It is hard to think it has been a week since I have last written and that I have spent a week in this beautiful city called Seattle, Washington! The last time I left you, I was wrapping up my stay in Portland, Oregon with a high school friend, Amanda. The morning was spent having a leisurely breakfast and then a lesson in felting. It was really fun. Felting is not hard to do, but very time consuming. Ebeth and I helped Amanda make earrings. Amanda is showcasing her artwork in a crafts show in Birmingham, Alabama. If you want learn about it, research it yourself. It is too long to explain on this particular blog. So between felting and getting ourselves packed and ready to go, we said good-bye to our friend Amanda and got on the road by early afternoon.
We left the state that requires someone to pump your gas for you for a state that allows you to pump your own gas! In the fair state of Oregon, it is required to allow the attendant to pump your gas for you. You are not allowed. If you do, you will get yelled at. So lesson of this story, don’t pump your own gas in the state of Oregon. By about 6 pm we were at the house of Beth and Cindy. We settled in and got some grub. Ebeth and I shared a room down in the basement. It is very cozy. Two twin beds, in a dark room, with one window and slightly cold – which equals perfect sleeping conditions. Laura was very happy.
The next day and a half was spent on a whirlwind tour of Seattle. In the morning, we got some breakfast while the kids were leaving for school. Ebeth and I were ready to go with Cindy on the bus downtown, to explore the city by 9:30am. Cindy showed us where Pike Place Market was and pointed out a few places to check out. Reluctantly she had to leave for work, leaving Ebeth and I free to explore the city’s charm. We spent about an hour in the market. I got a brief overview of where I would come back to and explore. The market was so cool! We saw so much stuff. We made one stop at one of the many fishmongers. Here a boy named Scott worked, a friend of friends from Colorado College. We got to try a few items and I even got to hold a frozen fish! It was pretty cool. We moved on and walked through Pioneer Square (the oldest part of Seattle) to get to the ferries! We took a ferry to Bainbridge. It was about a 30 minute ferry ride with amazing breath-taking views of mountains (mount Rainer). We got off the ferry and took a stroll through town. I was in dire need of caffeine, so we stopped at a darling bakery, Black Bird Bakery, for coffee and something sweet. Once I was caffeine up, we walked around a bit and then had to sprint to make the ferry departing for Seattle. It was a close call, but we made it. Our ferry mission was complete. Next mission: to find bimbo’s bitchin’ burrito kitchen. We walked, got a bus and found the spot, only to be dismayed. The whole block was bulldozed over, leaving nothing standing. Our lunch spot was nonexistent. So a little hungry, we began to walk back down to the main street. We stopped at an Asian eatery to satisfy Ebeth’s need for food. It was getting late and we had to make a stop at the grocery store, I was making dinner for the family. We decided to call it a day and catch a bus back up to Ballard (the in city neighborhood Beth and Cindy live in). Tonight’s meal: turkey chili.
1 pound ground turkey
1onion
2 celery
2 carrots
1can beans
1 large can whole tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
Salt and pepper
Red wine
Olive oil
Garnish: sour cream, fritos, green onion, cheese
Method:
In a large pot, brown turkey in a bit of olive oil. Add vegetables and sauté for about 5 minutes. Stir about 1/3 c. of red wine or other type of liquid to the pot. This gets all the bits up from the bottom of your pan. Add beans and tomato sauce. Add whole tomatoes, but squeeze the tomatoes in your hand. Season with salt and pepper and cook on low, if you have the time, the longer your cook this the better it will taste. If you are short on time, you can crank the heat up to meld the flavors.
Saturday was a great, sunny day. Ebeth and I went to Elliott’s soccer game. Imagine six little boys running around on the field all trying to kick the soccer ball and then every once in awhile, a goalie would appear in the middle of the game, when he should be guarding the goal. The boys just want to kick the ball and score! Some boys showed a real passion for the game, some fancy foot work and control over the ball. It was impressive. After the game, Elliot’s team won (but they aren’t supposed to keep score), we all left. Ebeth went to hike in a near-by park and I hung out with everyone. By about 5pm, I drove Ebeth to the airport. She was catching a plane to see her boyfriend of three years in Los Angeles. I refer to him as ‘the boy’, but his real name is Jim and I will soon be able to finally meet him. I went back to eat some dinner and hang out with the family – a very relaxing day!
This past week has been just delightful. I have had numerous times to explore Pike’s Place Market and loved every minute of it. I have cooked a few dinners for the family and just hung out. Thursday, I went out to Redmond (a suburb of Seattle) to see some horse friends, Dick and Martha. I got to ride Martha’s gaited horse, five gaited, it WAS SO COOL! I have not ridden a gaited horse since my last horse show in July 2002. That is over 7 years! I would be sore the next day, and I was. When I got on the horse, I forgot how to breathe while riding. On my first pass, my stir-ups were too long; I was kind of a mess. But I got my stir-ups shortened and I was ready to go! I trotted, slow gait and racked the horse, both ways. I forgot what it feels like to be on something so powerful. It was such a wonderful rush. I remember why I love riding and why I don’t ride anymore – it is a riding bug, once you begin it, it is hard to stop. If you decide to stop, stop cold turkey or you will always be inching back into the saddle to show! I have to stop cold turkey, again. Damn. It was a great day, not just riding, but catching up with old friends.
For you who have not had the chance to explore Pike’s Place Market, I strongly suggest you go as soon as possible. This was one of my highlights of my whole trip! And it did not fail me. There are stalls crowding this stretch of prized real estate. The market over looks Elliot Bay and houses so many craftsmen, not just in pottery or painting, but food. This is a public farmer’s market opened year round and it is just amazing. Food stalls sell the usual fruit: apples, plums, oranges, blood oranges, tomatoes; and other items such as green beans, snow peas, celeriac, freshly foraged mushrooms and the list goes on. There are a few stalls of fishmongers. They continually shout and ask people if they need help to find something, more specifically to buy their fish. It is such a people watching place as well. AMAZING, if I have not mentioned it yet. I wish I could go into more detail, but I think you will have to come visit yourself. There is something for everyone in this haven of living.
Life in the Armitage/Larison house is pretty normal, as normal as it can be with two little kids. Do you know how much kids eat? The kitchen is cleaned up from one meal and destroyed in half a second, because you are eating again. Who knew? I guess parents of children. Beth and Cindy welcomed a new member to their family, about a month ago. His name is Buddy, a dog from Georgia. Beth’s sister, Alice, had ‘adopted’ this dog and was taking care of him. When Beth and Cindy decided to care for the dog, her brother Paul and girlfriend Sherri packed up the dog and brought him to his new home. Buddy is already a fixture in this household. Ruby, the youngest, absolutely adores the dog, hugging and kissing on him at all times. In the morning and night, especially bedtime for the children, Buddy seems to be possessed. He runs suicides among the chaos of getting ready for school and getting ready for bedtime. He likes to chew on his chew toys, but not as much as on your hands or Achilles’ tendon. In the morning, you can lie awake (though I have not) and hear the running of little feet, courtesy of Ruby and Elliott and right behind those beautiful little thumps comes a much greater sound of Buddy’s dragging paws. It is sounds like those that I will miss – honestly.
My time in Seattle has been amazing, but I must continue on my long journey home. Tomorrow I leave for Portland and once again visit the wonderful Amanda in her new hometown. She has made a request of chicken and dumplings. And maybe a dessert will be thrown in. Stay tuned for continuous driving road trip of the United States…
Here is a recipe of chicken soup I made the last night in Seattle. It was a big dinner. For dessert Ruby and I made pain au chocolate – her favorite pastry. We made some pastry filled with butterscotch chips for Elliott, he does not like chocolate! Weird! Hope you enjoy this fall weather soup!!
1 store brought chicken, cut into bit size pieces
2 carrots, small diced
1 celery, small diced
1 onion,small diced
1 can beans, lightly drained
2 big containers of chicken stock
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
White wine
Green beans (optional)
Method:
In a large pot, sauté all the vegetables in one tablespoon of olive oil, adding salt and pepper, about 5 minutes on medium high. Add white wine or some kind of liquid, about ¼ c., and stir to get all the bits up from the bottom. Add beans, green beans and chicken pieces. Add stock. Stir and cook for 20 minutes uncovered at a medium heat. Taste and season if you need. Serve with cheese toast or crackers.
Sunday, October 04, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
The State Wide Tour
So my traveling has once again begun. A long time friend, Ebeth, and I are taking to the road and traveling. The ultimate destination: Seattle, Washington, by way of the northern states from Birmingham, Alabama. Once we arrive to the ultimate destination, we will return back to Alabama via the southern states. This is going to be one hell of a trip, lasting about a month, give or take a few days. Who is ready?? I am.
Ebeth arrived in Birmingham September 11th. The following morning we were set to leave. First, a huge breakfast for mom, my brother and sister-in-law, my step father and step sister, we feasted upon biscuits, homemade sausage gravy, and lightly scrambled eggs with herbs. It was great to see everyone and enjoy a meal before we left, but it pushed our departure time up by hours. After a few pictures, mom just had to take them, Ebeth and I were all loaded in my red audi and pulled out of the driveway. Our adventure had begun! Officially.
