tubing the river

as the summer approaches its end and the kids have returned to school, there was still some unfinished business to attend to - tubing the san marcos river! of course, the only part watson was really interested in was going down the "tube chutes". i have had some bad experiences in the past with the falls - everything from falling out of my tube, losing my sunglasses and shoes, scraping my butt on the bottom of the graveling river bottom [not a pleasant feeling] and generally getting bumped and tossed up against rocks such as to awaken the next day bruised and very sore. so when i had to live up to my promise to take watson tubing, i employed some help - his dad, who by the way, is a much stronger and better swimmer than me. we showed up late on sunday afternoon, not evening getting into the water until close to 5:45, the temperature was still in the 90's but the angle of the sun and the many trees along the banks ensured that no on was sunburned. thanks to our friends paul and jenn, we had a life jacket and tube with a bottom to put the boy in. ken and i relaxed and watched the wildlife, just as it is, as we gently drifted down the river - watson of course was inpatient and kept asking when we would get to the chutes. i had made the mistake of saying that perhaps it would be better just to go down chutes 2 and 3, but watson would not hear of it! 1, 2, and 3 he insisted so i made his dad take him as i held on to the shoes and watched safely from the bank. the only thing is, there is no easy way out of the river once you go down the 3 little falls - i fell trying to help pull watson out of the river. the first "run" went just fine, i saw them go down, hearing watson yell with both fear and delight! the second run, well, watson flew out of the tube, went under the whitewater but thanks to the life jacket, popped up in a flash. a young boy who knew watson and had watched him fall out quickly dived into the water from his perch near the falls. luckily, ken was able to grab both boy and tube. i'm sure we will go again but its a workout and definitely not something watson and i could have done alone, thanks to his dad for making the trip possible.

i sometimes think my dog is a cat

earlier this week, in the early hours of the morn, before the sun was fully up and the twilight is slowly creeping away, max and i were out for a walk when he spied something moving in the grass. at first i thought it was a lizard or possibly a toad, could be a cricket. he pounced on it - like a cat. it was comical the way his front paws went up first and he jumped down on the grass, his bottom high in the air. after several pounces, the critter he was after ran out into the street. a car was passing by on the opposite side so the critter stopped, turn around and started heading back to our side of the road. we we spotted so it froze, 5 or 6 feet away from the curb. in the poor light, and with my poor eyesight, it took a few moments for me to focus and find out what it was - a mouse! a small dark brown mouse with a tail longer than its body.







photo credit:
Stephen Dalton/EB Inc.

finally! a home cooked meal

with our crazy schedules, my near constant back pain AND the fact that my daughter doesn't eat meat and that's practically all my son eats, planning and cooking dinner every night has proven to be impossible. However, last night, i served dinner that wasn't straight out of a bag/box, plopped onto a cookie sheet and baked in 20 minutes!
so last night we had chalupas [also known as tostados although i never heard that word til i was in college] and rice. i happen to be very proud of my rice even though its not that fancy - its a staple side dish at any and all tex-mex eateries but it was something that i practiced cooking for 10 YEARS til i got it right. and of course, presentation is everything so i plated the chalupas with beans and cheese on my big platter, set out the matching plates, poured the salsa into a small bowl [ok, it was just Pace], put the lettuce in a bowl and elora, zoie and i sat down AT the table no less and had dinner. watson had eaten his cheese chalupa earlier. it may be just a small thing, something many people take for granted, but it was great to cook and serve and enjoy a meal with the girls. even zoie said she felt special that i had cooked for her. i'm gonna do that more often.

i hope to be a woman one day

"A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own even if she never wants to or needs to...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
something perfect to wear if the employer or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a youth she's content to leave behind...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a past juicy enough that she's looking forward to retelling it in her old age...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
one friend who always makes her laugh... and one who lets her cry...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal that will make her guests feel honored...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
a feeling of control over her destiny...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
how to fall in love without losing herself...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
HOW TO QUIT A JOB,
BREAK UP WITH A LOVER,
AND CONFRONT A FRIEND WITHOUT RUINING THE FRIENDSHIP...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
when to try harder... and WHEN TO WALK AWAY...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
that she can't change the length of her calves, the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
that her childhood may not have been perfect...but it's over...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
what she would and wouldn't do for love or more...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
how to live alone... even if she doesn't like it...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
whom she can trust, whom she can't, and why she shouldn't take it personally...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
where to go... be it to her best friend's kitchen table... or a charming inn in the woods... when her soul needs soothing...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
what she can and can't accomplish in a day... a month...and a year..."
—Pamela Redmond Satran

