quite some time... anyways.. it's gone, she's fine.. but she thinks she's a peacock!!!

now that nest is minus 2....

one of them isn't doing very well.. and we don't think it will make it.. but hey one never knows... mother nature has some weird twists sometimes....

speaking of twists.... grandson found a snake... i tried to get a pic of the neck.. but its got a L neck.. so it's in rehab too...just a wee one... so it should have a good chance of survival.. we have more than enough slugs bugs and other things around.. we've been swamped with rain...

Tomatoes and Peppers....

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers..... and i got to can them... i thought there was about 10 lbs of peppers.. mmm nope... about 20 lbs and over 50 lbs of tomatoes............ ahhhhhhhhhhhh all done... but took me 2 days... the last batch of jelly i just finished... it's not cooled yet, so don't know if it set.. but hey, no matter, its always good for glazing, as a dip.. whatevers... mmmgoood....

i got 17 quarts of just canned tomatoes, 12 pints of salsa, 8 pints of hot sauce and 8 pints of jelly... and not a bit left over... YAYYY

alas.. the canning isn't done yet tho... i have about 10 lbs of beets to go... this year, i'm just going to can them, plain jane, no pickled beets... but only because i already have pickled beets in the cupboard...

All things hot......

well not 'all' things, but certainly hot peppers.. to make Bajan Hot Sauce..... mmmmm good...
daughter and i went to the farmers market and i came home with 2 cases of tomatos, 10 lbs of beets and 10 lbs of mixed peppers, some hot, some not.... going to be a cookfest tomorrow....
apart from that, not a terribly 'busy' day, but the weather was absolutely miserable... chilly, rainy and generally a 'movie' kinda day....

BRRR...

all i gotta say is BRRRR..... i think fall has arrived... and rather suddenly too... sighhhhh
was out in the garden this morning, t-shirt, sweater, long pants, gloves... and still chilly....
got some free stuff last night, from Freecycle... i love the idea of an internet access to free stuff.... i belong to 2 groups, one in Nanaimo, and one in Oregon, got the bases covered i figure... unfortunately i see free stuff at the one i'm not at.. LOL... but last night i did score... i got a dresser/buffet, 2 wooden stools, an indoor garbage can and a laundry basket full of apples....
it was dark when grandson and i went to get the items so it was a 'hope it's okay' type of thing... they were outdoors, in the dark, and i had to use my headlights to see by... anyways... i checked the items out this morning... the dresser, is used, needs some cleanup and some knobs and a set of casters... none of which should be difficult to do... its actually in pretty good shape... i've seen lots worse at the Sally Ann or Goodwill... oh and got more tiles... i'm just going to collect and collect and see what i come up with... i was playing with some of my tile bits last night and came up with an idea for making squares with them, then inserting in hobnob in the wall... my ultimate goal is to redo my tub surround which is rotting away as i type... sometimes decorating on a strict budget is difficult at best.. but kind of a fun project... just as long as i don't get junky, it should go okay... i'm still looking for a deep bathtub too... who knows, maybe i'll actually find something that is on sale or something... my ideal would be a lovely old clawfoot bathtub... how i wish!!!

Mosaic......

mmmmosaic heaven... was at the tile store yesterday... OMG what a cornacopia of colours and textures.. i think i might take another tour when littlest grandbrat gets home from her summer visit with daddy... she loves art, and what an 'art' store... i've been collecting bits of tiles and all sorts of stuff for doing some mosaics... i like quilting, well actually wall hangings and i think doing mosaics really isn't that different... just a different medium... i had a bit of a practice run with some of the tiles... it's going to be a beach scene i think... at least thats where it's headed so far...


i rescued a small wooden bird feeder and wooden bird house, of which i'm going to 'transform' into a mosaic feeder and house... it will be good practice... Youtube has some great small tutorials on tiling... the last bit of tiling that i did was about 15 years ago.... and it was difficult to pry off the wall when we changed the 'decor' in the kitchen.. sooo figure i can somewhat master the art of mosaics....





been doing more research online, for gluten free recipes and information on celiac disease... no i don't think i'm a celiac, but i do believe that cutting out the gluten in my diet has definately helped with my joint pain and it seems to have stalled the multitude of trips to the bathroom and gutwrenching bloating that have seem to have increased the last year.... i think that if i cut gluten out for a couple of months and it helps, then good, if not, then it was nothing lost... if anything more gained, not only in the researching, but of learning new recipes and finding new blogs from gluten intolerant or celiac folks...
one of the best gluten free blogs that i've come across so far is Gluten-Free Girl ... she's a writer and illustrator by trade and her site is interesting to read as well as being fully of great recipes and information....

