Okay, I’ve recovered from my momentary freak out about never getting it all done. It’s still not all done, but I’m just going to keep moving, slow and steady, until the last of the heavy lifting is done.
This weekend was busy but relaxing at the same time. We may have worked hard, but we also took some time to relax.
Mike and I spent all day yesterday re-roofing the chicken shack. It was definitely needed and we finished just in time for some serious rain. I’ll get some photos of the upgraded coop later this week and tell you all about the process then. After we finished we joined friends for some soul food down in Everett – yum!
Today Mike tackled an outstanding repair called for in the pre-purchase inspection of the house, the fan in the master bath. It was a crappy “builder’s special” fan and it wasn’t vented properly. We’ve been using the window to vent the bathroom, but that’s not exactly a long term solution. Today he not only replaced the fan, but punched a hole in the roof and got it properly vented. What a handy guy!
While Mike was working hard in the attic (glad it wasn’t me) I headed down to the farmer’s market to say hello and get a few things. Today’s purchases included: 5 Bartlett pears, 6 McIntosh apples, a Korean honeydew melon, 20 ears of sweet corn, a loaf of whole grain bread, a bag of cranberry-pistachio shortbread cookies and 5 bunches of basil. Cheapest trip I’ve made to the market in a while.
When I got home I found that there were about 15 gallons of water caught in the plastic over the tomatoes – whoops! I should have changed my shoes before I drained it, but oh well, live and learn. After finally trellising the fall peas (about a foot tall) I headed inside.
First up was sauerkraut. Thanks to encouragement from several readers, but in particular Eugenia who sent me specific instructions for making it in a 1/2 gallon jar, I decided to go for it. Turns out I only had about 4 pounds of shredded cabbage (yay for the new Cuisinart!) after discarding the icky outer leaves. It was the perfect amount for making one jar of kraut. Now it’s hanging out on the counter in a paper bag, per Eugenia’s instructions, and we’ll see if it’s bubbling tomorrow.
Once the cabbage mess was cleaned up, I turned my attention to the corn. I kept out 2 ears for dinner and then steam blanched the rest. The ears weren’t quite as fruitful as last years, 18 ears only netted me 11 cups of kernels, but it’s really good. I could have done 3 times as much corn today, but I felt like taking it easy. Doing 18-20 ears only takes about 45 minutes. Doing 5 dozen takes at least twice as long… There’s always next weekend to finish it off.
We finished off the evening with another try at the Bavarian hot pot recipe. I still wasn’t completely satisfied with it, but the one pot nature of it is so appealing that we’ll keep working at it.
Now I’m just sitting here looking at my California Moon Handbook trying to decide what to see on my upcoming trip to San Francisco. Not a bad way to end the weekend.
*****
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No farm tours? Were they canceled for lack of interest? I did one here and got to taste different apples including some wonderful Pink Pearls, Akanes and Elstars.
LOL: Move in condition only means that the previous owners have messed everything up and are now going to rent an apartment. You are free to move in–to one room and Completely remodel everything! We have learned our lesson too. Ours believe it or not was a bathroom problem too (the plumbing had a hole in the pipe–in the wall). Careful about several layers over problems that no one wanted to previously address–like lead paint, asbestos, toxic siding and flammable insulation. A hastily fashioned piece of drywall that is highly visible is a dead givaway that there are major problems lurking. Don’t you simply love home remodeling!
Your garden sounds absolutely lovely!!!!
Glad to be of help! The bubbling might take a few days, especially if you have the stuff in a cool place.
The new Academy of Science opens this weekend and is supposed to be stunning. I don’t know if that would be anticipated in the book. There’s also a Freida Kahlo show at the MOMA that is wonderful. In any event, enjoy.
Marcyincny – The free farm tour on Sunday was scrubbed from my schedule by crappy weather and the fact that Mike came home early and was willing to help me re-roof the coop (couldn’t pass that help up). The Sunday pay tour was cancelled by the organizer for lack of interest – bummer!
Monica – you’re right, and thanks!
Eugenia – seems to be bubbling now. It’s on the counter which I think is a semi-warm space right now.
Katrina – Thanks for the recommendations. I saw the review of the new Academy building in the NY Times and immediately put it on my list. Good to know there’s also something interesting at MOMA.