First stop, Jonesboro Arkansas. My cousins, Johnna and Travis, have a house on a lovely spread of land. They have horses and two children who are cute as pie. We stayed two nights in Arkansas. Johnna was a lovely guide. There isn’t much to Arkansas (sorry if this offends those who live there). Arkansas is lovely. It is covered with farm land. We were told that Arkansas produces massive amounts of rice and even ships it to Japan. Pretty cool. We ate Vietnamese food and saw the small town of Jonesboro. Ebeth and I, in the past showed horses, she showed hunter jumpers and I showed Saddlebreds. When we were at the farm, Johnna let us ride a quarter horse, a first for me. It was completely different, a totally different experience for me. You reined the horse, meaning you would use one hand to guide the horse and to hole the reins. He was very sensitive to the word “whoa”. When you said it, he did it. I mean complete stop, no fussing. It was great. It was really cool to experience it. Then it was up to the house to make an old fashioned dinner – chicken and dumplings. It was so good.
1 – store brought chicken, picked clean, no skin, bite sized
2 carrots, small dice
2 celery sticks, small dice
1 onion, small dice
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 c. chicken stock
½ c. butter plus 2 T.
½ c. flour
1 T. olive oil
Cornstarch for thickening
1 can of biscuits, cut into fourths
Salt and pepper
Method:
In a large pot, heat 2 T. butter and oil. Sauté onions and garlic for 2 minutes. Add carrots and celery. Once all vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes, melt butter completely and stir flour in. this is called making a roux – a thickening agent for soups. Cook while continuing to stir for 2 to 3 minutes. You want to cook the flour out, the raw taste. With a whisk, slowly add the chicken stock while whisking the mixture. Let the mixture come to a boil. If the mixture is not thick enough (should coat the back of a wooden spoon, when you run your finger across the back, the liquid should stay in place, not going into the clean space), combine cornstarch with liquid from the pot. Then whisk in slowly. (remember to let the new addition come to a boil, before adding more cornstarch). Once the liquid is thick enough, add the chicken and the biscuit fourths. Do not stir this mixture until the dumplings are cooked. You can shake the pan and push the dumplings down into the liquid, BUT BE CAREFUL! This should cook another 10 to 15 minutes. Then ladle into bowls and enjoy!
The following day we left to stay a few nights in Chicago, Illinois with a high school friend. We were going through St. Louis to see THE Arch or the Gateway Arch. We parked at the waterfront, got out quickly, snapped a few pictures and were on our way again. It was a great stop and well worth it. Then another couple of hours in the car and we were in Chicago. Here we meet up with some high school friends, Amy and Katie. We got a deep dish pizza, as only Chicago can provide and some red wine. It was a great night, spent catching up and eating and drinking! Who doesn’t love that kind of night? The next day we spend exploring the city, seeing the bean, the Chicago museum and the Sears tower, now called the Willis tower (stupid renaming!) The night was spent dining on another meal I created: chicken scallopini, macaroni and cheese, broccoli and for dessert, homemade brownies with vanilla ice cream. And of course, red wine! After dinner, we went to a neighborhood bar and drank whiskey and answered trivia questions. It was a great night!
After two nights in Chicago, we left to travel to South Dakota. Now I will be honest, I have no expectations of this state. I didn’t even know where it was, except for in the Midwest somewhere. It took us longer than expected to get to Sioux Falls from Chicago, but we got there. We were staying with my mother’s little sister from her sorority days at Florida State, Charlene. Go Pi Phi! We ate dinner and just hung out, catching up. I had not seen her and her daughter, Jordan, since I was five. We decided to stay another night, so the next day we toured Sioux Falls – seeing the falls and visiting the places of work where out hostesses worked. It was pretty cool. Then we went to have a true English beer at a true English pub. It was great! For dinner we went to a Japanese restaurant. On this leg of the trip I did not cook, except for Ebeth and me – scrambled eggs and black beans, sooo good!
We stayed in South Dakota for a few days, but we moved from Sioux Falls to visit a corn palace, the Badlands, Wall drug and Mount Rushmore. The corn palace was a side of a building that was covered in corn to make a mural. Inside of this building was a gym that was holding a polka dance. It wasn’t too cool inside, except for the murals up on the stage. The Badlands was so cool! We went hiking on this awesome trail – climbing a wooden ladder and crawling on rocks to this beautiful view! The Badlands is this mountainous area that just erupted on the prairie grasslands of South Dakota. From afar, you just see big mountains, but when you get up close you can see the colors and the texture of the mountains forming. To me, the Badlands look like lots of drip castles put together to make this badass formation of rocks on the setting of The Little House on the Prairie. From here went around the loop that took us to the Badlands to Wall drug. This is a shopping mall that got known for offering ice water for free for travelers. The place grew to develop into a tourist attraction – offering more than just water – ice cream, food, souvenirs, even a place to get hitched (married, but also a place for you to tie up your horse). We stopped for a second, to get Ebeth an ice cream and then got on our way. Our last stop in South Dakota was Mount Rushmore. It was about an hour away and it was I guess worth the trip. It was cool to see the four presidents on this monumental slab of rock. I think some things you just have to see because you have to see them, this is one of them. It was then back into the car and off to a sleeping destination somewhere in Wyoming.
We woke up the next morning early to go to Yellowstone National park. It was a long day. We drove to old faithful – Ebeth and I watched the geyser go off around 2:53. After the explosion, she went to hike and I went to find food and read in the sun. It was a perfect day for the both of us. Then by 6pm, we were back in the car and off to find another place to sleep somewhere in Idaho.
From Idaho we only did one sight seeing thing – the Craters of the Moon. This is located in Idaho and it is pretty cool, like the Badlands. Idaho is pretty flat and grassy and filled with lots of haystacks, like the other states we have visited. The land to the left and right of us were covered with corn fields and bales of hay, for just about every state, except in Alabama. It was great. Anyways, this particular site is lava that has cooled and made these amazing craters and people believed it is a replica of the moon – hence the name. Driving through Idaho, we passed so many volcanoes, not necessarily dormant. These volcanoes, a long time ago, once flowed lava and made formations. Lava tunnels were made to carry the lava thousands of feet away from the active sight. The tunnels would cool leaving behind large openings through the underground. It was so cool. We walked in a tunnel, Indian Tunnel. We walked on lava and climbed over lava rocks. We climbed out of the tunnel and saw what seemed miles of lava fields. It looked so weird, but so cool. I can’t even really describe it. You just need to go experience it for yourself. GO.
We left Craters of the Moon and left for Portland Oregon. Here we meet up with a childhood friend, Amanda. She just moved out to Portland about a month ago to practice being a doula, like a midwife but you cannot do medical things during the birth. Ebeth and I spent a few days here just spending time with Amanda, catching up on our lives and seeing the city of Portland and the beach of the Oregon coast. I made dinner for Amanda, Ebeth and one of Amanda’s best friends from college, Romana. I believe, Amanda and Romana lived together in college and once again, they are living together. I had heard a lot about her and it was great to finally meet her. We have had a blast hanging out here and seeing Portland. But cooking has been the best part. Ebeth and I have been living off of fast food it seems, so cooking was a treat for me as well. I made mushroom risotto (chanterelles Romana had picked), a variety of mushrooms, pork tenderloin with salsa verde, spinach with breadcrumbs and cheese and asparagus with shallots for Ebeth. For dessert Amanda made shortcake with blackberries Romana had picked and hand whipped cream. It was a yummy dinner! And of course red wine. Our time in Portland has been a joy to spend with old friends and new friends. Ebeth and I are leaving tomorrow to head to Seattle, Washington to stay with some cousins, Beth, Cindy, Elliot and Ruby. It is going to be great to settle for a week or so. Stay tuned and I will write about Seattle, maybe. If you know anything to do or see or eat in California, Arizona, New Mexico or Texas, let me know! That is how we are heading home.
So my traveling has once again begun. A long time friend, Ebeth, and I are taking to the road and traveling. The ultimate destination: Seattle, Washington, by way of the northern states from Birmingham, Alabama. Once we arrive to the ultimate destination, we will return back to Alabama via the southern states. This is going to be one hell of a trip, lasting about a month, give or take a few days. Who is ready?? I am.
Ebeth arrived in Birmingham September 11th. The following morning we were set to leave. First, a huge breakfast for mom, my brother and sister-in-law, my step father and step sister, we feasted upon biscuits, homemade sausage gravy, and lightly scrambled eggs with herbs. It was great to see everyone and enjoy a meal before we left, but it pushed our departure time up by hours. After a few pictures, mom just had to take them, Ebeth and I were all loaded in my red audi and pulled out of the driveway. Our adventure had begun! Officially.
First stop, Jonesboro Arkansas. My cousins, Johnna and Travis, have a house on a lovely spread of land. They have horses and two children who are cute as pie. We stayed two nights in Arkansas. Johnna was a lovely guide. There isn’t much to Arkansas (sorry if this offends those who live there). Arkansas is lovely. It is covered with farm land. We were told that Arkansas produces massive amounts of rice and even ships it to Japan. Pretty cool. We ate Vietnamese food and saw the small town of Jonesboro. Ebeth and I, in the past showed horses, she showed hunter jumpers and I showed Saddlebreds. When we were at the farm, Johnna let us ride a quarter horse, a first for me. It was completely different, a totally different experience for me. You reined the horse, meaning you would use one hand to guide the horse and to hole the reins. He was very sensitive to the word “whoa”. When you said it, he did it. I mean complete stop, no fussing. It was great. It was really cool to experience it. Then it was up to the house to make an old fashioned dinner – chicken and dumplings. It was so good.
1 – store brought chicken, picked clean, no skin, bite sized
2 carrots, small dice
2 celery sticks, small dice
1 onion, small dice
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 c. chicken stock
½ c. butter plus 2 T.
