A new experiment

I've started a new blog on which I hope to chronicle and champion simple, inexpensive and healthy eating. Feeding Henry and I for $200 per month... Check it out

http://musingsonthepathtofrugality.blogspot.com/

20 May 2008; 1910

Greetings Fair Readers,

It's been busy around Casa Hunger this week; charity bike rides, Mariner games, golf, etc, etc.

Let's see, Henry and I spent some time last week training for the 2008 Washington state Tour de Cure with a couple of rides from South Everett back home and another from the North end of Lake Washington to Seattle and back. Both went well and Henry is getting much better riding in traffic and understanding how we can ride together and how to avoid cars and also how to be assertive on the bike and take over the lane when it is appropriate to do so.

Saturday was the big ride. The weather was beautiful but hot; sweating already well before 8am as we worked on getting ready and getting some breakfast in us at the registration. Henry got to meet 3 time Tour de France winner Greg Lemond and had his picture taken with him (unfortunately I neglected to take my camera when I took him over) and I will do my best to get copies of those out here as soon as I can. We took off and Henry led the ride in the #2 position with Greg for the first little bit but fell behind as the stronger riders on their road bikes pulled ahead. At just over mile 5, he had a mishap with the gatorade bottle just as I caught up with him and he was drenched in it as the top had come off and he was very upset. Luckily, I had an extra bottle of water and was able to rinse him off and then rinse out the jersey so he didn't spend a lot of time in the stickiness. He was so frustrated that he wanted to turn back but we decided to continue on. We continued the ride and as it got hotter and we travelled further north we jus kept putting the miles under the wheels but as the hills grew longer and steeper and the temps rose it got harder and harder and a bit before the 3rd rest stop I felt like I was done and Henry was just about in tears. He solemnly said to me "we did our best" and "the next sag wagon that goes by I'm ready to hitch a ride to the end". Well, we talked to another rider coming the other way and she let us know we weren't far from the top of the hill and lo & behold after another 1/4 mile or so we crested it and had a long nice glide into the 3rd rest stop @ mile 27.

Once we arrived, we called for the sag wagon and as we waited we got some food, some drinks and some shade. After a few minutes Henry looked at me and said "Dad, I think I want to go on". I let him know the heat, hills annd the previous 27 miles had done me in but if we could find some other riders with whom he could keep up I was game to let him do it. We approached a couple of gals, Naomi and Robin with whom we had been chatting here and there over the past few miles and they were willing to have him ride along. I caught a ride back to the finish, feeling a bit low and also very proud of Henry for doing his best out there. I dropped my bike and grabbed a ride with the next sag wagon to head out to the course and saw by the thermometer it was now 95 in the shade. Henry had promised to stay hydrated, I made certain his camelback was filled with water and he had a full bottle of gatorade and some bagel and peanut butter before I left him but still I was worried so riding along in the wagon I could hear the reports over the radio of riders dropping off the course due to dehydration and heatstroke so still I worried. At the last rest stop, the driver and I decided to wait as we had just gotten a report of Henry at the back with Naomi and Robin and that they were about 15 minutes out and looking strong. Not long after Robin pulled up and said that Naomi had broken a spoke and Henry had stayed with her but they would try and limp in. Not long after that, here they came up the road slowly but surely and boy was I glad to see that kid. Strong and hungry and thirsty, he said he was going to finish no matter what. Well Naomi and he bike had had it by then so she rode back in with the driver and I and I got ready to go out and follow Henry in to make certain he made it but before I got too far out of the park where the start and finish line was, I found Robin and Henry pulling in; they had made the last 7 miles in record time and although they were the last two riders Henry had pedaled the entire 45 miles. He was sweaty and exhausted but the smile on his face was the widest I thinkI can ever remember seeing. I hugged him and let him know how proud I was and even shed a couple tears because that is my boy, my bike rider that raised over $1000 for diabetes research and finished the longest ride of his life in 95 degree weather and lots of up and down hills all on a mountain bike. WOW!

Just in case it's not apparent, Henry is my hero.

So then after all that Henry couldn't get on of the Chipotle burritos he had been craving all day as they had shut down the finish line food! Well, luckily there was a Chipotle nearby and I took him there and told him to order anything he wanted so he got a monster burrito but he was too tired to eat it all but after the olong drive home with a stop to se his Mum, Henry rallied and was able to finish his burrito and still didn't hit the hay until after 10 and was up again the next day by 7. We had a nice relaxing morning, drank some coffee, watched some cartoons, read the paper and then we were off to Hunter's 8th birthday party in Bellevue.

