Emulation 2

So sorry my post is late. Internet went down at my place and I was unable to get anywhere that had it till now.

Emulation

This is my emulation of Annie Leibovitz. She inspired me in her ability to show emotion in her subjects as well as bring out emotion in her audience. There is a vulnerability to her photos and that is what I was really hoping to achieve.
Here are some examples of her work. http://www.nytimes.com/library/photos/leibovitz/bourgeois.html

This is the photo I would like to submit for critique.

Winter Squash Mock Risotto

The other day Jeremy and I went up to help Mom take care of some of the gardens. The winter squash was ready to be picked, and I was itching to use one of them in a dish of some sort.
Dinner last night was Winter Squash Mock Risotto. I didn't have arborio rice, so I just used the long grain white rice I had at home. It has starches, they do develop, but not in the same was a aroborio. It was an almost exclusively local dish as we grew the squash, the garlic, and the shallots, and the collards that we put in were grown locally.

Winter Squash Mock Risotto

1 winter squash (I used Buttercup)
2 1/4 cups rice
2 bouillon cubes
5 cloves of garlic
1 large shallot
8 cups of water
Olive Oil
Butter
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
Ground Clove
Italian seasoning
Salt and Pepper
Parmesean Cheese
Peel and cube the winter squash, cook until soft. Mince the garlic and the shallot and saute with olive oil till soft and fragrant. Disolve the bouillion cubes in hot water. Add the italian seasoning and some salt and pepper, pour in the rice. Once everything is heated through, add 1-2 cups of the liquid and simmer until absorbed. Follow this process until the rice is cooked. Use only enough liquid to cook the rice through, if you have left over its ok, if you need more, go ahead and grab it.
Mix the squash with the cinnamon, nutmeg, ground clove, and butter. Once the rice is cooked, mix the squash into the rice.
Saute the greens with a touch of olive oil, then mix into the rice as well.
Season with salt and pepper to taste, serve with Parmesean Cheese.

Dinner tonight...

Trying to decide what to make for dinner tonight. I really want to use some greens and a squash from the garden, perhaps a winter squash risotto.... hmmm...

Cape Cod May 2009

London 2005

Ireland 2005

Bermuda 2005

Summer got away with me!

I can't believe that it has been over 2 weeks since I last posted!
A lot has been going on. Working of course, waiting for the big move. We are so close to being in the new space.
There was Paddle Power, fundraiser and awareness event for suicide prevention. Lots of fun, some rain, some shine, good food, good friends. It was a blast. Joseph won a kayak at the raffle, and he and Jeremy have been fishing non-stop.
Classes started for me, The Novels and Films of Stephen King at VTC on Wednesdays, and Digital Photography 2 through CCV online. Volleyball is going for just a big longer on Thursdays.
Jeremy, Joseph, Mel, and I all went kayaking and fishing in the pouring rain one Saturday, had a blast doing it. Had a BBQ on another Saturday, Mel and I cooked and relaxed, Joseph and Jeremy went fishing in kayaks. Jeremy got a nice 3 pound bass, we fried it up and HOLY YUM. Made great fish sandwiches for lunch the next day as well.
Another holiday party on Sunday, and then work for me early Monday morning.
I will be posting my assignments for Digital Photography 2 here. It will be fun to share my photos with a bit of a story to everyone.

Blight

I know I touched on the blight in my last post, but it has really been eating at me.

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This year Jeremy, Mom, and I took on gardening. This is not a new task, but we took on some new ideas and steps. We wanted tomatoes, lots of them! Tomatoes were going to be diced, crushed, made into plain sauce, spaghetti sauce, canned and frozen.

There were romas, heirlooms, cherries, and now, we have none. Just the other day we checking out the plants looking for green fruits. It was so exciting to find them, small ones at first, then big ones, clusters of them, cherries and heirloom uglies, we couldn't wait for them to start turning yellow and red and orange.

Blight hit. It hit hard. It took out ALL of our tomatoes. We had them planted in several different locations, up at the house, down the hill, and by the pond, not even "close" to each other, and yet they were all destroyed.