½ c. flour
1 T. olive oil
Cornstarch for thickening
1 can of biscuits, cut into fourths
Salt and pepper
Method:
In a large pot, heat 2 T. butter and oil. Sauté onions and garlic for 2 minutes. Add carrots and celery. Once all vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes, melt butter completely and stir flour in. this is called making a roux – a thickening agent for soups. Cook while continuing to stir for 2 to 3 minutes. You want to cook the flour out, the raw taste. With a whisk, slowly add the chicken stock while whisking the mixture. Let the mixture come to a boil. If the mixture is not thick enough (should coat the back of a wooden spoon, when you run your finger across the back, the liquid should stay in place, not going into the clean space), combine cornstarch with liquid from the pot. Then whisk in slowly. (remember to let the new addition come to a boil, before adding more cornstarch). Once the liquid is thick enough, add the chicken and the biscuit fourths. Do not stir this mixture until the dumplings are cooked. You can shake the pan and push the dumplings down into the liquid, BUT BE CAREFUL! This should cook another 10 to 15 minutes. Then ladle into bowls and enjoy!
The following day we left to stay a few nights in Chicago, Illinois with a high school friend. We were going through St. Louis to see THE Arch or the Gateway Arch. We parked at the waterfront, got out quickly, snapped a few pictures and were on our way again. It was a great stop and well worth it. Then another couple of hours in the car and we were in Chicago. Here we meet up with some high school friends, Amy and Katie. We got a deep dish pizza, as only Chicago can provide and some red wine. It was a great night, spent catching up and eating and drinking! Who doesn’t love that kind of night? The next day we spend exploring the city, seeing the bean, the Chicago museum and the Sears tower, now called the Willis tower (stupid renaming!) The night was spent dining on another meal I created: chicken scallopini, macaroni and cheese, broccoli and for dessert, homemade brownies with vanilla ice cream. And of course, red wine! After dinner, we went to a neighborhood bar and drank whiskey and answered trivia questions. It was a great night!
After two nights in Chicago, we left to travel to South Dakota. Now I will be honest, I have no expectations of this state. I didn’t even know where it was, except for in the Midwest somewhere. It took us longer than expected to get to Sioux Falls from Chicago, but we got there. We were staying with my mother’s little sister from her sorority days at Florida State, Charlene. Go Pi Phi! We ate dinner and just hung out, catching up. I had not seen her and her daughter, Jordan, since I was five. We decided to stay another night, so the next day we toured Sioux Falls – seeing the falls and visiting the places of work where out hostesses worked. It was pretty cool. Then we went to have a true English beer at a true English pub. It was great! For dinner we went to a Japanese restaurant. On this leg of the trip I did not cook, except for Ebeth and me – scrambled eggs and black beans, sooo good!
We stayed in South Dakota for a few days, but we moved from Sioux Falls to visit a corn palace, the Badlands, Wall drug and Mount Rushmore. The corn palace was a side of a building that was covered in corn to make a mural. Inside of this building was a gym that was holding a polka dance. It wasn’t too cool inside, except for the murals up on the stage. The Badlands was so cool! We went hiking on this awesome trail – climbing a wooden ladder and crawling on rocks to this beautiful view! The Badlands is this mountainous area that just erupted on the prairie grasslands of South Dakota. From afar, you just see big mountains, but when you get up close you can see the colors and the texture of the mountains forming. To me, the Badlands look like lots of drip castles put together to make this badass formation of rocks on the setting of The Little House on the Prairie. From here went around the loop that took us to the Badlands to Wall drug. This is a shopping mall that got known for offering ice water for free for travelers. The place grew to develop into a tourist attraction – offering more than just water – ice cream, food, souvenirs, even a place to get hitched (married, but also a place for you to tie up your horse). We stopped for a second, to get Ebeth an ice cream and then got on our way. Our last stop in South Dakota was Mount Rushmore. It was about an hour away and it was I guess worth the trip. It was cool to see the four presidents on this monumental slab of rock. I think some things you just have to see because you have to see them, this is one of them. It was then back into the car and off to a sleeping destination somewhere in Wyoming.
We woke up the next morning early to go to Yellowstone National park. It was a long day. We drove to old faithful – Ebeth and I watched the geyser go off around 2:53. After the explosion, she went to hike and I went to find food and read in the sun. It was a perfect day for the both of us. Then by 6pm, we were back in the car and off to find another place to sleep somewhere in Idaho.
From Idaho we only did one sight seeing thing – the Craters of the Moon. This is located in Idaho and it is pretty cool, like the Badlands. Idaho is pretty flat and grassy and filled with lots of haystacks, like the other states we have visited. The land to the left and right of us were covered with corn fields and bales of hay, for just about every state, except in Alabama. It was great. Anyways, this particular site is lava that has cooled and made these amazing craters and people believed it is a replica of the moon – hence the name. Driving through Idaho, we passed so many volcanoes, not necessarily dormant. These volcanoes, a long time ago, once flowed lava and made formations. Lava tunnels were made to carry the lava thousands of feet away from the active sight. The tunnels would cool leaving behind large openings through the underground. It was so cool. We walked in a tunnel, Indian Tunnel. We walked on lava and climbed over lava rocks. We climbed out of the tunnel and saw what seemed miles of lava fields. It looked so weird, but so cool. I can’t even really describe it. You just need to go experience it for yourself. GO.
We left Craters of the Moon and left for Portland Oregon. Here we meet up with a childhood friend, Amanda. She just moved out to Portland about a month ago to practice being a doula, like a midwife but you cannot do medical things during the birth. Ebeth and I spent a few days here just spending time with Amanda, catching up on our lives and seeing the city of Portland and the beach of the Oregon coast. I made dinner for Amanda, Ebeth and one of Amanda’s best friends from college, Romana. I believe, Amanda and Romana lived together in college and once again, they are living together. I had heard a lot about her and it was great to finally meet her. We have had a blast hanging out here and seeing Portland. But cooking has been the best part. Ebeth and I have been living off of fast food it seems, so cooking was a treat for me as well. I made mushroom risotto (chanterelles Romana had picked), a variety of mushrooms, pork tenderloin with salsa verde, spinach with breadcrumbs and cheese and asparagus with shallots for Ebeth. For dessert Amanda made shortcake with blackberries Romana had picked and hand whipped cream. It was a yummy dinner! And of course red wine. Our time in Portland has been a joy to spend with old friends and new friends. Ebeth and I are leaving tomorrow to head to Seattle, Washington to stay with some cousins, Beth, Cindy, Elliot and Ruby. It is going to be great to settle for a week or so. Stay tuned and I will write about Seattle, maybe. If you know anything to do or see or eat in California, Arizona, New Mexico or Texas, let me know! That is how we are heading home.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
So much has happened since the last time I have written. The last time I wrote I was about to go for demonstration at a local B and B. 3 chefs from Johnston and Wales from the Denver campus were coming up to show off some of their skills. I showed up for dinner the night before to meet the chefs. It was a long night with good food and wine of course. I got to talk with the chefs and learn a little more about them.
The next day I woke up early and went to Leroux Creek Inn, where this demonstration was going to take place. We were thrown into it. We started prep work and cooking. Around 10am people began to show up and the demonstration began. One of the chefs, the vegetable chef, did not show up. We had no idea where he was or what had happened to him. The other chefs asked me to step in and take his place. I said ok. However, instead of cooking and telling about the ratatouille, I talked about what I was doing in the North Fork Valley. I told them about my back round and what I had learned while working on the farm. It was a lot of fun. The day ended in success. Everyone loved the food, a lot of wine was sold and the chefs were happy.
The next couple of weeks, life on the farm continued as usual. Waking up and doing work on the farm. The vineyard was finally done. We had tied and cut and now the vineyard looks terrific! The peaches and apples were coming along. Life was really good.
At the end of August our family welcomed a new addition, my new niece, Stella Virginia Samford. She was born on the 22nd of august in the afternoon. Before I left to go home to see my niece, I had the privilege to help celebrate a 21st birthday, Emily’s. It was so much fun. Emily, Wink, Max and I took the afternoon off. We all got off the farm to run errands, pick up yummy chocolates and try a lot of alcohol.
We began with lunch at a brewery in Palisades. We had beer. First we tried the four different beers and then settled on one with our meal. It was nice not having to cook and enjoying the afternoon with a cold beer. After lunch we walked a few hundred feet to a distillery, Peach Distillery. Here, if you can’t figure it out with the name, is an alcohol place. We tried some vodka, bourbon and other stuff. I only tried the bourbon – very good.
After purchasing a few bottles, we all piled into the car and headed for another stop. This time it would be a winery, Debeque Canyon. We tried some wines and talked to the owner, they are close friends to Wink and Max.
After being all alcoholed up, we piled into the car again and drove a little farther to get a few items we need. We then left by 5pm to go back to Paonia for a private tasting at a nanobrewery. It was fantastic. Another friend staying on the farm meet us there, with his cat, Bobby. It was near 7 when we left and went to get food at the local pizzeria. The day was just perfect! I hope Emily had a wonderful 21st birthday.
A few days later she left to go home for college at Colorado State. A few days after she left I left to go home to see my niece, Stella Virginia. I would like to take the time to tell you all that she is wonderful! She is beautiful and she already has everyone doing everything for her. The first grandchild for the parents and the first niece/nephew for the siblings!
