Phone Updates

I couldn't figure out why the leaves on my potato plants were disappearing - if deer were to blame then why were they only eating those plants? Well, I found the culprit.
Here's a rumtopf update. So far: cherries, strawberries, gooseberries, wine raspberries, apricots, red currants, and now shirot plums.

On 4 July I was on my back porch and I could hear bells - lots of tiny bells. I figured I should see what was going on so I put my book down and went around the house to find this:

Llamas in my yard - eating the shrubs!!

Here's the replica of James Rumsey's steamboat in the 4 July parade:



And here are the llamas in the parade. Their owners parked outside of my house for the parade lineup.

A Lesson for the Future

I'm pretty proud that I've been able to make some significant changes in my life the past few years. I cut out trans fats and artificial sweeteners, I only purchase meat from the local butcher who serves locally raised pastured meat, I'm learning to grow vegetables, I took most of the plastic out of my home, and so on. But there are always lessons to learn. Here's the lesson I learned today - when you over-winter vegetables in a cold-cellar or root-cellar, don't forget to check to make sure you've used them all when the winter is over. Recently I've been feeling sick in my home as if I had a cat or lots of fresh flowers inside (neither of which apply). Then I began smelling a musty smell and no matter how much I cleaned everything it persisted and has - imagine this - gotten stronger in the midst of this heat wave. I found the solution - two acorn squash and a pumpkin, stored under the stairs, now rotting and growing a lovely culture of their own (to my sister - this is not like kombucha). I'm in the process of cleaning EVERYTHING out from under the stairs which is now covered in a red liquid, mold, or the psychological invisible coating of something dangerous (thanks Mom). More later.

Senate

I went to DC to see Senator Byrd lie in the Senate before being airlifted to Charleston, but unfortunately there is no visitor parking at the Capitol or the Capitol Visitor Center. Ironic? So after driving around for a very long time I finally found a parking meter. Get this: in DC a quarter will purchase seven and a half minutes of time at the meter. How much for a nickel, you might ask? One and a half minutes. I'd say that unless the ticketer is within sight, don't even bother inserting a nickel for that whopping amount of time. This is why I never drive into the city (combined with the traffic signals on the sides of the road instead of being overhead). Anyway, after emptying out the silver change from my car, I managed to buy twenty seven minutes of time in which I ran to the back side of the Capitol just in time to see the casket being brought down the Senate stairs and placed into the hearse. Here is a photo of the Senate house just after he left.

Garlic and Berries

I could wait no longer - - and dug up some garlic from the garden. Perhaps I dug these heads up just a bit too soon...they are formed but a tad small. The garlic I dug up today was larger and they have all been delicious. Also, I went foraging for berries today. I picked a quart and used half of them for a custard pie I made with a golden oreo crust. It was quite tasty. Here you see the other half, some of which will go into the rumtopf.

Rumtopf!!!!

Hey gang! After hearing friends recount the story of Lynne Rossetto Kasper's intriguing description of a rumtopf, I have researched the magical rumtopf and have decided to make one. Here's a photo. I just added some gooseberries which caused the splashes on the side of the jar. I hope I'm doing it right, because as Dad said, "[it] will either turn out to be incredible, or you will poison yourself." I'm paraphrasing. Essentially the rumtopf is seasonal fruits juiced in sugar for an hour or so and then put in the pot and covered with rum. This continues through the year and then sits some time before wintertime consumption (again, Dad commented, "Does your fantasy of this thing include fairies?") So far, "meine Rumtopf hat" strawberries, cherries, and gooseberries.

Potato Flowers

The potato plants are flowering - see?