"We'll catch you on the flip-flop."

Today I got some news that I was kind of hoping for and dreading at the same time.  My dear Uncle Sam passed away this week.  The good news is, he went the way he wanted to go -- independently, in his own home, with little fuss and bother.  The bad news is, the selfish beings he left here in the physical must continue on without his humor and love to make the going easier.

I am so glad I moved out here to Denver and got to know my father's siblings and their spouses and my cousins.  Uncle Sam and Uncle Arch helped me to fix up the house. When I bought it, it needed new floors throughout and a new fence and the two of them helped me do it.  Two septuagenarians (both 72 at the time) labored over my new hardwood floor and cedar fence.  I'd feel guilty, except that pair of jokesters had so much fun doing it.  I know Sam didn't always have the best relationships with those he loved, but with me, he was always loving and supportive - even when I first showed up at one of our lunches at Olive Garden on my motorcycle.  He joked that I'd be causing accidents, since all the fellas would be rubbernecking to see the gal on a bike.  He was my AAA when I had a car that didn't automatically turn the lights off when the engine was turned off.  I would be coming home late from school and the battery would be dead, because I had left the lights on after driving in the snow, and he come out from Lakewood in the middle of the night to jump start my battery.  He had the best memory (until those last few years, anyways) and was a great storyteller.  The decline of his memory and independence was difficult to witness.  I am SO glad things worked out so that we could have that mini-reunion for his 80th birthday.  It was wonderful that everyone made an effort to get together and share the day.   I always think of Sam when I see a big rig and I think my dear sister put it best when she posted some lines from a C. W. McCall song:

And then everyone was asleep, except me. And as I saw the morning star come up over the mountains, I realized that life is just a collection of memories. And memories are like starlight: they go on forever.

We will miss you, Uncle Sam, you gave us some great memories.  Give Aunt Waneta a hug and a kiss from us.  Love, Annie

El Dia del Padre

Back on Mothers' Day, I wrote a post about mothers. Being an egalitarian, and an appreciator of fathers, I decided to do a companion post for Fathers' Day. Again, might be a bit hackneyed, but [shrug] that's the way it goes sometimes.
____________________________

I'm not sure if this is a good thing, but as I was cleaning out the basement and garage today, I thought how appropriate it is that I'm doing it on Fathers' Day. Never let it be said that my father doesn't know how to have a good time -- he does. He loves laughing and listening and telling stories with old friends and new friends alike. (We kids used to have a joke that our dad was eventually going to be friends with everyone in the world.) I learned (along with all my siblings) three things: that you must do the best job you can at whatever task you're attempting, that work is easiest done as a team - a machine in which each person is a part, working in concert, and that labors are best done sooner rather than later, or they'll collect on your back and weigh you down. Yes, that last one is the "why you should keep up with your homework" speech. (I have learned since then that sometimes when you procrastinate, it turns out that a job needn't be done at all when someone changes their mind, but -shhhh- that's not part of the current story.) So, today, on Fathers' Day, I celebrate the day by cleaning out and organizing the basement and garage. Appropriate, eh?

To Daddy:
Thank you for being there for us. Your understanding, caring, and consistent belief in our abilities to live and grow successfully - while tested often enough when we were teens - is a support system few are blessed to receive. Thank you for your patience. Thank you for being yourself. Thank you for showing us what the world might be like if we believe in ourselves. I love spending time with you, hearing about your adventures and projects, and telling you about mine. I love making you laugh. I love that you are open about your love for each of your children. I love you very much!

To My Brother-In-Law:
Happy Fathers' Day, dear brother. I love seeing what a great father you are. I love what a great team you and your wife make and I love watching your wonderful son grow and blossom under your love and care. My nephew is a very lucky little boy and so is his puppy dog. I know you will do wonderfully in the amazing/trying years ahead, but also know that we are here to support you!

And to all the other wonderful and loving fathers I know, Sam, JR, Mel, John A., Tom, Dave, Kevin, Jim, Matt, Vince, JTS, Mike, Gabe, Jason, Heath, and so many more:
Happy Fathers' Day, Dad/Pa/Father/Padre/Papi, you deserve a whole month of celebration for all that you do! Love to you all!

El Dia de la Madre

It might seem a bit hackneyed to do a blog post about Mothers' Day on Mothers' Day, but it seemed appropriate this year. I looked through cards and all of them used the word "Mom" (which is not our term of endearment) or were too syrupy sweet. My mother is an unusual woman. She is more sentimental now than she used to be (or used to admit to), but that doesn't mean a card will capture the complex relationship my mother (or really any mother) has with her progeny.