I was back on the farm for 3 more weeks. This time we began to pick peaches. That means, we were picking by sunrise and then packing them during the day. Picking peaches has to be done by touch, but without bruising them. It is a way of feel when you hold the fresh peach in the palm of your hand. At the end of the day, I think I understood it. We picked and picked and picked some more. Peaches in the morning are hard because of the cold night’s Colorado air. This is why you pick early in the morning. You have to stop picking when the peaches give just a slightest bit. We would be picking by 6:15 and stopping by about 10isham.
A week or so after we started picking peaches we were allowed to pick apples!!! Apples can be harvest any time, all day long. During this time I am also harvesting the green beans, tomatoes and the other things on the farm. This is a wonderful time to be on the farm!
My last really big deal on the farm was actually not on the farm. A local culinary school in Boulder came up for a 10 days to learn about Farm to Table. I was able to tag along and see some of the things they saw – farms and such. To celebrate their last day in the North Fork and what they had learned in the Farm to Table program, they had a big dinner. The day before the event, we were able to see a lamb being slaughtered. It was very interesting and educational. I won’t go into detail, because it might gross people out, but the slaughter was very interesting. It gives you an appreciation for food. We then went to begin prep for the dinner. I went to help out – 10am to 6pm. It was fun being with students.
These students had only been in session for a couple of months. Some knew about cooking before hand, others were just a tad slower. I had fun getting to know the students and what they wanted to do. I would be with them all day tomorrow as well.
The following day began with prep in the kitchen for a few hours. We then packed up and went to the farm, Zephros Farm. We set-up our work space in the middle of the farm. My plan was to help when needed. I didn’t want to jump in. This was their dinner. I hung out and talked with Yvon, who was cooking the lamb, drinking wine and doing what was needed when I saw something. The bread we were serving for dinner did not work out so well in transport, so we had to do some damage control – I worked on that.
The night was good. It flew by. The students did a wonderful job – a real camaraderie with them. I stayed and helped clean-up. After all clean-up is part of the job. All the food was gone, we got nothing. So after loading up the cars with the students and with our equipment, I went back with the students to eat and hang-out with them. This is how I spend my last night in the North Fork.
The next morning I spend packing fruit, cleaning my house, packing and packing my car. I said good-bye and was gone from the North Fork Valley by about 4pm. I was on my way home, with a quick stop in Colorado Springs to see my friend Amanda and a stop in Denver to see friends Cory McEwen and her boy and pick up my step-sister Amy.
My adventure out west was amazing, a wonderful time spent digging in the dirt and learning about growing. My short amount of time in the North Fork was well spent, learning as much as I could and taking part in everything I could. I hope everyone digs in the dirt and get their nails dirty – it’s a good feeling. Thank you to all those in the North Fork, it was a pleasure in getting to know you and hopefully our paths will cross again.
Since I have been home a ton has happened. I have gotten to know my niece, Stella, just a bit more. She is still beautiful and she still has everyone doing everything she needs. She has grown and is developing rapidly. I love her.
At the end of September my sister, Suzanne, got married at The Ford Plantation in Richmond Hill Georgia. It was a beautiful wedding. Tons of friends, tons of family, lots of drink, lots of food and a wonderful celebration of life, through the joining of two people and two families. The fun filled weekend was very busy with lots of activities. I made the groom’s cake for the wedding – a reese’s cake, peanut butter cake, peanut butter mousse and chocolate icing. It was good, I was told. I didn’t get a piece. The night of the wedding I spent on the dance floor, dancing my heart out! It was so much fun.
It was then time to go home to recharge and regroup. My next adventure was off to Europe for the two week intensive program.
I arrived in Paris on a Sunday afternoon. I took a long walk through the Paris streets and looked. I went to find Le Cordon Bleu and it was still the same as before. I then decided to walk back to where I used to live when I went to school. My neighborhood was not far away. I remembered the way, like the back of my hand. I found some of my old bakeries open!!! SCORE. I was able to get some food. I hadn’t eaten yet, so I was really happy.
After a few hours, I finally got back to my hotel and relaxed. There was a welcoming dinner at 7:30 in the hotel. It was like any other large group meeting for the first time, a little awkward. I walked in and there were a lot of other men and women. WOW. I thought I hope I am not the youngest (later I would find out I am the youngest). People were soon quite and we all introduced ourselves to one another. We toasted with champagne.
We were led across the way and had dinner. It was hotel food, not so great. But we got to meet a few people and had a good time with all that. I called it an early night – I had not slept for about 36 hours. So I excused myself and went to bed.
The next morning we had breakfast and I led a group of people to Le Cordon Bleu. The program had officially begun. We had our classes at Le Cordon Bleu on the first floor demonstration room, oh the memories. We had many lecturers and some of the lectures were interesting, while others were not.
One of the lecturers was Herve This. This is the guy who is the king of molecular gastronomy. It was amazing to hear him speak. He didn’t have long, but we all soaked it up, whatever he had to say. Another night we would have dinner with him and his wife, a dinner on molecular gastronomy.
The week continued with meals all over the city. We had a medieval dinner at Gregoire-Ferrandi school. They pulled out all the stops for us. It was a great meal and the service was impeccable.
One day we had class at the Sorbonne. That was neat to be there. We then had a lunch with terroir products – food from specific regions, known for that particular food or wine.
Another day, well I should day at one in the morning, we went to Rungis Market, the largest market in Europe. It was amazing! We got to see everything. We took a bus to get to the market. You have to sign in, not just anyone is allowed to come in here. We took a walk through the seafood pavilion. It was huge! There was fish everywhere, any type of fish you could imagine. There were lobsters, crab, swordfish, tile fish, flat fish, round fish, mussels, and so much more. It was incredible to see this in progress. We then went to the meat sector. There were huge halves of beef hanging, quarters of beef hanging, pig…it was incredible to see the amount of animal in the pavilion. We saw the packaged meat products, mostly game birds, since it is the season. Everything was all neat and pretty. There were a few animals that were still fully dressed (they had their heads, fur and so on still in tact). That was a sight to see. We went to visit the offal section. This is the heart, lungs, liver…the insides that people use to make the delicacies. It was pretty cool. We got to see how they take apart a cow’s head, to get to the brain, the check meat and how they use the skin. It was all very impressive. Our next stop was the cheese/dairy section, then the vegetable section. The vegetables had everything you could imagine! Mushrooms of all kinds, fruits, vegetables some of which I had never seen…they had I think 8 of these pavilions for vegetables. There is a picture of Frank Stitt in his cookbook with just bags of haricot verts, well what I saw in just one warehouse would put that to shame…I know they work on different levels, but it was just jaw dropping to see the quantity they house. Our tour ended around 9, this included breakfast at some point. The early morning hours were well spent. The rest of the day I and a few others spent sleeping!
The last week of the program we left for Reims. We had an amazing dinner at the hotel restaurant, a two star called L’Assiette Champenoise. It was spectacular. This might have been for two reasons, first we hadn’t had a real decent meal since we got there and second, the service and atmosphere was impeccable. It was a real treat.
The next week was spent having lecturers at the local university, lunch at one place (with the same plating and decorations for the plate, with ok food) and dinners at different places! The dinners were just amazing – the food ok, the champagne and wine amazing and the ambiance incredible! Our first dinner was at the champagne house of Veuve Clicquot. To make you jealous I’ll just tell you what we drank: 1998 Veuve Clicquot le Grande Dame, Veuve Clicquot Vintage Rose 2002, Veuve Clicquot Rare Vintage 1998 and for dessert Veuve Clicquot Demi-sec carafe.
The next dinner was a the champagne house of G. H. Mumm. We began with a G.H. Mumm Cuvee R. Lalou 1998, Dom Perignon Oenotheque 1995, Krug 1995 and finally a G. H. Mumm Rose.
The next dinner was the Les Crayeres, another two star restaurant in Reims. This restaurant the restaurant we had our first meal, L’Assiette Champenoise, are fighting to be the best. We began with a vin Jaune 1999 Chateau d’Arlay, Beaune du Chateau ler Cru 2005 Bouchard Pere and Fils, Chateau Cheval Blanc 1998, and finally a Chateau d’Yquem 1998.
Our last meal to write about was with Mr. Krug himself. We dined at his house, after a private tour of the caves. We had a Krug Grande Cuvee, Krug 1996, Krug 1989 and with dessert a Krug Rose.
The last week was really something to write home about. It was all amazing. The whole course has been wonderful. I learned a few things I didn’t know and met a lot of really nice people. There was a blend of nationalities which made the program that much better. Everyone brought something different to the table. We were all from different back rounds: chefs, doctors, photographers, and many more. It was great to meet such a diversity of people. Hopefully I will see them again next year, when we get our diplomas!
Right now I am in Germany with cousin Andi, one of mom’s cousins. It has been great to just hang out. My plans are not in stone quite yet, but they are coming around. I’ll be back state side in a couple of weeks, definitely in time for the holidays…until then, I’ll try to make another update….take care everyone
Laura
The next day I woke up early and went to Leroux Creek Inn, where this demonstration was going to take place. We were thrown into it. We started prep work and cooking. Around 10am people began to show up and the demonstration began. One of the chefs, the vegetable chef, did not show up. We had no idea where he was or what had happened to him. The other chefs asked me to step in and take his place. I said ok. However, instead of cooking and telling about the ratatouille, I talked about what I was doing in the North Fork Valley. I told them about my back round and what I had learned while working on the farm. It was a lot of fun. The day ended in success. Everyone loved the food, a lot of wine was sold and the chefs were happy.
