Spring Fever with Martinis

These pics are from last Sunday, when Mr. F and I spent the afternoon strolling around Newport and had a few martinis at The Red Parrot. All in all, a slightly indulgent, barely warm(cool breeze off the harbor) early spring day. I took these photos, mostly on Spring Street(walking on the sunny side of the street, of course) as we walked back from the Red Parrot.

This centuries old house appeared to be vacant and abandoned....

Masses of purple crocuses blooming in a little square in front of the White Horse Tavern, which at one time was once run by a pirate!--a little history:

Frances Brinley constructed the original building on the site in 1652. In 1673, the lot was sold to William Mayes, and the building was enlarged to become a tavern. The building was also used for large meetings, including use as a Rhode Island General Assembly meeting place, a court house, and a city hall. William Mayes, Sr., obtained a tavern license in 1687 and William Mayes, Jr., a well-known pirate, operated the tavern through the early eighteenth century. The operation was named "The White Horse Tavern" in 1730 by owner Jonathan Nichols.

During the American Revolution, Tories and British troops were quartered there around the time of the British occupation and the Battle of Rhode Island.

After years of neglect as a boarding house, Newport's Van Bueren family donated money to the private Preservation Society of Newport to restore the building in 1952. After the restoration, the building was sold and once again operated as a private tavern and restaurant. As of 2011, it still remains a popular drinking and dining location.

Mr. F's white chocolate and espresso martini.

I had a French Martini, made with Chambord, vanilla vodka(yeah, I had no idea there was such a thing, either), and pineapple juice, and I liked it so much I have since made it at home.

**

*1 1/2 oz vodka

(I used vanilla vodka since that was how they made it at the Red Parrot)

*1/2 oz Chambord Liqueur

*2 oz Pineapple Juice

**

Shake this really well in cocktail shaker with plenty of ice--the pineapple juice gets nice and frothy, making this drink almost creamy.

To end...a Blogthing quiz(haven't done one of these in some time):

You Are a Blue Martini

You may have had a difficult time earlier in life. You are highly sensitive and a little cautious. You are a reserved and careful person, but you don't let that stop you from doing your thing. Old fashioned and conservative, you carry yourself with dignity. You don't embarrass yourself. You are attracted to powerful people who have a good deal of influence. You wouldn't mind some of that rubbing off on you.

What Color Martini Are You?

Swampin'

Pussywillow (Salix discolor)

After dropping R off at here driver's ed. class at 8:00 at the University campus in Kingston this morning, I met my sister for a walk(turned out to be a two hour long one!) through the Great Swamp Management area nearby.

This 3,475-acre property near West Kingston in southern Rhode Island includes 2,600 acres of forested wetlands in the floodplains of the Chickasheen, Usquepaug, and Pawcatuck rivers. Red maple, Atlantic white cedar, red oak, white oak, white pine, and American holly are important tree species. The Great Neck, a higher-elevation drumlin near the center of the WMA, was farmed and pastured before being abandoned in the early to mid-1900s. The Rhode Island Division of Fish and Wildlife manages Great Swamp WMA for wildlife conservation, hunting and fishing, and compatible public recreation. Waterfowl, American woodcock, ruffed grouse, Northern bobwhite, whip-poor-will, osprey, Northern harrier, New England cottontail, Eastern cottontail, beaver, bobcat, river otter, fisher, coyote, red and gray foxes, and white-tailed deer are some of the wild species inhabiting the area.

from http://www.timberdoodle.org/node/74

Swampdog

Lucky Jewel got to come along, and was in all her glory as a true bird dog on the trails and along the shores of the swamp itself, sniffing out waterfowl, deer and who-knows-what-else scents. She also had fun chasing Canada geese into the water . We spotted osprey(fish eagles) overhead, some carrying giant branches to add to their nests. Although, from these photos, not much looks alive and green and growing yet, the trees were full of birds and their birdsong, and we spotted some trees--shadbark and I *think* witch hazel(not entirely sure)in bloom.

This is me sitting on a (cold as) stone "chair" along one of the trails.

Some green showing in a boggy place among the still-bare trees.

Vernal pools, unseen, deeper in the woods were the source of "spring peeper"(Pseudacris crucifer) frog sounds(one of the earliest signs of spring here, and usually loudest--a true chorus--at night). Interestingly, while looking up the correct Latin classification name for the this frog, which all my life I had always only known them as "peepers", I learned that on Martha's Vineyard they are called "pinkletinks". Heh.

Listen to the peepers here.

Typical New England woodland --rocks and stones all over, sometimes with trees growing out of a split rock like this one.

Yes, the landscape is flat.

Jewel, sniffing away, and my sister, Angela.

Day Out With Jewel

As usual, a Saturday morning outing --just the dog and I.
Mr. F said he had a hair appointment in town, and the daughter would have come along with us if I made her, but she was happy to stay home in her pajamas until noon, so I just left it at that.

The night's light snowfall, already melting away by mid-morning as we whizzed north along the road....

Jewel riding shotgun.

