bean&noodle

peachy goodness

My neighbor offered these up this morning as a trade for some of our plums. Deal! So now I will be making both plummy and peachy things during my staycation. Speaking of which, I have now compiled a list of things I'd like to do next week, but may just opt for numbers 8 & 12.

Down Home Ranch

There are many reasons to love my adopted hometown... notably the local artisans, volunteers, warriors, and pit masters that make Elgin a better place. In the next few months, on a semi-regular basis, I plan to spotlight anything and everything that inspires me and makes me proud to call Elgin My New Hometown.

In the spirit of full disclosure... I was born in Detroit.

As I write this post I realize that today, March 21st, is World Down Syndrome Day... Serendipity indeed.

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INSPIRATION & CREATION
I recently had the opportunity to visit with Jerry and Judy Horton of Down Home Ranch, a working farm and ranch community for people with special needs. The Hortons' daughter, Kelly, was born in 1984 with Down Syndrome, and they soon found themselves wondering about her future, and ultimately the adult lives of others with intellectual disabilities. As educators, their quest for knowledge and understanding drove them to learn all they could about Down Syndrome. Among their inspirations were L’Arche communities, founded in 1964 by Jean Vanier in France. The Hortons dreamed of a working ranch where adults with intellectual disabilities could work and live in a community of love, support and opportunity. 

Staff member Travis Luker and Alaina haul bags of mulch

Many of the community members commute on the many bikes and adult-size trikes found around Down Home Ranch.

A small cove of community group homes nestled in the trees.

Volunteers working at one of eleven greenhouses

TODAY
Down Home Ranch is a working farm and ranch community of about 40 adults and children, with and without intellectual disabilities, live and work together in their many greenhouses, gardens and pastures growing food, raising livestock and the daily chores that this requires of everyone. The Horton's are working toward this being a self sustaining community... feeding themselves and others.

Plant label reads, "Grown with love at Down Home Ranch.

Locally, seasonal poinsettia sales are a source of revenue for DHR, as are year-round plant sales. 

Volunteers tending to a few of the many drought tolerant species DHR grows for central Texas.

ANNUAL EVENTS

Golf & Gala

Summer Ranch Camp

Texas Chainsaw Manicure

Swim Fest

 

TAKE A DAY TRIP
Anyone within driving distance should hop into the car and visit Down Home Ranch to shop for drought tolerant plants.

For those of you that are not close enough to visit in person... I encourage you to watch this video

 

Ink on paper (and cow poop on the street)

The other day at lunch with one of our print sales people, we were all talking about how while we all may embrace digital content online, on a tablet or our phones, we are still drawn to holding a piece of actual printed material. That we're still attracted to the tactile experience of flipping through pages. I think most of us are. One of us mentioned being on a flight and watching a teenage boy wrapped up in his ipad tuck it away eventually and pull out a magazine to flip through.

Most of you know that I work in publishing, so of course am keenly aware of the impact digital content has on the printed word. I know that those of us who work in production and are involved on a day to day basis with printers have had some worries over this, but when it comes down to it... someone has to produce the content, whether it's for print, web, tablet or phone. 

The reason I even bother to bring this up is that while we were having this conversation over lunch, I was thinking about how I was still waiting to savor this book I'd received earlier in the week. I'm seriously one of those people that will not crack open a book or magazine until I have a proper moment to do so. This usually means a weekend morning with a strong cup of coffee and, if not outside, in my favorite red chair in the living room, in the corner with the perfect light. You see, it's still all about the whole tactile experience for me.

Oh, and by the way, if you have not ever seen Tif Fussell's blog Dottie Angel, you need to PDQ, or your day will be pants. 

Today is Elgin's Hogeye Festival, and I will be hawking tickets for Cow Patty Bingo. Don't know what that is? Google it. I know you're jealous.

Sharp Goat Ranch

Yesterday a couple friends and I visited a local goat ranch that is days away from opening their dairy facilities to the public...

but first we needed to maneuver our way past the front line of terriers. Initially, they will be selling milk and possibly feta, kefir and yogurt in the future. Apparently they cannot sell chevre because of the pasteurization required, so they will be selling chevre making kits to interested customers. Yay. They plan to teach cheese making classes in their commercial kitchen.

Red, White & Blueberry

Well, the counters are finished and most everything is back in place. I love them even more than I thought I would. Here are some before & after shots

... one of my favorite new things is the ginormous cast iron sink that was freecycled from the dumpster of one of Steve's jobsites. She cleaned up beautifully and is adorned with a swanky new faucet.

aah, the bluberries? This morning we called a couple friends to join us at Chickamaw Farm, a pick your own organic bluberry farm about 13 miles down the road in McDade. Today was the first day of bluberry picking season at Chickimaw Farm.The McCranie family grows blueberries, blackberries and strawberries, raises grassfed beef and also catfish. If you're in the Austin area load up and drive out the Chickamaw Farm to pick some berries and enjoy some early summer sunshine. Bring cash.

The following is from an email received from the fine folks at Chickamaw Farm.

Howdy,  Well it's that time o' the year again:  BERRY PICKING SEASON.  Surprisingly we have a fine crop in spite of the weather.  Season will open this coming Monday (Labor Day) and will proceed until the berries are picked out.  Of course we are open on the weekends especially but if you need a special "other time" please telephone.  The gate usually open on Saturday mornings when the first "pickers" arrive.  Please bring a hat and closed toe shoes are better.  We provide good well water and shade if you need or want it.  Remember it is dreadful out there mid day so choose your time of arrival to suit your comfort.  If you do not mind please bring something to put the berries in to take home.  We provide paper sacks but stable sided containers are safer for travel.  Anyhow, if you like blueberries be assured there's excellent ones out this way.  Guaranteed!  Should there be any problem or difficulty on the way out or should there be any question please telephone 512.567.3456.

