Recent good/nice/sweet stuff

Just livin'.

That's pretty sweet.

Laughed a lot tonight, that felt good! 

Judit, love that you know about Pardinas... I learned how to cook those from Spanish aunties.

Easy to make, too.. 
 

Cool!  Good chorizo is like bacon... a small amount makes many dishes taste way better.

I'm going to have to check out those Pardina's, not sure if i've had them before (been I while since I was in a lentil cooking mood, but i'm actively changing my diet right now due to a severe gout attack i'm just getting over)

I let a long time homeless friend move into my spare room for the pandemic, he's been helping me with the yard, trying to turn the driveway into a garden.  Today received my first batch of organic seeds from my dear old friends Rolph and Janet over at the Thyme Garden in Alsea, Oregon.  They were so nice they even included a free packet of Genovese Basil seeds.  Will get those planted tomorrow, and still have seeds from two more local farms to hopefully arrive soon.  My 120 year old home isn't exactly set up for gardening, but that's about to change, lol...   

Tomorrow i'm cooking up a full roast turkey dinner as a thank you for my friends help (made sausage stuffing tonight, with old english muffins and sourdough bread for the crumbs).  Was suppose to be for Easter, but got busy, and the bird was frozen solid.  

Here's today's seeds, nothing fancy, but a great start to the herb garden!

and links if you'd like to support 3 NW seed farms;  

https://www.thymegarden.com

https://www.nicholsgardennursery.com/store/index.php

http://www.wildgardenseed.com

I am working everyday and my kids are still attending public school! 

Nice thread, Judit. Needed. 

I've really enjoyed John Krasinski's "Some Good News" video reports. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOe_y6KKvS3PdIfb9q9pGug

He's hosting a "prom" tonight live at 8 PM EST  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0AeB5M2N1M

I love this man. What a great human. He know's he lucky, he's blessed, and he's willing to share the love. After typing that I realized, we all are too, and can do the same in our own ways. 

Finished reading "Mother American Night", John Barlow book.  That's a recent good thing. 

Still captain of our ship, keeping it moving forward.  Get out once a week for fresh supplies like beer fruit veggys half n half and milk. Wear a mask whenever near people. No shortages, no lines where I'm at.  Made a killer strawberry blueberry pie last nite (slight pinches of allspice and fresh grated ginger makes it sooooooooo gooooooooood) 

After years of resisting, started selling my records online and created my own stimulus check in a week's time.   The post office is open and can get a lot of work done without customers in the shop and employees to manage.  The turntable works and I've got years of records to play-test and prep.  
 

l am getting outside a lot more regularly.  Spending a day or two every week doing some gardening.  
 

More time to read and play my guitar.  More frequent conversations with my family and old friends.  A general sense of gratitude to be in the here and now that humbled me and that I notice in many others.

Hey Noodler -- these are the lentils I've been able to find in Oregon -- the local Washington state lentils don't hold up -- too mooshy. I use French green lentils only for cold salads. 

These recipes are closest to what I learned, but I add bay leaf and a shot of something sweet, like molasses, maple syrup, sherry or brandy at the end of simmering.

https://www.tienda.com/recipes/lentil-and-chorizo-stew.html

https://www.finecooking.com/recipe/spanish-pardina-lentil-and-chorizo-stew

...and my good thing for today is that I'm taking the afternoon off to recover from a nasty workweek.

Happy Friday to all. 

Thanks for the recipes,  have to check them out!    

Pink Floyd re-edited 'Pulse" 1995 concert...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hokGXqEsCXk

I just had some ice cream!

with whipped cream!

Been smoking batches of Ribs over Cherry.  Then I eat them.  Hüsky gets the Fatty bits mixed with his Wolf Chow.  Yum.

I've spent some time recently in the garage, practicing playing the bridge to Touch Of Grey on an electric keyboard. "It's a lesson to me..." Interesting chord progression. 

My very first dutch oven was delivered from Costco a few days ago. I had a grass fed tri tip waiting in the freezer(thawed it out a couple days prior).  Seared it on both sides, replaced it with sliced onions, put it all back in the pot and added organic free range chicken broth. Cooked in oven at 300 for 3 hrs. Turning after 1-1/2.   When done it was by far the most tender tritip(actually pull apart) I have ever eaten, and very very tastey.