It was very sad. We had to pull them all. Because blight is a spore, we can't burn them, it will spread the blight to others. We can't just compost/bury them, because that won't necessarily kill off the spores, and it could get reintroduced next summer. We have been working so hard to help lower our dependency on corporate farming, as well as finding ways to help keep things out of the landfill. With no tomatoes to put up, and the only way to get rid of the blight and the plants is to bag them up and take them to the landfill.

Camping & Tomato Blight

Friday after work, Jeremy and I took off for a weekend of camping at Stillwater State Park at Lake Groton. The trip was fantastic! Lots of paddling, fishing, relaxing, good food, and even greater company!
We took Sammy (Dad's dog) for the weekend, as Dad and Deb were going away as well and couldn't bring him with them. Sam had such a good time, he was acting just like a puppy.
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Yesterday I went up to help Mom with the gardens for a bit and we had to finish pulling ALL of the tomato plants. The late blight hit them, and while we were able to salvage some of the green tomatoes for Mom to make green tomato relish. It was incredibly sad. We started the plants from seeds and were really enjoying the process of watching the seeds grow into seedlings, into plants, putting them in the ground, and watching the fruits begin to grow. Probably the hardest thing I have ever had to do gardening.

Finally Friday

Strangely this week has passed at a snails pace, but FINALLY its Friday. The theme is following through quite nicely as it is taking forever for today to pass as well.
Extremely excited about camping this weekend with Jeremy, Mom and Lynda, and Joe and Mel. Gilligan, Sophie, and Sammy will be with us as well. Looking forward to lots of kayaking, fishing, swimming, hiking, and game playing.
Got stuff for s'mores, can't wait to sit around a fire and relax.

Mountain Biking

I have really missed mountain biking! Biking to Bethel on the main road is just not the same. It is a great workout, I enjoy it a lot, but biking in the woods is a blast.
We went up to explore Milstone Hill in Barre. Knowing I am slow and inexperienced with biking in the woods, Jeremy's brother Vince made sure to go up ahead of us and log a good 6-7 miles before we got there. I had to do a fair share of walking, but was able to do some of the hills, up and down, but corners and rocky passes got me. I would say I was able to bike half of it.
Next Monday we are planning to go again!

Enduro!

Lately, Jeremy and I have been finding ways to use the abundance of swiss chard we are getting from the garden. Our favorite way thus far seems to be to wilt it down with a bit of EVOO and fresh garlic and topping a pizza or stuffing a calzone with it. It has such great flavor!

Today was day 2 with Jeremy not smoking. He is on the patch, and going strong.

Tonight was the M&M Enduro at Thunder Road. My favorite race of the year! Can't wait till we have the money and time so I can race it too. Approximately 130 races went 250 laps vying for a $5000 purse! Very exciting. A few flips, a few fires, lots of excitement.

I don't work tomorrow or Tuesday, great for me, sucky for the pocket book. I can't wait to be able to sleep in and have nothing on the schedule for a change.

Advance Directives

Here's the deal. I am not old, not even close. Yet I have a legal document in my possession that many people who are 3 times as old as me do not have.
An Advance Directive is a legal document that lists and a health care agent as well as your wishes should you become unable to do so. I have pretty specific wishes that I really want carried out, and don't want it to be left to chance.
They then get filed with the Vermont Advance Directive Registry so that no matter where I am my wishes can be followed.
I urge you to do the same within your state.

Links for Vermonters
Vermont Advance Directive Registry - http://healthvermont.gov/vadr/
Vermont Ethics Network - http://www.vtethicsnetwork.org/

Camels Hump

Saturday, Mom, Jeremy, and I embarked on an adventure. We took on Camels Hump in all its glory.
With all the rain we have, it has been wetter than ever. The streams had water in them, there was a beautiful little water fall. It made it extremely buggy as well.













This was a little more than a third of the way up the mountain. We were still feeling great at this point. There was another couple who we were going back and forth with in the "lead."




The closer we got to the top, the harder it became. Breathing was harder, muscles were getting tight, we could really feel the burn. It was totally worth it when we rounded the corner and were at the summit.