First, Mummy:
Thank you for all the sacrifices you've made for us. I'm so glad I could be part of your growth and you could be part of mine. Thank you for not killing me during my teen rebellion years, no matter how I deserved it. :) I love being friends with you. I love being able to trust you with my ideas and thoughts. I love making you laugh and I love talking about trivia. I love you very much!

Second, my sister:
Happy Mothers' Day, dearest sister. I love watching you be a great mother. My nephew is a very lucky little boy and so is his puppy dog. I know you'll have some grand times ahead and some frustrating ones. Know that you are supported through it all by love from all sides.

And to all the other wonderful and challenging mothers I know, Ruth, Stacey, Janiece, Karen, Rachel, Dena, Ginger, Heather, Belsum, Natalie, Jeri, Kimby, Bonnie, Krissy, and so many more:
Happy Mothers' Day, Mom/Mum/Ma/Mother/Madre, you deserve a whole month of celebration for all that you do! Love to you all!

A Full Weekend

Had a full weekend, even without adding work into the mix.
I spent Saturday with family:
- seeing my nephew taking pride in his new ability to walk
- making chicken wonton soup with my sister
- eating toad-in-the-hole made with brats (Mmmmmm!!!)
- making chocolate chip cookies that ended up a little flat (guess we need more practice, eh?)
- chatting with my brother about work and life

Then, on Sunday:
- had brunch with Hot Chick Janiece (who's looking hotter and hotter with her healthy lifestyle changes) and her Smart Man
- Janiece and I did a little shopping and then went to get pedicures (Janiece, a delicate lavender, me, deep blue. Winter is the time to experiment with toenail colors.)
- The very kind and thoughtful Janiece gave me frozen dinners for the times I need to stay late at work and the Smart Man gave me more music to listen to. It's tough to find better friends than these. :)
- when I got home, I got moving on a bunch of chores that had gotten a little out of hand, and though I didn't get *everything* done, I made some good progress.
- I also made a broccoli, mushroom, and rice fritatta to eat for breakfast for the coming week. I'll spare you the pictures, since I plan to do this regularly from now on. (My metabolism works much better, I've found, when it gets an early start.)

A lot of this domestic, familial, and friendship-related contentment was brought into sharp contrast when Janiece and I received texts that our good friend Shawn Powers' house burned in a fire. All the family is safe and sound, but all their possessions were destroyed and their pets (several dogs and a cat) were killed. As Shawn says in his own blog report, "Their loss is the roughest part right now, as everything else that was lost is just stuff." I know that's the part of it that hits me the hardest. When I got home, I couldn't sit down for more than 2 minutes without one or the other of the cats sitting on my lap and, even more than usual, it was tough to evict them. Life is so uncertain. Who knows when it might be the last time you get to pet your animal or kiss them on the head? Or the last time they tickle you with their whiskers when they want you to get up and feed them or let them out? I'm so glad that Shawn's family are safe and experiencing the love and support of their friends and community, but I grieve deeply for the animal friends that they lost.

RIP, furry friends.

It's Pimpin' Time

My dear friend and cousin, Susan, has finally started a blog. In character with her interest in edible creativity, it is a food blog. She was inspired by a post by preeminent food blogger, Michael Ruhlman, but you'll have to go to her blog to find the link. ;) Susan is my chief sous chef and I am SO looking forward to seeing what she puts forward!

Put Tiny Kitchen Triumphs on your Google Reader or favorites list and keep an eye on this gal. She is wonderful!

Not Present

I think this photo pretty much sums up how out of touch I've been for the last few weeks. I discovered this a few days ago. Obviously, I haven't been drinking much milk lately. Fear not, I poured the milk... or cheese... down the drain.
I hope things are improving, but holiday craziness should eventually die down. I do have things I've been doing and can chat about, but I just haven't had the time or the energy to post about them. We'll see what I can do about that in the near future.

In the meantime, I need to go to bed. I would like to get up early-ish so I can do some quick chore things. My parents are coming to stay for a few days tomorrow and I like for things to at least be presentable... :)

Lovely Dream

I had an awesome dream over vacation:

I was in a house that was my house (not my current house, but some sort of townhouse) and it was full of people. There was a party going on -- a surprise party for me -- and all my friends were there, laughing and having a great time. It was so lively, it felt like a restaurant (though there was one quiet little secret room for writing). The food and the service was great, and when I finally had a spare moment to go to the bar myself, the bartender complimented me on what fun and cool friends I have.