photo credit:
http://insomniacsraine.blogspot.com/2009_06_07_archive.html

nachos

my daughter asked me for nachos so i finally gave in.
1st day -
sort, rinse and soak 2 cups pinto beans overnight in large bowl with plenty of water
2nd day -
strain the beans, place in large pot and fill pot with plenty of fresh water
add one chopped onion, 3 cloves of garlic (or garlic powder), cup of canned diced tomatoes, salt, black pepper, ground cumino, dash of tabasco,and 2 or 3 large bay leaves*
you can also add diced ham, bacon or what my dad uses - good ol' salt pork
bring water to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low [but maintain a simmer] and cook for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally [actually as long as you have enough liquid and use low heat, you can keep your beans cooking all day!] a bottle of bock beer added near the end of cooking is nice too [add to the beans, not for the cook LOL]
3rd day -
grate your cheese of choice [we use longhorn cheddar] i don't recommend american or velveeta for this - 8oz for approx. 30 nachos, more if you LOVE cheese
slice up two to three large fresh jalepenos [removing seeds]
take 10 corn tortillas and cut into fourths
heat 3 inches of oil in small pan - you want the oil hot enough so that as soon as you put your chip in, it comes up to the surface immediately - fry for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes and flip to fry other side
remove and drain on paper towels, salt immediately if desired
set chips aside and in large pan, heat about 1 tablespoon of oil or butter/margarine
drain the cooked beans and add half to hot oil, after thoroughly heating them, smash them with a potato masher and turn off the heat
pre-heat oven to 350degrees
i always line my cookie sheet with foil to avoid melted cheese on my sheet
spread smashed beans on each nacho and top with grated cheese and a slice of jalepeno
bake in oven for about 4 to 5 minutes [all your ingredients are cooked and hot so basically you just need to melt the cheese]
too many beans on your nacho will make it soft but there's no such thing as too much cheese :)
enjoy with a cold beverage - milk is good if your peppers are very hot; i prefer an icy cold beer


*i heard that the bay leaves helps reduce the gassy nature of the beans but i have no scientific proof; not cooking the beans in the water they soaked in is also recommended for this too

poetry and rain

i am currently reading "Daughters of the Fifth Sun", an anthology of work by Hispanic, female writers and i am now at a section of poetry. it occurred to me that i could never read poetry as i do other genres - biographies or novels that i become so wrapped up in that i "can't put down the book", reading many pages, perhaps hours at a time. for me, to really appreciate the poetry, i can only read one poem at a time, not one right after another. i imagine it might takes weeks, or months, to complete a whole books or an anthology of poetry. for me its like with rain after a drought; if the rain comes down too hard, too quickly and all at once, it rushes away with very little of it actually soaking into the parched earth. a poem for me must be read out aloud, maybe even read over and over several times and then it must just "percolate" in my brain for awhile, just for me to understand, visualize, to absorb it. then and only then can i feel and know it. of course, as with such subjective material as poetry, who knows if i would even come close to knowing what the poet is trying to say! nonetheless, i will read one poem a night during this section of the book and let you know later, which one was my favorite.

updating old posts!

i just figured out how to add images to my blog so i went back and added some pictures and now the blog is no longer in chronological order, sorry folks if you thought it was a bunch of new posts!

pasta salad

[shown is a double recipe]

1 package 'wacky mac' or bowtie pasta, tri-color
1/2 green bell pepper
1/2 red bell pepper
3 green onions
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup green olives [pimento stuffed]
1/3 cup balsamic vinaigrette [i use the bottled dressing type]

cook pasta according to directions, i add salt and olive oil to the water for favor and to avoid having the pasta stick together
as soon as you drain the pasta, put it into an ice bath [water with ice in it, enough to completely cover the pasta] this will stop the cooking process, drain after a few minutes

dice up all the veggies except the cherry tomatoes
slice the olives into thirds
mix it all in a bowl and toss with salt, pepper and the vinaigrette
sprinkle with dried parsley, cover and refrigerate immediately
pictured with fresh mint for garnish

mary's meatballs

1/2 lb italian sausage (or 3 links)
1/2 lb ground buffalo (or any lean ground meat of your choice)
place in bowl with garlic powder, paprika, dried oregano, sage, basil - approx 2 teaspoons of each
add 1/4 bread crumbs - i like to use crushed croutons but crackers work well also
and a dash of dried red pepper flakes
add one to two tablespoons of spaghetti sauce (or you can use an egg to bind it)

mix well, very thoroughly, with your hands - yes, its very messy but i've never been able to properly mix this up using anything else; i tried to use a fork, spoon, etc

form into small balls, slightly smaller than a golf balls (smaller balls will cook faster and i think they're cuter:)

heat a little bit of olive oil in skillet to prevent sticking and place balls into hot oil, stir constantly to brown on all sides being careful not to overload your pan; i usually cook these in two 'shifts'

remove from pan and drain on paper towels to get rid of excess grease then place in your sauce and cook an additional 20 minutes on low with lid on to prevent splatter

meatballs - part deux
since i was unable to open my jar of sauce AND found that my supply of dried herbs was basically non-existent, i finished cooking my meatballs in the oven, placing them in my glass pie pan, pouring a little red wine over them and then adding fresh sage, thyme and rosemary. i covered them with foil and baked them for 20 minutes in a 350degree oven.

serve over your favorite pasta (we use whole wheat spaghetti cooked slightly al dente)
nice side dishes include a green salad, steamed broccoli, and of course garlic toast

mary's easy and quick garlic toast
i start with a fresh loaf of pan frances from our local HEB grocery store
slice thickly and place on cookie sheet
pre-heat your oven to 350 or 400 for extra crispy bread (i like mine to be soft in the midde)
melt just under a 1/4 of margarine in the microwave and add paprika, basil, garlic powder, oregano and dried parsley, mix well and spread on your bread before baking in the oven til it reaches your preferred level of "toasted-ness"
enjoy!