Pretend Time

Ahhhhhh....Byrne and Eno Fix!

2008-09-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

Last pictures of summer

2008-08-20T15:15:00.000-07:00

Chrysalis at our camp.

Pretty fire and sparks at Rick and Helen's.

Snowbird Lake.

More fire at Snowbird.

Clouds on the drive to Vermont.

Early summer fun

2008-07-23T09:13:00.000-07:00

Floors in progress

2008-07-23T09:08:00.001-07:00

And on the way home...

2008-05-27T12:10:00.000-07:00

...we listened to NPR, of course. They had a story about a vocal group from Howard University. Very cool.

California in Vermont

2008-05-27T12:03:00.000-07:00

For lunch, we ate a pizza with caramelized onions, taleggio cheese, Kalamata olies, shitake mushrooms, and arugula. The weather was gorgeous, and we ate on the porch. Ahhh...

Who you lookin' at?

2008-05-27T11:37:00.000-07:00

Alpacas in Vermont.

Midlake

2008-05-13T15:37:00.001-07:00

Ah, nostalgia. I never thought it would be possible to miss Denton, but...

On a dreary central NY day...

2008-05-08T04:58:00.001-07:00

...nothing is better than...

California sunshine in a jar!

2008-05-08T04:54:00.001-07:00

Thank you, Jill! The from-your-backyard marmalade is DELICIOUS!

Fog in the valley

2008-05-06T14:35:00.000-07:00

Tulips

2008-04-27T09:07:00.000-07:00

These tulips are from our front yard. There weren't that many, and they were too tempting for neighborhood kids (who seem to enjoy scattering the petals around the yard--pretty at first, but then kind of sad) and animals (whose munching leaves just a headless stem, which is also kind of sad), so I picked them. It's easier to enjoy them inside.

Today feels like spring. Who knows about tomorrow...

2008-04-06T09:40:00.000-07:00

Easter "Cloud Cake"

2008-03-23T17:46:00.000-07:00

Before and after. It's really the Pav King's pavlova, but "cloud cake," as Emma has named it, seems a little more accurate. This dessert is one of my all-time favorites, and the kids like it, too.

Spring in Remsen

2008-03-23T07:30:00.000-07:00

Ice and snow are melting, and the deer are frolicking. Happy spring!

The end of winter?

2008-03-17T14:17:00.000-07:00

It may not look like it, but things are melting. In the top picture, I tried to get a shot of the sun shining on the snow, which really does look like the cotton wool dusted with colored glitter that people used to put under their Christmas trees. So, the photo's not great, but maybe you can see the little red and blue glints that might give you some idea of what I'm talking about. It was great to see the sun today...but not so great to ski on the ice!

St. Patrick's Day--who doesn't love a parade?

2008-03-15T10:33:00.001-07:00

Spring break is around the corner...

2008-03-14T03:44:00.000-07:00

"You have to allow a certain amount of time in which you are doing nothing in order to have things occur to you, to let your mind think. "
--Mortimer Adler

Help me, dear spaminator!

2008-03-13T15:56:00.000-07:00

So, my infrequent posts and pictures have been plagued with junk comments (especially the one below with the pictures of Crispy Anchovy Snacks--which by itself I think is a riot--and our grill in the snow). My apologies to anyone who has taken a look at the comments with the expectation of seeing anything funny or illuminating. Does anyone have any suggestions for how to fix this problem?

aHAH! I have deleted them "forever"!

2008-03-02T15:37:00.000-08:00

Crispy anchovy snacks or BBQ? The Texan in me is happy that the good men in my life were willing to risk asphyxiation for some very tasty pork chops . (The grill is cooling off in the snow.)

The view as I worked

2008-03-02T15:30:00.000-08:00

My obsession with the exclamation point!

2008-02-18T15:41:00.000-08:00

Eeewww...I just noticed an abundance of exclamation points in my post titles. It probably appears quite a bit in e-mails and letters that I've written, too. I just want to show enthusiasm, but maybe it appears as though I'm yelling. I certainly would hate to give that impression.

