Expanded Menagerie

We finally did it. We found, and purchased two Nubian goats. They are lovely little doe-lings , just now old enough to breed.

Robin and Locksley, (formerly known as Lacey and Penelope) are sweet little girls and we love them already. Robin is friendly and affectionate. She has quite the personality. Locksley can't bear to be separated from Robin and is rather standoffish with us two-legged types.

The goats are officially Dante's 14th birthday present. Now comes the task of caring for the little beggars. I'll continue to post our successes and failures as new goat owners. This should get interesting.

Always tired but never bored,
EJ

mounds of mint

It's been said that in case of nuclear holocaust , only cockroaches and Hostess Twinkies would survive. Or maybe George Hamilton. That man has more preservatives in him than an embalmed cadaver. But I digress...
Allow me to add the lowly mint plant to the "post-armagedon party" guest list. This stuff grows anywhere. With a little encouragement, mint could grow in the Le Brea tar pits. I swear it has the half-life of Mc Donald's french fries. (anyone seen "supersize me"?) Have I made my point?

That said, be careful where you plant mint, as it is a notorious garden bully. Thus we come to the crux of today's post. My friend Coral has a mutinous patch of mint threatening to dominate the entire back yard. Mowing has only made it stronger and more determined. She was more than happy to let me take some home. After my verbal assault on mint, why would I want to take some home? Answer: Mint tea and mint jelly.

My kids love mint tea. They drink it like water. And I , like a dork, have been buying it at the grocery store. So today, as I lugged home a trashbag full of mint, I gleefully added up cash savings in my head. As I write this, the first batch of mint is drying in the dehydrator.

Tomorrow,if time allows, I would love to conjure up a batch of mint jelly. Yummy. Thank you Coral!

This just in....

Grampie called. Said he made me a cheese press, finally. Now I can't wait to play with my new "toy". Pics to follow.
-E

Newport Photojournal

Eating Newport

If your not eating well in Newport, Oregon, you've got one of two problems:

a. you haven't left the house in years

b. you've never ventured outside of Mc Donald's and Taco Bell

Newport boasts some of the freshest and most unconventional offerings on the Southern Oregon Coast. This afternoon Phil and I had the pleasure of stumbling onto the Village Market and Deli. The word "market" lured us in, the cheese list kept us there for hours.

Co-owners Robert and Deborah Trusty graciously answered all our questions about their meats and cheeses. Robert cut us wafer-thin slices of heavenly sopressata to try. At our request he also obliged our interest in the large chunk of real Monchego from Spain. Robert and Deborah have a delicious assortment of artisanal breads and an impressive wine list.

It had been our intention to sight see in the Nye beach area, but when the rain started to fall heavily, hubby and I hunkered down at the deli for coffee and conversation. Phil was astounded to learn that Deborah had graduated from the very same high school he attended in California. And just one year ahead of him. Even odder, He and Robert shared a common friend from the Fairfield area.

Another favorite of ours is Sada's. We discovered it years ago and daydream about it's gorgeously decadant millenium rolls. But Sada's is not just another ubiquitous sushi joint. It has real japanese cuisine. I have tried for years to get them to tell me what they put in their spinach/shitake dish. It is so unbelievably good.

Once my son asked them for zaru soba, which isn't on the menu, and they were happy to oblige. Now, back to that millenium roll: Imagine generous chunks of lobster, in a cream sauce, rolled into sushi rice and baked in the oven. mmmmmmm.......

The restaurants here are understandably proud of their fresh seafood. You just can't go wrong ordering salmon, clams, or dungeness crab.

If it sounds like we've spent most of this vacation eating, that's not far off the mark. I complained to Phil after dinner that I'm sick of eating and don't want to ever again. Then I realized what I had uttered, panicked, and repented.

-EJ

Adventures in Newport

Phil is in the shower, Max is watching 'Handy Manny' on playhouse Disney, I'm debating making breakfast. The kitchen countertop is littered with literally hundreds of Chanterelles. Already it looks like home around here.

Yesterday we piled into the car and went searching for wild mushrooms. Phil and I found what we thought was a logging road and parked the car. After hitting the Chanterelle 'motherload', we drove back down the mountain only to discover we were locked in. It turns out we had been parked on private property. The owners had left for the day and blocked off our only way out. In the end, a sweet older gentleman named Jim came to our rescue. Jim had a key for gate and before long we were on our way.

Later in the day we took Max to oldtown. There are two docks below the boardwalk that are a favorite daytime hangout for sealions. They just lie there all day barking loudly, napping, and putting on displays of dominance over each other. These sealions are astonishingly large. Their mammoth bodies are covered in thick fur. Why did I think they would have shiny, smooth skin? Tourists crowd the boardwalk taking pictures of these gregarious show-offs.

Prophets wear lime green flip-flops

Saturday afternoon, Phil, Max and I left for a week in Newport. We are using a week of condo time and wanted to relax close to home. Before leaving, Phil got a tip that an old friend had started a new fellowship just a couple of minutes South of Newport.

Sunday at 9:00 a.m. we pulled up to southbeach community center, home of South Beach Chapel, led by Pastor Andy Green. Andy is quite the enigma. With wirey gray hair, thick white beard, jeans, t-shirt and flip-flops, he is not your grandmother's preacher man.

Including Phil and myself, there must have been about twelve folks in attendance. The atmosphere was homey and sweet. Although I expected a roomfull of old people, there were two young couples and a single young man.

Andy himself led worship on a badly tuned guitar. What he lacked in musicianship, he certainly made up for with joy and enthusiasm. The following teaching was just fabulous. Andy has the gift of an intimate, conversational teaching style. It's a bit like sitting down with an old friend who has extensive insight on the One who created us. Andy is just too hard to define, or categorize. Eccentric, friendly, peaceable, wise......

After church the tiny congregation served lunch. We left with full bellies and full hearts. May God bless Andy and his wife Katie. Next time your in Newport, drop in and say hi. Tell him Phil and Ellen sent you.
-EJ