This just may become a Memorial Day tradition. I'm pretty sure blueberry cobbler is for dessert tonight.

I always knew one was looming in my future...

Last week, I finally got this 20" loom and had my first lesson at Yarnorama.

Behold... my first warp. My left hand selvage took a bit of work to get right, but it will get better. Lord knows my first knitted items were not my finest. Just ask my husband about the first pair of socks I knit for him. They had that perfect 80's slouchiness that I used to wear with my pink Reeboks to aerobics class. He did not fancy them.

This yarn has such an amazing sheen to it. It's amazing to me that the same yarn I used for these socks creates such a remarkably different fabric when woven. For the time being it's leaning against a bench in the studio, think I'll pick up the stand this week.

Burying the lead....

Sunday we drove with friends a few miles down the highway to Carmine for a little treasure hunting. Treasures were indeed found, some tin types, counter cards and a green McCoy planter. DH really wanted to go in a shop that was closed, so he called the owner to come open up. Sure, it was a great shop but I was happy enough with my finds, and quite frankly ready to head home. I was headed for the front porch and about tripped over this...

A Kelsey Excelsior Mercury model 3 x 5 Table Top Letterpress. I am sure I stammered a bit as I walked with the shop owner as he hauled it up to the counter so I could take a better look. It was pretty hard to contain myself... and yep, I know how incredibly geeky that sounds. After a bit of WD-40, she was fully operational. Her rollers need to be redone, but the chase, quoins and ink plate are still intact and seem in good condition. Anyone who knows me well, knows I have wanted one of these forlikeever. Ever since I first walked through the doors of Hatch Show Print about 13 years ago, on a cross country road trip with my sister Jessica, I knew I wanted to print.

and then there's the Baby Elton...

My friend Susanne and I took this workshop this past Saturday, with Stephanie Rubiano. So many ideas have been rolling through my mind since. I will show you the finished house when it's all stitched up.

Seriously, I had vacation time to use up and I manged to spend my time doing just what I wanted. I took a weaving lesson, finally painted the front posts and under the fur-downs in the kitchen, took an amazing workshop with my BFF, planted strawberries, blackberries, and more. I also managed to squeeze in some freelance work. I've been busy indeed, but busy is great when it's doing what you love.

Living Hand to Mouth in Paradise

Yesterday a friend asked me if I had a vacation highlight...

Time with K and P was so great, and I really loved sharing that part of the country with my husband. He'd never been there and was blown away at how spectacular and rugged the redwood coast still is. You'd think that would be the highlight, right?

But as always it's the everyday mundane fly on the wall moments that always amaze me and are imprinted on my mind. I really fell in love with Trinidad, population 311. We were at the Beachcomber Cafe as parents were dropping of their kids at the elementary school across the street. They were all coming in with their reusable togo cups (mason jars that the coffee shop sold for a buck) and filling out their index card, the locals were running tabs at the coffee shop. We took our mugs down to the end of the street by the lighthouse to soak it all in. The best cappuccino of the trip. After returning our mugs and picking up some bagels for our hike, we head to our car parked at the school. All of a sudden, about 40 crows swarmed the parking lot, a woman in a blue minivan rolled down her window and yelled, "I'll feed you in a minute!". She circled the lot with the murder of crows (god I love that) flying behind her down the road as she drove along, tossing out food. It was a sweet slice of life we caught that morning. I know I visited Patrick's Point often when I went to school there, but forgot what living hand to mouth in paradise looked like. It's pretty damn sweet, really.

pic by my husband

Best Little Yarn Crawl in Texas 2010

Tomorrow marks the start of the 4th annual Hill Country Yarn Crawl! There are 11 participatng shops in the Hill County area, from teeny Paige to San Antonio! I'm hopping on the Sunday bus that is meeting Hill Country Weavers in Austin then going to San Antonio, Comfort, Fredericksburg, Boerne and Horsehoe Bay. Need to decide on next sock project for bus ride.

I think I'll visit The Knitting Nest during my lunch tomorrow and of course Yarnorama on Saturday.

If you're on the road to Paige form Austin, or vice versa, be sure to stop in historic downtown Elgin and visit Sustainable Fibers, formally the Texas Fiber Mill at 110 B South Main Street

 btw, logo and passport design by moi

Get Crackin'

No, this isn't my Monday morning battle cry, though it is 8:00 and I am still in my Pj's, I'm talking about eggs. Yesterday morning when weighing my breakfast options, I pulled out the asparagus that I had received in my CSA box. I actually arrived at the farm as KW was still harvesting. I chatted with him as he walked, knife in hand, through a field of grasses, he would bend down every sentence or so and come up with a tender spear of asparagus. When he had harvested a good handful he banded them together an handed them to me. Seriously, I have never seen such tender sweet asparagus spears in my life.

So, for breakfast, what I came up with was a hash brown nest with asparagus, garden fresh tomatoes, scrambled eggs with hollandaise, and english muffins with orange honey butter. I decided to go scrambled instead of poached to use the whites left over from the hollandaise. Those extra whites sure made some fluffy scrambled eggs. And I might add, a wonderful way to watch stage 7 of Le Tour de France.

I used this easy hollandaise recipe.

just a church photo #2

Holy Ghost Revival. Somewhere between Bastrop and McDade, Texas