So, what's with this exclamation obsession? Maybe I'm just happy to be finding the time to post something? Will I be banished from the blogosphere thanks to my excessive use of enthusiastic punctuation? Is there a reform school with my name on it? My apologies! Whoops...

Ah...winter!

2008-02-18T15:39:00.000-08:00

Back to work

2008-01-19T15:02:00.000-08:00

Time to get back to work, but with scenes like the one above (I tried to capture the light/dark contrast, but by the time I ran inside and got the camera, I'm afraid I missed the most impressive shot), wonderful colleagues, and "meetings" that involve the delights below, one can hardly say that it's a hardship!

Best wishes for a productive start to 2008!

Christmas goodies!

2007-12-26T08:45:00.001-08:00

Free Rice!

2007-12-18T16:06:00.001-08:00

I heard about this site the other day on NPR. This evening, the kids and I had fun seeing how many grains of rice we could donate. I think I'll be a frequent visitor!

Weekends

2007-11-18T05:54:00.000-08:00

I've discovered that if I get a chance to bake something on the weekend, I feel like it's been a good, restful break. Strange, no? So, here's a "caramelized pear cake" that I made yesterday. Actually, I'm not so crazy about the taste of the cake (it's a little too sweet for me), but I thought it looked great.

Fall visit anyone?

2007-11-18T05:51:00.001-08:00

2007-08-19T16:29:00.001-07:00

Pay no attention to the date. I can't figure out how to get the date off of my camera. Argh.

2007-08-19T16:27:00.001-07:00

More summer pics

2007-08-19T16:26:00.001-07:00

Whoohoo!

2007-08-19T16:19:00.000-07:00

Now that my mom has her fantastic blog, a testament to her productivity, and she's put my defunct blog on her blogroll, I feel compelled to write something, or at least to post a picture.

Here's the picture of the family in Dannebrog. Later in the summer, we went to Solvang. It was a summer of Danish-ish-ness.

Union stuff

2006-10-13T16:41:00.001-07:00

OK...well, I haven't put much union stuff on until now, but I can't resist. I want to try to provide a link to my union's podcast and to a Working Families YouTube video. Just an experiment.

Working Families
News and Views (Don't hold my poor interviewer/interviewee skills against me!)

Argh!

2006-10-09T10:29:00.000-07:00

I promised that I would post pictures today, but I've lost the USB cord (or whatever it's called) for my camera. Rats!

Guinea pigs, actually. I had hoped to document the guinea pig babies. We got suckered into getting the kids guinea pigs--two so that one wouldn't be lonely. Well, it didn't occur to us that it would be a bad idea to buy two females that had been in the same cage with a male until we had already bought them and the kids had fallen in love with them. So now we have SIX! The babies are pretty cute, and the kids are having a blast with them.

Photos to follow...maybe in December!

Where can I find this??

2006-07-05T14:24:00.000-07:00

I fell in love on Sunday--in love with the red-covered bike on the cover of the Sunday NY Times Magazine. I've been searching for sources for such a contraption with no luck. Any ideas?

Promised picnic

2006-07-05T12:27:00.001-07:00

2006-07-05T12:26:00.000-07:00

A Day at Wildlife

2006-07-05T06:47:00.000-07:00

2006-07-05T06:45:00.000-07:00

Dinner by the pond

2006-07-05T06:36:00.000-07:00

2006-07-05T06:35:00.002-07:00

The amazing garden

2006-07-05T06:35:00.001-07:00

Bubble

2006-07-05T06:35:00.000-07:00

Emma and bubbles

2006-07-05T06:32:00.000-07:00

Emma playing with bubbles

2006-07-05T06:30:00.000-07:00

John playing with bubbles

2006-07-05T06:29:00.000-07:00

Mason and one of the cats

Emma and Mason show off thier camp t-shirts

2006-07-05T06:27:00.000-07:00

The cocktail lounge

2006-06-14T19:38:00.000-07:00

Patio view of the beach

2006-06-14T19:36:00.000-07:00

"Villa Serena" from the back

2006-06-14T19:35:00.000-07:00

Chocolate Banana Bread Pudding

2006-06-14T19:18:00.000-07:00

OK...wish I could say this was a recipe that I created, but it's from Good Housekeeping.

