Eggshell on the driveway.
An omelette of garlicky greens on a bed of arugula.
The first asparagus of the season, broiled 15 minutes after I picked up my farm veggies.
Baking treats for a weekend spent with old friends.
And this guy, resting after some long overdue, well-deserved walks. We are so close to the end of the semester here at the lake house.
You know, the deal I make with Boh all the time: he is a good boy, and I take him on good walks. I’ve been slacking a bit with regard to my responsibilities in the W-A-L-K department, especially these last few weeks. With my writing deadline behind me (last week’s colloquium went very well), I set out to make things right.
On Saturday we headed up to campus to wander the little paths, shortcuts, and suspension bridges tucked all around it.
Here we are after our walk. I know Boh just looks worried, but trust me, he had a great time. (And snored for hours to prove it.)
Today it was absolutely gorgeous out — sunny, and into the high 80s. After a busy morning on campus, I took Boh down to one of the parks at the base of the lake. We walked until he seemed a bit too hot (after all, he’s still wearing his spring coat), and then headed back to the house, where he lounged next to my spinning wheel in the shade of my office.
See? What a good boy. I finished spinning the second bump of the Pigeonroof Studios fiber in bronzed teal, and I’m psyched to ply it. Stay tuned for yarn pictures!
Boh and I have spent much of the last several days snuggled up on the couch re-reading some Wallace Stegner. I’d say Boh has found his angle of repose, wouldn’t you? (My Agnes sweater is perfect for reading late into the night.)
Also, I’ve been seeing a pair of pileated woodpeckers in the yard with some regularity over the last couple of weeks. I only had my phone handy, so this is the best I could do. Isn’t s/he lovely?
Last Saturday morning, Boh and I woke up early, and part of the way through my first cup of coffee and my bowl of muesli, I had a thought — wouldn’t my sweet dog enjoy a special walk? So we bundled up, hopped in the car, and enjoyed a solid hour of cold-weather Saturday morning strolling. (Well, I strolled. Boh mostly bounded.)
This is Boh waiting patiently while I photograph the waterfall.
It was a crisp, clear morning, and the sun was just starting to break through the trees to hit the path as we walked back toward the car.
Awesome tree roots.
Walks are much more pleasant with hand knits. (In particular, my thanksgiving day mitts.) Happy Friday!
…well, not like this dog:
To be fair, before he fell asleep on me like that, he did spend some time doing this:
While I did this:
This summer session of TAing is keeping me very busy, but I should be back to regular blogging after it concludes next week. I have been trying to dip my feet in the lake each evening after a full day on campus — and last night I may have woven in the ends of my stripey shawl. I attempted what I’ll call “half-assed blocking” — I soaked it, and then instead of clearing off a table, finding my blocking squares, and pinning it out, I just tried to stretch it a bit and then draped it over the towel bar on the shower door. More on that when it’s dry!
(Oh my goodness, I just hit return and then started to sign this post as if it was an email. Sigh.)
Hi, folks. Sorry to disappear this week! I’m TAing summer school for high schoolers for the next three weeks, and my schedule has gotten kind of crazy! Hoping to be back into a rhythm very soon. In the meantime, here’s a whole bunch of pictures of Boh and his best friend Coltrane, who spent five days of his summer vacation here with us this week!
More soon!
On Tuesday afternoon, inspired by a recent clip from Jimmy Fallon’s late night show (where he and his guests built snowmen on the roof and then tackled them), several of us gathered in a local park with the same concept in mind. (The whole afternoon was my friend M.’s idea. Brilliant.) Here is my jackalope snowman. In this image, he has both arms, though I had to keep replacing his right arm because every time I turned around, Boh was gnawing on it.
When it came time for the destruction part, Boh was not helpful. My friends were able to jump on their snowmen. Boh, on the other hand, came to a full stop just in front of the jackalope, so I had to settle for pushing ours over. Here’s a shot of Boh in full retreat:
Nice to have a few action shots of my wurm hat. It’s the knit I grab the most — from handspun, and it has just the right amount of slouch.
I was absolutely unproductive yesterday, and this morning is looking like a wash. The upside? I might have found my next home. A HOUSE. On The Lake. Fingers crossed.
I left off yesterday by saying that I owed Boh a good, long walk. All this reading, writing, and grading has meant a slew of shorter-than-they-should-be walks for my favorite four-legged companion. I was thinking about it as something for him — but really, it was exactly what I needed, too. (Funny how that works.)
Late afternoon light.
Intrepid adventurers?
I love this tree.
The reservoir, late fall.
We needed that. (Way more restorative than the fancy coffee drink I splurged on yesterday as I headed home from campus.)
My account of our epic Sunday continues.
What began as a quick stop at an apple orchard for an apple cider doughnut or two turned into an hour or so of frolicking amidst the apple trees, some apple picking, lots of apple eating, and of course, two courses of the aforementioned doughnuts. (Two to start, two before leaving. I have no pictures of this part. They were just too good (and warm!) not to eat immediately.
A corridor of mutsus.
Macouns, clearly.
Us, eating apples.
Sigh. Hello, autumn.
Um, I want that one.
Yesterday was an epic Sunday. I went to an early morning yoga class, where my teacher mentioned that in addition to an artists’ open studio event happening in and around town all weekend, that the local cheesemakers’ association was also inviting folks to visit their farms and taste the different kinds of locally-made cheeses. That was enough to rearrange the day. We hopped into the car and headed to farm country.
The trees everywhere were golden and honey-hued, and oh, the light! Yesterday was a clear day, and everything just looked warm. You know?
We met some cows. I think this one down in front is named Gina. At least that’s what her ear tag says. We learned about how local farmers make gouda and jack-style cheeses, learned about different ways of aging rounds or blocks of cheese, and tasted a generous amount at the two farms we visited. We settled on what I think is a raw milk cheddar, and a hunk of (local) beer-soaked, wood-aged gouda.
Last night for dinner, we might have just eaten cheese, bread, pickles, and some leftover coleslaw. But that’s because the cheese trail was only the beginning. (I’m going to break Sunday’s adventures into two posts. Stay tuned!)
barefoot rooster 