It as a bit hazy, but the view was magnificent. I have been to the top one other time and was clearer but cold and windy. This day was breezy, very light thought, and warm! We put long sleeves on due to the breeze on our sweaty skin.

We had a great snack, spent some time wandering around looking from each angle, and marveling at the beauty. We had to be careful to stay on the rocks, because the alpine vegetation is very delicate.









The hike down was just as challenging! I managed to somehow tweak my knee just as we started the hike back down, which slowed me down. It hurt, the pain did not make the hike down as much fun as it could have been. We all slowed a lot the farther down the hill we got, all but limping to the car at the end.










The hike was fantastic. Jeremy had been up multiple times, I had been up one other time. Mom had never been up Camels Hump which made it all the better. Can't wait to do it again, only from the other side this time.

Typical Thursday

Yesterday was a wondeful typical Thursday. After work, I changed and hoped on my bike and took off for Bethel. The sky was blue, the sun was warm, a gentle breeze, I made the best time ever! Normally I would say it takes me approximately 55 minutes to ride the 7.5 miles from the hospital to the woodlot. Yesterday I made it in about 40 minutes. I was flying. It was wonderful.
At the woodlot, Jed was mowing and Abby was getting the volleyball from the camper. I was the first one, that never happens! It took a little while for people to show, but when they finally did, we had some great games of volleyball.
I tried to take a picture with my phone, only to realize the card was full! It took me a minute to get in and get some space freed up and by then it was too late to get a good picture, as the sun had just dipped down behind the trees. Next week!

and the Tree falls down...

Yesterday with all the wind and rain, a tree fell down in the back of the house. Not on any cars or buildings, but enough to be heard in the apartment.
The storm didn't start until just before 5pm, of course. I had been looking out the window all day dreaming of a walk or bike ride, some swimming, and while the person I was going to go with had to cancel last minute (which worked out really well considering), it was such a let down!
We did end up going swimming later in the evening, it was still sprinkling, the river hadn't risen a whole lot yet, boy did it feel good. Especially after spending so long in the kitchen with the oven and the stove going. Of course in the heat and humidity we would decide to make pizza for dinner. My pizza was excellent! A smear of red sauce, some ricotta, sauteed zuccini and tomatoes and swiss chard, with mozzerella cheese. YUM YUM YUM

I had leftovers for lunch today! Work is a bit slow, although never boring.

OMG I need PICTURES

Last night Jeremy and I went up to Mom's to visit. There were no less than 5 times I wish I had brought the camera with me. This means that I have no photos to show you the new miniature ponies they got, Miss Dixie Chick and Humperdink. No photos to show you how big Mr Top Hat, the baby chicken, is getting and how big his top hat is getting. No photos to show you all the CHERRIES we picked (more than enough for a pie). No photos of us swimming in the pond, thanks to all the rain, it was full enough and fresh enough. A couple more days and it will be a bit too slimy and stagnant for any swimming. And lastly, no photos to show the onions, garlic, and shallots we harvested from the garden, along with the beats!

Needless to say I was a bit disappointed in myself, but thrilled at the same time for all that we got to do last night.

Pictures will be coming of the new ponies next time I am at Mom's. Miss Dixie Chick also drives, so I cannot wait to spend some time learning to drive.

Dinner and Fishing

I have totally been slacking on my posting! With a goal of once a day, I am barely making once a week!

Last night Jeremy and I got subs from McCulloughs Quick Stop, our favorite place for subs, and went fishing.

Jeremy got his usual turkey bacon, and I decided on a BLT. What really makes their subs so good is the rolls that they use.
Forgot to take pictures of the subs, but man were they good.

We also tried this new juice drink.

Incredibly tasty. Not overly sweet, no carbonation, and very thirst quenching for a juice beverage.

Fishing was great, although neither of us caught anything. I had a couple of bites, and they ate my worms, but no catches. Towards the end of the evening we were watching them jump left and right, but still no catches. Oh well, another day perhaps.

View of were we where fishing. I love my phones panaramic option.