Greywater utilization....

the water situation here is critical during the summer months.... i can't see why a system couldn't be incorporated here, i just need a 'handy' person to help me... i found some directions on a very cool system... i can visualize a pond, perhaps only bathtub size, but seems that it could be utilized to water some areas of the garden... a cistern would be the ideal problem solver, but a shortage of cash and labour nixes that thought, at least for now...
found this tidbit of information for the future... Hansgrohe has developed a compact Greywater system which is supposed to be coming to the U.S. ... more more.. bring it on!!! North Americans in general are a wasteful bunch... and yes, i include myself in that group... i'm more frugal than a lot, but if i didn't need to be.. would i be??

Peas.......

are planted... we shall see what comes up... hopefully something yummy!!! am going to teach my bratlings to use my sprouter... nothing like a good dose of vitamins, when its cold and frosty... but whether they wish to learn, who knows... seems like eating fresh veggies, sprouts is a no brainer in the stock up on vitamin department, but the hardest part is getting the kids to go 'green'....
i know that i've made some kind of impact when they willingly go and 'steal' peas and tomatoes from the garden... and are frugal with the water...

Pictures!!!

i took this picture on saturday.. it was hot hot hot... 34 celcius is 93.2 and it had already gone down a couple of degrees cause i was on the road... was too toasty to stay in the house, poor puppies needed some fresh air on their faces...






this carving was in Michael Biggs park.... it scared Dora to pieces.... the late Michael Biggs was a world class researcher/photographer in the world of Orcas... just a note, (trivia) that when i grew up the Orcas were called Black Fish .. it wasn't until the first capture of them in the 60's did the name change.. there is a sound at the mouth of Knight Inlet which is called Black Fish Sound...




i've not got a clue what this peice of machinery is, but thought it was pretty cool....





in case your wondering what the heck that is... its a flower tea ball that opened... was a delightful white tea bundled with some rather dainty flowers .... and it was delicious tea!!



this set of twins and mama were in Qualicum... went on an adventure on Monday... went to Qualicum to find a store called The Bulk Store, which has a little bakery and specializes in Celiac breads etc. i got a loaf of Cinnamon Raisin bread and some made up little pizza shells... and both were exceptionally delicious!!!



Qualicum Beach....








we had a good rainfall last night, some wind and general earth cleansing... my garden looks well watered, am thinking it might be a good day to plant some peas... i'm going to try and get a fall crop in this year... weather permitting of course!!
i've been on the hunt for fall crop transplants but nothing in yet... perhaps later this week... now that the hot spell has come and gone those transplants won't bolt as soon as they get plunked in the ground...

the sun is out this morning and am hoping that it will hold out for a while and warm us up just a bit... apparently our stormy weather is unseasonal.. hmmm what else is new these days...
global warming, cooling.. who knows... i prefer to call it global changes...

Tasty Tuesday....

woke up feeling like the truck ran over me... mmm neck troubles... so laid low for awhile...

those pickled onions just couldn't wait for me... soooooo up i got.. turned on the canner and got cracking... i now have 3 beautiful pint jars of pickled onions... yum yum...
here's the recipe if your interested...



Ingredients

5 lbs silver skin onions ( i only had enough for 3 pints)
1 cup pickling salt
4 cups granulated sugar
4 cups white vinegar
2 tablespoons whole allspice, spices

Directions
1 In a large pot, add onions, cover with boiling water and let cool.
2 Peel and discard skins and water.
3 Rinse onions and return to pot.
4 Sprinkle onions with pickling salt.
5 Cover onions again with boiling water and let stand for 24 hours.

6 Drain and reserve salted water.
7 Rinse onions with cold water and return to cooking pot.
8 In a separate pot, bring reserved salted water to a boil.
9 Pour over onions.
10 Repeat this same process for another 2 full days.

11 At the beginning of the 4th day, drain and discard water.
12 Rinse onions thoroughly.
13 In a cooking pot, add sugar, vinegar and spices that are wrapped in a cheese cloth and boil for 2 mins.
14 Pour this liquid over the onions.
15 Cover and let sit for 24 hours.

16 Drain off liquid, save and reheat.
17 Pour this liquid over the onions again.
18 Repeat this process for a total of 3 days, which is now the 6th day.