We had been warned of what was in store but as we arrived we found ourselves following a big black Excursion limo...

We loaded the kids and off we went to the Mariners / Padres game after a quick stop at McDonald's where Hunter's Dad Jason and I took the opportunity to get a few pictures

Can you say supersize me?

That's Henry poking his head out the sunroof

And a closeup of the squinty into the sun look

Watching DVDs on the way to the game with lunch

Drop off right in front

PLAY BALL!

As you can see, it was a great day for baseball and birthdays. It was a bit cooler than the previous day and the girls even got a blanket as we were in the shade all afternoon in right center field with hot dogs, popcorn and peanuts. The kids didn't pay a lot of attention to the game, they were more interested in getting back in the limo but they managed to make it all the way through and the Mariners even rallied in the bottom of the 8th to win. The limo picked us up right out front and we were off! But first we needed a group photo in front of the stadium (actually we took it before the game but I thought it would wrap this up nicely...

Wednesday 6 May 08 @ 1945

Greetings,

Apologies for my lack of posts the past few weeks but I've been going through some stuff...

Feeling like chucking it all and trying to keep my head about me while keeping up with work, the boy, the dog, a kitty dying, being broke, getting the garden in, yada yada yada...excuses all but they're all mine and I'm not giving them up.

Work is pretty much the same, busy all the time and between the work projects, new suppliers, learning more about how I do what I do, setting up more processes and getting them accepted by all required parties, cutbacks, more work with less headcount, etc, etc, etc...and I'm very involved with the Memorial Day golf tournament once again which is to be held out in Bremerton and we have both courses this time so we are working with almost 300 golfers and enough volunteers to put us over that number. I am in charge of getting all our business partners set up both as players and as reps for their companies plus I help out with everything else like just today the chairman and I took a ferry ride over to meet with the pro and the food & bev director there to work out some of the last minute details and then back all with a couple hours work before and a couple more after so needless to say I'm keeping busy.

The garden is going well and I have some photos to upload but haven't gotten to them yet. Not happy with the strain of bok choy I have in this year but we'll see how that goes, everything else is going gangbusters and we'll be eating from the plot before we know it.

Henry and I are riding and getting ready for the 2008 Tour de Cure, this year getting ready to ride the 45 mile look up over the Sammamish plateau and then back up and over; it hurts just thinking about it but it will be good for us and I'm confident we'll make it. We start @ 9 and I'm hoping to be done in 4 - 4.5 hours. Henry has raised almost $800 this year and regardless of how much he raises he gets to meet Greg Lemond this year since he missed out last time. I have new tires en route for our bikes to reduce road friction from the knobbies on our mountain bikes and we're getting our 20 mile training rides in all of a sudden but it's been a crappy Spring for training and cold & rainy most of the time but we will prevail.

Henry has progressed to his yellow belt in tae kwon do and he was very proud that he was able to break a board the very first try. I missed it but I do have some photos of the belt test and ceremony as well as some sparring photos of Henry so as soon as I get them uploaded I'll get some up here and a link the rest out on the photo albums for all to see.

I've been reading alot lately, it's cheap and I do love it a great deal so I've been hitting the library pretty hard and reading about 4 books a week the past month or so. It has been a nice escape during my midlife crisis or whatever it is I've been dealing with. One really great thing that has come out of the last month is my lack of driving, I've been really trying to use my bus pass as much as possible and last month I drove a total of 210 miles. The goal for May is to get it under 200; baby steps...I'd love to figure out how to live w/o a car but I just haven't figured it out completely yet although I am considering going back to old beater Volvo wagons or something and then renting a car when I need something nicer to haul others around or go on a road trip. I'm tired of car payments and tired of being broke.

Not much else, Spring has been teasing us in between the cold and wet but at least I got the first of the season local asparagus last Saturday at our opening farmer's market; came home that afternoon and whipped up a porcini and asiago risotto with grill asparagus with a little cheap chianti I had hanging around and had to wonder what the poor people were doing, ah well let 'em eat cake I say. If they can't learn to cook fine foods for cheap then twinkies for everyone!

