Superbowl XLVI snack

For this year's Super Bowl we decided to create the classic football game snack... the pretzel!  We made an initial go around with a recipe from Joy of Cooking and then chose two recipes from food related websites.  We ended up creating about 16 pretzels and came home with only one (success!). Instead of the standard Velveeta cheese dip, we created a honey mustard and a Poblano Chile cheese sauce.  Both complemented the pretzels well. 

Yum!

Pretzel recipe (allrecipes.com)

Mustard and Poblano Chile Cheese Sauce (foodnetwork.com)

A Cold Swim

Today I thought that Murphy and I could explore some new trails for our daily adventure.  So, we drove five minutes up the road to a spot where I knew I could park along Lewis Creek.  After walking about 5 minutes in three different directions, I found a trail that followed the creek downstream.  The trail quickly disappeared, but we continued to follow the creek anyway, ducking under branches and climbing over fallen logs.

After ten minutes or less we came to a swimming hole area that I had accessed from the other side of the creek.  At the narrowest spot in the creek I jumped across, hoping that Murphy was capable of following.  He was not excited to follow and probably couldn't process the fact that there was a grassy patch in between the two slippery rocks that would allow for solid footing on the other side.  Instead he whined and darted up and down the opposite bank, trying to find another way to reach me.  As he was running back and forth along the smooth, wet rocks he slipped head-first into a two-foot-deep hole that was filled with water (if you live in the Sierra you can picture this type of spot along any creek).  He couldn't get out, because of the steep, slippery slopes surrounding the pool, so I felt a sense of urgency to get back over there and rescue him.

When I had jumped across to that perfect, grassy foothold, I had failed to think about the possibility that I might have to jump back.  The original side (which Murphy never left) was lower, wetter, and slipperier than the side to which I had jumped, SO I began to dart back and forth, frantically looking for the safest way to get back and save Murphy from the impending hypothermia.  Unfortunately, my irrationally quick movements caused me to slip feet-first into the chest-deep creek, which was not exactly warm.

After my immediate instinct caused me to grasp at the still-slippery rock in an attempt to pull myself out, I realized that I would have better footing at the bottom of the creek than on the top of that rock.  So, I crossed the creek to Murphy, used the sandy footing to pull him out of his pool, then walked a tiny bit downstream to where I could easily climb out of the creek.  At this point Murphy had already started running toward the car, so I quickly followed, walking/running as fast as I could to stay warm.  Luckily, the air was at least 40 degrees, and my still-insulating, upper layers kept my core warm.  We got to the car within seven or eight minutes and were home within 15.  The only thing I was worried about was my soaking wet down jacket, but when I started undressing on the front porch, I found my cell phone in my pocket.  Woops!  I just hope that I backed up the phone numbers sometime recently.  I was only three months away from a free phone!

So, the lessons I learned are:
*only expect your dog to do what you've seen him do before
*don't take risks when next to from a 33-degree body of water on a 43-degree, cloudy day
*humans and dogs have a lot in common
*cell phones are not waterproof

Thanks for enjoying my story.  Wish you could have been there (to help one of us out of the water)!
~Sarah

"Fire Study"

We have a very exciting addition to our household: a beautiful, enormous piece of art created by a good friend!  Jeremiah Kille is a painter, a surfboard shaper, and a mixed-media artist.  He's also a hilarious friend, a supportive husband, and a one-of-a-kind daddy (as well as a tremendous cyclist and a good climber).  Well, we've been admiring his artwork since we became closer friends about two years ago (we both knew him when we lived in Santa Cruz 2002-5).  I got Graham one of Jeremiah's mixed-media pieces (featuring elephants) for Christmas in 2009, and this year, after drooling over this particular painting for two months, we went for it!  

The painting was created in fall/winter of 2007 in response to an assignment Jeremiah had in art school.  It is called "fire study," but it is completely abstract.  Jeremiah said that he was experimenting to see what the paint could do, rather than what he could do with the paint.  Visit his website and blog for more glimpses into his repertoire and thoughts: jeremiahkille.com.  He claims that this is one of his favorite paintings!  

