Articles by Colleen

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mint + tomato

I love HOT coffee. To get quite literal, I’m talking 150 degrees hot, because, of course I measured! On a French press day, I pour it into our old school Corning Ware pot and let it big bubble boil before adding the wonder that is milk. Mostly lotsa, lotsa homemade almond, cow a distant second, I know – snob. But I’ve probably burned a coffee connoisseur bridge or two by boiling it in a pot on the stove. Eeek! Now that we have an espresso machine, that milk’s gotta be creamy-steamy steamed. I like what I like! I sit at my usual spot at the table, sip slowly, and revel in every single sip. I really do.

Lately, I’ve been reading a Psalm while I’m at it. Aside from a few Catechism classes as a wee one, I have never had any sort of bible study. If you are a religious Christian, this might be the moment to avert your eyes. <<PAUSE TO WAIT>> Thus far, I am finding them to be mostly angry rants against the Lord and wishing misery upon others, when I was looking for a bit more eloquence, hope, and aspiration. Let’s just say it answers a lot of other questions about Christianity for me. We’ll see how long I stick with it. <<PAUSE OVER>>

And now for TEA! For reasons I cannot explain, it is pretty much a polar opposite situation. I do not enjoy it at coffee temperature. At all. TOO HOT!! So I wait, generally for enough time to have nearly forgotten about it. Then it is lukewarm perfect and I GULP it down in a truly separate but equal heart aflutter fashion. Odd funny, and another very unsurprisingly me, Colleen Sohn, thing to do. Oh, the multitude on the list. Like anyone cares or needs to know, but alas, here we are!

And finally, the photos. The last bunches of mint and tomatoes. So pretty. Praise be to the beauty of fall. I do not remember the last time it didn’t snow or freeze in such a terrible manner that the majority of leaves immediately fell, so very green and sad, denying us the beauty we are now experiencing. The trees are alive with color, dear reader, and I could not be happier about it!

The amazing salad -Vietnamese Pork with quick pickled radish, jicama, and carrot, and with a bevy of other chopped goodness – the last of Farmer Greg’s cayenne & curly endive, then jalapeno, cucumber, cilantro, mint (from above!), purple and green cabbage, lettuce. Good grief, the chopping! It was super-yummy, but if there’s going to be a next time, I will need a little help. I was at it for an hour, chop, chop, chopping, and pickling. We downed them in less than ten. Not the best ratio, in my humble opinion.

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Funny

Once you can accept the universe as matter expanding into nothing that is something, wearing stripes with plaid comes easy.

Albert Einstein

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Our STRONG rooted fennel took two hands to release from the ground!

Juniper’s tongue! She’s so stinking cute.

The beautiful fluff of seed pods waiting to be carried off to new lands.
omelet
Bee and butterfly!
butternut squash tacos
reflection from a seltzer can!
spicy Asian pork salad
Bald Eagle
Final harvest of peppers, onions, and fennel!
tiny poblano
Snow!

Hello, and happy Wednesday!

We’re a one foot in salad and one foot in soup season around here. Days still have enough warmth in them, but my mind, I think, is further along the transition because I made fennel apple soup with these last bulbs, and boy, it was wonderful!

It is full on FALL here, with trees lit up: ochre, pumpkin, scarlet. But alas, no photo! The last jeweled apples cling to trees and prettily litter the ground. It hurts my heart a bit not to gather them all, but I’ve already made butter, sauce, and jelly galore. The birds and squirrels and other critters will go gonzo soon enough, I suppose.

The bee and butterfly up yonder were noshing on our mint. After looking a little droopy, it took off right and proper, with hundreds of winged creatures feasting on the flowers. We were dazzled by the constant flurry of activity and ever-so-grateful not to have prematurely trimmed it back. I shudder to think at all the missed nutrients for the bevy of tiny friends.

Farmer Greg’s final harvest was a showstopper considering the tiny footprint of the garden, and this doesn’t even show the giant bowl of tomatoes waiting to be made into something wonderful.

And on that wonderful note, how good does the handsome hubster look after 18 pounds lost on Weight Watchers? He’s humming at a much faster clip than I, but we’re still moving forward. Foods like the pork salad and butternut squash tacos (thanks to Gwyneth Paltrow for this idea) make it all the more colorful and satisfyingly delicious.

Here’s hoping you are WELL!

Sunset

There’s a sunrise and a sunset every single day, and they’re absolutely free. Don’t miss so many of them.

Jo Walton

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Hey there! A handful of my beautiful ancestors to send off this latest playlist.

I’ve had this thought brewing a long time, and I finally did it. All the ladies, all the time, singing, at least. We got the alphabet covered here, peeps. In keeping with that, I refused to struggle with the perfect order (ain’t no such thing anyway) and put them mostly in their right place along the A to Z. It’s how my mind rolls. Queue them up and enjoy the day….

The Waitresses – “I Know What Boys Like

Eryka Badu – “Rim Shot

The Poynter Sisters – “Jump

Alanis Morisette – “That I Would Be Good

Azealia Banks – “212

Alabama Shakes – “Hold On

Amy Winehouse – “In My Bed

Aretha Franklin – “Wholy Holy

Barbra Streisand – “The Way We Were

Beth Orton – “Stolen Car

Billy Eilish – “Bad Guy

Bjork – “Big Time Sensuality

Blossom Dearie – “Someone to Watch Over Me

Bonnie Raitt – “Can’t Find My Way Home

Diana Ross – “I’m Coming Out

Dolly Parton – “Mule Skinner Blues

Ella Fitzgerald – “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered

Feist – “Feel it All

GoGo’s – “Head Over Heels

Janet Jackson – “Rhythm Nation

Jem – “They

Joni Mitchell – “Court & Spark

K.D. Lang – “Save Me

Kate Bush – “The Sensual World

Katrina & the Waves – “Walking on Sunshine

Laura Marling – “Ghosts

Laura Mvula – “Green Garden

Les Nubians – “Demain

Linda Ronstadt – “Los Laureles

Luscious Jackson – “Naked Eye

Madonna – “Holiday

Marisa Anderson – “Electricity

Mogli – “Milky Eyes

Nico – “I’m Not Saying

Nina Simone – “Sinnerman

P.J. Harvey -“Down by the Water

Sault – “London Gangs

She & Him – “Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?

Sinead O’Connor – “I Am Stretched on Your Grave

Suzanne Vega – “Tom’s Diner

Texas – “Prayer for You

Wet Leg – “Chaise Longue

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