Hasta

Tuesday 29 April; 2025

We buried Nina today. Her beautiful little body just gave out and she died in her Mum's arms about 3pm. She has been staying here with Henry and I for that past month or so and Henry, Kristin and I will all miss her very much, she is and always will be our sweet little girl. Vaya con whoever my sweet little Neens, I love you

Sunday 30 March 08; 2045

Hi All,

Henry is safe and sound having arrived in Washington D.C yesterday with his Mum and grandparents. He let me know that the first this he had planned for this morning was to hit the indoor pool at the hotel and then on to the Lincoln Memorial so I'm sure it will be a fun filled few days, they take the train up to NYC next Saturday and then more fun before they come home on 4/09. I am a bit envious having never been to D.C. and although I've been to Manhattan it was only for the day and he is going now for the 2nd time and gets to spend a few days there. Envious yes but excited for the wee fellow nonetheless.

Today I went down to the Ballard neighborhood just North of downtown by about 5 or 10 mins and went to the farmer's market and loaded up on some dried porcini and matsutake mushrooms, tasted what could very well be the finest cheese I've ever had (Mt Townsend Creamery Seastack) so bought a crottin of that and some braising greens then walked around the downtown area of the neighborhood, grabbed a couple slices of puttanesca pizza and wandered about some more. It'd a neighborhood I'm considering when I next move. Closer to work and the downtown life and still close enough to fetch Henry from school and feel a bit more of the urbanite. I feel like I'm headed through a bit of a mid-life crisis and I think what may help get me out of it is to get out of the suburbs and get back to the city where there is some life and excitement; I'm getting pretty tired of the "normal" middle aged lifestyle and all the trappings that come with...

I am headed out to a show tomorrow night; X, a seminal punk rock band out of Los Angeles in the 70s. I first saw them in SLC with my friend Bruce in the early 80s and I'm really looking FW to the show tomorrow night. Although I'm feeling very young going out on a school night, I do know my 48 year old limitations and I took Tuesday off since I know I can't stay up all night and make it to work anymore like the old days; no more all nighters for me...

The garden is still going great, the veggies are doing well. My cherry tree is about to burst with blossoms, too bad it's not of the fruiting variety but my plum trees will follow closely and once again I'll be up to my arse in Italian plums and with the local blackberries I'll once again be livin' large for free and I can't wait!

Not much more for now, I'll try and take some photos tomorrow while I'm overindulging in PBRs and Wild Turkey, WHOO HOO! so look for that :)

Bim salah bim

Sunday 23 March 2008; 2050

Sorry all, I skipped a week there but I really just couldn't face it you know? I had a really naff week and really didn't want to think about it so I just didn't. Now you get the update for 2 weeks instead.

So two weeks ago, I had a check bounce and realized I had made a $1000+ mistake in my check register (not to my favor thank you) and the week just went downhill from there. Now to say that was the high point of the week is a bit of an exaggeration but not by much so I won't go into detail but suffice it to say I suffered for 24 hours from gastric distress that brought tears to my eyes, the woman with whom I've been keeping up for the past 6 months decided she won't be coming to visit as we planned (but we're still great friends so there is an upside there) and to top it all off I missed the bus a couple times and finally missed it enough by the end of the week that I had to drive into the city and ended up with a fucking parking ticket because I either wasn't paying attention or more likely since the sign was half behind the post missed it and ended up parking for the day in a 1 hour parking spot. Like I said, the week was naff, no let's go another level and just say it was a fucked up week and now it's over and this past week was far better! :)

This past week work has been good, I'm involved in a number of things in which I'm interested and have some skills and it was just all round a good time. Even found a new place for lunch that was really quite good and is even close enough to the office to walk so it made for a great Friday outing a couple days ago. For the most part the weather has been good and although today started out rainy and nasty the day ended up being a beautiful bright and sunny one for zombie jesus day after all. Henry was with his Mum and and they went north to her sister's for a big day of choccies and easter egg hunts to celebrate resurrected bunnies and stuff.

Henry was able to get the lawns mowed with the manual push mower (we're switching as another step towards sustainability and ridding ourselves of more and more power stuff where we can), I was able complete the planting in the raised bed (add broccoli, chiaggio beets, leaf lettuce, rainbow carrots and mesclun) and had a few more things pop their heads above the soil (we now have peas, carrots, bok choy, chard and lacinato kale sprouting), the forsythia in the neighborhood is exploding, my daffodils are bright and huge and I was able to get the entire rose bed weeded as well as the interior of the car detailed so all in all it was a good weekend.

