Bad Hombres and my fellow Nasties

I went to bed last night in tears and sick to my stomach
I woke up in fears and catatonic
This reality tv star is the black horse of the apocalypse
His deplorable followers clueless
And yet...I have hope
Over half the nation voted for decency
Record early voters for the first time in history
Feel the Bern and I'm with Her
Don't give up now, we're not kicked to the curb
Bad Hombres and my fellow Nasties
We're still a democracy

Blueberry Apricot Pie with Walnut Topping

This pie was so incredible that Husband began eating it straight from the pie pan with a spoon before the dinner guests arrived. After dinner, the guests who normally don't indulge in dessert took second and third helpings. There is no more pie. Truly, this should be called, Incredible Pie. Or, the Incredible Shrinking Pie. Or, just pie. Delicious pie.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

Filling
1 quart canned apricots
2-3 cups frozen blueberries
1/4 cup quick tapioca
juice of one lemon
2 inches fresh grated ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup sugar

Place fruit in bowl, sprinkle with tapioca, lemon juice, ginger, cinnamon, and sugar. Set aside while preparing crust. 




Crust
1/2 cup graham flour
1 1/2 cups almond flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
8 tablespoons coconut oil, melted

Place all the dry ingredients in food processor and pulse until mixed. Add the coconut oil, two tablespoons at a time, pulsing well each time. Scrape down sides of mixer as needed. Mixture will be crumbly. Turn out the crumbly pie crust mixture into a pie dish and using spatula, spread the mixture evenly along the bottom and sides. Use a jar to press and flatten the dough. Place the pie crust into the heated oven at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.

Topping
1 cup walnuts
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt

Place the walnuts, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt into the food processor. Pulse until nuts are ground, and ingredients are well mixed.

Remove the pie crust from oven. Spread apricot and blueberry mixture into the crust, top with the walnut mixture. Place pie back in oven and bake for 45 minutes to an hour, until fruit is bubbly and topping is lightly browned.

John

John, Omak Stampede, August 2016

I am naturally cynical, pragmatic, logical. I do not believe prayers move a diety to action. 

I found myself 'praying' last night as I scrolled through pictures of protestors and recognized someone else - John. 
I met John at an event this summer. I was interviewing a young lady and John sat quietly nearby, intently listening. When she and I were finished, John stood up and held out his hand. He firmly grasped my hand in both of his and told me a story. John is disabled, his speech is garbled, but that does not stop him from interacting with everyone and being his friendly self. I had no idea what he was saying, but I loved every word as he animatedly emphasized here, raised an eyebrow there, and laughed heartedly at a punchline that only he knew. Awhile later I felt a tug at my elbow. John had changed into his dancing clothes and was going to drum that night. He motioned to my camera and then proudly mugged for a few shots.
John is unable to talk, but in the brief evening I spent with him he communicated volumes with his smile, hand gestures, drumming and dance.
As I scrolled through images from the NoDAPL protests, I recognized John. He was held in an embrace by another - someone who I know was arrested. His face was buried in the other man's chest. I wondered, was he hurt? was he scared? was he arrested too?
He can't talk. Was he one of the ones with a number written on his arm instead of a name? Was he one of the ones held in a dog kennel?
He can't talk. Were the police patient or gentle with him? Did they recognize someone who has special needs and act appropriately?
I worry and I pray.
Me. Praying.
For his safety, for everyone's safety. And a quick end to this brutal attack on peaceful protesters who are standing ground on their own treaty lands that were never ceded.

Ladybug Hiberation

 Where ladybugs slumber deep
Through winters long dark keep

A seasonal and silent gathering

Bodies cluster wing to wing

On rocks and logs and leaves
On stems, the ground, the trees

Cold and clear flows the creek

A watery lullaby for them to sleep

Ladybugs settling down to rest

The moment before snows drift

Monday - A Deconstruction

I decided to start the day off right, by getting up early to exercise, eat a healthy breakfast and pack a slimming salad for lunch. Here’s how the day transpired:

• 5:30 a.m. Bounced out of bed, unrolled exercise mat and assumed plank position.

• 7:30 a.m. Woke up face-down on the floor mat, dog licking my face. Vaguely remember doing one pushup. Now running late for work, no time to pack lunch or eat breakfast.

• 8:00 a.m. Stop at Carlton General store for a coffee, muffin and freshly made turkey sandwich on croissant for lunch. The store and parking lot are packed with out-of-town hunters. One of them holds open the door (nice) and says, “Morning, baby girl” (not nice).

• 8:10 a.m. Now slightly irritated and running late, I forget that I placed the cup of coffee on top of the car. The man who mistook a grown woman for a baby jumps in front of the car, waving his arms and yelling, “don’t go anywhere baby girl!” Remembering the coffee, I retrieve it, while the man continues to instruct me as if I were an infant, “buckle up, baby girl!” 

• 9:00 a.m. I arrive to my job as the office administrator at the Bear Fight Institute, where scientists conduct research and publish findings on geological formations within our solar system. An airmail letter from Britain is in the pile of unopened mail. Marked “Private and Confidential,” the letter looks important. I email the scientist it is addressed to; he was out of town that week. He replies that it may need immediate attention, so I open the letter to find a handwritten note requesting a professional opinion on the existence of Loch Ness. A self-addressed stamped envelope is enclosed.

