The Magic of Mushrooms

our living room-- In February, a small but heavy box appeared on our doorstep. Inside, all you ever needed to grow your own mushrooms! Since the Farmer's Market closed in December, pickin's for our "local diet initiative" have been slimmer and more centered around pale roots.

After the required week in the dark, we transferred our box of spores to the required cooler place. Yes, we have a cardboard box with a garbage bag over it as the focal point of our living room. But we don't care! We have already harvested a nice helping of criminis and 3 large portabellas... all from the comfort of our couch. Thanks to our mushroom benefactors, Jenny, Greg, and Kira, the diversity of ingredients our winter dinners has increased by at least 20%!

Dragon Day

cornell campus-- Williard Straight was a Cornell architecture student and apparent imp who, in 1901, spearheaded an event which has become an enduring tradition: Dragon Day.

And so, on the last day of classes before Spring Break, the Dragon emerges from its lair, which is, I don't know, wherever the first-year architecture students who build it keep it. They parade it around the Arts Quad (home to the College of Art, Architecture and Planning) on over to the Engineering Quad, where the Dragon does battle with a Phoenix created by the engineers.

But before the big showdown, pranks must be pulled. This year, the architects organized a flash mob at the engineering school, where they infiltrated the common area dressed as oddballs and outcasts, and attempted to engage whoever was around in socially inappropriate conversation. The engineers retaliated by TPing the trees in the Arts Quad.

Not knowing what to expect from this hallowed tradition, I swooped over to Karen's work to fetch her for the festivities. As we arrived on campus, the Phoenix was already laying in wait for the Dragon. It was a striking red color but looked pretty drowzy... and frankly unimposing. If I hadn't known it was a Phoenix, I would have guessed a laying hen who fallen asleep on the couch in front of CluckTV. I'd be willing to bet this Phoenix doesn't have to self-immolate too often.

"I'm a tired! Will you carry me?"

This year's Dragon had a marionette-like front half, scary claws, gnashing teeth, a lunging neck and cleverly self-referential scales (yellow cardboard cups, recycled from the cafe in the dirty cellar of College of Art, Architecture and Planning, The Green Dragon). The rest of the Dragon had a home-spun quality that appealed to one of us and left the other underwhelmed. One of us thought the patchwork of burlap pieces was cute and appropriate given the other eco-friendly materials used. The other of us thought it was not very fiendish.

Scary or Quilt-y? You decide.

Escorted by a bunch of students in costume, Dragon and Phoenix had their "showdown", which is to say the Dragon passed by the stationary Phoenix and they glanced at each other.

Tetris, anyone?

Then back to the Arts Quad for the big finale where the Dragon meets its fiery end in a bonfire in the middle of the lawn.

Though the floats are on a slightly smaller scale than the Rose Bowl's and the costumed revelers aren't as abundant or as nude as at the Bay-to-Breakers, any event that creates a sense of community by banishing the grey dregs of winter with whimsy and weirdness-- if only for a day-- is a good thing in my book.

Falling

Fall is here.

Love Shackle

lodi, ny-- Perhaps you've noticed the picture of The Unknown Blogger, sitting on her deck, taking in the westward view.

You may think she has it made.

But no.

Shucking corn, shelling lima beans, straining butternut, tasting wine, skipping stones, shaping gnocchi and beating egg and flour until silky pasta emerges... these activities are but the tip of the iceberg.

My girl has been working the land. She is on the chain gang (self imposed). Was there ever one who appreciated hard labor as much as she? Yes, and they were pioneers.

Do you see why she is perfect for me?

10/18/07

Apple of My Eye

all around the finger lakes-- As our good friend Gillian Welch sings:

Peaches in the summertime/
Apples in the fall/
If I can't have you all the time/
I don't want none at all

We have experienced peaches in the summertime, which means it is now time for apples here in upstate New York. You may be thinking: "Eh, apples." But that is because you, like me, were trained to skip over the waxy, mealy apples in the produce section. Now I say: "Yum! Apples!"

When K's and my parents were here, we all piled into the cars and headed over to a U-Pick orchard on Stillwell Road. We loved the variety here (we had previously picked at a place-- good apples-- but only three kinds). Here we could pick Courtlands, McIntosh, Empire, Crispins, Honeycrisps, Macouns (pretty! purple!), and some others that I am forgetting. With some many hands, we loaded up our bushel box pretty quickly and headed back to Caywood Station (but not before setting off my car alarm in the orchard-- awesome. Greenhorn Alert!) where Karen whipped up a Julia Child*-inspired crust and tucked our apples inside. I used to say "Eh, apple pie." Now I say: "YUM! Apple pie!"

Since Karen had some dough leftover from her first apple pie (despite having made a pie and two adorable tartlets), she whipped up another pie last night. YUM! Apple pie! In true Almanzo style, we breakfasted on pie and coffee, before heading off to the fields for a little back breaking labor. (More on that later). I plan to soon make an applesauce cake with the applesauce we made last night. Oh, Karen has also made an apple coffee cake.

Pie, cake, applesauce, these are but a few of the reasons Karen is the apple of my eye!

10/8/07

Random Sightings of the Day

outside our bedroom window--

-Swirl of migrating birds in the field

rt 96N toward trumansburg--

-Two stickers on a bumper in Ithaca:
1) Ithaca is Gangsta [ed note: It's not]
2) I'd rather be spooning

-Hot air balloon over fiery sunset on Seneca Lake

10/5/07

Birthday, Bubbly, and Bob

caywood station--Here's one thing we couldn't do if we lived in L.A.: Celebrate Karen's dad's 70th birthday in the rustic warmth of Caywood Station! A whole gaggle of Bob's loved ones converged upon the Finger Lake's region for the event: Ann (Karen's mom and chief party planner), Robin (Karen's sister and chief toastmaster), Jim (Karen's brother-in-law and all-around Renaissance man), Jake (Karen's nephew and well-rounded scholar/athlete), Emma (K's niece and head tap dancer), JoAnn (cakemaker extraordinaire), Pat and Jim (expert canners and wine makers), Emily (famous for many things, but eternally beloved for her famous Buffalo Wing Dip, Sarah and Fred Vergamini (beloved friends and Finger Lakes natives), Amy, Jay, and Lucy (wonderful neighbors who you've undoubtedly grown fond of though their own blog).

Food was eaten, drinks were drunk, dances were tapped, and toasts were toasted. There wasn't a dry eye in the house after Sis's touching tribute to my wonderful Dad. We had a fine time celebrating Dad's so far 70 grand years, and look forward to the many adventures yet to come.

9/15/07