Ingredients:

1 loaf (16 ounces) firm white bread
3 firm but ripe bananas
4 large eggs
2 cups half-and-half or light cream
3/4 cup sugar
2/3 (or more!) cup semisweet chocolate chips

Cut bread into 1-inch pieces. Slice bananas into 1/2-inch-thick chunks. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, half-and-half, and sugar with a wire whisk until well blended. Gently stir in bread, bananas, and chocolate chips to combine. Cover and refrigerate bread mixture at least 1 hour, occasionally pressing down bread to absorb cream mixture. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9-inch round springform or cake pan (or casserole--whatever it is should be fairly deep). Spoon mixture into pan and bake, covered, for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake 45-50 minutes longer or until knife inserted in center of pudding comes out clean (I don't think we waited the whole 45 minutes). Cool slightly on wire rack and then serve warm.

It seems to me it would be a very, very good idea to add some rum or other kind of alcohol, but I didn't do it because I was afraid adding more liquid--especially alcohol--might mess up the recipe. If you try it and like it, let me know!

John's red pepper soup

2006-06-14T19:06:00.000-07:00

Ingredients (more or less):

5 red peppers (more or less), chopped
1 bunch of green onions (more or less), chopped
1 Tbs. (more or less) vegetable oil or butter
1 can (15 oz) of chicken broth
1 cup buttermilk (more or less)
1 tsp. white pepper (approximately)
salt to taste

John says there can be lots of flexibility with this recipe, but in general, this is what he does:

Saute the peppers and onions in 1 Tbs oil until just barely soft (about 2 minutes). Add the chicken broth and heat until warm, but not boiling. Blend the mixture in a food processor and then strain until all the little bits are removed. Add buttermilk to taste, and then add the pepper. Chill until ready to serve. Top with chives or whatever appeals to you!

If you try it and have any questions, let me know and I'll pass them along to him.

Weekend project #1--Before and After

2006-04-02T14:12:00.000-07:00

Signs of spring in CNY

2006-04-02T14:06:00.000-07:00

Big news! Will the Tooth Fairy go broke?

2006-04-02T14:05:00.000-07:00

2006-04-01T12:05:00.000-08:00

2006-04-01T12:04:00.000-08:00

Flowers at the Natural History Museum in NYC

2006-03-13T12:03:00.000-08:00

My camera was dying, but the flowers and greenery in the butterfly house were so beautiful that I had to try. The humidity, after a couple of days of frigid, dry air, was also pretty nice.

Da kids

2006-01-09T18:22:00.000-08:00

Drew and Susan with E & M

2006-01-09T18:21:00.000-08:00

Uncle John and Parker man

2006-01-09T18:20:00.001-08:00

"Leila May"

2006-01-09T18:20:00.000-08:00

Uncle John and Reagan

2006-01-09T18:19:00.000-08:00

Reagan O! What's that? Did you say something?

2006-01-09T18:18:00.000-08:00

Blondies

2006-01-09T18:17:00.000-08:00

Zelda! Awesome!!

2006-01-09T18:16:00.000-08:00

The view from Matt and Jill's back yard

2006-01-09T18:15:00.000-08:00

Boys and beards

2006-01-09T18:14:00.000-08:00

2006-01-09T18:13:00.000-08:00

Uncle Bob has everyone's attention

2006-01-09T18:11:00.000-08:00

Mason at the "purple playground" with the CO moutains in the background

2006-01-09T18:10:00.001-08:00

Emma at the park

2006-01-09T18:10:00.000-08:00

The kids staying up late on New Year's Eve

2006-01-09T18:09:00.000-08:00

2005-12-27T13:53:00.000-08:00

Here's the Christmas photo that should be going into everyone's...uh...New Year's card...any day now!

2005-12-27T13:50:00.000-08:00

This wil be the new Christmas Eve dessert tradition! Sabayon with fresh raspberries, champagne and lace cookies.

2005-12-27T13:48:00.000-08:00

Mmmm...good tea, beautiful teapot/teacup combo, and lovely earrings! What a wonderful Christmas! Thanks, Jill!

2005-08-28T18:53:00.000-07:00

"Mermaid Hair"

Cousins in VT

2005-08-28T18:43:00.000-07:00

Tagged!