Garlic is doing great in the garden, but I am having trouble finding organic starters. I need about 35(including about a dozen Milkweed for the Monarch Butterflies) but only found 7 at three locations. Only 3 of those were targets, the other 4 will be experiments. 

The Douglass family has a long and hilarious history of family poker games at reunions over the yrs.   My cousin's kid set up a "Home Game" at Poker Stars and we have had 2 tourneys so far. We play for real money, but just a 5 or 10 dollar buy in.  Much fun.

Our culdesac had an outdoor distanced gathering in the street yesterday at 6pm. BYOB and, as it turned out byo-bud too. Seems most all my neighbors puff.  We all smoked and drank our own.  Was pretty cool.  And we listened to Third Mind blasting from my car. I also turned them on to some John Prine.

My electrical meter is now lower than when PG&E changed me over to the yearly system with my new solar panels on the first of December.  I may be able to lower my AC to 78 degrees this summer.

Me and my pup are healthy and get our walk in every day.

Still missing BASEBALL, Live Music and friends over, but overall, life is good.

WTF? Don't tell me I killed another thread.

All my threads die, fortunately it's always a quick death, not the long torturous demises that many other threads endure...

As to life, got the seeds planted!  (stage 2 of gravel driveway becomes urban garden started)

Mark, your post was so spot on, positive, and hopeful, it's a tough one to follow. Excellent reminder of the power we have to color our own lives. 

Off to go see Ammon Bundy and his minions at the Salt Lake City/County Building for their rally. Not sure he'll care for my signs. But I will dress up in my cowboy hat and American flag bandana.  

Funny, the rally is one block away from the SL County Health Department's Epidemiology office, where people are working 60-70 hour weeks tracking cases. I don't think they invited anyone from there to speak.  https://www.facebook.com/groups/266103211220686/

Building an addition on my house that Ive lived in for 21 years and the weather has been gorgeous here lately.

90% under roof and I'll have the last little bit done tomorrow which is a flat roof for a roof deck outside the master bedroom with sweet views of the Blue Ridge.

Also, my kids have been making movies and blowing my mind with their skills.  A lot of fake trailers for movies that dont exist and stop motion stuff with various toy figures/ animals.

Nothing is guaranteed. Happy to wake up and get vertical every day I can.

Trailhead, where do you live that your kids are still in school?

Noodler, What you gonna do with all that basil?

How did it go Slick?

^ I love adding to salads and Italian dishes

But will make a big batch of pesto in the fall, freeze in ice cube trays, then into a larger container...  perfect for dropping into hot pasta, marinara sauces, etc

(perhaps your garlic should meet my basil, wink wink nudge nudge) 

Mexican Coke.   In the home!

The little supermarket down the street (that folds or changes hands every 18-24 months) had a floor display by the the register.  50% cheaper than in restaurants, which is the only place I ever drink this, the only soda I ever drink.  Maybe 4-5 per year.  I've had three in the last week.

They went fast.  I bought the last two visible bottles on Friday.  Lily thinks there may be more in the aisle, but all I saw there was US-label, high fructose corn syrup vehicles y Jarritos!

My oldest brother set up a Zoom meeting for all my siblings yesterday.   My first experience with this technology.  Reminded me of the intro to the Brady Bunch.   A nice way to be able to see and hear everyone's input in real time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtX1r0SzxlI

Wow.  Gorgeous.

It's linked from a QnA w/Croz, Judit.  Poke around Rolling Stone for that.

Just picked up a smart tv and I pad off craigslist for 160 total. Good day so far and now off to prepare my garden for corn to hide some other things I'm growing. 

“It happened on a May morning.  I have forgotten the year but I can still point to the exact spot where it occurred, on a forest path on Martinsberg above Baden,” he wrote in “LSD: My Problem Child.” “As I strolled through the freshly greened woods filled with bird song and lit up by the morning sun, all at once everything appeared in an uncommonly clear light. “It shone with the most beautiful radiance, speaking to the heart, as though it wanted to encompass me in its majesty. I was filled with an indescribable sensation of joy, oneness and blissful security.”

