[local eating] Fish (12 and final)

Officially, the alternating week people were supposed to get whole fish, according to their email (hake), but I'd checked back over the weeks, and according to my count, I was due fillets. I emailed, and was given fillets (pollock). Yay!

I finally used the Goan fish curry spice mix, adding that to olive oil and pink grapefruit juice (instead of lemon, since I had enough grapefruit left still (from the spring share)). I cut the fish into chunks, and let it marinate overnight before cooking it at 450 F for 11 minutes (a bit less because the pieces were smaller). Interestingly, the texture is different, not as hard flakes. Kind of mushier, in a pleasant way. I'm not sure how much of that is the acid effect of the grapefruit juice, but it does make me want to try ceviche sometime. The spiciness is nicely balanced, too. The spice mix was spendy, but at least it was good.

Oh, and while the next share starts up in a couple of weeks, I didn't sign up, since I'd be away too many weeks. However, they've said they're likely to allow people to join pro-rated partway through, so I may do that in September. Time enough to think of that later, however.

[local eating] CSA week 8

• a head of romaine lettuce
  
• a bunch of collards
  
• a bunch of scallions
  
• a pound and a half of zucchini
  
• a pound of cucumbers
  
• a pound of green beans
  
• a bunch of thyme
  
• three green peppers
  
• three tomatoes
  
• a pound of yellow carrots

Misc.

Best bit of the morning commute: a small boy (a year and a half, maybe?) sitting up attentively to catch the first glimpse of the Charles as the train crossed the river, excitedly announcing "river!" And then "sailboats!" Totally cute, his enthusiasm.

Best job title, pretty much ever: Director of Smiles.

I saw the florist loading a bouquet of black balloons into his delivery minivan. First thoughts: goth wedding, or circus funeral.

Cars things are Not Cheap. *sigh* (Neither are roofs, or repointing, or bathrooms, for that matter. None of them are very optional, either.)

I have deferred some of the apricot inundation, by halving and freezing a lot of them, instead of many batches of canning in the heat. And the tree is winding down production; I think I'll be picking the last of them this week.

Other trees this week: this morning one of the trees across the street was taken down by the city, for no obvious reason I could figure out. I hope they'll replace it soon, though the shade won't be back for years, since they always put in saplings. And a couple of days ago a huge branch fell off one of the neighbor's trees, luckily landing on no one, nor on the house. It was a huge crash on impact, that I felt as well as heard.

I've been lacking inspiration (or yarn) for hats (though I do want to make something to put on my top hat to be like the cards in Under London (or whatever that game is called), with eyes and teeth, and a couple of people have talked to me about making them hats), so I've been filling in crochet time doing little hyperbolic doodles, likely as playa gifts. It's productive, but doesn't feel creative. I hope I get some ideas (and yarn) soon.

Packing for two events simultaneously is challenging. I hope I'm going to make it. Or at least, I hope that whatever I forget I can compensate for.

Links (also extremely misc.)

• downloadable recordings from this January's JOFA conference
  
• at some point, I want to visit the Cotton-Arbo Retum, in Winchester
  
• a woman urging vegetarianism, by wearing a suit of lettuce, as well as her regular hijab
  
• a fascinating history of mince pie, the American pie before apple pie
  
• steampunk Lady Gaga
  
• a list of edible flowers and how to use them, also a recipe for clover and wild strawberry jelly (uses pectin)
  
• some interesting wood carving (warning: sound)
  
• what sleep talkin' man said recently in his sleep
  
• 2010 map of Black Rock City (interactive version) (so far, my favorite camp name is Bacon Without Borders)