2005-08-27T09:50:00.000-07:00

Jill has tagged me for the book meme game! I'm both thrilled and worried. Thrilled that Jill would include me and worried that I have no other bloggers to tag.

I'm also amused to no end by the word "tag." Am I it? Do I get to scrawl graffiti on the subway that is my blog?

Anway, here are my answers so far:

1. How many books do you own?
I have absolutely no idea. All of our bedrooms are full of books and we have more in boxes in the attic. The thing is, no matter how bad a book is, none of us can stand to throw it away.

2. Last book I bought:
A Bend in the River and A Good Year
(I bought them together.)

3. Last book I read
A Good Year (I'm in the midst of reading A Bend in the River)

4. Five books that mean a lot to me (without exceptions or apologies):

All of the Little House books
A Course in General Linguistics
The New Basics
The Barrytown Trilogy
The Master and Margarita

OK, the truth is that I often forget books the minute I finish them. These are some of the books that I still vaguely remember. I'm sure I'll change my mind about this list.

5. Tag five more
ACK!
Gavin

And if you're not Gavin or Jill, you are reading this, and you have a blog, consider yourself TAGGED! You're it! Get out the spray paint!

2005-07-10T15:57:00.000-07:00

Who knew Newcastle was so cool?

2005-07-10T15:56:00.000-07:00

Great ice cream in Copenhagen--this isn't the real shop, but the one in Legoland in Billund, Denmark.

2005-07-10T15:54:00.000-07:00

Mason and Emma outside of Alnwick Castle (where Harry Potter's first quidditch practice was filmed) in England.

2005-07-10T15:52:00.000-07:00

Piper here, piper there, pipers, pipers everywhere.

2005-07-10T15:51:00.000-07:00

About time for a picture update! Here's one of the highlights from Edinburgh Castle--a dog cemetary.

2005-05-20T14:37:00.000-07:00

Climbing the fence and reading (Daniel Pinkwater at the moment) is Mason's new favorite activity (that is, when he isn't on the computer or the Game Cube).

2005-05-20T14:23:00.000-07:00

Emma in a sea of pink!

2005-05-20T14:19:00.000-07:00

Whoa...a little experimentation is a dangerous thing. This is a collage of pictures from Emma's ballet recital. Clearer pictures to come!

Emma's thoughts

2005-04-24T19:51:00.000-07:00

I wish I had a dog that was named Owen.

There was a fat rat. He was a very fat rat. I have a mother that is very nice. I love Zoom! Wheehoo, I love Zoom!

Fish. Fishes are nice. Fish are nice because they have pockets just like us. Their scales are pockets. They put air for them to breathe in their pockets. Come on and fish! I love my family. (Kiss.)

Love. Love is a very useful word. Right? Love is nice. Kiss. Kiss. Mommy doesn't have any thoughts. Huh?

That's all. Now let's read.

2005-03-23T12:27:00.000-08:00

Owen back from a spin around Houston

2005-03-23T07:15:00.001-08:00

Emma and Owen

2005-03-23T07:15:00.000-08:00

Then again...

2005-03-23T07:14:00.000-08:00

At least our old house hasn't been knocked down in big boom Houston development!

Oops...I meant prairie dogs!

2005-03-23T07:13:00.000-08:00

Mason and Emma are NOT really groundhogs!

2005-03-23T07:12:00.001-08:00

Mason posing at the Houston Zoo

2005-03-23T07:12:00.000-08:00

Reptile room

2005-03-17T18:19:00.000-08:00

The family that plays (and drinks) together...

International Women's Day

2005-03-08T16:23:00.001-08:00

My students surprised me today with gifts to celebrate International Women's Day. This holiday has always seemed like a sham to me--women get the day off from work so they can cook and clean and host a party. I have to say, though, that I certainly enjoyed the celebration today (no cooking or cleaning involved!).

2005-03-03T16:30:00.000-08:00

Ahhhh...

2005-03-03T16:29:00.000-08:00

"Mason the slide"

2005-03-01T17:03:00.000-08:00

Mason's favorite toy--thanks to Spencer and Taylor!