Getting Lost.....

Sundays are a weekly driving day for me. I grab my camera, peel the top back on the Jeep and go get lost. On purpose. Today I was particularly taken with these huge, round mountains of hay....

Bounty.....

Sal and I were up early this morning to hit two Farmer's Markets. One in Holly Springs and the other, the North Carolina State Farmer's Market--the big daddy one. I think we beat even the vendors to the one in Holly Springs because most of them were still setting up when we got there so we jetted off to the big one.....

I love the N.C. State Farmer's Market. It is huge and has everything. This trip we picked up some apples and fresh shelled beans. So much inspiration, so little time....and tummy space!

T's waiting for a little B & L!

An army of Okra....

Peaches galore....

Two Fat Ladies.....

Some years ago, my oldest brother Russ turned me onto this wonderful cooking show running on the BBC called "Two Fat Ladies". It only ran for four seasons and I was an instant fan. These two British ladies, Clarissa Dickson-Wright and Jennifer Paterson, were, yes, large in form, but what tripped my trigger were their big, bold personalities and the fun they had in and out of the kitchen. The two traveled around the English countryside on a Triumph Thunderbird motorcycle. Jennifer drove and Clarissa happily rode in the sidecar. Both outstanding cooks, they never cared about calories or fat. They did love biiig, bold flavors and used the most fresh ingredients and would travel all over to find them. One episode, Clarissa was preparing a venison dish and they both went out to a deer farm to get the meat. They pulled right into the field as the deer scattered, started digging in the back of the vehicle for I suppose their rifles.....and then the show cut to the farm owner bringing a huge side of deer. I have to admit I covered my eyes for a little bit thinking they were gonna show it! Both Jennifer and Clarissa loved hunting and they certainly got fresh venison that day.....

Jennifer passed away back in 1998 of lung cancer. The day before she died, she asked Clarissa to bring her a tin of caviar to the hospital, but by the time Clarissa arrived, Jennifer had passed. Clarissa says that after Jennifer's funeral, she ate the caviar as a tribute. Sweet.

I'm thrilled to say that the new Cooking Channel is running the Two Fat Ladies shows, Saturday nights at 10 & 10:30. I have been watching them again with much love and appreciation for these two ladies. I am in the middle of reading Clarissa's autobiography too. It's called Spilling The Beans. She lived and has survived quite a life. More on that later......

Though I doubt I will ever cook Partridge and Cabbage or Rabbit Isabel, I will be trying this recipe I watched Clarissa prepare a couple of Saturday's ago. It looks yummmmy! I'll let you know how it turns out!

Quercyan Apple Cake

• Filling:
• 3 pounds apples, peeled and thinly sliced
• 8 ounces sugar
• 4 fluid ounces rum
• 3 fluid ounces orange flower water
• Thinly pared rind of 1 lemon
• 
  
• 1 pound plain flour (all-purpose)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 ounces butter, creamed
• 
  
• Finish:
• 1 ounce butter, melted
• 1 egg, beaten
• Caster sugar (superfine)

Directions

Filling: Macerate the sliced apples with the sugar, rum, orange flower water, and lemon peel overnight. Strain the apples, reserving the juice.

Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl, put butter and eggs into a well in the centre. Working with the fingertips gradually add 7 fluid ounces of the liquid from the apples. Work into a smooth and elastic paste with your hand and leave to rest for 2 hours.

Roll out the rested paste as thinly as possible, then transfer to a floured cloth on a large table. Working from the centre, with the palms of your hands, carefully stretch the paste to the thinness of a cigarette paper. Rest it and yourself for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 390 degrees F.

Brush lightly with melted butter and dust with sugar, cover with well drained apples and roll up. Mix the remaining juice into the beaten egg and brush over the top. Bake in the oven for 50 to 55 minutes.

Long Time Gone....