19 On the 7th day, which is the last day, drain and reserve the liquid.
20 Wash onions thoroughly.
21 Reheat the reserved liquid.
22 Prepare and sterilize jars.
23 Fill jars with onions and pour the hot liquid over the onions in the jars to within 1/4 inch of the top.
24 Wipe tops of rims very clean.
25 Place prepared lids on top and screw on screw lids just finger tight.
26 Place jars in a hot bath in a canner and boil for 5 minutes.
27 Remove from bath and place on a towel.
28 Cover with another towel to cool.
29 Jars are sealed when the tops"pop" and are concave, (turned down.).
30 Wipe jars clean, lable and store in a cool, dry place.


yum yum...

i figured that now the weather has broken and no longer blazing hot that a good baked dinner was needed... so made a delicious veggie casserole...

the basis is any veggies you have in your fridge, cupboard or garden... chopped and sauteed in olive oil, with a chopped onion and 3 or 4 cloves of garlic... throw on some leftover cheese or sauce and bake...

for today i had
1 onion
3 or 4 cloves of garlic
couple of potatoes
zucchini
green beans
celery
carrot
eggplant
spinach

fresh tomatoes
canned tomatoes

i put the canned tomatoes on the bottom, added a layer of eggplant, then the sauteed veggies, added a layer of some leftover pesto sauce, some slices of fresh tomato and topped it off with some leftover mozzarella and some other hard cheeses..
and baked for 350 till bubbly and browned.....

well i think that the dreaded 'fall' is on the way... i saw geese in formation and some of the maple leaves are starting to turn.... and it's chilly and raining hard... sighhhh
seems like summer just got here.. 2 weeks of warm and poof, it's rained away....

MMMmoisture.....

it finally rained.. but not a lot so ended up watering the garden a bit ... ah well only another month then i won't have to... picked a few ripe tomatoes today, some cherry tomatoes and 4 beekfsteak... now that i'm home and watering more regularly the next batch should be more uniform in looks, no cracks or signs of lack of water.... am lightly fertilizing once and week as well... my newly transplanted carrots are doing well too.. seems carrots and my soil are enemies tho.. not exactly sure why...

so yesterday was another scorcher, but later in the evening it clouded over and we had a few drops of rain... i drove down to Maple Bay to see if i could find somewhere to take the dogs to the water... apparently i'm not too good in the water department since once again, we came home dry.. there were a few places but filled with dogs, kids and rowdies... ah well, didn't need a wet dog or 2 anyways i guess...

another day of checking my pickled onions, boiling the liquid, and putting back in the crock.. yay... i tried one, tasted delicious... tomorrow i should be able to can them.. i will only get perhaps 3 pints.. but will be a tasty treat later in the year...

am going to make some veggie antipasto i think... that is a LOT of work.. but ooooh so good... not terribly cheap either but well worth the work....will have to haul out my very old recipe and get too it... it has 18 ingredients so will be a lot of chopping and putting together.. mmmgood...

2 Fans....

that i brought back from Oregon... were a godsend yesterday.... sally ann specials..... in Oregon i could actually have bought them cheaper, BRAND NEW, at wallyworld.. ahem.... i actually saved $15.00 each, because here they are $35.00 and i paid $20.00... anyways.... it was so darn hot i actually had to gather the 4 legged children and scoot them off to cooler places.... in our travels we hunted for a cool watery spot.... good luck on vancouver island... this is probably one of the most unfriendly dog places i know of...well maybe water/people unfriendly too... there was no where that i could take them to the river, in town no dog is allowed on the beach in the summer, whether it be lake or ocean... ah well... we had fun driving around wasting gas.. making a bigger carbon footprint...
on the return trip, i had a bear run across the road in front of my car.... unfortunately he/she is aweful close to 'civilization' and is almost certainly doomed to die... in the past week, we've had 3 bears destroyed, that we the public know about.... and i know of another case in Port Alberni where the poor bear will be destroyed when he's captured....not a nice world we have created... time for mass birthcontrol of humans...

Another hot day....

wheeeeee the temperature's been soaring.. yesterday was HOT and muggy... today is just plain HOT, already at 9 am it's 80... so i know by the end of the day, this trailer's gonna feel like an oven... ah well... wait a couple of months and i'll be crabbing about the cold ...

so in my internet journey i came across this very cool idea.. of which i hope it comes to fruition... solar curtains.. what a concept!!! about time i'd say.. so in my fantasy world.. the solar curtain could supply enough energy to even heat my house at a low level.. which would cut down on my use of home heating oil... ummm gee, i suspect that the big oil companies are going to balk at such a thought... cynical i know... but for years now the technology has been here, and it's a very slow process it seems, with pitfalls and hurls that are unending... HMM i say...