I'm sitting in front of the tube and catching up on cooking shows from the DVR after a lovely meal of seared chicken breast topped with red pepper artichoke tapenade and mozzarella with gnocchi in brown butter with garlic and sage from my herb garden and 1/2 a bottle of Turley Vineyard 101 Zin. Hmmm, wonder what the poor people are doing for dinner tonight? Ah well, I suppose Marie A would tell them to eat cake so why rock the boat; let them eat cake as I deserve to treat myself this way once in a while no?

Henry is doing really well with tae kwon do ad we're just kind of putting in the time with bowling as he is beginning to lose interest pretty quickly as Spring pops up and the days are nicer. Tae kwon do is in the late afternoon and no weekends so it doesn't cut into nice Saturday weather nor do we have to get up to get there so I can see where it is preferred. We may not encourage it going forward as both his Mum and I believe he will get far more from the martial arts with discipline and the physical exercise and we'll see if we can find a set of music lessons to round things out for his extra curricular activities and we can keep it at that. Neither Kristin nor I (or Henry for that matter) are all that interested in his having activity after activity to attend every day and dining at 9pm every night. We both want him to have time to be a kid and play in the backyard and ride his bike and all the other accoutrement of childhood. We see all these parents running from one activity to the next with their kids all the time and there is no time to just be a family or for the kids to be kids and that's not gonna fly.

Anyway, not much more to write about right now, suffice it to say that once again life is good after the bumpy prior week so all's well.

Hasta until next week

Sunday 9 March 2008 @ 2100

Here it is the first day of daylight savings time and as much as I believe we should leave time alone and let it run, if we're going to have it then I'm glad it starts earlier and ends later now. It was great that it was light until after 7 already except I slept until 10 today :). Couldn't be that bottle of wine that I drank with lots of Mama Lil's peppers and goat cheese last night...

The week was pretty busy, Henry started tae kwon do and although he went kicking and screaming he is really good at it and has shown a real propensity for it. He sparred Friday for the first time and he threw some really great kicks against the older kid the master had the younger ones sparring with (and taking lots of kicks). Henry got some kicks up over his own shoulder height and was really after it for a bit there. It is great exercise and he is sleeping well too. We also took Henry to his first appt with a counselor and he clammed up quite a bit but a few things came out that we can start working on and we will have Henry go back again in a couple weeks. I think we both feel it's a good thing right now but frankly we think the tae kwon do will do more for him. Good solid activity, something at which he can excel individually but also be part of a larger group as well but time will tell.

It was my birthday and the team went all out and brought in lunch on Thursday as well as decorating my cube and the wall above it. Here's a photo with me in my birthday crown because remember, Jim is King. I was also asked to facilitate classes for the corporate partners on how to make the perfect espresso so I trained both Tuesday and Wednesday and 3 of us ran the 200 or so people from our building through how to make the best espresso drinks. It was a lot of fun and I met up with a lot of people that normally I only see in the elevators or hallways so now I have more names and more networking going on as well and lots more people know me now as well so I guess I can't get away with quite as much as I have in the past :)

Henry and I went to the annual bike expo after bowling yesterday and that couldn't come fast enough as the kids were bowling poorly and then just kind of fell apart after the first game and ended up losing all 4 of the available point this week so it was not a high point. We did however have fun looking at all the new stuff in the bicycling world now that some bikes retail for as much as cars. We're starting to gear up for the cycling season and if the weather is not rain this Saturday I think we'll head up to Arlington for the first charity ride of the season called The McClinchy Mile. It's a nice 20 mile mostly flat ride to get us going and frankly sounds a lot more interesting than another Saturday of bowling/ Kristin and I talked about bowling now that we're a few minutes into the league and we agree that now that we are out of bumpers, the parents are all way too serious about this and not so interested in the kids having fun but more about their winning. Well, like any of them I would rather the kids win but someone has to lose and for hell's sake it bowling after all! Not something important and some of these parents are just too, too much. We may not encourage Henry to continue on if he gets into the tae kwon do; perhaps that and some music lessons or something and that is enough but he is going to go out and run track this year since his favorite teacher is the track coach. The 4th graders can't compete but they let them go out and workout with the team in the running events and then next year start to learn about the field events as well so that's plenty. Neither Kristin nor I are interested in being one of those families that is running the kids from one activity to the next and eating dinner at 9 pm every night and no time for homework.