I must share the most entertaining part of this story: getting the painting home.  It's 6' wide and 4' tall, plus a floating, alder frame that Jeremiah made.  So, we drove our little Toyota truck to Santa Cruz this weekend, the trip planned around a Monday meeting in Marin County.  We hoped that our truck bed would be spacious enough to fit the painting.  Well, it turns out that with the painting at an angle, cushioned at the corners, there was enough room in the truck bed.  But not for anything other than the painting... like, our dog, his crate, our luggage, etc.  So, we had to leave a box of stuff at James & Hollie's.  We had to collapse Murphy's crate and pack the truck's tiny backseat very intelligently, leaving Murphy with one backseat.  However, we still had to get groceries on our way home, because we were hosting a Summit Adventure dinner for 14 the following evening.  Well, after buying the minimum amount at Trader Joe's, I had no leg room in the passenger seat, we had groceries in between us, and Murphy had to half-lay on top of milk and another bag of groceries, which he did while successfully resisting the urge to eat them.  It turned out to be quite an ordeal, but we are so, SO excited and thankful to have a stunning painting that draws our entire gathering room together!  Come visit and see for yourself.

The Woodshed

    

         One of the best things about the "off season" is having time for house projects (as long as they are for fun and don't have to get done).  So far this year we have tackled our laundry room and built a wood shed. The wood shed replaced our solution of stacking wood against the fence and putting a tarp over it.  It's a pretty common solution and creates many an eyesore around town.

        Using a wood stove as our primary heat source has become one of our favorite winter pastimes. It requires more effort and thought than flipping a switch but we find it more rewarding as well. A quote found in the treasured Snow Creek cabin says, "Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.  After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water."  I'm not sure exactly what it means but maybe that our basic tasks are meaningful in themselves and shouldn't be dismissed as chores.

        Ideally we wanted to have enough storage for two years of wood.  Last year we burned about 2-3 cords (a cord is measured 4'x4'x8').

     Our new storage area holds 4 cords so we will be fine for heating our home this winter and may have to cut some next year to "stay ahead of the curve".  If you look closely you can see the different coloration in the oak and pine.

    Our roommate Brian helped a ton with the project. We are also thankful for our friend Mark Deglomine who bought us a Skilsaw as a housewarming gift.  Thanks Brian & Mark! Now we're ready for winter.

The First Ski of the Season

Michael, Murphy and I headed up to Red Top Peak in the Ansel Adams for our first ski of the season.  The previous night's storm left some great snow that hadn't solidified yet.  Pretty good powder for our side of the mountains.  Murphy worked the hardest without skis to support him. The snowmobiling was the most challenging part.  I attached Murphy's pack to an alpine harness I wore.  This helped for the bumpy ride out and back.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We enjoyed a great day with Mark & Dorothy Landry (top left), Kevin and Doree Kelly (front right) and their granddaughter Rebecca Lahud (back middle), and our local, surrogate grandparents Linda & Bill Seaberg (top right).  

We were treated by a special performance of, "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" by the Seaburg trio.

Our contribution was a Sweet Potato pie (compliments of Graham) from our recent issue of Fresh Home, complete with bacon lattice and crumbled blue cheese.  Yum.

Total Tchaikovsky

It's hard to tell by looking at him but this kid is a demon on the violin!  We had such a special opportunity last week: some dear friends from church who have season tickets to the Fresno Philharmonic had to leave town to attend their granddaughter's birthday party.  So, guess who were the blessed recipients of their tickets!

"Total Tchaikovsky" was the title of the concert, and Tchaikovsky happens to be my favorite composer, and his violin concerto happens to be my favorite composition of his.  I think I have it memorized, even though it is too difficult for me to ever play.  However, despite my love of the concerto and the emotive precision with which 16-year-old Chad Hoopes played it, the highlight for both of us was the first piece: a symphonic poem titled "Fatum (fate)."  Tchaikovsky composed "Fatum" during his 20's and destroyed the final score after it received a scathing review.  It was not performed again until after his death when a friend resurrected the piece from Tchaikovsky's drafts, and it is still a seldom-known work by the famous composer.  The symphonic poem told a dark, sad story with signs of hope throughout: there was an immense amount of variety is dynamic, texture, mood, and depth.  The percussion and brass sections were enormous for romantic music, and it was evident that the conductor and musicians relished the opportunity to perform the piece for the first time in the Fresno Philharmonic's 57-year history.

The third piece of the night was Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 1, composed 2 years before "Fatum."  We moved from the balcony to the 2nd row during intermission, and we enjoyed watching the fast-moving fingers of the violinists, interpreting the facial expressions of the cellists, and listening to the grunts and quick breaths of the conductor.  That was our third symphony concert together, and we hope to continue sharing memorable, musical experiences.  Thank you, Bob and Joanne Celum, for those tickets!