The next couple of weeks, life on the farm continued as usual. Waking up and doing work on the farm. The vineyard was finally done. We had tied and cut and now the vineyard looks terrific! The peaches and apples were coming along. Life was really good.
At the end of August our family welcomed a new addition, my new niece, Stella Virginia Samford. She was born on the 22nd of august in the afternoon. Before I left to go home to see my niece, I had the privilege to help celebrate a 21st birthday, Emily’s. It was so much fun. Emily, Wink, Max and I took the afternoon off. We all got off the farm to run errands, pick up yummy chocolates and try a lot of alcohol.
We began with lunch at a brewery in Palisades. We had beer. First we tried the four different beers and then settled on one with our meal. It was nice not having to cook and enjoying the afternoon with a cold beer. After lunch we walked a few hundred feet to a distillery, Peach Distillery. Here, if you can’t figure it out with the name, is an alcohol place. We tried some vodka, bourbon and other stuff. I only tried the bourbon – very good.
After purchasing a few bottles, we all piled into the car and headed for another stop. This time it would be a winery, Debeque Canyon. We tried some wines and talked to the owner, they are close friends to Wink and Max.
After being all alcoholed up, we piled into the car again and drove a little farther to get a few items we need. We then left by 5pm to go back to Paonia for a private tasting at a nanobrewery. It was fantastic. Another friend staying on the farm meet us there, with his cat, Bobby. It was near 7 when we left and went to get food at the local pizzeria. The day was just perfect! I hope Emily had a wonderful 21st birthday.
A few days later she left to go home for college at Colorado State. A few days after she left I left to go home to see my niece, Stella Virginia. I would like to take the time to tell you all that she is wonderful! She is beautiful and she already has everyone doing everything for her. The first grandchild for the parents and the first niece/nephew for the siblings!
I was back on the farm for 3 more weeks. This time we began to pick peaches. That means, we were picking by sunrise and then packing them during the day. Picking peaches has to be done by touch, but without bruising them. It is a way of feel when you hold the fresh peach in the palm of your hand. At the end of the day, I think I understood it. We picked and picked and picked some more. Peaches in the morning are hard because of the cold night’s Colorado air. This is why you pick early in the morning. You have to stop picking when the peaches give just a slightest bit. We would be picking by 6:15 and stopping by about 10isham.
A week or so after we started picking peaches we were allowed to pick apples!!! Apples can be harvest any time, all day long. During this time I am also harvesting the green beans, tomatoes and the other things on the farm. This is a wonderful time to be on the farm!
My last really big deal on the farm was actually not on the farm. A local culinary school in Boulder came up for a 10 days to learn about Farm to Table. I was able to tag along and see some of the things they saw – farms and such. To celebrate their last day in the North Fork and what they had learned in the Farm to Table program, they had a big dinner. The day before the event, we were able to see a lamb being slaughtered. It was very interesting and educational. I won’t go into detail, because it might gross people out, but the slaughter was very interesting. It gives you an appreciation for food. We then went to begin prep for the dinner. I went to help out – 10am to 6pm. It was fun being with students.
These students had only been in session for a couple of months. Some knew about cooking before hand, others were just a tad slower. I had fun getting to know the students and what they wanted to do. I would be with them all day tomorrow as well.
The following day began with prep in the kitchen for a few hours. We then packed up and went to the farm, Zephros Farm. We set-up our work space in the middle of the farm. My plan was to help when needed. I didn’t want to jump in. This was their dinner. I hung out and talked with Yvon, who was cooking the lamb, drinking wine and doing what was needed when I saw something. The bread we were serving for dinner did not work out so well in transport, so we had to do some damage control – I worked on that.
The night was good. It flew by. The students did a wonderful job – a real camaraderie with them. I stayed and helped clean-up. After all clean-up is part of the job. All the food was gone, we got nothing. So after loading up the cars with the students and with our equipment, I went back with the students to eat and hang-out with them. This is how I spend my last night in the North Fork.
The next morning I spend packing fruit, cleaning my house, packing and packing my car. I said good-bye and was gone from the North Fork Valley by about 4pm. I was on my way home, with a quick stop in Colorado Springs to see my friend Amanda and a stop in Denver to see friends Cory McEwen and her boy and pick up my step-sister Amy.
My adventure out west was amazing, a wonderful time spent digging in the dirt and learning about growing. My short amount of time in the North Fork was well spent, learning as much as I could and taking part in everything I could. I hope everyone digs in the dirt and get their nails dirty – it’s a good feeling. Thank you to all those in the North Fork, it was a pleasure in getting to know you and hopefully our paths will cross again.
Since I have been home a ton has happened. I have gotten to know my niece, Stella, just a bit more. She is still beautiful and she still has everyone doing everything she needs. She has grown and is developing rapidly. I love her.
At the end of September my sister, Suzanne, got married at The Ford Plantation in Richmond Hill Georgia. It was a beautiful wedding. Tons of friends, tons of family, lots of drink, lots of food and a wonderful celebration of life, through the joining of two people and two families. The fun filled weekend was very busy with lots of activities. I made the groom’s cake for the wedding – a reese’s cake, peanut butter cake, peanut butter mousse and chocolate icing. It was good, I was told. I didn’t get a piece. The night of the wedding I spent on the dance floor, dancing my heart out! It was so much fun.
It was then time to go home to recharge and regroup. My next adventure was off to Europe for the two week intensive program.
I arrived in Paris on a Sunday afternoon. I took a long walk through the Paris streets and looked. I went to find Le Cordon Bleu and it was still the same as before. I then decided to walk back to where I used to live when I went to school. My neighborhood was not far away. I remembered the way, like the back of my hand. I found some of my old bakeries open!!! SCORE. I was able to get some food. I hadn’t eaten yet, so I was really happy.
After a few hours, I finally got back to my hotel and relaxed. There was a welcoming dinner at 7:30 in the hotel. It was like any other large group meeting for the first time, a little awkward. I walked in and there were a lot of other men and women. WOW. I thought I hope I am not the youngest (later I would find out I am the youngest). People were soon quite and we all introduced ourselves to one another. We toasted with champagne.
We were led across the way and had dinner. It was hotel food, not so great. But we got to meet a few people and had a good time with all that. I called it an early night – I had not slept for about 36 hours. So I excused myself and went to bed.
The next morning we had breakfast and I led a group of people to Le Cordon Bleu. The program had officially begun. We had our classes at Le Cordon Bleu on the first floor demonstration room, oh the memories. We had many lecturers and some of the lectures were interesting, while others were not.
One of the lecturers was Herve This. This is the guy who is the king of molecular gastronomy. It was amazing to hear him speak. He didn’t have long, but we all soaked it up, whatever he had to say. Another night we would have dinner with him and his wife, a dinner on molecular gastronomy.
The week continued with meals all over the city. We had a medieval dinner at Gregoire-Ferrandi school. They pulled out all the stops for us. It was a great meal and the service was impeccable.
One day we had class at the Sorbonne. That was neat to be there. We then had a lunch with terroir products – food from specific regions, known for that particular food or wine.
Another day, well I should day at one in the morning, we went to Rungis Market, the largest market in Europe. It was amazing! We got to see everything. We took a bus to get to the market. You have to sign in, not just anyone is allowed to come in here. We took a walk through the seafood pavilion. It was huge! There was fish everywhere, any type of fish you could imagine. There were lobsters, crab, swordfish, tile fish, flat fish, round fish, mussels, and so much more. It was incredible to see this in progress. We then went to the meat sector. There were huge halves of beef hanging, quarters of beef hanging, pig…it was incredible to see the amount of animal in the pavilion. We saw the packaged meat products, mostly game birds, since it is the season. Everything was all neat and pretty. There were a few animals that were still fully dressed (they had their heads, fur and so on still in tact). That was a sight to see. We went to visit the offal section. This is the heart, lungs, liver…the insides that people use to make the delicacies. It was pretty cool. We got to see how they take apart a cow’s head, to get to the brain, the check meat and how they use the skin. It was all very impressive. Our next stop was the cheese/dairy section, then the vegetable section. The vegetables had everything you could imagine! Mushrooms of all kinds, fruits, vegetables some of which I had never seen…they had I think 8 of these pavilions for vegetables. There is a picture of Frank Stitt in his cookbook with just bags of haricot verts, well what I saw in just one warehouse would put that to shame…I know they work on different levels, but it was just jaw dropping to see the quantity they house. Our tour ended around 9, this included breakfast at some point. The early morning hours were well spent. The rest of the day I and a few others spent sleeping!
The last week of the program we left for Reims. We had an amazing dinner at the hotel restaurant, a two star called L’Assiette Champenoise. It was spectacular. This might have been for two reasons, first we hadn’t had a real decent meal since we got there and second, the service and atmosphere was impeccable. It was a real treat.
The next week was spent having lecturers at the local university, lunch at one place (with the same plating and decorations for the plate, with ok food) and dinners at different places! The dinners were just amazing – the food ok, the champagne and wine amazing and the ambiance incredible! Our first dinner was at the champagne house of Veuve Clicquot. To make you jealous I’ll just tell you what we drank: 1998 Veuve Clicquot le Grande Dame, Veuve Clicquot Vintage Rose 2002, Veuve Clicquot Rare Vintage 1998 and for dessert Veuve Clicquot Demi-sec carafe.
The next dinner was a the champagne house of G. H. Mumm. We began with a G.H. Mumm Cuvee R. Lalou 1998, Dom Perignon Oenotheque 1995, Krug 1995 and finally a G. H. Mumm Rose.
