Due to some sad events, we left Casa Grande earlier than planned and are now at Alderwood RV Park in north Spokane.
Ken's nephew, Bill Novotney, who is my age, was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer the first part of March and passed away 17 days later. Fortunately, we acted quickly enough that Ken was able to fly to Spokane last week and was able to see Bill while he still knew him and to say good by the day before he passed away. Bill's service and burial were yesterday (March 26) in Harrington.
I had not yet had time to collect my thoughts or decide what to do, although I was leaning toward driving the car up, when on Sunday Keith called and said he would fly to Phoenix and drive the motor home to Spokane. He arrived late Sunday night, and we were on the road by 10:30 Monday morning to arrive in Spokane on Wednesday afternoon.
I had most everything taken down, put up, or stowed away which amounts to a fair bit after having been parked in the same place for almost two months, and our traveling friends were right there to assist with utility disconnects, car tow-bar and car hook-up.
No learning curve needed for Keith, he just put it in gear and away we went. We stayed the first night in Alamo, NV in a truck stop that hosted not a single truck but several RVs, and we even braved it and ate breakfast the next morning in their little cafe with no ill effects. The second night found us in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Ontario, OR, and then on to Spokane on Wednesday.
Since Bill lived the past forty years in Harrington and was involved on several fronts, his service was standing room only. There were probably 225 folks in a church that can hold about 125. Bill and Karla's youngest daughter, Debbie, teaches at a Hutterite school in the area so many were in attendance and they provided several vocal pieces, a cappella, both at the service and graveside. Their oldest daughter, Marty, composed and read a lovely piece reflecting on what her dad had meant to her and her sisters, and Marty's oldest son, Kieran, read a poem written by her other son, Kiel. Both beautifully written and delivered.
Craig and Colleen drove over on Thursday, and they and Keith will leave tomorrow to go home. We will probably stay in the area for a few more days before going home because I want to be sure the kitchen is finished before I get there. the plumbing was connected yesterday, and I think the contractor still has some trim work to do, but it is essentially finished. The cleaning crew goes in on Wednesday.
Jerry and Lois' house has become family central for our kids to include Cinda's arrival yesterday so there are bodies sleeping everywhere. I'm sure J&L will be glad to reclaim their home and get their lives back to normal next week.
The weather here has been reasonable but colder than I like. At the moment, the frost is just beginning to melt off. Not that we had stellar weather in Arizona; in fact it was the coldest and wettest winter we have seen since going down for the past six years. I wore shorts just TWO days out of the entire two months.
My next blog will be from Steilacoom. Ciao.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Happy St. Patrick's Day
Since my great grandfather was born in Limerick, I believe I am well-qualified to spread a bit of Irish cheer, plus my brothers are named Patrick (noble) and Michael (God-like), and then there is daughter Colleen Erin (Irish girl)! I will wear my green T-shirt today and partake of corned beef and cabbage at the annual dinner here at the park. I'll skip the green beer!
The temperature has finally risen to the high seventies, but the wind has continued to keep us pretty cool. This has been a very unusual winter as far as the weather is concerned.
We are going to leave here a bit early and go home via Las Vegas and the Tri-Cities. Las Vegas is more about staying at the Nellis Famcamp and shopping at the commissary than it is about gambling, and then we will mosey on to Prosser where we will spend a day or two to do some wine tasting/shopping.
Even though I am never anxious to get home and am content living the life of a vagabond, I am looking forward to seeing the new kitchen. I think it should pretty well be finished by the end of this week including a thorough cleaning. Our contractor has a crew he uses to come in and clean after the work is finished and that is a good thing!!!!!
Craig came up with the idea to widen and arch the doorway from the kitchen to the dining room, and it appears to have made a big improvement in the flow between the two rooms. I have lost some wall space in the dining room so will have to do a bit of rearranging but that is a small price to pay.
Since this is a pretty uninspiring blog, I'll post one of my newest favorite recipes from the cooking goddess, Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. And since I can't seem to leave well-enough alone, I have incorporated a couple of changes that seem to work just fine.
