End of summer

September disappeared and I'm not quite sure where it went. We have had a beautiful Indian summer with balmy days, blue skies and clear nights. 

Bumble bee photos by Jeff

When I asked Jeff what exactly I did in September, he silently pointed to the freezer. Oh yeah... we two Nanaimo bears are ready for a long winters nap. 
 

I canned 25 pounds of tomatoes, 20 pounds of peaches and pears, 10 pounds of pickles and 10 jars of apple sauce then froze 25 pounds of roasted tomatoes, 15 pounds of green beans, 10 pounds of nectarines, 25 pounds of bell peppers,10 bags each of blackberries and raspberries- so along with our stash of salmon, we're in good stead. Thank goodness for generous in-laws with a very large freezer! My eyes were certainly bigger than my freezer space.


I never thought I would become a woman who wears an apron much more frequently than lip gloss and who feels genuine joy at full pantry shelves. This whole experience is teaching me that I do need to find a more simple way of living. I think that's a good thing.

Chef Jeff strikes again

Chef Jeff, our emerging resident culinary genius, has become much more experimental than I in the kitchen. Several weeks ago, he was inspired by my favourite character Lula in the Stephanie Plum mystery series and decided he would make some Southern Fried Chicken (of course, spoken with a strong drawl). While we will not discuss the calories or other nutritional information of said chicken, I will tell you that it was out of this world. Jeff couldn't wait to get some on a plate to try it out and I'll admit- it was pretty good on its own. When we regained our sense of civility and served it up with coleslaw, green beans and iced tea, it was the best of the south right in our kitchen.

Mini Break

In mid September, Jeff was off to Victoria for three days to complete a fibre optics course at Comosun College. With my newly flexible schedule and forecast for sunny skies, it seemed a great opportunity for me to tag along. Because carpooling arrangements for several of Jeff's colleagues were uncertain until a few days before he left, we decided I would take the train and we would meet up Monday night.

VIA's Dayliner runs from Victoria to Comox and back every day. It's not the most modern train around but for a $20 fare, provided a relaxing ride with some great scenery. The train driver slowed on our approach to the Niagara Canyon trestle bridge (close to Duncan) so we could enjoy the view. It was a little unnerving to stare 300 feet straight down, but Jeff later reminded me that it would have been much more unnerving if the old wooden bridge was still in use. Thankfully, it was retired a while ago.

Cowichan Chamber of Commerce photo

Cathedral Grove photo

The train arrives in the Victoria inner harbour and provides a great view of the BC Legislative Buildings as it crosses the Johnson Street bridge and arrives at the station.

Jeff met the train and we had a great night, chatting over dinner at the much loved Rebar restaurant, then walking around down town. We watched the Blackball ferry quietly sail out of the the harbour at dusk (it travels back and forth between Victoria and Port Angeles, WA) and were absolutely delighted when it bleated its horn.  Unlike the entire fleet of BC Ferries, it was actually in tune. For two people who live a block away from the Nanaimo BC Ferry terminal (and hear out of tune ferries several times a day),  it was welcome music to our ears.

I think Victoria is one of the prettiest cities in Canada and don't know why we don't spend more time there. It was great to have two days to explore, window shop, have coffee, hang out with my cousin and be a tourist on my own island.

Dahlia

Another gift from our friends' garden.

Yum

What happens when you take some garden fresh sauteed greens and mix them with leftover turkey, goat cheese and roasted pepper pesto, roll them into happy wonton mega-raviolis and

top them with fresh tomato sauce and parmesan? You get something very, very yummy.

Good morning

Thanks to the gifts of dahlias, heirloom tomatoes, cucumber and organic greens from friends yesterday afternoon, this was the sight that greeted me this morning when I went into the kitchen to turn on the coffee pot. Is there anything that tastes better than the end of summer?

All in a day's work

While my new life of "freedom" as a student, haus frau and woman of leisure is something that I am getting used to quite happily, I have struggled with change that comes with my significantly lower financial contribution to our household. Jeff regularly reminds me that not all contributions are financial ones (and that the value of a wife no longer suffering daily anxiety attacks at the thought of going to a job that makes her absolutely miserable is more than money could ever buy). It is amazing how our life has simplified since I've been off work and how much more cheaply we live, but I'm still aware of this change.

Today, I had an opportunity to make a very unique contribution. While Jeff was busy with his VT 150 and VT 300 robot babies (or "Crawler vehicles" as he corrects me), I was busy with our V-2840. My food vacuum packager might not be able to complete underground rescues, crawl through pipes or help with international security, but I love it just the same.

One of the guys in our care group has worked in the charter fishing business for over a decade and knows everything there is to know about salmon. When he invited us into a group purchase on some of this year's sockeye run (apparently, the best on the West Coast in over a century), we were pretty excited. The 'catch' on this great deal? Each family buying fish needed to provide a helper to process it.

So today while Jeff did all the things that an engineer does on an average day, I joined 6 strong, outdoorsy-type men to process 700 pounds of salmon. It was caught yesterday and was so fresh, all you could smell was a little sea water (no fish smell at all). We barbequed some for lunch and let me tell you- it was the best salmon I've ever tasted.

The fish in this photo account for about a third of the total we cut, rinsed, dried and vacuum packed. I'm proud to report that my equipment and vaccum-packing talent wowed the boys and I think, I did well enough to earn an invitation back next year. Jeff and I bought 100 pounds and came home with 42 sides of salmon that we are splitting with Jeff's parents. So for all of you prairie and Ontarian friends and family members- you'll have to come out for a visit. We have lots of very yummy salmon to feed you.