Here is a photo of my front yard with the springy daffodillies popping up and my raised vegetable bed on the right. Although you can't see them, the shelling peas and bok choy popped up this past week and are growing quite nicely. this year I am keeping a gardening diary so I can actrually keep track of what works and how they are all doing based on the dates and varieties of planting.

Neighbors Susan and Steve out enjoying the Springtime evening and watching the world go by from their front porch.

Not much more for now and it's time to get ready to hit the hay so I'll sign off now. Until next week, auf wiedersehn

Monday 3 March 2008 @ 0657

Greetings!

Here it is the beginning of March and we're well into the gardening season already. Although the weather hasn't been beautiful every day we have had our fair share of nice sunny days in the Puget Sound.

The week has been pretty odd as I was ill with a cold that would not allow me to even breathe at all on Friday so I stayed home rather than infect my coworkers and was able to get a few things done here before I finally at noon just hit the couch for a nap as I couldn't stay upright any longer. This has been kicking my butt energywise and I just couldn't keep up. I made it to work Wednesday and Thursday but as far as productivity I wasn't really there and all I could think about was hitting the bed when I got home those days. I'm finally starting to feel as if I may be on the upswing but still not there yet and breathing is still a challenge but I got out this weekend for a few tasks and the house isn't a complete wreck.

Henry and I were able to come to agreement on his chore list and we have entered into our contract now. He now has a list of the things he does daily, weekly and over the weekends he spends here at our house. He has the list, he gets to schedule the tasks (including his homework and reading tasks) and has even agreed to cook dinner once per week. He understands these are the tasks that are expected of him for both being a member of the household and also for earning his allowance and he is expected to complete these tasks prior to any gaming system play or TV. I think we will find some success here and feel that this is a step in the right direction for him to go.

Bowling went pretty well this week with Henry's team taking 3 of 4 possible league points and they are now solidly in 2nd place and only 2 points behind the 1st place team so he and his team mates are all quite excited. Although his Mum and I really don't care how they do we still want them to do well and pay attention and try their best and so far that's where they are. Henry will be starting tae kwon do this week and he is not very excited about it but his Mum and I decided it would be a good activity to have him in; it will assist with discipline (the master checks their homework, asks for reports from parents to know that the kids are being polite and respectful at home before allowing them to participate or test for advancement) and is very active. We have friends that have their kids at this dojo and their kids are flourishing and get excited when they advance and disappointed when the master does not allow them to test or have to sit out the practice sessions. Henry is also meeting with a counselor for the first time Tuesday and although he is not happy about this either (we think he believes he is in trouble) both Kristin and I are happy we have found someone with whom we believe he can confide and learn some tools to help him through some of the tough times he's been experiencing lately. We met with his teacher last week and all 3 of us think that a lot of his challenges come from not having the tools to break big things into smaller more manageable tasks. That's where the scheduling his tasks came from as he tends to look at his homework or his chores as this big job he needs to do all at once. I've also started trying to show him how we all break stuff down in everyday life. Last week I roasted a couple chickens for dinner and we had that with gravy and veg. The next night we took the meat from the bones and made BBQ chicken pizzas with pizza shells I had made the last time we had pizza, the following night we made chicken and cheese enchiladas and now we'll make chicken pot pies with the last of the meat, some leftover veg and gravy. We talked through how each of these tasks was completed a bit at a time in order to not spend all night in the kitchen and we have fresh and lovely dinners each night as well as lunches for Dad to take to work. I let him know that is the same way we can approach our chores and homework and everything else and that I use planning like that at work all the time so that big projects get broken down into smaller tasks that I can accomplish or delegate to other resources and they all come together in order to have any big project done completely and on time. I think he's getting it, YAY!