I slice up the stems as well as using the florets (in fact I prefer the stems to the florets), and I found it wasn't the end of the world when I discovered I was out of pine nuts, but I suspect most any kind of nut would enhance the dish. Since fresh basil isn't exactly a year 'round kitchen staple I skipped it and in this instance I think no basil is better than dried basil. This recipe is also fabulous with fresh asparagus!!
Parmesan Roasted Broccoli
* 4 to 5 pounds broccoli
* 4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
* Good olive oil
* 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
* 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
* 3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
* 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
* 2 tablespoons julienned fresh basil leaves (about 12 leaves)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Cut the broccoli florets from the thick stalks, leaving an inch or two of stalk attached to the florets, discarding the rest of the stalks. Cut the larger pieces through the base of the head with a small knife, pulling the florets apart. You should have about 8 cups of florets. Place the broccoli florets on a sheet pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Toss the garlic on the broccoli and drizzle with 5 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until crisp-tender and the tips of some of the florets are browned.
Remove the broccoli from the oven and immediately toss with 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, the lemon zest, lemon juice, pine nuts, Parmesan, and basil. Serve hot. Bon appetite.
Ciao
The temperature has finally risen to the high seventies, but the wind has continued to keep us pretty cool. This has been a very unusual winter as far as the weather is concerned.
We are going to leave here a bit early and go home via Las Vegas and the Tri-Cities. Las Vegas is more about staying at the Nellis Famcamp and shopping at the commissary than it is about gambling, and then we will mosey on to Prosser where we will spend a day or two to do some wine tasting/shopping.
Even though I am never anxious to get home and am content living the life of a vagabond, I am looking forward to seeing the new kitchen. I think it should pretty well be finished by the end of this week including a thorough cleaning. Our contractor has a crew he uses to come in and clean after the work is finished and that is a good thing!!!!!
Craig came up with the idea to widen and arch the doorway from the kitchen to the dining room, and it appears to have made a big improvement in the flow between the two rooms. I have lost some wall space in the dining room so will have to do a bit of rearranging but that is a small price to pay.
Since this is a pretty uninspiring blog, I'll post one of my newest favorite recipes from the cooking goddess, Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. And since I can't seem to leave well-enough alone, I have incorporated a couple of changes that seem to work just fine.
I slice up the stems as well as using the florets (in fact I prefer the stems to the florets), and I found it wasn't the end of the world when I discovered I was out of pine nuts, but I suspect most any kind of nut would enhance the dish. Since fresh basil isn't exactly a year 'round kitchen staple I skipped it and in this instance I think no basil is better than dried basil. This recipe is also fabulous with fresh asparagus!!
Parmesan Roasted Broccoli
* 4 to 5 pounds broccoli
* 4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
* Good olive oil
* 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
* 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
* 3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
* 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
* 2 tablespoons julienned fresh basil leaves (about 12 leaves)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Cut the broccoli florets from the thick stalks, leaving an inch or two of stalk attached to the florets, discarding the rest of the stalks. Cut the larger pieces through the base of the head with a small knife, pulling the florets apart. You should have about 8 cups of florets. Place the broccoli florets on a sheet pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Toss the garlic on the broccoli and drizzle with 5 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until crisp-tender and the tips of some of the florets are browned.
Remove the broccoli from the oven and immediately toss with 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, the lemon zest, lemon juice, pine nuts, Parmesan, and basil. Serve hot. Bon appetite.
Ciao
Monday, March 08, 2010
Did we take a wrong turn?
We were planning to spend at least two months in the sunshine of Arizona, but after six weeks, I am wondering if we are in the correct state. Right now, I have the electric heater plugged in, I am wearing sweats and drinking coffee, and as I look out the windshield I see nothing but a dark gray rain-spattered view across the park. And it has been like this off and on ever since we arrived. We would have had better weather had we stayed home in Steilacoom.
But we have no control over the weather, and I can't say that we have been terribly inconvenienced except when it is time to walk the dog in the douwnpours. We have had some MAJOR fronts come through that have beaten a thunderous cacophony on the roof.