mmm pickled onions... how 'basic' is that.... mind you, after 4 days of brining, i'm now to the vinegar, sugar and whole allspice stage, another 3 days of straining once a day, boiling the liquid and pouring onto the onions ... then i can cheerfully can them.. and i HOPE that the weather has cooled a bit... nothing like canning when it's already 90 plus in the kitchen.....

mmm brined cucumbers... are almost ready!!! did a test yesterday.. one bite and i can tell if they are brined enough.. nope not yet.. they are so close to being ready... including the lovely scum at the top of the jars.. mmm not so tasty looking, but i know it's all a part of the brining/fermenting stage... a bit like kim chi maybe... anyways maybe today... when they get to the yummy eating stage, thats when they get popped into the fridge.. tada.. 1 1/2 gallons of brined 'deli' style dill pickles...

so i'm experimenting in the yogurt department... if you've ever had Trader Joe's Cream top, plain yogurt, you'll know what i'm aiming for... the closest thing it that i've found in Canada is Astro brand.. BUT it's filled with geletin and other assorted goodies... i just want yogurt culture and milk... nothing else... not only do i eat it, the dogs get a dollop of it on their morning breakfast... mmm yum they think!!
i've made yogurt for many years, but homestyle yogurt tends to be a bit twangy to the tastebuds, but i think i can master a more subtle flavour... where there is a cook, there is a way.... at least in my mind!!

just a little wacky... but interesting site... 'green' cartoons' from europe... its a site called Climate Cartoons ... enjoy ... or not...

A Thursday twist...

wow... how much more twisted is this... Julia Child, our wonder woman of the cooking world.. was a spy ... during WWII was an agent of Office of Strategic Services (OSS). The OSS was the United States intelligence agency during World War II ,and precursor to the Central Intelligence Agency. mm swell have a little spy in your martini? gotta watch out for those Olives ya know!
i did know a lady who was a spy for the Resistance.. she was an amazing lady when i met her, her flaming red hair, gaudy jewellry and brassy but fun clothes... she was infectious with her laughter and wit...
apparently she was wisked out of Denmark, to England, because her cover was going to be unearthed... she was a 'lady of the evening' for German officers... i can't imagine some of the stories that she 'didn't' tell!!!

speaking of 'political' things... gotta love this one!!! Hotflops with Obama and McCain.. please check it out... i wasn't able to copy and paste a photo and unable to find another one elsewhere on the net.... but anyways... feature your wee head or umm heads on the strap of a flip-flop... errr thong ( as in flip-flop not underwear) in my generation!!! all in a name i guess... better to be on one's foot, than up one's ass... umm well ... cast your vote here ....

Wacky World...

uhuh... that it is... just read in the news about the Olympic ceremony and it's fakery... how sad that a little girl was cheated from her night ... and btw if you didn't see hear her... she had a voice that would melt butter... she was absolutely terrific.... the other girl was as cute as a button and did a good job of lip syncing... sad sad to think adults are that foolish...and that the struggle for 'perfection' is so great...
the whole Olympic 'race' seems more political than sports minded.. i guess competition is competition whether it be in the sport arena or the political arena... we try and teach our children fairness in competition but what they see is a different thing altogether... and we wonder why our world is the way it is... rant rant rant!!!

on to a new note... the Millet Oat Bread (minus the Oat flour, cause i didn't have any) was cheerfully eaten by daughter as well... now if i can just convince the wee one that its yummy bread... atm she's away in Calgary.. its terribly quiet here, peaceful even... but miss her wise beyond her years comments...

Tardy Tuesday....

hmmmhmmm i've been tardy... i did say i'd post.. and here i go...abet a few days have passed since the last time....
BUT since then i've made bread and better pickles, mustard bean pickles, brined cucumbers (deli style) and am in the process of making pickled silverskin onions... this morning i opened up the jars of brined cucumbers... OMG!!! they are beginning to smell just like the dill pickles i love.. u know the ones.. they are at the deli and come with your fav veggie or pastrami sandwich!!! can't wait to give them a try in another few days... the trick supposedly is to only let them brine for a few days, and when they are to your liking, off to the fridge they go....
i only wish i was closer so i could share the spoils with you.... yum yum!!!

i've been trying hard to not eat wheat, and fell off last night... funny thing is that i bloated like crazy, felt very ill and spent a night of gas and finally upchucking... sooo back to the no wheat, i'm not sure if it's the culprit but am thinking that its a good possiblity.... whatever .. i feel better without it and not so bloated....
made a loaf of semi gluten free and it didn't agree with me either... so this morning... another recipe.. fully gluten free...
i've been on the prowl for gluten free recipes and came across some pretty good blogs...
Gluten Free Mommy is a good one... she has some great links as well..