The next dinner was the Les Crayeres, another two star restaurant in Reims. This restaurant the restaurant we had our first meal, L’Assiette Champenoise, are fighting to be the best. We began with a vin Jaune 1999 Chateau d’Arlay, Beaune du Chateau ler Cru 2005 Bouchard Pere and Fils, Chateau Cheval Blanc 1998, and finally a Chateau d’Yquem 1998.
Our last meal to write about was with Mr. Krug himself. We dined at his house, after a private tour of the caves. We had a Krug Grande Cuvee, Krug 1996, Krug 1989 and with dessert a Krug Rose.
The last week was really something to write home about. It was all amazing. The whole course has been wonderful. I learned a few things I didn’t know and met a lot of really nice people. There was a blend of nationalities which made the program that much better. Everyone brought something different to the table. We were all from different back rounds: chefs, doctors, photographers, and many more. It was great to meet such a diversity of people. Hopefully I will see them again next year, when we get our diplomas!
Right now I am in Germany with cousin Andi, one of mom’s cousins. It has been great to just hang out. My plans are not in stone quite yet, but they are coming around. I’ll be back state side in a couple of weeks, definitely in time for the holidays…until then, I’ll try to make another update….take care everyone
Laura
Friday, August 08, 2008
Let me try to make you all jealous of me. Our vegetables and some fruits have been finally coming in. We are eating so much stuff such as: fresh pulled from the earth carrots, fresh picked green beans, shucked fava beans, hand picked tomatoes, freshly made organic pesto, summer zucchini, currents, little tiny red raspberries, and freshly harvested fingerling and purple potatoes. We are currently waiting on squash, cantaloupes and watermelons to grown and get ripe. It won’t be too long. Our main crop of peaches and apples are on their way, just a few more weeks on the peaches and maybe another month or so on the apples. It is getting exciting. I am finally to reap the benefits from all that hard work earlier in the spring/summer.
We have been staying busy since I last wrote, not a big surprise. We are still pruning the grapes in both vineyards, pinot gris and noir. I think that job is never ending. It just won’t go away.
Right now our main thing is thinning the peaches. You through each peach tree, there are 1000, by hand and pick off peaches. This gives other peaches room to grow and ripen in time for harvest. A peach tree has so many peaches, so someone has to go through and take off half the fruit. We do the same thing with apples, but the apples are not in bad shape. Our peaches right now are not growing in size or changing color, so we are thinning once again, hoping this will help. I’ve been told that once the peaches take off in size, they will get bigger in two weeks, growing from a small fist to a softball shape. I can’t wait to witness the changing!
Besides work, there have been guests come and go. Anno, Wink’s daughter, left us at the end of July to go back to Argentina. She is missed. I was so happy I was able to meet one of my best friend’s friends from college.
My parents came out, my mom and Mac. They were here in the end of July for a few days. It was great for them to come out and see what I do everyday, where I live and what I grow. I think they were impressed! We cooked meals and just had fun. They went around to the small towns and looked around. I live in a really cool place.
When they left, another couple came, friends of the farm. They provided Wink and Max with some pinot noir. They were driving to Denver and decided to make stop here, to finally meet Wink and Max and have a look at their grapes. They were a very knowledgeable couple. It was fun to meet more farmers and have a night of talking under the stars.
Our lasts guests were Jacob’s family (a boy from Colorado College who is living on the farm and going to classes in Paonia). It was his uncle and his two nephews. It was crazy busy with lots of people and lots of noise. They were here for a few days.
There was about a week of non stop cooking. But I loved every minute of it. We used our produce and other farmers and made wonderful meals every night. I am trying to come up with different recipes for potatoes, since we have so many…so any ideas, shoot them this way.
We are about to have another week filled with people staying on the farm. So I think my days will be mostly spent in the kitchen working then on the farm itself. But this why I am here. I have a great menu planned for everyone. It is going to be crazy week. Next week I am going to go help with a chef’s demonstration – four chefs, one from here who I have worked with before and three chefs from Denver’s Johnston and Wales. I can’t wait! Hopefully I will make some contacts!
I have decided to stay on the farm until September 16th. I leave for home for good on the 17th. I am going to my sister’s wedding at the end of September in Georgia and then home for a bit. In mind October I am leaving for France for two weeks and then Germany for a week. In France I am attending a two week intensive program at Le Cordon Bleu and at the University of Reims. The program is divided up into three sections – all about food, wine, technology, science, economics and legal matters. It is going to be great. I will hopefully be receiving a diploma from the university. I have to pass a test and I will have 6 months to write a thesis, at least 30 pages long. Again, I am open to suggestions. I am thinking my thesis will be on the evolution of southern food. The programs name is Hautes Etudes du Gout. When I graduate I will have the diploma Diplôme Universitaire du Goût, de la Gastronomie et des Arts de la Table). Pretty cool huh?!!!
After France I am going to Germany for a week to stay with a cousin. I have never been and I wanted to see her when I was Paris last time, but it never worked out. This time it is. I’ll be hanging out with her at her house in St. Leon and then to Berlin for a few days to do the tourist thing and see her perform!
I’ll be home for the holidays and then off the Africa again to work in the children’s village with my aunt. I can’t wait to see the children and see how much they have changed. I think every year should start off that way.
As for now, I still love Colorado and the farm. It will be so sad to leave in a 6 weeks, but I know I have so much still to do. Until I leave, I am living it up and trying to learn as much as possible. Stay tuned for more adventures from around the world…
We have been staying busy since I last wrote, not a big surprise. We are still pruning the grapes in both vineyards, pinot gris and noir. I think that job is never ending. It just won’t go away.
Right now our main thing is thinning the peaches. You through each peach tree, there are 1000, by hand and pick off peaches. This gives other peaches room to grow and ripen in time for harvest. A peach tree has so many peaches, so someone has to go through and take off half the fruit. We do the same thing with apples, but the apples are not in bad shape. Our peaches right now are not growing in size or changing color, so we are thinning once again, hoping this will help. I’ve been told that once the peaches take off in size, they will get bigger in two weeks, growing from a small fist to a softball shape. I can’t wait to witness the changing!
Besides work, there have been guests come and go. Anno, Wink’s daughter, left us at the end of July to go back to Argentina. She is missed. I was so happy I was able to meet one of my best friend’s friends from college.
My parents came out, my mom and Mac. They were here in the end of July for a few days. It was great for them to come out and see what I do everyday, where I live and what I grow. I think they were impressed! We cooked meals and just had fun. They went around to the small towns and looked around. I live in a really cool place.
When they left, another couple came, friends of the farm. They provided Wink and Max with some pinot noir. They were driving to Denver and decided to make stop here, to finally meet Wink and Max and have a look at their grapes. They were a very knowledgeable couple. It was fun to meet more farmers and have a night of talking under the stars.
Our lasts guests were Jacob’s family (a boy from Colorado College who is living on the farm and going to classes in Paonia). It was his uncle and his two nephews. It was crazy busy with lots of people and lots of noise. They were here for a few days.
There was about a week of non stop cooking. But I loved every minute of it. We used our produce and other farmers and made wonderful meals every night. I am trying to come up with different recipes for potatoes, since we have so many…so any ideas, shoot them this way.
We are about to have another week filled with people staying on the farm. So I think my days will be mostly spent in the kitchen working then on the farm itself. But this why I am here. I have a great menu planned for everyone. It is going to be crazy week. Next week I am going to go help with a chef’s demonstration – four chefs, one from here who I have worked with before and three chefs from Denver’s Johnston and Wales. I can’t wait! Hopefully I will make some contacts!
I have decided to stay on the farm until September 16th. I leave for home for good on the 17th. I am going to my sister’s wedding at the end of September in Georgia and then home for a bit. In mind October I am leaving for France for two weeks and then Germany for a week. In France I am attending a two week intensive program at Le Cordon Bleu and at the University of Reims. The program is divided up into three sections – all about food, wine, technology, science, economics and legal matters. It is going to be great. I will hopefully be receiving a diploma from the university. I have to pass a test and I will have 6 months to write a thesis, at least 30 pages long. Again, I am open to suggestions. I am thinking my thesis will be on the evolution of southern food. The programs name is Hautes Etudes du Gout. When I graduate I will have the diploma Diplôme Universitaire du Goût, de la Gastronomie et des Arts de la Table). Pretty cool huh?!!!
After France I am going to Germany for a week to stay with a cousin. I have never been and I wanted to see her when I was Paris last time, but it never worked out. This time it is. I’ll be hanging out with her at her house in St. Leon and then to Berlin for a few days to do the tourist thing and see her perform!
I’ll be home for the holidays and then off the Africa again to work in the children’s village with my aunt. I can’t wait to see the children and see how much they have changed. I think every year should start off that way.
As for now, I still love Colorado and the farm. It will be so sad to leave in a 6 weeks, but I know I have so much still to do. Until I leave, I am living it up and trying to learn as much as possible. Stay tuned for more adventures from around the world…
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Monday, June 30, 2008
Summer is here. The work days are longer and the sleep is shorter, or at least it seems like it is. The snow has melted from the mountain tops. The sun is staying up longer. The summer is finally here.
I realize it has been a long time since I have written. I apologize. Things have been crazy here. We are in full swing. We are planting and weeding and pruning like crazy. We planted 500 grape plants in just about 2 weeks. Three different grapes and they are all doing well – growing so well in their new home.
The apple thinning is done. We got help, thank god! The peach thinning is done as well. The same people who did the apple thinning breezed through the peaches. All the fruit trees are looking good, even the cherry trees. However the cherry trees are only in their second year of growth, so there will be no fruit this year. But they are growing beautifully. A local grower told us that most people would kill for their cherry trees to look as good as ours! Now that is exciting.
