Saturday

[brightbluegirl]

Yesterday was delightful. We didn't walk the sea wall, but what we did do filled up our day wonderfully - and kept us quite content.

We went to yoga as planned, and then home to say goodbye to smokey_the_cat who is, I believe, in Seattle now, then on to Portland, then San Francisco, then Chicago, then Guelph, then home. I hope he has a blast.

Afterwards, we went to the Farmer's Market. I LOVED this trip to the Farmer's Market. We've finally figured out who to avoid, and who our favourites are. Notably, we have 2 favourites, the first is an extremely hippy bunch at Stein Mountain Farms, who have good prices, all organic fare, AND stevia sweetened vegan treats like cookies and muffins (we tried their oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and their gingersnap cookes, and I was THRILLED with them - it's the first time I've had stevia sweetened stuff without the aftertaste - I think I haven't been getting stuff using the best stevia (?)). The second is an eco-farm, who only ever have a few of everything, and good prices. I love that they only farm what the land can handle. LOVE IT.

So we walked away with a TON of fruit and veggies, and feeling like we supported local farmers, AND didn't spend more money than we could afford.

We ALSO bought 4 artichokes. Andrew had them once, when he was little, but I never had. We thought they'd be fun to try.

Anyway, we got home, I made carrot/beet coleslaw and cornbread, and he talked to his family for a while, we ate lunch, and although we were then SUPPOSED to go finish the grocery shopping (tofu and whatnot), we were both tired, so instead

we

napped

for

2

hours!!!


It was lovely! so deep and refreshing!

Then the groceries, and a light dinner of cheap-but-good veggie sushi. We rented a couple of movies, too.

We rested when we got home, and then cooked up the artichokes, and ate them while watching "House of Flying Daggers".

I LOVED THE ARTICHOKES. YUM. FUCKING YUM. OH WOW.

I boiled them with a bit of lemon juice, rosemary, and thyme, and made a dip out of boiled potato and garlic, vegan mayo, cayenne, and a touch of vegan sour cream, and they were just...

Ohhhhh wow.

The smell of the artichokes alone was like the best cedar fire you've ever smelled. The taste was heavenly!

And it was so much fun to peel them and peel them and peel them and then get to the heart. Much fun. A real process.

Not good for folks with hungry kids, I'm thinking, but for us, it was wonderful.

And the movie, of course, was beautiful (but sometimes, I actually WANT a happy ending, you know?).

And then, bed. And sleep.

I noticed that folks don't comment much on my longer entries. Are they boring? Do you skim? It's ok, I'm just curious...

Comments

[romp.livejournal.com]

deeply jealous
;)

well, I *am* jealous of your day but right on

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

It was pretty awesome. :D I don't like making others feel jealous though!

[dextra.livejournal.com]

my family loooooooooves artichokes.
usually they're the preferred side-dish of lobster, with the accompanying vats o garlic butter, though.

glad to hear things are well!

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

oooh I bet that'd be great!

Your family has a really great history of not rushing meals, too. Mostly, I thought it may not work because Andrew's mom said they didn't like doing it because it was so much work and took so long. 3 boys though, might that be the difference? Or just family eating styles... hmmmm

[iswari.livejournal.com]

It often seems like the short, fluffier entries get more comments than longer, thoughtful ones...

Anyway...yay, artichokes! I love them. =)

Also, I wonder what brand of stevia that was, because I've NEVER had it without that nasty aftertaste.

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

Me either. Next week I'm going to ask them - and you can bet I'll let you know!

It *was* organic stevia, I wonder if that makes a difference?

[zaftigvegan.livejournal.com]

zzzzzzzz
*snik* huh? what? sorry, nodded off there. ;)

don't you go gettin' all "comment-angsty"; that's my realm!

for me, commenting happens when i'm feeling like i've got something to say or i get the feeling you need to hear something. it's got nothing to do with the length of your entries.

glad you had a good day yesterday - everyone needs to recharge now and then. now go comment on my camping pictures! geez!

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

heh. smart ass.

Actually, they were taking so long to download at home, I was waiting until I got here to take a look...

[zaftigvegan.livejournal.com]

oh, and p.s. - the kids LOVE artichokes (anything fingerfoody and dippy is good in their books, seriously...)

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

Well, that is too cool. Mostly, it was that Andrew's mom said they never did the artichokes again because they thought it was too long. I wonder if it was just that it was their family? Their style of eating, maybe?

[mermaid23.livejournal.com]

I love artichokes, but r_lex hates them so we never cook with them :( I am jealous of your artichoke goodness!

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

Well, I'll tell you what, you can come over sometime and we'll have a girl night... with artichokes!

[mermaid23.livejournal.com]

Yay :D

[ambeaux.livejournal.com]

OMG on artichokes! I love, love, love them--how did you get along without them for so long??