MMMMGOOD was the Gluten Free Mommy's Millet Oat Bread recipe.. i didn't have all the ingredients so made some substitutions... like Coconut Flour for the Sweet Rice Flour... and used my basic 'flour' mix for the base flour amount... pretty much if it adds up to the same amount it should work!! starch for starch tho... not sure of the chemistry but i'm sure that is one thing that does make a difference...

yesterday was kind of fun... went to Habitant for Humanity store... found some 'fake' bricks and other assorted 'fake' stone 'thingies'... all for $15.00... which is pretty much a steal for that stuff... still not sure what i'll do with it but who knows... my poor lilacs need a new space, their pots are crumbling as i type... sighhh... but for 4 years in the same pot.. not doing so bad.... anyways will have to make myself do some labour i guess..
the day before i found some board ends (cedar) from Gogo's mill... so promptly brought those home too... one never knows when these things will be used...

fertilized all my garden stuff today, its grey and lightly cloudy.. if that makes any sense!! so used the 'stinky' fish fertilizer.. wasn't too bad actually... it's a new to me brand... mmm good sniffing for black dogs...

Tomatoes....

are a growing.. prolly the best thing left in my garden... fertilized them this morning... we shall see if that produces a better, bigger crop... unfortunately.... i see no more blossoms.... but with some water, sun and fertilizer.. should have a burst in a couple of weeks....

t and g came back last night... from their adventures in the woods.. they decided that Prince George was out... but that they'd go inland, up in the mountains, on t's quad... i wish i wish... i'd love to do that, would be a riot... and it only cost 20$ for gas, to go 120 km... thats about 70 plus miles... they even saw a bear, deer, squirrels, elk... not sure what else... the elusive cougar was not to be seen... and prolly good, since we on vancouver island have the most aggressive cougars in the world, and the most docile black bears... go figure....

Monday Morning...... holiday

today is a holiday... if your canadian... actually it's just another day... pulling weeds and watered a bunch of things...
not very exciting i'm afraid... but interspersed with phone calls from a distraught mom who's bratty teen and friend didn't come home last night... sooooooo i checked the trailer... hmmmm ditto at this house.... thank god i'm not a parent anymore... but unfortunately the trailer maybe removed soon... at my doing.... sometimes being a grandma ain't what it's cracked up to be... speaking of cracked....
had an egg today... first one in a month.. ackkkkkk... a white egg no less.. and store bought.. i sure miss those chickens....had a doe and fawn in the garden yesterday....now that dora and sampson are back, that will be far and few between... they are maturing, the romps out in the field are less, and shorter.. more snoozing ... mind u, up all night watching for criminals can wear out a doggy.... dora is a good little watch dog... she excels at her job....sampson just thinks life is grand, whatever dora does, he does... woofy woofy....

The Mad Dash......

going north.... 'wagon ho'... err.. well you know... throw the stuff in the car, grab the puppies.. and off back to Canada... was a generally uneventful trip... except for Portland there wasn't even a lot of traffic.... landed in Canada with no trouble... the Border guard was very pleasant and merely mentioned that i had my dogs to cover the fact that i was smuggling in drugs and alcohol... my reply was 'oh sure', he chuckled and said.. welcome back... whew.... no strip search this time... and NO, i had no drugs, no alcohol, no nothing... not even too much gift value... i've decided i'm simply too boring for words... but saves on fixing my vehicle after they've shredded it....guess i have a healthy respect for 'da law'...

sirens howling, 4 firetrucks just flew past on a mission... 'welcome back'.... it's fire season and even tho we've had rain, its bone dry and ready for sparking.... it's a long weekend here so lots of campers and 'riverities' (those who go to the river to party hearty)
speaking of burning... daughter #2 is fried... she had to go to vancouver today... 4 hrs on the ferry(2 hrs each way)... laid out side... utoh.... fire engine red...

as yet i have no pics... my garden.... well... i have plenty of tomatoes coming.... my lettuce and other cold season crops have all bolted, 6 feet high and swollen with seed pods, the peas are finished... sighhh.... but am thinking i might just pull them out and plant some new ones... sometimes we get lucky and its a long enough season for a new crop...
and i found 5 big pepper plants today $1.50 each.... even if i only get 1 pepper per plant... i'm ahead of the game... since peppers are astronomical in price.. AND one of the worst victims of the pesticide game... mmm nothing like a little pesticide to make yer hair fall out...makes me wanna never eat an unorganic pepper...

anyways.. thats my 'job' tomorrow... planting them up in pots and putting them somewhere warm.... since our 'summer' isn't quite the temperature that peppers like... mmmm now where did i put that parka???