Well, I have no excuse. I've been gone off here for way too long and now looking back, there is so much to catch up on, I don't know where to start. So I'll start with the present...well, the recent past. The weekend.
So my brother, Russ and his new bride, Carla and their son Matias made a visit to the OBX--the outerbanks for those of you who don't live 'round these parts--last week. On their way back up to Virginia on Sunday, we planned to meet for lunch at Parker's BBQ in Wilson. We tried this hook-up the weekend before, but his GPS (cough-operator error!) screwed up somehow. But yesterday it happened. Looking around the table, it was quite a sight. Mom, her three grown kids, my brothers' looong-time girlfriend, my other brothers' wife and child....it was pretty darn cool. Carla is gorgeous and sooooo kind. Matias, my nephew, is a doll with the biggest brown eyes I've ever seen. And he knows how to give 'high-fives' which makes him uber-cool in my book.


After lunch, my other brother suggested we drive about 10 miles down this country road to Lucama, NC and see some whirligigs that had been written about in the N&O that day. I got the full story as we drove past miles of tobacco fields and peanut farms and acres of gorgeous green as far as the eye can see. Then....there they are. On the left hand side of a crossroads are these huge steel whirligigs. MANY of them. Vollis Simpson is the artist, using old signs and pieces of junk and discarded metal to build these monstrous contraptions that spin in all directions in the wind. They are mesmerizing. If it weren't for the gnats eating me alive, I would have stood out there longer just staring at them spinning round and round. Mr. Simpson is getting on in years--I think he's 91--and soon, the Town of Wilson will come and take his whirligigs off his property and place them in a specially built park for all to enjoy. Good for them! They are a treasure and a nod to our heritage and I am thrilled that they will be preserved.

Be a teacup.....

My darlin' daughter turns 12 next month. She has been in full-swing puberty mode for the past six months. Mood swings, wanting to be left alone--yep, that's been all a part of it. I remember it all from when I was her age so I get where she is right now. She and I have been talking about boys, dating and appropriate and inappropriate behavior and how to properly put one in a choke hold if they get fresh. (just kidding.....maybe). My Mom never had this or any chat with me, so everything I learned about boys I learned from my girlfriends at school or....from boys. THAT was not going to happen with my daughter. Boys are fun and relationships are fun, but she needs to know to set the boundaries and not be afraid to stand up for herself and speak up if something or someone makes her uncomfortable.

I was thrilled to hear that in Cassie's Sunday school, they have been chatting about dating, too. This past week, they spoke about morals and virtue and how to be proud of who they are. That they are special and should treat themselves as such and should expect to be treated that way. Nice! The teachers used a 'cup' example and I thought it was perfect:

"This past weekend we looked at characteristics a girl should possess. As part of the talk we introduced 3 types of cups.

Styrofoam cup: inexpensive, millions of them everywhere, disposable: use once and throw away. This could represent the girl who will do anything to get a boys attention but are often hurt and caught in a vicious cycle of no self worth.

Ceramic mug: common household item, fairly inexpensive, find them everywhere. They blend in and trendy but often end up in a yard sale. This could represent the girl who wants to blend in with the crowd. May compromise values in order to fit in only to be cast aside for the latest and greatest.

Teacup: Unique, beautiful, perfect and priceless. Often displayed with honor in a china cabinet. Set aside for special occasions. This is the girl God created them to be. Priceless! In Psalm 45:11 it says the King is enthralled with their beauty. We challenged the girls to always present and value themselves through God’s enthrallment of them and called the guys to always treat girls with the care, respect and gentleness."

Ya know this is a great reminder for anyone of any age to regard themselves as a teacup. Whether dating, or married, in a friendship or on the job..... you should always remember that you are 'unique, beautiful, perfect and priceless' and should let no one....boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife, mother, daughter or even a boss....treat you any less.

Time flies....

It's been a little while since I've written. I have been busy for sure. The job hunt continues and has taken me to Seattle, NYC, Orlando, Miami and points in between, but has not netted the perfect job just yet. I'm very blessed that I have the time and resources to take my time to find the job that I want and not have to jump at just any job that strolls by. So the search continues. We'll see where it leads this week.....

I've spent lots of time in my yard landscaping and getting my backyard to the lush oasis that I want it to be.....even if it might end up being for the next homeowner if a move is in our future. Our home builder did a good job of foundation planting, but I need plants--I mean rainforest thick monster plants! I've planted five Leyland Cypress to help hide the neighbor behind us. Lots of large shrubbery, flowering and not, to help fill in some of the open areas in our 'natural area'. Some Calla Lilies, Jasmine and a bunch of other flowering bushes and plants to bring those little pops of color here and there. And, of course, a massive amount of day-lilies. They are my favorite back and front yard plants. Taking a walk around the yard this morning--my favorite time to inspect the 'estate' (lol)--everything has taken root perfectly and is growing. In about 3-5 years, it'll look amazing!