"Where are we going...? Wherever it is, I am sure I'll love it!"

I drove Jewel to one of our favorite places--the trails through the woods(full of mostly Atlantic white cedar, oak and birch trees) down to the bay at the Chafee nature preserve, or Rome Point(which, if you have read this blog for some time, you may remember other entries about and photo tours of this place), as most locals call it.

View of the bridge and bay when we got to the end of the trail.

Rose hips...

Almost the end...and back into the warm car.

Snow Shiny Day

Just a few rambling thoughts after a good night's sleep and some wacky dreams(in which my daughter embarrassed me by putting her bare foot instead of her wrist onto a store perfume counter to try out the latest perfume that was in the shape of a Jean Arp-like rubber ducky)and waking up to a sunny day that is coated in a sugar-dusting of snow which must have fallen while I slept and dreamed. I can't wait to get out there with the dog(and maybe my camera?) for a walk.

Looking out of my window right now, I can see the fences coated in the snow, and the bare branches of the lilac tree--it reminds me of lace all over everything. Very pretty, and just the right amount of snow, too. Not enough to bother really with shovelling, but enough to make everything look white, fresh and new. And did I say the sun is shining?

We took the tree and all Christmas decorations down and packed them away last night. I didn't think we were going to do it all.
We had all gone out to dinner at a favorite local (I had citrus and ginger glazed scallops that were divine),
and were back home by 7:00 so I thought before I got too tired(in winter, I am ready for bed most nights by 9:30) I would begin the task of "un-Christmassing" the place. But once I started, Mr. F joined me and we even got the entire tree out the door, needles swept up and the house looking a little sad and empty, as it always appears after taking down the decorations at this time of year.

As I put the tree ornaments away, I got one last chance to marvel over some of our collection--started when I was in my 20's when I would get ornaments each year as gifts, through R's handmade beauties and gifted ornaments Mr. F has brought home from his students. Our folksy tree would disgust Martha Stewart, I am sure, but I love how it looks with all our memories on it. I took a picture of an ornament R made me a few years ago, which cracks me up when I see it! It is made out of clear push pins stuck into a painted glittery Styrofoam ball--sort of looks like a retro 1950's disco ball to me.

So while I felt a little sad to see the place bare of all the decorations last night, it felt like a fresh new start and it really felt like January when I saw the decluttered, clean and empty living room, with the bright sun shining in this morning. I feel almost inspired to start that exercise regimen(a few push-ups and ab crunches) I promise myself each night in bed that I will begin.... tomorrow. ;-)

Rock This Weekend...

...with Ben Folds and the Western Australia Symphony Orchestra.
I am SO happy it is 5:30 and I am home (finally) from work and this live Ben Folds video is my intro to the weekend(even though I have to work tomorrow, but for right now, I am trying to forget about that).

Views from the Hood

Even though I didn't go far yesterday because of my banged up car, I was still able to take my dog for her daily walk through the neighborhood. All six of our feet were in fine working condition.
I had my camera in my pocket this time, so recorded a few sights along the route we took.
Closest to our house, I saw these vine-covered trees. There is a small empty lot next door(which we tell ourselves has to be much too small to ever build a house on since we like this buffer zone that creates a real sense of privacy in an otherwise "crowded-with-houses" neighborhood) that is all overgrown and looks like a miniature jungle.
Last year, A tree service did come and cut down some of the brush and choking vines (after the vines caused some smaller trees to actually topple over and crash down onto our wooden fence and crack a portion of it open), and the remains of these once living thick vines can still be seen.

My lucky number posted twice on a telephone pole at the end of our street.

Ever since I got Jewel(about seven years ago) and have been walking the same old streets with her, I have watched the progression of a certain neighbor's garden over the years. It started out small, but she now has a lush, slightly over-grown cottage garden full of blooms seven months out of the year. I really liked these tall sunflower-type blooms she had growing outside of her fence.

There was even a 10K Ironman race in our nieghborhood, I discovered as I walked with Jewel to the southern end. And this flag waving, hula hooping lady was the turn-around point for the runners. There was no way they could miss her!

My camera can't convey another sweet neighborhood happening, though. On Saturday afternoon, while I was cleaning up the kitchen after putting a spice cake into the oven, I heard singing from...somewhere.

Mr. F said, "Do you hear that man singing?"

And I did and thought it must be coming from R's bedroom down the hallway(she often has her iPod plugged into a speaker in there, blasting her favorite tunes).

And then Mr. F told me this wasn't the first time he had heard "that singing kid with the earphones in his ears", singing rather loudly(and with a pretty decent voice, too), while walking down the street. I had never noticed it before, though.

And, when I looked out the front door, there was a youngish man(19? 20 at the most?), striding along and singing a song. We could hear him long after he passed our house and was out of sight.

Mr. F said "more people should sing out loud like that."

And I completely agreed with him.

Walking Thoughts

Yesterday, since it was a cool day(unlike so many other previous steamy ones these last few months), I decided my Jewel deserved a good long walk on the paths leading down to the bay--to Rome Point. I hadn't taken her there in almost two months because of the weather(and me working and also being away on vacation).