The truth is, my life IS full of fun and cool friends and family.

Thanks for sharing my life with me.

A Beautiful Thank You

Mum, remember I said the flowers were mostly buds when they arrived at my office? Because of that, the arrangement was continually in bloom for ages. Four blooms so far and one more possibly to open (or open now).

Carving Fun

Some of the fabulous jack o' lanterns made at the pumpkin carving party this afternoon. (Some had been taken home already at this point...)
I think my cousins had a good first experience with American Halloween traditions. I had roasted pumpkin seeds, pumpkin pie, artichoke dip, hummus, carrot sticks, caramel apples, and mulled cider. Cheryl brought apple crisp. So, it was a lot of the traditional fall treats.
The process of the pumpkin carving was explained and the kids set to the task as if they'd been doing it all their lives. Even Angeles ended up making one after her husband drew the guidelines of a lovely cat profile.
A good time was had by all (and I figured out that 14 is the maximum number of guests I may have at my house when the outside is not a good overflow option.)

Thanks for blessing my house with your presence, all!

Madonna and Child

Mummy Grabill and Son

Four Horsewomen, But No Apocalypse

Having a good time on horseback...





The scenery...





A large herd of elk -- these are the bachelor bucks on the fringes hoping to sneak in when the leader, a big seven point buck, wasn't looking.

Mixed Sack

If last weekend was a mixed bag, then this weekend is double that -- a mixed sack?

First, the unadulterated good: Saturday, I went to see my nephew and his parents and sit by the pool. Sunday, I met up with some very nice lady motorcyclists and rode up to Loveland for "Thunder in the Rockies" (my first motorcycle rally). The ride was a heck of a lot of fun. The rally was fun too. We encountered my teacher from my all-women (except the instructor) safety course three years ago and it turned out that he had taught two other women in the group as well. Very nice guy, and a good teacher. I left them to visit my Aunt Ruth, who seems to be in good spirits. (I promise to see you more often, Ruthie!) I went up to visit my good friend, Krissy, and we had a wonderful long chat.

After visiting Krissy, I headed south to visit my brother and SIL. Shortly after stopping for a fuel up, I stopped at a light and realized that there was a very strange noise coming from behind me, I pulled over to the side, dismounted, and looked at my back tire. Sure enough, it was low. It wasn't super low, so I decided I'd make it to the next service station. I did so, then as soon as started putting in new air, I heard hissing. Then, I saw the nail in the tire. Well, crap!

I made some calls, put in a little more air, and headed to my Aunt Ruth's house to park the motorcycle in her driveway. I got there just in time, since in the final mile (I went about 3 miles after the service station) cornering included the strange sensation of the back floating around the corner. Since Ruth was at dinner, I left the motorcycle there and left a message on her phone before drafting my cousin, Susan, to take me to my brother's house. In this fashion, I leapfrogged my way south, depending on the kindness of family and friends to get my way home. Particular thanks to Ruth, Susan, Gregg and Amy, Jenn and Max, and Gabe.

The next day, I ended up arranging for a Loveland dealership to pick up the bike and fix the tire this week. AND, since they'll have it for a while anyway (and since I've gotten several compliments on the bike lately), I decided to go ahead with soomething I've been thinking about doing - getting a tuneup on the bike. When I do sell it (and I might have a buyer for whenever that happens), I'll be able to use that as a selling point. And, it'll give me some piece of mind, since it looks like I'll be riding it for a while longer (having trouble rationalizing a new bike when I have house improvements to pay for).

So, some irritating experiences, but good results -- a mixed sack. :)

Great Weekend

Boy, oh boy, did I have a great weekend.

Saturday, I went to a Ladies Luncheon and Tea at Swan House in Loveland with a dozen other ladies of my extended family. It included two aunts, one sister, one sister-in-law, one honorary sister, two first cousins, two cousin-in-laws, and three first cousins-once-removed. All are strong and intelligent women. (Any attempt at organizing us was met with resistance.) Several were freshly returned from traveling (New York and England) and one was visiting from Pennsylvania. The ages varied from 81 to 15. Half of us got the luncheon and half the high tea. We talked about all manner of subjects and laughed a lot. As usual, the "leave-taking" portion of the event took quite a while.
It was extremely enjoyable to spend time with these lovely and lively women.
(The carpooling to and from the event also allowed some great time for catching up.)