As a hockey fan, I'm enjoying some great playoff games that are being played out. My team is not in it so I'm not really pulling for any team, but I love a good, hard fought game and there have been several so far! Hubby and I finally got around to catching up on some tv we missed while he was workin' hard during tax season. We caught up on all 8 episodes of "Parenthood" over the weekend. Oh my, I love that show. Why was I not shocked that uber-producers Ron Howard and Brian Grazer were part of it. I'm so wary to get hooked on a new show because they get cancelled so fast these days. I hope this one survives. What a great cast. I especially like Peter Krause, whose acting I fell in love with during Six Feet Under.

I had to say goodbye to my dear Leo last week. He would've turned 19 next month and my 'grandpa' kitty just wore out. His pace had slowed quite considerably, he had to stop every 10 feet or so to rest and was getting lower and lower in his back legs. Then when the vet said his kidney numbers has jumped into the danger zone, we knew the time had come. This was the first time I had been present during one of our pets' euthanizations and I was surprised at how peaceful the whole process was. I blubbered my way through saying goodbye to him after the vet gave him a sedative and then she gave him the final shot. Just as he did during life, he passed while laying on my lap. I would have had it no other way. He didn't suffer, he died with dignity and on his favorite lap. Leo was a great kitty and he and I shared many adventures together. I couldn't have asked for a better boy......

Casper, our last kitty left out of four, has adjusted easily to his playmate being gone. The vet said dogs have a harder time adjusting to a member of their pack being gone than cats. I wonder how long Casper grieved? The first day I fed him as a solo kitty, he stood at the side of the food dish, like always, as Leo was the alpha-cat and always ate first. That was a sad sight, as Casper sat there and waited for Leo to round the corner and eat the lions share first......but he never came. Here we are six days later and Casper no longer waits. It is weird only having one cat in the house though.

Casper and Leo

One Month Later......

So it's been just over a month since my last post and almost 6 weeks since I was laid off from my job. I felt the need to cocoon for a little while. To run and hide. To get angry. To stamp my feet and have a tantrum or two. To cry a few tears. And then, the final phase--to lick my wounds and move on. That is easier said than done. I haven't not worked in 28 years, so re-adjusting to a schedule that is not revolving around my going off to work in the morning is weird and it's been hard for me not to go somewhere and do something.

I was hoping my baking would go full-time, but without my full-time job to fund the baking, that was not to be either. I had to officially close my bakery to outside clients, who were not thrilled. I guess that is suppose to make me happy! But it just makes my heart ache. I still bake for my friends and for the church whenever they need it, but it's just not enough to fulfill this need I have to bake and create in the kitchen alllll day.

But what all this has allowed me to do is sit with my daughter the whole entire time she's eating breakfast in the morning instead of getting up in the middle of it to go off to work. I drive her school now and we sing or chat or just listen to the local morning show do their antics. It's the hours after that when I am home kickin' around the house the rest of the day with nothing to do that gets me. So....I've been doing some volunteer work at my church and some volunteer work at our new N.C. Museum of Art is starting up next week. And I have been applying to many, many radio stations. There has been some courting by a couple of stations, but even that process has slowwwwwwed waaaaay dowwwwwwnnnnnn since the last time I applied for a job. We'll see where all that leads......

God sure has base-lined my life. My full-time job is gone and my part-time job is gone. I have this visual in my head where I'm standing at a starting line. There is lots behind me that I can see but in front of me? Nothing....at least nothing that I can see. It's just.....white. I know there is stuff out there and I have extreme faith that God is in charge of it all, so I know whatever I cannot see right now, it's gonna be awesome. But waiting for the starting gun, is not one of my better qualities. I keep wanting to jump the gun and I keep getting yanked back to that starting line. I just know God is up there saying "All in good time, woman!". Any day now......any day, God.