We planted a bit more this weekend, I put in both Olympia spinach and lacinato kale as well as two artichoke plants. I am hoping to see some sprouting of the seeds soon and have high hopes for the chokes as well as they are supposed to do really well in this climate and since we are so close to the water we should have some of the similar aspects to the weather that central California sees. I planted a sage in my indoor herb garden and also planted a couple of hyacinths for the kitchen window to brighten the aroma and add a bit of color. The 50 new daffodils I put in last fall are all up and about to pop so the borders out front are looking quite nice and the lilacs are all setting huge numbers of buds as well so we'll have the deep purple, white and lavender colors and the lovely scents we have come to expect here in just the next few weeks. We are really looking FW to Spring and have plans to attend the annual bike expo next week and the following week will be the first of the training sessions for the 2008 Tour de Cure ride for diabetes to happen in May (be on the lookout for my annual fundraising stump speech in an email box near you :)

Anyway, it's been a big week and it looks to be another one shaping up this week. Work will be busy ad I'm involved in a couple projects that need a lot of attention and this is the 2nd week of the month so that means performance reviews for all my suppliers; at last count that means no less than 15 hours of going over reports and listening to all these separate entities toot their horns and our teams letting them know where their challenges are and how we expect them to turn those challenges into opportunities for improvement. Happily this month I don't think I have to be an asshole to any of them for a change so they all get to see my happy face instead of my stern asshole face.

That's about it so sayonara until next week

Sunday 24 February, 2008 @ 20:20

Greetings!

It's been a good week although eventful and busy. Layoffs at work, planting cool weather crops and a big Saturday with Henry.

Work is busy and a strange vibe has been going on since the layoff notice earlier this week. A couple of all hands meetings, communications from the executive committee and lots of friends asking about my current job status. All is well as my department was largely unaffected and there really wasn't that much of a reduction in the workforce here but more of a freeze on any hiring and the news that we would not be filling many jobs that had previously been out and advertised to be filled are now off the market. Not to worry, we'll all just keep on working and do our best to contribute where we can to turn things around and return to where we intended to be all along; at the top.

I went out with friends on Friday after work and ended up drinking too much. I have to remember I'm not in "shape" to do that lately with January being dry and even since then my intake moderately quite a bit. As I thought back I still had only had about a beer and a half and one bottle of wine since Feb 1 and there I was Friday dumping lots of beer in me along with a couple large glasses of Jagermeister (which I can blame on no one but myself as I order the first round to those :). I ended up with a big head yesterday and that was what disappointed me more than anything else as I had a big day planned with Henry and there I was hungover. Ah well, I lived through it and managed to keep my illness hidden for the most part but I did take a bit of a nap before we went out last night.

Saturday began with bowling as usual and Henry's team took 4 of 4 possible league points so they did very well and all individually bowled above their averages so all 4 kids were really happy. Henry and I went to the annual bike swap and it was underwhelming and we ended up leaving without anything new or finding anything we felt we couldn't live without. The annual bike expo where all the local and national vendors will be onsite with all the latest in new gear and news is in two weeks so that will be a vastly different event. We came home and planted chard, bok choy and carrots as well as getting some flowers planted and potted my kitchen herbs before taking a bit of a rest and heading back downtown to a rock music show at a local club. It was an all ages show so it was Henry's first show where everyone stands and watches the bands in a big cavernous space and he got to experience how loud these big touring bands get in these old warehouses. The show was The Hives and opened by The Donnas and he liked it and had a good time but wasn't really ready for a headliner band that didn't start until after 10:30. We only made about 35 minutes before he asked if we could leave because he was sooo tired. I definitely understand as 3 hours of standing around on a hard concrete floor it's definitely easy to tire out. We have some other shows we'll try and take in as I am all about encouraging him to experience all the music I can get him in front of but the next few we should have seats for.

It's been a pretty lazy day, got up late and got my bread baked for the week, cleaned up a bit around the house and finished the wash so we have clean clothes for the next while and now it's time to get ready to hit the hay. I'm not looking FW to work tomorrow as I've been feeling a bit off again all day but at this point I'm attributing it to a funky schedule the past couple of nights.

Not much more on the news front so I'll bid you all adieu and I'll do my best to keep the updates coming as boring as they've been lately. With Spring I'm hoping life will get to be a bit more exciting so I should have more news around the pike...

Hasta and don't forget to subscribe :)

Tuesday 19 February 2008 @ 20:00

Greetings!

Henry and I have had a holiday weekend that is now coming to a close and I must take this moment to state out loud I DON'T WANT TO GO BACK TO WORK TOMORROW!

We've had a fun and productive weekend and the weather has been for the most part very good and conducive to getting a lot of yard work completed.