Then, on Sunday, I went to the Clapton/Winwood Concert with Janiece, SmartMan, and SmartFriend. Janiece has already documented her feeling and her enjoyment of the drummer's enjoyment. It was, indeed, an awesome time. I can say without reserve that I always enjoy their company. (SmartMan, I figured out where I went wrong: The actor who plays Ed is Nick Frost. My subconscious pulled the wrong name.) We enjoyed a nice meal at Brooklyn's and then went to one of the most amazing concerts I've ever been to. I haven't been to enough concerts to have favorites -- they all still feel like each one is special in its own way -- so this one is special because the music was SO good. Eric Clapton really is a virtuoso guitarist and listening to him live was AMAZING! Steve Winwood brought a lot of balance and roundedness to the performance. He is an excellent musician in his own right.
One thing that became clear during the evening is that I need to be listening to more Clapton blues. I love me some rock and roll, but there are some times (and I've had a few) that are made for the blues.

Thank you, SM and J, you guys (literally) rock.

Here, for the folks who weren't able to make it out there:
Bluesy Acoustic Version of Layla (with Mark Knopfler)
and
Rock and Roll Version of Layla

(Last night, they played an acoustic version, which is Janiece's favorite, but both versions are fabulous.)

Reason #2 to Have Guests

I get motivated to clean the house more thoroughly.

I had my sister (and the little prince) and my friend, Stacey, over to eat Brandied Peach Cobbler. Sorry, there are no pictures (I tend to forget when there are other people around). You may imagine that there is a lovely picture of a slightly too liquid peach filling (with bits of candied ginger) and a golden brown and highly fattening crust (made with lots of butter and heavy cream). See, you gain weight just thinking about it.

Edited to add: I just remembered I had a previous post about the cobbler (including a link to the recipe).

Sometimes You Can Go Home Again

But it's someone else's home now.

My brother and his lovely bride just got back from a trip to good ol' Maryland. It was, I believe, partly to see old friends and partly a tour of my brother's old haunts. One of the places they visited was Elkshire, the farm on which he and I and our sister grew up. Our parents started building it when I was in kindergarten. I remember being dropped off by the school bus at a neighboring farm and walking across the fields (nearly half a mile) to where they were working on the barn. The barn was built first, because, "hay," you needed somewhere to keep the animal feed.
[pauses for groans to die down]
While my parents built the house, we had a mobile home parked under the eves of the barn and my siblings and I slept there while my parents slept in the hayloft. I am quite sure they were thrilled to get a little peace and quiet. There were, of course, wonderful hijinks, like my two-year-old sister climbing up the ladder and joining my parents where they were working on the roof. (Now she has her own little heart-attack generator, muahahahaha!)
My parents moved away when the neighbors started getting too close (like a 1/4 mile away). They tried to make sure that they sold it to a) NOT a developer and b) someone who would appreciate it like we did. They found a couple like that. The husband is a woodworker and the wife keeps horses. It was the perfect place for them. That was after my sister had graduated from college. So, we were there a long time. There are a lot of memories there.

My brother, after he got back from the trip, kindly posted pictures and descriptions. If you'd like to see where I grew up, but kinda not, feel free to check it out.

Duty and Procrastination

This weekend is, apparently, a study in opposites. I'm getting a little nervous about the LEED exam on Tuesday morning, and I'm trying to a) finish reading the reference guide and b) look a some of the supplementary study materials that a friend sent me.

HOWEVER, despite my anxiety, I am also feeling highly distractable by any of the following things:
- an emotionally charged (but trivial) discussion with someone on the internet
- Farmtown (this should have its own post) and any other Facebook games
- making a spreadsheet for Farmtown and figuring out how I could do a screen capture (for said blog post and desktop background)
- trying to figure out my mp3 player/PC interface problems
- snacking
- catching up with friends' blogs
- tidying up the kitchen
- etc.

I did go to see my Aunt Ruth on Friday to make a big pot of chicken and vegetable soup, then stopped by my sister's to say hi to my BIL and the baby, and had lunch with my Uncle Sam yesterday. So, not all of my time has been procrastinating!

I hate studying, by the way. Sigh. So back to the grindstone.

Flexibity = Crucial

My dearest cousin, Susan, and I like to get together and do a little gourmet cooking together every once in a while. (And every time we do, we say, "we must do this more often!") She is a delight to hang out with and we always have fun cooking together. (I did, in fact, have fun cooking with my new sister, Jenn, on Friday too. Apparently I've been cooking for other people a lot. Not coincidentally, Jenn will be included on Susan and my next gourmet night.)

