Shakori, annual vacation and family reunion, home cooking, yard work, a day at the beach, a turtle, a whopper of a party, and a few snakes.
DINING IN
We started the month on a Sunday with the typical Sunday night dinner of scalloped potatoes, Kentucky Fried Tofu and asparagus from Bob’s garden.
Friday is often Itey Nite, but in this case it got bumped to Saturday. This meal featured marinara sauce with vegan parmesan, fried polenta, Italian ‘sausage’ and greens.
MUSHROOM MAN
Bob paid a visit to our friend Rob, got an inside look at his mushroom operation, and came home with oyster mushrooms which may or may not have found their way into this stir fry with chicken flavored soy curls over farfalle, typically a Monday or Tuesday meal perfect for cleaning out the vegetable drawers before Tuesday’s CSA.
THE BLURRED LINES BETWEEN WORK AND FUN
We enjoy our work at The Plant. Bob has been working in the lab and Camille pulls weeds. It’s been a robust year for snakes, seems they kept popping up everywhere we looked. Take a look at our little work world: At the Plant page.
SHAKORI HILLS GRASSROOTS MUSIC FESTIVAL
Much fun with our friends Shelley, her daughters, and their beaus, music, mud, and more. Get a glimpse on: Spring Shakori
PEONY AWARDS
This year’s peony award goes to Karl Rosenfield for his prolific, stellar blooms. Felix Crousse and Mrs. FDR didn’t do so well for some reason. We moved Shirley Temple and Festiva Maxima from their dry garden under the cedar and while they responded well to the transplant, they didn’t contribute much to the view.
CAST-OFFS
We took Luke up on his offer of canna lillies that he and Jason moved from one of their landscaping jobs, dug the weeds from around the old poplar stump and put them in. Can’t wait to see what color blooms we get.
MAY TRIP NORTH
It’s always fun to get away and road trips give us plenty of time for idle chit chat. Ned put us up for a couple of nights, we revisited Croaker Landing and spent a day at the beach, stopping at the Swamp on the way home. Where we saw bigfoot… See more at: Annual Trip North
PENNSYLVANIA FAMILY
Good times with our brothers and their familys and of course, Mom and Dad. John lives in Shippensburg, Jim drove in from Jersey, Joe flew in from California, and Cristina and Lou came down from Massachusetts. Much more at: Family Visit
NUCLEAR FAMILY COMPLETE
Nephew Brandon snapped the first photo of all eight of us in thirty years. Dad turned 90 earlier this year so it may well be the last complete family portrait. From left to right, oldest to youngest with Dad and Mom in the middle; Camille, John, Bob, Joe, Michael, and Jim. Check out the extended family on this page: Reunion 2016
SOUTH TO THE BEACH
After the reunion, after a couple of days with Ned, we holed up in a cozy B&B for one last day of vacation in Kill Devil Hills. For lots of fun beachy photos, please click on Beach Stop
BACK IN THE HOOD
It was great to be home and the fun didn’t stop there. Tami and Lyle threw a wowser of a party, their annual invitational. See all the photos at: Memorial Day Party
IT’S ALL ABOUT THE FOOD
We would much rather putter around the kitchen and yard then go out to eat. Camille had a happy accident with a loaf of sourdough which led to a new process. She used to transfer dough to dutch oven using parchment paper, but learned no paper is needed if she puts a thin coat of olive oil in the hot pan immediately before pouring in the dough. Bob is very excited about increasing our winter food supply, thanks to our friend Trip who gifted us a greenhouse.
GRANITE SPRINGS SAUERKRAUT
Bob made another batch of sauerkraut using sweet cabbage from Granite Springs Farm. Thank you, Meredith! The new kraut is much greener than the batch he made last fall. Sauerkraut is drop-dead easy and makes for great Ruben sandwiches, works nicely with mashed potatoes, sausage, and applesauce, and can be eaten straight from the jar. Bob shreds the cabbage using our food processor, massages in canning salt and puts it into quart jars. No canning equipment required.
SUNGLASS WEATHER
Can’t let a month go by without a few pictures of Nolan. Thank you, Emily for letting us share!
BRIGHT, BEAUTIFUL BOY
Can’t wait to meet him in September!
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THIS MONTH’S QUOTES:
“Many conservatives seem to pine after the “good ol’ days” when men were men, women were in the kitchen, and all the things that made us uncomfortable were safely hidden behind a cultural screen of politeness and propriety. But the America that they long for was also the country that hid dark secrets, vicious racism, and deep fears that nearly ended human civilization.” – Lamonte Fowler
“Wisdom doesn’t necessarily come with age. Sometimes age just shows up all by itself.” – Tom Wilson
“Finally, let’s understand that when we stand together, we will always win. When men and women stand together for justice, we win. When black, white and Hispanic people stand together for justice, we win.” – Bernie Sanders
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