The weekend started out with henry having the day off school so he accompanied me to the office where I had a performance review with one of my accounts so I needed to be there for about an hour or so. We left the office and rode the bus up to the Pike Place Market for some lunch and a wander through the stalls just kind of sightseeing. We stocked up on some fresh spices and got a box of Market Spice tea for Henry's Mum and had a slice of pizza and some fresh mini donuts and then spent some time at Beecher's cheese watching them make some fresh curd and then wandering about in Sur La Table before wandering back uptown and onto the bus home.

Henry picked up his new bowling ball on Saturday and it is lime green and navy swirled and smells like limes. It is a weighted urethane cover and is 10#s now up from his previous 8# so between the reactive cover and weight as well as the new #s it created some challenges for him but he still bowled well and his team took 3 of 4 possible league points this week. The weather was sunny but cool so Henry walked up to have lunch with his Mum who is now working only a block or so away from the house and I trimmed my 14 rose bushes cutting them all the way back for the first time that any of my neighbors can remember in the past few years. They look a bit bare but I'm expecting them to be really great this year as I took my time and was very deliberate about how I pruned. I spent Sunday pruning my 3 plum trees and took off about 10 feet from the tops and thinned the lower branches and ended up with a completely full 60 gallon yard waste bin twice; it was emptied Monday and I filled it again today.

I have been researching Square Foot Gardening and I built a 2X6 raised bed yesterday and today filled it with a mix of 1/3 compost, 1/3 peat moss and 1/3 vermiculite so essentially it's filed with high quality potting mix and this is purported to be all the nutrients that my veggies will need. Next step is to build the trellis for my peas and get those planted in the next few days as well as some other cool weather crops if I can get away with getting them in the ground now; maybe broccoli or cauliflower but I may be able to get some radicchio or lettuce in. If this works as well as I believe it will I'll build another bed to go under the big cedar tree on the North side of the house for lettuces and spinach through the summer since it stays cool and gets only a couple hours of sunlight there. I bought two artichoke plants today to go in near the SW cornere of the house where it will get serious sunshine and another over at the North end of the front yard near where my neighbors have their raspberries. Henry has been planning some planter boxes for the desk in the backyard and I've been working with him on the planning of the lumber he'll need as well as the cost; trying to bring math home and show him that you need it now and then and that it is even part of having fun projects.

After reading The Unpredjudiced Palate last year and then attending a talk by Michael Pollan the author of The Omnivore's Dilemma and In Defense of Food and I am pretty inspired now to produce and forage as much of our food as I can this summer. I'm also beginning to bake all of our bread and making everything I can from whole foods. Some interesting things have really resonated with me lately about food and here are a couple of them that I have lifted from Michael Pollan. In his research he has simplified eating to just a couple of rules:

1. Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.
2. If your great grandmother wouldn't have recognized something at the grocer as food, it isn't.

Pretty simple, easy to follow and make a lot of sense. I baked bread from a mother starte today and Henry has proclaimed it as the best bread he's ever eaten. I can't get him to eat whole grain bread for the life of me but this was all whole grain and he ate it right up. Using a mixed mother starter I was able to bake two loaves with only 1/2 a teaspoon of yeast yet it still has a fully developed flavor and tender crumb with a good hearty crust and a light brown almost golden color.

Henry watched Alton Brown make homemade donuts the other day so that was one of the projects we did this weekend as well, Henry made the dough, his first experience with yeast and although it was a bit challenging and a bit more difficult than most of the things he's made so far and it was a lesson in the exactitude of baking from scratch the donuts turned out mighty fine! We made cinnamon sugar on Sunday morning and Henry took most of them with his friends to the swimming pool and I made the 2nd half as powdered sugar donut holes for Henry and his friend that stayed over on Sunday night when they got up on Monday morning. Henry had his first sleepover and the kids were still awake at 2am on Monday morning and then back up at 7. I was asleep well before them and could hear them playing video games and watching TV a few times and then again when I woke up to hear them talking in the morning. I wandered through Monday with a lack of good sleep headache and the kids just went about their day as if nothing was out of the ordinary then played all day at his friends house in the creek that runs through the property and riding bikes and skateboards. Henry finally passed out about 10 last night and slept 12 hours.

Anyway, we've gotten our yard cleaned up, gotten prepped for Spring gardening and had a really good time as wwell as being able to have a couple of lazy mornings just drinking coffee and reading the paper while sitting in the sun in my big comfy reading chair so all in all it's been a great few days off and still I don't want to go back to work tomorrow.

Best