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What a difference between this Thanksgiving and the last one. Last year's found me staring at a pack of mystery meat from the cooler and wondering if I could shape it into a drumstick, maybe singe it over the camp stove for better appeal.
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Today I am typing this entry while a ham burbles away in the propane oven. Stuffing, sweet potatoes, peas and roast potatoes will join it on the table - a REAL table, not the table saw! Tonight we are thankful for so many blessings. Next year will be even more of an occasion as more rudimentary comforts become reality. We may even find a turkey at a reasonable price then, too.
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Since we don't have TV and only have radio at night when the generator is on, we tackled the rat trailer siding project once the sun pushed the temps to 50 degrees. The aluminum siding had been removed and Mark had already cut Styrofoam panels to fit into each now exposed stud center. So, today would see the application of Tyvek (or 'house wrap' as some call it). It essentially envelopes the exterior of the walls to cut down drafts and moisture infiltration. The roll of material is 9' high and 150' long but we were only going to unroll enough to cover over our experimental area (about 8' high and 40' long). We installed the bottom flashing and were ready to grab the big roll. The wind had been non-existent for the last month but, you guessed it, whipped up just before we were ready to unfurl the material. The sheeting and its roll became potentially lethal at times and we each sprung two extra hands to keep ahead of the game. There were a couple of times when this ungainly sail threatened to hang glide us out across the valley but we managed to stay grounded. We were definitely beat by the time the last of the loose folds were secured and dinner seemed like a remote possibility. After an hour of recharge time, we decided to go for it.
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The photo at the top is of our little homestead in the canyon - the old barn, the rat trailer and the moving trailer as they appear from our mesa top on the far side of the creek. The mesa wall right behind the buildings is the one that we all scaled a couple of weeks ago.
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Albeit it a little late in the day, we extend our best wishes to all our friends and family for an equally peaceful Thanksgiving.
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Next post: a few days hence
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3 comments:
Dinner turned out well but with only 2 people, there were LOTS of leftovers! I still cook like we are hosting the adult orphan's dinner.
The mesa providing protection? Not really. The winds usually come directly from the west and we get blasted. Then there is this really HUGE block of rock 300' directly above and the rat trailer ... do you remember that Little Abner cabin in the same situation? Yeah, just like that.
We had only six at my orphan's dinner last night; Rick's mom & dad, his son Michael, and his best friend Mike. I made it all myself but I cheated a bit; Publix had turkeys .69 lb, bought an eleven pounder so I wouldn't have much left over. Potatoes were those prepared things in a tub, buy one get one free this week at Publix, bought one sweet potato and one mashed and doctored them up. They were great, I was impressed. Two pounds of fresh green beans, pumpkin pie from Publix, some strange pastry ("Crostata") I bought on a whim, and a cheese cake that Rick's parents brought... from Publix. I had four different kinds of stuffing, made from wild rice and two boxes of dare I say it Stove Top stuffing doctored up. The bird was stuffed with corn bread Stove Top, his craw was stuffed with wild rice (cooked first natch, then the rest of the wild rice was mixed with herb Stove Top, very much like regular Pepperidge Fram but a bit herb was reserved without wild rice for those who don't care for it. That's four kinds of stuffing. I recommend Stove Top for it's modest portion, fierce packaging, and it doctors up nicely with lots of celery and onion.
I had this awesome cranberry sauce at an old friend of my mom's years ago, she gave me the recipe but I didn't have time to look for it yesterday. She used fresh cranberries, I used Ocean Spray Cran Fruit, a big dollop of sour cream and some crushed pecans all mixed in, and I LOVED it. And I don't even like cranberry sauce! I had a tiny jar of regular cranberry jelly on the table, no-one touched it, the cats won't eat it, I guess I'll have to put it on my frozen waffles, another dreadful food we eat regularly.
Tonight we finished the potatoes and the green beens, tomorrow an adaptation of something I saw on Emiril this week, Old Kentucky Brown Sandwiches or some such name. Sort of like bacon cheeseburgers only with turkey and gravy. A real heart-stopper.
Rick's mom doing poorly with ALS. Gets tired very easily. Wheel chair etc.
Hey, anon ... I still miss your orphan's dinners. I picked up the tradition after you moved away but I always missed not having you and Daddy B around.
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