So...here are some thoughts that ran through my head as I walked the gravel path with my dog at my heels(some of the time--usually she is somewhere behind me sniffing something or running ahead of me or darting into the woods after chipmunks):

"Hey! There's a man selling his home-grown cherry tomatoes at the start of the path! What a good idea. Maybe I'll get some when I come back this way at the end of our walk(fingers a few folded up dollar bills in shorts pocket)"

"Why would someone leave that there?? To go to the trouble of actually picking it up, but then leaving the blue bag sitting at the foot of a tree?"(after noticing a bright blue "poop bag" full of dog poop sitting under a large tree alongside the path)

"This man is annoying me. He is walking behind me and talking the entire time on his cell phone...blah...blah...blah... Even a walk in the woods, I have to hear about someone else's business while they yak away into their phone. Can anyone just walk anymore?"

"I love how Jewel knows which paths we are going to take and how I *think* she understood me when I said we couldn't go down that path(the dark woodsy one full of rabbit and deer smells)until after we got down to the water and came back this way. As soon as we passed by that way again, she gives me this look, hesitating at the beginning of the path as if waiting for my permission to enter and as soon as I said, "go ahead, Jewel" she turned into it."

"My knees are feeling a little achey as I walk these uneven paths. A sign of getting older?"

"The sound of cicadas in the trees is so August."

"I love how happy my dog is here as she sniffs and runs and meets other dogs along the path."

"Most everyone I meet along this walk thinks my dog is a puppy! She isn't bumbly with big puppy paws, but quick and nimble with her teeny, tiny ballet dancer's feet. How can they think she is a puppy? Don't they notice all the white hairs on her muzzle?"

This is what I heard the entire walk, directed at Jewel, from groups of people I passed:

A puppy!

Awww...so sweet.

Hey there, Puppy!

Look at the little puppy...

Six months? ("Er, no--she's seven years old.")

Mommy, can I pet the puppy?

"Seeing the young families--father, mother and one or two young children walking hand in hand on their way down to the water--makes me happy. Makes me remember when we did this with R. Now, I rarely can get her to want to come for walk or hike with me anymore. At least I have my "other" girl--Jewel--to go on walks with me."

I did get those homegrown tomatoes and brought them home with me, by the way.

Ahhh...summer...

image courtesy Country Living

I have been working a little more than usual lately and that has turned me into a bit of a cranky beast, so that is why I stayed away from here. I would have kvetched too much about the customers.

"why does everyone want things framed in a rush for weekend company coming when it's summer and most likely everyone is outdoors anyway?

And why do I have to hear 'certain' people complain about the price of custom framing when they are framing something for their SUMMER home and on their cell phone with their cleaning lady?"

Grrr....see what I mean?

Having a few glorious(hot and hotter!) days off in a row finally because of the 4th of July holiday(won't have to go in to work until the 7th of July)

has changed my whole attitude and I am loving the summer again.

This town is a little nuts and overrun with extra people right now. The beaches are a big draw and with the the holiday weekend and hot temps, an even bigger draw. Trying to navigate my way through the beach and Pier area and simply trying to go into town to shop is pretty frustrating.

Yesterday, I saw cars with licence plates from

Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut(the big three around here),

as well as Vermont,

Ontario,

Quebec,

Illinois

and Wisconsin.

Ever since certain fireworks were made legal in this state (a few months ago), it seems everyone is letting off firecrackers(this all started Thursday night in my neighborhood). Luckily, both my cat and dog are not too afraid of the noise.

Last night was a perfect summer night, with clear skies full of stars, and a little bat and firefly action to compete with the fireworks display over the river(a few people do this in our neighborhood every year the night before the 4th).

We'll be leaving the house at around 4:00 this afternoon for a annual cook-out/pool party at a friend's house. They are right next door to a public park where this is a huge fireworks display every year(a pretty impressive one for a small town), so we just sit out on the front yard to watch the show.

I just finished making a pitcher of white Sangria, and making some stuffed pepperoncini peppers(I made these last year and they were scarfed down within fifteen minutes)

Of course, I have to use the good and real Greek kind that are spicy enough, like the Sclafani brand.
Stuffed Pepperoncini

Ingredients:
6 slices bacon, cut into small pieces
1/3 cup minced shallots
1 red bell pepper, minced
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese,
softened
1 tablespoon milk
32 ounces pepperoncini
Directions:
1.
In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until bacon is browned. Move bacon to paper towels. Keep bacon drippings.
2.
In drippings, cook shallots and red pepper over medium heat until vegetables are tender. Cook about 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and let cool for 20 minutes.
3.
In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and milk with an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth. Stir bacon and shallot into the mixture.
4.
Spoon cream cheese mixture into a heavy weight plastic bag. Cut a small hole in one corner to squeeze the filling from. With small knife, cut a slit lengthwise into each pepper. Do not cut the whole way through the pepper. By squeezing the bag, pipe cream cheese mixture into peppers. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, up to one day.