Then, an adorable wrench was thrown into our works:


My siblings wanted to go to a friend's BBQ and needed a babysitter (Alex's first babysitter!). Susan and I decided to combine the events and try to have some cooking fun and babysit at the same time.

[We will now pause while the parents in the audience laugh their butts off...


... feel better? OK, good. We're going to continue with the story now...]

Susan and I did try to take into account the split attention issue and planned some very simple recipes to try. Our menu looked a little like this:
Escargot in Garlic & Shallot Butter
Pan-seared Duck Breast
Lemony Fresh Linguine with Morels and Peas
Fava Bean and Fennel Salad (from A Platter of Figs, by David Tanis, coincidentally enough, the Fava Bean Salad is the recipe shown in the "Look Inside" feature)
Baked Pears with Butterscotch Sauce

All of these (with the exception of the fava beans, which turn out to be a lot of hulling) are super easy recipes. Yes, the pasta had an added element of making the pasta (which does take a bit of work, but not a lot). But, our dear little Alex decided to continue his routine of being fussy between the hours of 6:30 and 9:00. There were periods of quiet in between, but they usually coincided with times that one or the other of us was attending to him. So. I won't do a play by play, but we only got to have the escargot, fava bean salad, and pasta dish, and that last one was at about 10:30 when Alex's parents had gotten back. Fortunately, we don't mind eating on a Continental schedule.
Despite the challenges, Susan and I had a great time. The food was delicious. I brought my camera, but we kept forgetting to take photos. Here are a couple:

Fava Bean and Fennel Salad, pre-prosciutto garnish


Yummy yummy pasta (leftovers were eaten by my sister and BIL... he called from the second floor to remind her to bring up his portion)


Here's a hint: If I come over to make pasta, there will be leftovers and I will package it up to put into your freezer.

Fortunately, Susan was planning to stay the night. So, for breakfast, we had tea and toast (so Susan could have some of Janiece's famous apple-butter), then Baked Pears, homemade scrapple (made by Susan's dad, Mike, and brought for my dining pleasure), and pan-seared duck breast. Eclectic? Yes. Delicious? Absolutely.



And because we ate every dish as a separate course, I can say, "thank you, Susan for a gastronomic series." I look forward to the next time.

Final Mural Pics

I just realized that although my nephew's mural has been done for a couple weeks (previous post here) I have not posted about the final product. Partly because my sister did a great job doing that on her own members-only blog, but partly because I've been a bit lazy this weekend. So, here goes:
We did two vignettes and a select number of "escaped" animals. The vignettes were intended to show the animals in their native habitat. So, In the "jungle" vignette, we had a tiger and monkeys...





The second vignette is the savanna, where we have an elephant, rhinoceros, lion, and giraffe...





And there were a few animals that escaped their context:
A snake

A mouse (note the mousehole with door to escape the snake)

A zebra

and a couple of birds


There was even some fanciful doodling


I did not do this all by myself. Not by a long shot. It was definitely a team effort. My sister-in-law, Jenn, labored long hours over this with me and has my highest respect and congratulations. However, we couldn't have done it without my sister's or mum's help. Their support and the support of my brother and brother-in-law are really what helped us bring it to completion.
Yay, team!

The Wedding: A Photo Digest

There are many many photos of my brother's recent wedding, but these catch the spirit of it.
First things first, the happy couple - Max & Jenn (Photo Credit: Jen A)


I love this one of my dad and my cousin, Leandro, preparing the video recorder and microphone before the wedding. Leandro was one of my super-fun houseguests. (Photo Credit: Jen A, my other super-fun houseguest)


I love love love this photo of my sister and BIL with their new baby. I'm thinking about getting it framed. (Photo Credit: Jen A, again!)


Me with my brother's good friend, now MY good friend, and a fabulous photographer and houseguest, Jen A. (Photo Credit: Max?)


And lastly, me with Gregg, my excellent brother and my partner down the aisle (the non-posed shots of our walk up and down the aisle, he was more serious - this one shows the great family smile) (Photo Credit: the lovely Amy, Gregg's wife)

Zzzzzzzz

Leandro and I sunning ourselves on the Alluvial Fan in Rocky Mountain National Park.

*Photo Credit: JR Ronczy, sneaky bugger