Now that our huge project of planting to 500 grape plants is over, we now are concentrating on pruning the 6 acres of grape plants. Now that is a true task. We tried to get help, but that hasn’t gone so well. We hired a family of 4, plus one kid who did not do anything. They did not come back the next day. A man and his brother are working in the grapes and they are wonderful! Their work is great and they go fast – weeding, cutting the tall grass between the plants and pruning. We have about 3 acres done.
During all this planting, I managed to escape for a couple of days with some really great friends from home – the McEwen’s. I was able to go meet them in Granby, because an intern showed up before she was actually due. So Max and Wink let me leave for a day or two. I worked the morning and left in the afternoon to go to Granby – about 4.5 hours away. It was a dude ranch I had helped them find and it was set in a park. It was so pretty. The whole family was making an appearance, except for their eldest, Will (one of my best friends from high school). He had to work (he is in the real world) and he had to work on his kitchen (he is redoing his house).
I arrived at King Mountain Ranch in time for dinner. It was great to see friendly faces from home – Mr. McEwen, Mrs. McCall, Sally (the graduate) and her friend Alexis. The middle child, Cory, was due to get in late. She was working and could not get away from work in Denver until after her day was done. We all hung out for awhile after dinner and then went to bed. It was going to be a long day tomorrow.
The next day we woke up for breakfast at 8. We woke up to snow, all around us. A white blanket gently covered us. After breakfast Sally, Alexis, Mrs. McCall and I went to an orientation about horses and then on a short ride. It had stopped snowing by the time we got on the horses, but it started up again for a short while when we were riding. It was a lot of fun to ride in the snow – something I have not done for a very long time, since Creste Butte.
It was soon lunch – Mr. McEwen had come back from golfing and Cory took a break from work. We had a lovely lunch. Our next activity was riding for Sally and Alexis and then the rest of us went to shoot skeet! We were up on a mountain, with the entire world to see. We each got a round of skeet. We made a rule, if we got three clay pigeons we would be able to have all the cookies we wanted. Everyone passed.
The rest of the afternoon was spent doing whatever, I napped and just took it easy. It has been forever since I have had time to just sleep and do nothing! It is a luxury that should not be taken for granted. Then it was dinner time.
The next morning we woke for breakfast. Mr. McEwen went to try golfing again – hopefully no snow. Mrs. McCall and I went for a ride. After lunch I hung around to watch a group try to herd cattle. It was pretty entertaining. I sadly left in the afternoon to begin my drive back to the farm; it was going to be a work day tomorrow. My trip with the McEwen family was so much fun! Thank you for my break from farming.
Last week I went on another outing, to another farm, Zephyros. This is a farm that is about 3 or 4 acres. They grow a lot of flowers and vegetables. They also have goats and sheep – to make cheese and to eat. We (Annon, Emily, Gail and I) went to work for a Saturday, next week their interns would come and work at our farm. We arrived at the farm at 6:30 and got a tour of the farm. It was impressive. Then we were put to work – weeding! All day long. It wasn’t too bad. We got to meet some new people and we were feed a good meal – lamb curry with rice. We were done by about 6.
This week, three interns from Zephyros came to our place and helped us. We got them to help us prune our grape plants. I think they enjoyed it. There was some weeding in the pruning, but no pulling; only cutting. We feed them a great meal, then sent them back out to prune. We began our work day at 8:30 until about 6. Not a bad day.
Today was interesting. Today we went to a slaughter house. Emily, Gail and I went to process chickens, 77 of them. It was a really cool experience. I think it is important to see how your food is killed and how it is treated. Thomas Keller of The French Laundry, raised his own rabbits and them slaughtered them. He thought it was important to see where his food came from and what was done to it. I agree.
We got to see the whole process – from the actual killing to the packaging. I won’t go into great detail, but there are 6 steps. First the killing (in a human and kosher way) by bleeding them, then the taking off the feathers by hot water and a spinner, then the singeing, then the removal of the insides, then the cleaning and finally the packaging. It was a cool experience. We were done cleaning the chickens, all 77 of them by 12:30. I think they started around 8, but we did not show up until 9. After lunch we cleaned up and packaged them. We were out of there b 3:15. I had a great time. Hopefully they will call me when they process beef and deer and other game. I think it is important for a chef to see how things are done – well really anyone.
Well that is about all I got. Things have been busy and I think after we have the pruning done, things will calm down, a bit. Or maybe that is only wishful thinking. We are still planting food. We are now able to pick strawberries and eat them. We have been eating the lettuces I planted (I didn’t kill them) and other various things. I have been experimenting with foods and spices and just loving it. I might stay out here longer, until November. I am just really enjoying life here. I miss life at home in the south, but Colorado living is just different. I could use to this. I can understand why my sister and my brother wanted to come to college out here. I might be the one who doesn’t leave…
Until next time…
ps - pictures are coming, soon, promise
I realize it has been a long time since I have written. I apologize. Things have been crazy here. We are in full swing. We are planting and weeding and pruning like crazy. We planted 500 grape plants in just about 2 weeks. Three different grapes and they are all doing well – growing so well in their new home.
The apple thinning is done. We got help, thank god! The peach thinning is done as well. The same people who did the apple thinning breezed through the peaches. All the fruit trees are looking good, even the cherry trees. However the cherry trees are only in their second year of growth, so there will be no fruit this year. But they are growing beautifully. A local grower told us that most people would kill for their cherry trees to look as good as ours! Now that is exciting.
Now that our huge project of planting to 500 grape plants is over, we now are concentrating on pruning the 6 acres of grape plants. Now that is a true task. We tried to get help, but that hasn’t gone so well. We hired a family of 4, plus one kid who did not do anything. They did not come back the next day. A man and his brother are working in the grapes and they are wonderful! Their work is great and they go fast – weeding, cutting the tall grass between the plants and pruning. We have about 3 acres done.
During all this planting, I managed to escape for a couple of days with some really great friends from home – the McEwen’s. I was able to go meet them in Granby, because an intern showed up before she was actually due. So Max and Wink let me leave for a day or two. I worked the morning and left in the afternoon to go to Granby – about 4.5 hours away. It was a dude ranch I had helped them find and it was set in a park. It was so pretty. The whole family was making an appearance, except for their eldest, Will (one of my best friends from high school). He had to work (he is in the real world) and he had to work on his kitchen (he is redoing his house).
I arrived at King Mountain Ranch in time for dinner. It was great to see friendly faces from home – Mr. McEwen, Mrs. McCall, Sally (the graduate) and her friend Alexis. The middle child, Cory, was due to get in late. She was working and could not get away from work in Denver until after her day was done. We all hung out for awhile after dinner and then went to bed. It was going to be a long day tomorrow.
The next day we woke up for breakfast at 8. We woke up to snow, all around us. A white blanket gently covered us. After breakfast Sally, Alexis, Mrs. McCall and I went to an orientation about horses and then on a short ride. It had stopped snowing by the time we got on the horses, but it started up again for a short while when we were riding. It was a lot of fun to ride in the snow – something I have not done for a very long time, since Creste Butte.
It was soon lunch – Mr. McEwen had come back from golfing and Cory took a break from work. We had a lovely lunch. Our next activity was riding for Sally and Alexis and then the rest of us went to shoot skeet! We were up on a mountain, with the entire world to see. We each got a round of skeet. We made a rule, if we got three clay pigeons we would be able to have all the cookies we wanted. Everyone passed.
The rest of the afternoon was spent doing whatever, I napped and just took it easy. It has been forever since I have had time to just sleep and do nothing! It is a luxury that should not be taken for granted. Then it was dinner time.
The next morning we woke for breakfast. Mr. McEwen went to try golfing again – hopefully no snow. Mrs. McCall and I went for a ride. After lunch I hung around to watch a group try to herd cattle. It was pretty entertaining. I sadly left in the afternoon to begin my drive back to the farm; it was going to be a work day tomorrow. My trip with the McEwen family was so much fun! Thank you for my break from farming.
Last week I went on another outing, to another farm, Zephyros. This is a farm that is about 3 or 4 acres. They grow a lot of flowers and vegetables. They also have goats and sheep – to make cheese and to eat. We (Annon, Emily, Gail and I) went to work for a Saturday, next week their interns would come and work at our farm. We arrived at the farm at 6:30 and got a tour of the farm. It was impressive. Then we were put to work – weeding! All day long. It wasn’t too bad. We got to meet some new people and we were feed a good meal – lamb curry with rice. We were done by about 6.
This week, three interns from Zephyros came to our place and helped us. We got them to help us prune our grape plants. I think they enjoyed it. There was some weeding in the pruning, but no pulling; only cutting. We feed them a great meal, then sent them back out to prune. We began our work day at 8:30 until about 6. Not a bad day.
Today was interesting. Today we went to a slaughter house. Emily, Gail and I went to process chickens, 77 of them. It was a really cool experience. I think it is important to see how your food is killed and how it is treated. Thomas Keller of The French Laundry, raised his own rabbits and them slaughtered them. He thought it was important to see where his food came from and what was done to it. I agree.
