Shuffleboard Domination.

After 2 years of living in Oregon with my parents, competing in anything and everything...it was nice to go out with a final WIN in shuffleboard at Block 15. 

Trip to Utah! Woot! Woot!

Sept. 16th...Trevor's 30th birthday...Trevor flew into Salt Lake City to be in a buddy's wedding.  The plan was for him to be in Utah Thursday to Monday for the wedding and visiting friends in SL and family in Price.  I was not going to see him until Monday the 20th when he was flying into Portland where we would hang with my parents for a couple days before we take off on the ferry for Alaska together on the 24th.  But I chose to surprise him in SL at the airport on his birthday!  It had been 2 months since we had seen each other...I had to!  

Balanced Rock in Helper, Utah.  Taken from his parents' deck.

Watching our nephew, Colton, ride his bike a the bike/skate park across the street from their house.  

I Must Be Greek!

I have this new found awareness that I am capable of recreating almost any of my favorite savory dishes!  Things that I used to only think came from restaurants (or once a year Greek festivals...ha!), I now realize come, not from these places or events...but from people....like me!  This may seem like a "duh" to some of you who realized this a long time ago, but I am finding it very exciting and liberating!


So now I introduce to you....

LOUKOUMADES!

(Formally known as those delicious warm Greek honey balls they serve once a year at the Greek Festival!)

My first homemade loukoumades with my dad's very own honey.

RECIPE

Source: Modern Greek by Andy Harris

Ingredients:

2 1/4 tsp. of yeast

1 cup warm water

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

FOR THE SYRUP:

3/4 cup of Jack Kobe's honey  :)

1/3 cup water

Canola or peanut oil for deep frying

Making the Batter:

1) Dissolve the yeast in 1/2 cup of the warm water for 15 minutes or until frothy

2) Place the flour and salt in a bowl

3) Make a well in the center and add the yeast solution and remaining 1/2 cup warm water.

4) Mis well to make a thick batter.

5) Cover with a damp kitchen towel and leave for 1 hour in a warm place or until the batter has doubled in size.

Making the Syrup:

Place the honey and water in a saucepan and simmer, stirring for 10 minutos!

Set aside to cool.

Making the Honey Balls!

1) Heat the oil in a large saucepan suitable for deep frying

2) Drop heaping tablespoons of the batter into the hot oil, turning them as they puff up.  Fry for about 3 minutes or until they are golden brown.

3) Drain on paper towels and keep warm until all the batter is used.

4)  When done...spoon syrup over the top and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Makes about 26

Yuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum!

Hike.

My mom and I spent the day together yesterday.  We did a short hike up to McDowell Creek Falls, then ate lunch and read our books on the edge of Foster Lake.  It was wonderful!

On a totally separate note.....I made baklava!  I was determined to make a dessert that would incorporate my dad's honey.  It was awesome!  I'm not afraid to toot my own horn. 

An update from Alaska

As Erin already posted, I found an amazing apartment in Sitka and moved in around August 16.  It is a major upgrade from the bunkhouse, even though I am living sans furniture... including a bed.  Sleeping on the floor was much more comfortable when I was a kid and would curl up on the floor with a blanket, but it is easy to get past the lack of usual comforts by knowing how nice it will be very soon.  I often look around and daydream about what it will look like when our stuff arrives and, most importantly, Erin is finally here!  Our very nice apartment will begin to evolve into our very nice Home.   

 

Earlier in the week I returned from my last extended trip to Falls Lake for the year as the sockeye salmon run has run its course and the fish are now beginning to spawn in the inlet creeks.  Work was pretty slow at the fish weir, but our local bear was actively feeding on pink salmon which attempt to spawn in the area between the two falls.  You can see all the fish carcasses next to the bear in some of the photos and video.  All the pictures are from my new camera, which has a great zoom.  Thanks Mom and Dad!

I love berries!  I loved the berries in Oregon, and it's hard to think of a better way to spend a Saturday than eating raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries while sitting at the Corvallis Farmer's Market with Erin, Jack, and Denise.  However, the wild berries up here have been keeping me very preoccupied and the muskeg areas around Falls Lake are filled with my favorite berry ever - the nagoonberry!  As much as I love looking for birds everywhere I go, my gaze is always drawn much lower while walking through potential nagoonberry habitat.  Nagoonberry plants grow close to the ground and only have one berry, so they can be difficult to find.  I also sampled some five-leaved bramble, thimbleberries, huckleberries, and some of the various types of blueberries.  Erin and I will keep ourselves busy making some jams next year!

Despite the look on my face, I really like berries. 
It's hard to eat and take a self portrait... damn you multitasking!
 

Nagoonberry!!!!!!

Thimbleberry

You want blueberries?  We have blueberries.

We began working at the other end of the lake where the sockeye are grouping up near the inlet creeks prior to spawning.  We captured a sample of them using a beach seine (long net) and looked for fish we had previously caught in our weir trap and marked.  The ratio of marked and unmarked fish allows us to estimate the total number of fish that entered the lake.  It was a great experience and a lot of fun, as I had never used a beach seine before.  Also, at this point the sockeye have changed from the bright silver color of their marine lives into a beautiful red.  It is amazing how much these fish change in a very short time.  I'll be back out for more captures next week, so expect more photos soon!

Sockeye salmon at one of the spawning areas

Back to the lack of furniture and other belongings before I finish this post.  When leaving Falls Lake, I would usually take a float plane back to Sitka.  However, the weather often gets worse in late August and September and makes float plane travel very unreliable.  Thus, we began flying in and out of the Village of Kake on regularly scheduled commuter planes then boating back and forth to Falls Lake.  On the last trip back to Kake I saw a barge heading toward Sitka.  I absolutely knew that had to be carrying the container with our stuff.  I was jumping for joy, took pictures, and fantasized about how great of a story this was turning into.  Little did I know that Erin was about to receive an email stating that our stuff had just recently arrived... in Seattle!  Wow, it really took about 17 days for everything to travel from Albany to Seattle - a drive we could make in 4 hours.  Alas, the story unfolds, even if it is not the one I imagined on that boat.

Not our stuff.