My California, Environmentalist, Birkenstock Wearing, Side

I bravely (or perhaps foolishly) declared myself committed to eating locally on this blog a long time ago. Since that time, I have not said (or done) much of anything regarding that committment. However, I am currently obsessed with the concept. Let's face it. I'm not working. I have plenty of time for obsessions.

I have also been avidly reading Ree Drummond's blog http://thepioneerwoman.com/ and am now very interested in blogging about recipes with accompanying dazzling photos. I realize it is highly unlikely that my photos will be dazzling but the camera now lives in the kitchen.

So, with both of these things in mind, I have started a second blog. Crazy I know. I hardly ever post on this blog. I'm planning to change that. But when I am blogging about eating locally I will post on my new blog Virginia Beach Locavore http://vblocavore.blogspot.com/. Posts regarding my life in general and what I'm currently cooking will remain here (unless I'm currently canning - I guess - having two blogs is complicated).

I hope you have a chance to check out my new blog and that you like it - even if you wouldn't be caught dead in a pair of Birkenstocks.

Thinking about eating local

I spent most of the weekend preparing, purchasing, or thinking about food. Local food. Food that is available to me, in Virginia Beach, now and what I can do to preserve that availability through the winter. But mostly how I can enjoy what is available now, now.
I made the entire 4th of July menu from Cooking Light magazine. I cruised several Farmer's Markets and farm stands to purchase the necessary fruits and vegetables for both the CL menu and the coming week.
Then, at C's insistence we went crabbing. We caught, cleaned, cooked, and picked 20 crabs (this resulted in a solid 3 cups of crab meat - yum!). I had a little help in the catching from C; he eschewed the cleaning, cooking, and picking.
I also oven dried 5 pints of grape tomatoes. I've done 5 pints twice this month and I now have a respectable half gallon of dried tomatoes in the freezer. I had to purchase these tomatoes at the Farmer's Market. My own cherry tomatoes still look like this...

not exactly ready to be dried.

Although I have a fairly large back yard (large from my California standards anyway); the yard is PC's and I am permitted to plant in the two raised beds he made for me. I did add three additional pots along a sunny wall.
I have requested three additional raised beds. We're currently negotiating the additional beds.
Next week, I plan to make 25 or 50 pounds of tomatoes into lovely fresh sauce to be frozen. I also want to start shredding and freezing zuchinni. I love shredded zuchinni in orzo and I want to be able to eat it all year long without buying zuchinni from Chile.
Since my vegetable beds are in a fairly sunless area, I can't grow much. I tried one bed with Roma tomatoes and a few herbs. In the other, I have a pepper patch. I planted nine tiny plants each of Jalapeno, Banana, and Cayenne peppers. They've done very well.

With my surfeit of crab and peppers (jalapeno and banana peppers - grown in my own nearly sunless yard) I made some really yummy stuffed peppers. I used about 2/3 of a cup of the crab with 8 ounces of vegetable cream cheese, about 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese. some parmesan and chili sauce. After I filled the chili halves I rolled the cream cheese side in some crushed croutons mixed with still more parmesan. These things were Yummy. Really yummy. I loved that I grew the peppers and caught the crabs. I am woman (hear me roar).

Did you know you have a roll back here?

Uh yeah. I did. That's why it took 3 days of agonized scratching on door jambs before I asked you to rub some lotion on my (badly sunburned) back. I'll be 47 in a few weeks. I've put on a few pounds (how much is a stone? I think I'll start counting them - maybe I've only put on a couple...) in the last few years. I am sad to report that I weigh around 35 pounds more than after I lost the "baby" weight associated with the Pumpkin.

Could 200 be the new 150? Do I here 135? Yikes. I am NOT saying that I weigh in excess of 200 pounds. I don't own a scale.

At any rate, I'm not at all certain that "Did you know you have a roll back here?" is acceptable marital communication. I suspect it is on the same page as "Is everything okay, because I've noticed you've put on a lot of weight lately?" Sadly, yes, that is an actual recent quote from the clearly misnamed PC. Just my little cross to bear. Grrr.

I thought I'd need some momentuous occasion to blog again after so long but I was wrong. I just needed to vent.

A Quarter Without Cancer

Prince Charming had the first of his post-surgery quarterly screening visits yesterday. The results were relayed to him today, by his surgeon. His lungs are clear. This is the news we need to hear every quarter for three years, biannually for two years, and annually thereafter. This is really good news. In my translation it means this: PC is cancer-free for this quarter. I need the cancer-free label (don't forget - this blog is all about me) I know he craves it as well. Until June we are once again permitted just to lead our normal lives. Who would have thought two intelligent adults could be so grateful for too much work, too little play, and one very small and spirited toddler. I, for one, am feeling an irrepressible bubble of well being. Right now, today, we are on track and all is well.

During my absence from the blogosphere my fabulous friend LawyerMama has taken many beautiful picture of the spirited toddler - most of them portray him as, literally, breathtakingly beautiful. Her pictures of my baby take my breath away.

So I am looking forward to easing back into the blog thing (reading and posting)... without a huge black storm cloud directly over my head. There may be a storm coming but its not even showing up on the Super Duper local news radar. That's just the way we like it around here.

New Year, No Topic

I have done nothing but work since December 30 and am now out of town for an arbitration proceeding. PC successfully completed his radiation treatments with absolutely NO side effects. His surgery is scheduled for February 1. Someday I start blogging regularly again, but this is not the day.

And so it Continues

PC's appointment Thursday went well. The physicians at Duke were not on board with our brilliant plan to have the radiation treatments locally. So they'll give us the final treatment plan on Thursday but the treatment will take place at Duke. PC's brother lives near there so he'll stay with them. The tentative plan looks like six weeks of radiation Monday through Friday and PC should be able to come home on weekends. Then a four week rest, then surgery and recovery. They did a lot of tests this week (including a biopsy) and the test results could change the tentative plan. We like plans. We can deal with this one.

And so it Begins

PC has an appointment with an Orthorpedic Oncologist at Duke University tomorrow morning. He should come home Friday or Saturday with a treatment plan for his radiation and/or chemotherapy that can be administered by our local Navy hospital. So that's good. But scary. He is starting cancer treatment. He has cancer. Thank you sincerely to all of the people who commented with good wishes and advice. I'm sure I'll keep you all "posted." OMG that is so lame. I swear I used to be funny.