We got to see the whole process – from the actual killing to the packaging. I won’t go into great detail, but there are 6 steps. First the killing (in a human and kosher way) by bleeding them, then the taking off the feathers by hot water and a spinner, then the singeing, then the removal of the insides, then the cleaning and finally the packaging. It was a cool experience. We were done cleaning the chickens, all 77 of them by 12:30. I think they started around 8, but we did not show up until 9. After lunch we cleaned up and packaged them. We were out of there b 3:15. I had a great time. Hopefully they will call me when they process beef and deer and other game. I think it is important for a chef to see how things are done – well really anyone.
Well that is about all I got. Things have been busy and I think after we have the pruning done, things will calm down, a bit. Or maybe that is only wishful thinking. We are still planting food. We are now able to pick strawberries and eat them. We have been eating the lettuces I planted (I didn’t kill them) and other various things. I have been experimenting with foods and spices and just loving it. I might stay out here longer, until November. I am just really enjoying life here. I miss life at home in the south, but Colorado living is just different. I could use to this. I can understand why my sister and my brother wanted to come to college out here. I might be the one who doesn’t leave…
Until next time…
ps - pictures are coming, soon, promise
Sunday, June 01, 2008
I am sitting outside on my little stoop. I have the mountains, with still some snow at the top, as my view. The sun is still beating down on my back and I am probably the happiest I have been in years. It is beginning to get a little warmer here, but nothing like home (Birmingham, Alabama). Home is where humidity lives and dwells. Here in Colorado, it is PERFECT! It is hot, but not too bad, like sweat just pouring out of every pore. I have a little perspiration on my nose, but what’s new. It is a sweat that I will become accustomed with. The weather is really ideal with now.
The last time I wrote, I had been here for only a week or so. Now I have lived here for over a month and I am still learning and loving it! I have planted lots of vegetables and they are actually now growing. We have a bed of strawberries and we can now see little green strawberries beginning to sprout. We have one semi-red one – almost time to pick and eat. We have been eating spinach almost every night now. One of the reasons I chose to come to work at a farm was to reap the benefits of eating food pick steps from the kitchen. The taste is just incredible.
There are three beds right outside of the living quarters, a big bed, a circular bed and the infinity garden. The big bed is half filled with spinach and cilantro, while the other half is partly filled with weeds/flowers and some herbs and arugula. Hopefully soon we will plant some more. The circular bed is mostly filled with herbs (rosemary, parsley, oregano, thyme, tarragon), a couple strawberry plants, savory (like celery), and a few other things. The last bed, the infinity garden, is filled with radishes, lettuces and a few leftover things (spinach seeds).
Right now, we are working on the irrigation system for the grapes, peaches and apples. We are also working on pruning the wine grapes and thinning the apple trees. There are lots of both. But I am learning. The other farm work, such as planting and weeding, has been put on hold. Hopefully we will get help with the thinning of the apple trees. It takes about 30 minutes or so to just do one! We have finished pruning the old wine and table grapes. We will soon move on to pruning the younger wine grapes which should not take us as long (hopefully, fingers crossed).
A couple weeks ago, Max and Wink left to go to St. Louis for Max’s daughter law school graduation and her first grandchild (her son). Wink came home a week later, while Max stayed behind to help her children with the adjustment of life and a new baby. For the week, Anno (Wink’s youngest daughter) and I held down the farm. We were in charge and you know what, it was so much fun! We got a lot accomplished and had fun.
We had a few house guests during this time. A friend from C.C. (Colorado College) came by and stayed with her climbing partner for about 5 days. Althea, the friend from CC, helped us on the farm a day or two, but her and her friend, Emily, mostly went climbing.
They left to go on a wild adventure to Alaska to climb. Wink came home a day later and then another friend from CC came, Julia. I had met her before. About a month ago I went into Paonia to celebrate her birthday. She had even come to the farm to work a couple of days. She came to actually stay for a few days and help out, until leaving for her summer job/adventure, a leader on Outward Bounds.
Then it was suddenly Memorial Day. We had a bar b-que, well….we grilled hamburgers. Some more friends from CC came by to help us celebrate. Gregg and his girlfriend, Avery, another graduate from CC, and her mother and almost stepfather came by. Also Grady, a helper on the farm, and his girlfriend, Laura came. We drank beer and ate lots of food. It was nice to be able to unwind and just chill out with some friends. There was lots of talk about CC, so I now feel like an honorary graduate. They should make diplomas for that, I would have graduated from so many schools!
A few days ago, an intern arrived, earlier than expected, Emily. She is a senior at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. She will be here working on the farm until August. A day or two after she arrived another intern came to work, Gale. She is working here part time and working at other farms around the North Fork. She is living just a mile down the street at the CSU research station. It is great to finally have all this help on the farm! It makes things go so much faster!
Life on the farm is still fantastic. I am still loving everything and enjoying being here. I think the coolest thing I have seen since I have been here are the bee hives. A few weeks ago, Mark, another organic farmer, came over and showed us how to put a new queen bee into the hive. You are supposed to put in a new queen every couple of years. Who knew?!? They ship the queen bee with a sugar pellet and enclosed with drones (basically boy bees that impregnate the queen. It was so cool to se the inside of the hive and the honey supers (where they store the honey and where the baby bees incubate). It was an awesome site. A bee hive is so interesting. They work as one and should be considered as one. I don’t think any one bee can live by itself. It needs all the bees to survive. By far the coolest thing I have seen yet!
The days on the farm are getting longer, so that means that summer is a coming. My daily schedule hasn’t really changed. I have more responsibility, which is a little scary. I now have a better understanding of what they talk about, well sort of. And I am getting faster at the tasks, like hoeing water ditches to irrigate the grapes, or pruning grape vines or thinning apple trees.
Well…until next time…
The last time I wrote, I had been here for only a week or so. Now I have lived here for over a month and I am still learning and loving it! I have planted lots of vegetables and they are actually now growing. We have a bed of strawberries and we can now see little green strawberries beginning to sprout. We have one semi-red one – almost time to pick and eat. We have been eating spinach almost every night now. One of the reasons I chose to come to work at a farm was to reap the benefits of eating food pick steps from the kitchen. The taste is just incredible.
There are three beds right outside of the living quarters, a big bed, a circular bed and the infinity garden. The big bed is half filled with spinach and cilantro, while the other half is partly filled with weeds/flowers and some herbs and arugula. Hopefully soon we will plant some more. The circular bed is mostly filled with herbs (rosemary, parsley, oregano, thyme, tarragon), a couple strawberry plants, savory (like celery), and a few other things. The last bed, the infinity garden, is filled with radishes, lettuces and a few leftover things (spinach seeds).
Right now, we are working on the irrigation system for the grapes, peaches and apples. We are also working on pruning the wine grapes and thinning the apple trees. There are lots of both. But I am learning. The other farm work, such as planting and weeding, has been put on hold. Hopefully we will get help with the thinning of the apple trees. It takes about 30 minutes or so to just do one! We have finished pruning the old wine and table grapes. We will soon move on to pruning the younger wine grapes which should not take us as long (hopefully, fingers crossed).
A couple weeks ago, Max and Wink left to go to St. Louis for Max’s daughter law school graduation and her first grandchild (her son). Wink came home a week later, while Max stayed behind to help her children with the adjustment of life and a new baby. For the week, Anno (Wink’s youngest daughter) and I held down the farm. We were in charge and you know what, it was so much fun! We got a lot accomplished and had fun.
We had a few house guests during this time. A friend from C.C. (Colorado College) came by and stayed with her climbing partner for about 5 days. Althea, the friend from CC, helped us on the farm a day or two, but her and her friend, Emily, mostly went climbing.
They left to go on a wild adventure to Alaska to climb. Wink came home a day later and then another friend from CC came, Julia. I had met her before. About a month ago I went into Paonia to celebrate her birthday. She had even come to the farm to work a couple of days. She came to actually stay for a few days and help out, until leaving for her summer job/adventure, a leader on Outward Bounds.
Then it was suddenly Memorial Day. We had a bar b-que, well….we grilled hamburgers. Some more friends from CC came by to help us celebrate. Gregg and his girlfriend, Avery, another graduate from CC, and her mother and almost stepfather came by. Also Grady, a helper on the farm, and his girlfriend, Laura came. We drank beer and ate lots of food. It was nice to be able to unwind and just chill out with some friends. There was lots of talk about CC, so I now feel like an honorary graduate. They should make diplomas for that, I would have graduated from so many schools!
A few days ago, an intern arrived, earlier than expected, Emily. She is a senior at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. She will be here working on the farm until August. A day or two after she arrived another intern came to work, Gale. She is working here part time and working at other farms around the North Fork. She is living just a mile down the street at the CSU research station. It is great to finally have all this help on the farm! It makes things go so much faster!
Life on the farm is still fantastic. I am still loving everything and enjoying being here. I think the coolest thing I have seen since I have been here are the bee hives. A few weeks ago, Mark, another organic farmer, came over and showed us how to put a new queen bee into the hive. You are supposed to put in a new queen every couple of years. Who knew?!? They ship the queen bee with a sugar pellet and enclosed with drones (basically boy bees that impregnate the queen. It was so cool to se the inside of the hive and the honey supers (where they store the honey and where the baby bees incubate). It was an awesome site. A bee hive is so interesting. They work as one and should be considered as one. I don’t think any one bee can live by itself. It needs all the bees to survive. By far the coolest thing I have seen yet!
The days on the farm are getting longer, so that means that summer is a coming. My daily schedule hasn’t really changed. I have more responsibility, which is a little scary. I now have a better understanding of what they talk about, well sort of. And I am getting faster at the tasks, like hoeing water ditches to irrigate the grapes, or pruning grape vines or thinning apple trees.
Well…until next time…
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