We still manage some socializing here in the park, and if need be, we just move Happy Hour inside. We have had two sets of friends depart for home or other points west, but now have two Canadian couples who will be here for one month. Both of the guys are retired Canadian forces and Gary and Ken worked together while we were in Halifax.
My former boss (from real estate days) and his wife just purchased a home in Trilogy which is a lovely planned community in the northern part of Peoria. We joined them for lunch last week and toured their new "digs" which will be lovely when they finish their redecorating. And long-time friends from Davenport and Navy days (Larry and Lynn VanAusdle) had a get-together at their home in Sun Lakes last week with several couples who winter in this area.
Mike and Mary were here for a short visit last week, and we spent one full day driving to Tombstone (don't bother; it is a scruffy, poorly maintained town where every activity will cost you) and on to Bisbee. We didn't stop in Bisbee, but Ken and I have been there before and it is quite an appealing mining town with both an historical section and a new section.
For a mere fifty or sixty more miles we made our way to Sierra Vista to have dinner at Ricardo's which is an authentic Mexican restaurant that has been in the same location for something like 30 years. Keith and Janet discovered Ricardo's when they lived at Ft. Huachuca, and we never miss an opportunity to stop. M&M treated us in honor of Ken's birthday. Then full circle back to Casa Grande.
My quilt projects have barely seen the light of day. In order to really get into a project, I end up trashing the motor home from one end to the other including the ironing board on the bathroom sink, the sewing machine on the vanity in the bedroom, and the cutting mat on the dinette table. By the time I get everything out, I am almost too tired to sew, and then it all has to be put away if we want to eat dinner.
The kitchen remodel at home is coming along on schedule with all the upper cabinets in place and new window installed. Base cabinets and countertops and backsplash are next. Our contractor is excellent; not only in his quality workmanship but in his ongoing efforts to stay in close touch as the work progresses. It will be fun to go home to a new kitchen! Ciao
But we have no control over the weather, and I can't say that we have been terribly inconvenienced except when it is time to walk the dog in the douwnpours. We have had some MAJOR fronts come through that have beaten a thunderous cacophony on the roof.
We still manage some socializing here in the park, and if need be, we just move Happy Hour inside. We have had two sets of friends depart for home or other points west, but now have two Canadian couples who will be here for one month. Both of the guys are retired Canadian forces and Gary and Ken worked together while we were in Halifax.
My former boss (from real estate days) and his wife just purchased a home in Trilogy which is a lovely planned community in the northern part of Peoria. We joined them for lunch last week and toured their new "digs" which will be lovely when they finish their redecorating. And long-time friends from Davenport and Navy days (Larry and Lynn VanAusdle) had a get-together at their home in Sun Lakes last week with several couples who winter in this area.
Mike and Mary were here for a short visit last week, and we spent one full day driving to Tombstone (don't bother; it is a scruffy, poorly maintained town where every activity will cost you) and on to Bisbee. We didn't stop in Bisbee, but Ken and I have been there before and it is quite an appealing mining town with both an historical section and a new section.
For a mere fifty or sixty more miles we made our way to Sierra Vista to have dinner at Ricardo's which is an authentic Mexican restaurant that has been in the same location for something like 30 years. Keith and Janet discovered Ricardo's when they lived at Ft. Huachuca, and we never miss an opportunity to stop. M&M treated us in honor of Ken's birthday. Then full circle back to Casa Grande.
My quilt projects have barely seen the light of day. In order to really get into a project, I end up trashing the motor home from one end to the other including the ironing board on the bathroom sink, the sewing machine on the vanity in the bedroom, and the cutting mat on the dinette table. By the time I get everything out, I am almost too tired to sew, and then it all has to be put away if we want to eat dinner.
The kitchen remodel at home is coming along on schedule with all the upper cabinets in place and new window installed. Base cabinets and countertops and backsplash are next. Our contractor is excellent; not only in his quality workmanship but in his ongoing efforts to stay in close touch as the work progresses. It will be fun to go home to a new kitchen! Ciao
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