On the other hand, how did the first person who ate them look at that plant and go 'huh, that would be good with a dipping sauce!'??

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

Well, I've had artichoke hearts before... just never a fresh artichoke. SO GOOD. I will never ever go back.

We got 2 kinds. One was a fleshier type, we liked those ones better - primarily, I found, they had more edible parts and less tough parts. I don't remember the name, though.

[sistore.livejournal.com]

I love farmer's markets! (which reminds me...I meant to get a watermelon while I was out..doh!)

I enjoy reading all your entries. This one simply makes me smile, knowing you had such a great day. :)

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

Well, you're pretty busy right now, what with Bryce and all, so I don't expect you to comment as much!!!

mmmmm watermelon. It's like candy, I swear!

[knemesis.livejournal.com]

I wish that i loved artichokes. I love the idea of them, and the process of cooking them, but unfortunately i just don't like the taste very much (this is common with green veggies and leaves for me though, they all have an underlying flavour that my taste buds just don't like :( ). I'm always jealous when one of the girls at work brings in artichokes for lunch!

As for commenting? I always read. I always feel like i have nothing to say. I will often find myself beginning a comment, but in the end i just feel foolish about it, so end up closing the browser window and not saying anything. I do read though. I love how you express yourself :)

[zaftigvegan.livejournal.com]

if that's you in your icon, your hair is cool.

[knemesis.livejournal.com]

It is me, and thank you very much!

I was actually looking at my icon today and noticing how much my hair has faded and how long my roots have gotten since i first had it done. Time for a touchup this week if i can find the time between clients, i think :)

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

that sucks about green and leafy... do you like fruit, though?

I always like seeing comments from you, they make me feel special. :D I haven't noticed a foolish one yet! Mind you, I often don't comment on yours because I don't know what to say, so I think we're even. :P

[knemesis.livejournal.com]

I don't mind green fruit at all. Green bell peppers are actually one of my very favourite things, and i'm prefectly fine with cucumbers. It just seems to be veggies and leafy things. Kale is another of those green things i wish i loved because it's so good for you, and the curls of the outer leaves are adorable. Food is nothing if not pleasant looking, i think ;)

I don't really mind people not commenting on my entries. I think i write one of those types of journals that aren't really meant for comments, although people certainly do comment on the strangest things. It's like you said though: never really the long entries, no matter what they're saying.

[loesaurus.livejournal.com]

Yummie artichoke goodness!

I always read your entries - although I am not always in a position to comment. :D

:P

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

why did that make me think of your ass??

Re: :P

[loesaurus.livejournal.com]

Hmmm. I dunno. But then, you've really been on my ass's mind alot lately....

XP

[estrojenn.livejournal.com]

liquid stevia is best for baking...recipes always suggest the powdered stuff but that seems to be what leaves a bad aftertaste. the liquid stuff we buy tastes exactly like sugar!

and your post is making me want to have a 2 hour nap...

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you got some extra nap-time in. It's always wonderful. I tried to nap a little today, but it didn't work. Bleh.

I am definitely going to try liquid stevia, then. That would rock.

[estrojenn.livejournal.com]

the stuff we buy is herbal select...it's really good. we use it in everything. make sure you add it a drop at a time to your tea etc. though until you know how much you like...it's crazy concentrated.

[scribbles-hb.livejournal.com]

aww this entry makes me miss my weekend trips to local markets with mr. aaron.

(and yes - read every entry you make through and through!)

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

awww. :(

[scribbles-hb.livejournal.com]

it's okay! they're happy memories! i like thinking about them :)

[rennmaus.livejournal.com]

I comment most of the time!!! :-))
Hey I often cook artichokes: my dip is yoghurt with mustard, tomato paste, salt, pepper and some pepper flakes. It's also yummy!
I also use lemon juice and thyme for cooking - sometimes I also peppercorns.
Your Saturday sounds perfect!!!!
We also picked our apples at an orchard on Saturday. I will eat one right after making this comment!!!
Hey and I also often use Stevia. I got mine from Switzerland since it's forbidden in Germany !?!?!? But I also think that mine gives a strange aftertaste...

[freakykitten.livejournal.com]

oooh your dip sounds lovely! I'll have to try it!

I am in love with artichokes now, and they're so easy! Very healthy.

[malaka.livejournal.com]

I don't think everyday life is boring, so I love reading your journal, even the long entries! hehe

[pennycuts.livejournal.com]

I read all your entries, sometimes i just ponder on them , wanting to comment later .

Longer entries are normally filled with more dept and tought, shorter entries normally just have daily stuff.. i like them all:)

I have been wanting to try artichokes, i'm just scared!

One of my most favorite new things, is napping with Kev.