I take a long sip from the still-hot Carlton General Store coffee that I had earlier refrained from throwing on someone, and decide not to reply to the letter. Although I truly want to say, “Dear Sir, as a research institute located in the Pacific Northwest, we can only speak on issues relating to Bigfoot.”

The rest of the work day passed quickly without further incident, until the drive home, when a Methow Valley-sized traffic jam of cows took a leisurely stroll across the Rendezvous Road. The behooved “cow-moot” resulted in a dinner idea.

Beef stew ingredients browned in a pot on my stove later that evening. I grabbed a carton of beef broth and shook the contents vigorously before pouring into the pot. Then I reached for the can of Guinness and, without thinking, also shook it vigorously. I’d like to believe most of the Guiness dripped down into the pot after exploding all over the kitchen ceiling. I’d also like to believe that my ceiling was relatively clean.

Find my beef stew recipe here :)

Apple Galette w/ Almond Crust

Is there anything better than fall and apples?
No, there is not.

Galette Dough
2 cups flour
1/2 cup finely ground almonds
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 cup frozen, unsalted butter - cut into small pieces
1/3-1/2 cup ice water as needed

Combine dry ingredients in a food processor. Add butter and pulse until well mixed. Sprinkle in the ice water by tablespoon and toss with a fork until you can bring the dough together in a ball. Press dough into a disk and refrigerate for one hour. For the galette, roll dough onto a lightly floured surface, forming a 14 inch circle, 1/8 inch thick. Roll onto the rolling pin and transfer to a baking stone or parchment lined baking sheet. Dough will be larger than the pan.



Apple Pie Filling
2 lbs apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
Juice of one lemon
4 tablespoons sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
Gently toss all ingredients in a bowl until apples are fully coated with sugar and seasonings. Mound apples onto center of galette dough, leaving a 3 inch border. Fold the edges of the dough over the apples. Brush top of dough with melted butter, sprinkle with sugar, and bake for 45 minutes, until crust is golden brown and apples are tender.

Monument to the Indigenous Methow

Standing on the banks of the Methow/Columbia confluence, it is a stretch to remember what the surrounding area looked like 50 years ago before the dam created the lake, or even 100 years ago, when young men and women with ambitious dreams arrived by ferry, carriage, horseback and foot to the mouth of the Methow River.

In Pateros Memorial Park, there are few reminders: a heavy bolt used to secure ferries as crews pulled the boats up river against the current and through the rapids, a museum with pictures of first homes, first orchards, first town buildings, first miners. What is missing is a way to envision how the first people in the region lived thousands of years before the new comers arrived.

With that thought, I am very excited to share with you a project I’ve been involved in for the last few months: a Monument to the Methow.

With input from the Colville Confederated Tribal History/Archeology program, a team of collaborators is putting the finishing touches on the design of an educational park in Pateros. The team is comprised of local historians, an archaeologist, tribal elders and a Pateros City liaison.

The design of the Monument to the Methow is endorsed by Okanogan County Historical Society as the nonprofit sponsor, the Pateros City Council, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, and Douglas County PUD.

Initially, our thoughts were to ask for a small bit of space along the shore to put up four historical signs similar to the other historical signs located in Pateros Memorial Park. As team members collaborated with the city of Pateros, a more integrated and practical design emerged for an educational park — centering around the annual salmon bake and cultural celebration that takes place in Pateros Memorial Park each year.

Currently, a pile of bricks serves as a makeshift salmon bake oven that is stored in an alleyway and hauled out to the street corner each year. The Monument to the Methow will have an elegantly permanent salmon bake wood-fired oven as the centerpiece to an educational park situated along the pedestrian river walk in the Pateros Memorial Park.

Surrounding the oven is a gravel walkway lined by native plants and scenes of a traditional encampment during the annual salmon harvest.  Renowned Colville Tribal artist Virgil “Smoker” Marchand has agreed to create a number of sculptures, including one that was inspired by a 1930s photo of a Methow Indian gaffing salmon in the Methow River from horseback. Rock art tiles will be placed along the curbing surrounding the monument.

Five educational signs with historical photographs will tell the story of the Methows. Overlooking the Columbia River, the Monument to the Methow integrates the natural elements of water, stone and native plants. The inspirational space will be a beautiful addition to the Pateros Memorial Park and will be enjoyed by the community, park visitors, students, tourists and passersby along the shoreline sidewalk.

All we need now is your support to make the Monument to the Methow a reality. Our goal is to raise $25,000 to pay for the sculptures, signs, tepee, benches and landscaping. To date, we have raised more than half the funds needed, and just need a little more. The monument is planned to be completed by May 2017 and dedicated to the community. All work will be completed by paid contractors.

Donations are fully tax-deductible. Checks are payable to “Methow Monument/OCHS” and should be mailed to: Okanogan County Historical Society, P.O. Box 1129, Okanogan, WA 98840. Please help us make this Monument to the Methow a reality to be enjoyed by everyone in the community.