Blokus, Quilt Exposition, Neighbors & Pine Nuts

Tomorrow is Nolan’s birthday, and in just a little over a week, it will be Janet’s. August and the first part of September are busy birthday times.

We enjoyed Jeff and Bev’s visit. They got here mid afternoon on Friday and left about 2:30 on Sunday. Jeff suffered in the motor home because of Cooper, so we spent a lot of time sitting outside. They stayed in a nearby motel, so at least he could have a good night’s sleep.

Other than just visiting, the guys went to a baseball game and Bev and I shopped for a couple of hours. Then she and I came home to play Blokus which is a very fun board game, one that everybody from three to ninety three can play.

Bev and I talked about attending the Pacific International Quilt Exposition in Santa Clara the week end of October 13. That is right at the end of Ken’s treatments, so if I were to go, I would have to fly and then have him come through San Jose and pick me up. I think it is second only to the quilt show in Houston in terms of the size so it would be fun to attend.

We aren’t sure if we are going to try to go anywhere next weekend. We are not so sure we want to attempt the traffic. If anything, we will get together with Colleen, either here or in Phoenix, and that all hinges on whether or not she makes other plans. There could be worse things than to stay inside where it is cool.

We now have ‘permanent’ neighbors on both sides of us. Al, a salesman from Missoula has been here about a week and is undergoing proton treatment for cancer in his sinus’. On the other side is Karen, who is a teacher. She is married with 3 teen agers, but they are in Washougal, WA with her husband. They used to live here, he retired as an electrician, they moved to Washougal a little over a year ago, and now she is back here to teach.

I made this recently, didn’t have any pine nuts, and it still was very tasty.


PASTA WITH TOMATOES, PINE NUTS AND BASIL
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup pine nuts
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 6-ounce jars marinated artichoke hearts, drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano or 1/2 teaspoon dried, crumbled
Salt and pepper
9 ounces angel hair pasta, freshly cooked
Grated Parmesan
Heat oil in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add pine nuts and garlic and sauté until light brown, about 3 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and next 3 ingredients and heat through. Season with salt and pepper. Pour over pasta and toss thoroughly. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Serve immediately, passing additional Parmesan separately. Serves 4.

Ciao