A month in which Bob traveled to Houston and Ardmore, we upgraded our transportation system, licked our lips in anticipation of summer eats, wandered around the Bynum hydroelectric plant, enjoyed slow home cooking, and celebrated 20 years of neighborhood networking at Trail Crawl.
LAST OF THE COLLARDS
We enjoyed collard greens from our garden all winter. In response to the lengthening days, they went to seed so we pulled the plants and brought in a final harvest.
TRUFFLES
Inspired by Stephanie’s post “I’m Rich!” about a windfall of honey, Camille researched honey recipes and discovered Peanut Butter Honey Truffles.
1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 cup peanut butter (salted, unsweetened)
1/4 cup honey
1/2 tsp vanilla
Mix together and roll in shredded coconut
Easiest recipe ever and the perfect snack to take the edge off an appetite
OUR NEW PAL, VAL
We decided it was time to invest in a new ride and join the EV Revolution. On March 3rd we came home with this 2017, “Kinetic Blue Metallic” Chevy Volt and named him/her Val after Camille’s Blue Valentine essay. Because Chevy is phasing out their Volt line, we got a great deal. Not to worry, though, because Chevy will honor warranties and continue stocking parts.
We really like Val’s electric blue color, heated seats and steering wheel, four-door hatchback design, and low mileage. The Volt has a battery range of 50 miles, plugs into any 110-volt socket, and unlike many other hybrids, is designed from the ground up for super-efficient use of battery and gas. Our new pal is extremely efficient, averaging 100 miles per gallon of fuel. A trip to town and back costs us 5 “miles” of battery range.
And then, with four cars on the property, we said goodbye to Blanche and Christine.
HELLO HOUSTON
Bob’s first March audit took him to Houston, Texas. The plan is to limit his travel exposure to two audits per month.
BYNUM RAMBLE
We joined the Friends of the Lower Haw River for a bird watch on March 9th. It was a grey day without much avian activity, so after the birders dispersed we wandered around Bynum in search of color.
HYDROELECTRIC PLANT
We visited Bynum’s neglected hydroelectric plant with its leaking spillover ditch, a ditch that should have been mostly dry on this day. Bob and his friend, Andy, have been working towards gaining control of the plant with the dream of producing power.
GRAFFITI
Some might call this vandalism, while others regard it as art. Either way, graffiti is a vibrant form of self-expression.
GOOD-FOR-YOU FOOD
Purple daikon from In Good Heart Farm with homemade ranch dressing, and vegan chili made with Rancho Gordo’s Yellow Indian Woman beans. You will find our Chili Recipe on our Recipes site.
Camille continued her adventures in pie dough with a “beef” pot pie and a broccoli quiche using eggs from Shelley’s yardbirds.
DEAD VULTURE TREE
Remember the vulture tree in the neighbor’s yard outside our office windows? Well, it began leaning east this month so we took bets as to whether it would fall before Camille’s birthday. It fell sooner than expected, and within a week our neighbors had cut it up and hauled it off.
We are wondering where the vultures will gather to soak up the morning sun now that their tree is gone. They tried out our roof one time. Fingers crossed they find someplace better than that for their new hang out.
ARDMORE, OKLAHOMA
Bob flew into Texas for his second audit and drove north, through Denton (where we lived in 2007) to Oklahoma. He took a pony ride photo to cheer up his lonely wife and went to the Ardmore landfill to take a look at their gas wells.
PEARS AND TATERS
Outside and in, spring is showing promise of food to come. Check out our Spring Promises page.
TRAIL CRAWL
Camille’s favorite annual event which involves all four of her favorite activities: eating, drinking, walking, and talking. See all the photos here: Trail Crawl #20
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THIS MONTH’S QUOTES:
“Marketing, media, and technology have capitalized on subverting our brain physiology to their advantage in order to veer us away from the pursuit of happiness to the pursuit of pleasure, which for them of course equals the pursuit of profit.” Robert H. Lustig, The Hacking of the American Mind: The Science Behind the Corporate Takeover of Our Bodies and Brains
“No one sees trees. We see fruit, we see nuts, we see wood, we see shade. We see ornaments or pretty fall foliage. Obstacles blocking the road or wrecking the ski slope. Dark, threatening places that must be cleared. We see branches about to crush our roof. We see a cash crop. But trees – trees are invisible.” – Richard Powers, The Overstory
We are buried beneath the weight of information which is being confused with knowledge; quantity is being confused with abundance, and wealth with happiness. We are monkeys with money and guns.” – Tom Waits
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