Under a Red Roof

Matrix

January 24, 2022 in Gardening + Nature by Colleen | Permalink

Greetings from a very magical morning last week! The day prior was adrizzle (not a word, but I’m keeping it) for hours upon hours before evening and the tiniest of feather flakes that latched together, one upon another upon another, creating this wondrous matrix of frost. We had already planned to spend the morning at Garden of the Gods and thusly could not believe our good luck to have the splendor of it taken up and up and up.

We have been venturing out a little bit more, Colorado Mountain Brewery here, Shinsadong there, dotted, as always, with trips to the library, where the books have been plenty but my pleasure in reading a mixed bag. I seem to snag a truly good read about 10% of the time. Oh, how I wish it were more. For old school viewing, we are rotating between episodes of Raising Hope (SO funny!) and Pushing Daisies (Funny and LEE PACE!!). Also rather enjoyable was Station Eleven. It is a shell of the book but quite an extraordinary one. Then there is season two of Beforeigners, which is just as good as the first and the new Sex and the City. I have zero complaints in the viewing department. Amen.

And in the big “L” life department I have been pondering the idea of fulfillment. Right?! I did say big L, peeps. I believe I’ve come to the conclusion that it is better to abandon the pursuit of it. That maybe in so doing I will not be as judgmental about any lack in my life. I kept wondering if it is really only something momentarily obtained. I did this (wrote a novel!) or that (was a teacher!). That thrill is gone. Now what? Flee-ting.

I suppose it is like mindfulness? Be here now, find peace now? Maybe more accurately, find peace in what exists now? Imperfection. Boredom. Daydreaming. Desire. Walking. Cooking. Laundry.

I’ll tell you how it goes.

Sad Trees

December 18, 2021 in Gardening + Nature by Colleen | Permalink

Our neighborhood Thursday morning, after hurricane force winds (100 miles per hour) blasted for the better part of Wednesday. We lost power for nearly five hours, sadly, even with the benefit of solar panels. After a bit of research, we learned this protects line workers. It would be mighty dangerous thinking there isn’t power on the line, when our house is sending it back into the grid.

As stressful as it was to be without heat or power, hear the wind howling, see every manner of debris flying so VERY high, and witness the aftermath, our city was largely spared. Unlike the horror of the tornadoes in Kentucky, I have not heard of any injuries or deaths associated with the storm. And, by golly, it is like every tree that fell did their best to do as little harm as possible. Walking around, we were amazed at how few of them actually landed on houses or cars. There are still thousands without power here, but it really could have been so much worse. Hope life is good where you are!

Tags: Colorado Springs

All the Signs

November 1, 2021 in Cooking + Baking, Gardening + Nature by Colleen | Permalink

Happy day after Halloween! Are you good and sugared up? Greg and I did our fair share of partaking in the stash of candy, to be sure. They are probably not new, but I only discovered them this year – giant chewy Nerds! So very good. Yesterday was also cookie day, which took the sugar rush to the next level and kept me from getting a pleasant sleep. As Grandpa would say, “The bunnies were chasing me!”

It was wonderful to see so many kids out and having fun. I suppose the only bummer of the day was our weather taking a misty turn. We need the moisture, really and truly, but I wish it had waited a day for the trick-or-treaters.

It is Juniper sweater season, the aspens are dropping glorious leaves at every turn, and I’m trying batches of hot honey and hot sauce with Farmer Greg’s chiles. We also completed our first two puzzles of the season, so you know, all the signs of fall!

Finally, a pretty lunch bowl – chicken tinga, pinto beans, corn, and cauliflower “rice.” Very Weight Watchers approved. Which reminds me, I am down 13 pounds, and Greg, drumroll please…23!! Testosterone really is a body’s best friend when it comes to weight loss. Lucky Duck!

Fun Facts

October 20, 2021 in Cooking + Baking, Gardening + Nature, Learning by Colleen | Permalink

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.

Tags: Colorado Springs

Two Hands

October 13, 2021 in Cooking + Baking, Eating, Gardening + Nature by Colleen | Permalink

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

The beautiful fluff of seed pods waiting to be carried off to new lands.

Final harvest of peppers, onions, and fennel!

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!