Albert Hofmann 2006 at 100 yrs of age

(((((((((((Happy Discoveries)))))))))))))

*not recent, but defnitely good/nice/sweet

sweetness

doing an easy (essential) temp job for good money

my man found a farm 10 minutes away from home where his ultimate garden will grow and he gets to play in the dirt at will

everyone i love is healthy

Just watching the families out playing together is really nice, neighbors helping neighbors, creating grassroots  charities for the less fortunate. Two of  my neighbors garages are full of donated things that are being distributed to families in need. Collecting food,  clothing, toys,  toiletries and other essentials. My husband has time to pursue his hobby of woodwork and donated a dollhouse that I furnished to be auctioned by our neighbors' charity so they can buy more food to distribute. Starting bid $500 and already got some bites. Been checking in with family and friends - some I haven't talked to in a while so that's a positive. Actually feeling closer to my community, friends, neighbors and family now. It's weird, but we all seem to be able to make time for on another now. Even if it's just virtual hugs, it feels great. I trying new recipes and cooking like crazy and started gardening more - even trading seeds and plants with a neighbor. Been  able to get out into the Redwoods and hike a bit while avoiding other people, and love that there's no traffic. And mostly grateful that I'm feeling well and those that I care about are also doing okay.getting used to wearing face mask outside of the home now  and while still practicing social distancing am not as worried about Covid 19 - feeling especially relieved about the Stanford antibody study which seems to conclude that a huge number of people in our area already have been exposed to the virus - herd immunity likely well underway. 

I took 2nd place of nine in the family holdem tourney last night. 5.00 buy in. One rebuy in first hour if needed.  I won 18.00 back.   Much fun.

The 15 I took down earlier this week are now sitting pretty all jarred up. 10 sour d, 3 grape stomper, 1 venom og (asphalt plant) and 1 dog wrecker (dog walker x trainwreck).

Staying busy keeping the cycle rolling lovin the flavors

Gregulator you can’t go from chop to jar in a week man, or your weed will taste like hay. You might give them some time in a paper baggie for a week or two first.

On another note, the Himalayas are again visible from Punjab state for the first time in 30+ years due to the recent decline in industrial pollution. I was pretty amazed/not amazed to learn this.

Druba, Noodler --

You probably already know that Peppers in general like high temperatures for germination.

75 - 80 degrees is just wonderful,  and they may take 30 - 40 days before they have a nice root structure for transplant.

I've done Peppers and Tomatoes from seed in the greenhouse this time of year,  here's what I've noticed:  Peppers 'like' the higher temps, and not very deep coverage of soil mix.  Longer time to develop roots compared to their Tomato cousins.

Happy Farming :)

Thanks for the tips, always had gardens before moving to this spot eons ago, trying to remember the old tricks.  But that's why I got local seeds, hopefully acclimated to our area.  I'll likely just go w/ starts for the peppers / toms,  but was cool to support my old friends biz just the same.  I've got my seed trays in the darker areas next to the carnivorous plants, once they sprout there'll be light, we'll see how they do!  But if I can plant outside by June, should have plenty of time for a decent harvest.   

Mice it's completely dry. I took down  and it hung 6-7 days but I don't want it getting too dry. I always check and burp the jar If needed.  Im getting great results . No hay smell or flavor.  No complaints

Someone may have mentioned above.  John Krasinsky(?)'s SGN thingy is pretty feel-good-ish.

Looks like the basil is the first to sprout, happy happy joy joy!  

Hope all you zoners are having a wonderful day!

found a 12 pack of canned seltzer in the garage so I'm making Egg-Creams...

went to take a walk and watch a sunset last evening and luckily got to catch this

6pm

coming back out an hour later...got caught in a fast moving downpour

but about 15 minutes later

it was really close so I couldn't get it all in one shot

it lasted just over 5 miutes and then faded

.

going

.

i was lucky enough to be able to celebrate Bicycle day on Sunday appropriately so all this was nice in the afterglow

I understand folks really like cats on the Internet.

Here:

https://digg.com/video/this-video-of-a-cat-snowskating-is-the-x-games-ev...

The sunny weather has helped turn the sundews red...  

now need to sell / trade them to make room for the flowering flytraps; 

NY Gov Cuomo reads a letter he received from a farmer in Kansas

https://youtu.be/zCUd-iUEGfs

l

Little Milo