Tag: rambles

A Day in a Small Town

Posted on by Farmers Blogger

Hi friends!

I wanna chat some more about my fun Labor Day weekend, so please have some patience with me. This post will be more about the fun things we did around the local area. Maybe it’ll inspire you to hunt down cool experiences in your neighborhoods too!

So, the big thing we did: Fruit picking! We specifically we picked peaches, but we also came home with pluots, tomatoes, jams, grapes and some assorted berries! Plus, apple chips! We had so much fun picking from the trees, and our intention had been to just pick enough to eat and turn into a cobbler the next day (spoiler alert, we went overboard).

Honestly, I highly advise finding a “U-Pick” orchard and/or farm near you, especially if you have kids, because it’s such a fun, wholesome experience, it can be socially distanced, it can be educational, and then you get to eat the evidence! 110% recommend, I’ve been to the fruit stand a bunch before, but had never indulged in picking my own fruit! I wanna plant all sorts of fruit trees now! Somebody block the plant-start sites from the router please, I have no self-control!

We also stopped by so many of the little shops around my town and snuck into our closer mid-sized city for a little Bargain Center hunting too! I found a couple nostalgic games, had a ton fun hunting through everything, and made a friend of the cashier. I love second-hand stores in general, but I highly advise stopping by them when on vacation, because the “junk” is always different than the treasures you can find at home. We were briefly worried my friends finds wouldn’t fit in their carry-ons.

I think I’ve mentioned before that there was a magical little bookstore in town with a shop owner that knew every item in stock and shelves and piles so tightly packed you had to shimmy between them? I think I probably also mentioned that this last year he, unfortunately, passed away, and we all thought that was the end of that magic little store. BUT! Good news prevails! As we were having lunch at the candy shoppe (they sell… real food… there as well, don’t worry, we ate a lot of candy, but we also had substance), we noticed the open sign on the door, and it turns out his friend had taken up the reins! I was so happy! She hasn’t learned the stock yet, and the shelves meet safety codes now, but she has for sure added her own magic with some happy upbeat tunes playing and three cats who alternate between posing in their various cat trees for pets and hopping along the tops of the shelves judging your book choices. It’s a different cozy, but very effective. And we all know I am a big fan of cozy reading nooks. The new layout allowed for a couple little nooks that I will definitely be trying out in the near future.

I also bought two books, because I have legitimately no self-control. One was a Nancy Drew flashlight cover, because I have been slowly collecting antique Nancy Drew books since the plucky detective radically changed my life in the second grade (that’s a topic for another day, remind me), and one was a total impulse, Jimmy Buffett’s “Where is Joe Merchant?”, mostly because I didn’t know he wrote a book. Guys, I don’t even know. I wanna suggest this book, because I enjoyed it, but it’s so unlike anything I’ve read that I don’t know if anyone would love it like I did.

 It’s a slightly older book, and definitely a product of its time, that is, be prepared for some political incorrectness, outright cringe moments, and if you are about my age, you’ll have to google at least two political conflicts that I don’t remember being covered in GenEd History. You should also be prepared for the craziness of a 90s action film mixed with a 60s acid trip (or at least what I would guess it’s like, since I am entirely referencing popular media for that opinion). It’s a ride. I’m a casual parrothead, and even Fruitcakes didn’t prepare me for the ride that is this book. Although some of the characters make appearances in both which was delightful.

After a full day of thrift hunting, we stayed in and chilled on Sunday, which allowed us to make some cobbler! It was so fun being in the kitchen with my friends again, we used to have monthly dinner and game nights where we’d cook and play boardgames, and we sorta got to re-create that. So much fun! We ate so much candy and cobbler and had a huge Sunday lunch and ended up crashed on the couches in the den by 7 pm, playing video games together while fighting off food comas. I’ll try to find the original cobbler recipe I used, although I’ll admit, it’s more of a guideline now because cobbler always has its own mind and plans. (Editing Amanda’s Note: Found it! https://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/easy-peach-cobbler)

(Side note here to say, remember how I said we went way overboard picking peaches? I just made three more cobblers and after I finish writing this up and they have cooled, I’ll be taking off to deliver those to family members who need surprise cobbler. Always gotta have a plan B for leftovers haha)

  • The dry and the wet
  • Peaches, sugar, and some lemon juice
  • Making a mess chopping peaches
  • Cobbler!
Angles are awkward so that those who didn’t want to be pictured aren’t 🙂

Overall, it was a jam-packed, super fun, crazy weekend and I started missing my friends before the plane even left. But that just sounds like a good excuse to go visit them and have them come back here! I’m so blessed to live in a place where I can have a little guest space, and there’s fun experiences to be had.

I better head out on my cobbler-based journeys now, but I hope you are all having a lovely day!

Until we chat again my friends!

A Day In Boy-See

Posted on by Farmers Blogger

Hi friends!

I had the best Labor Day weekend with my visiting friends! So much fun, that the whole first day I forgot to take any pictures! So, I’ll trade you, on this post, some photos for some links and I’ll have some cute photos for next time.

We played tourist both in Boise and a little closer to home and it really made me appreciate where I live again. I was also incredibly grateful that it was not too hot and not smoky for their whole visit! Not exactly something I can say for today, but that’s why we are hiding inside writing a blog post. So, ya know, lemons, lemonade, etc., etc., etc.

We went to a few little shops around Boise that I had never been to. I had to google the names of all of them to share, but one was the “VIPgamestore” (https://www.vipgamestore.com/ )  and the other two were stumble-upons we found around Capitol  Blvd, on 8th street.  VIPGamestore reminded me very much of the old comic book store I used to frequent when I lived in the Puget Sound, just a group of guys making a business out of what they love. They definitely weren’t hurting for customers, and while I didn’t find anything to bring home, that’s only because I wasn’t really looking for anything in particular. I am convinced however, that if I were looking for something obscure, these guys could probably point me in the right direction. If there’s a gamer in your family, especially a retro gamer, I’d say to definitely check it out.

I loved walking through the first stumble-upon, a used bookstore called “Rediscovered Books”, and we found a super cute little boardgame store too (Fantastic Games, like two doors down from the bookstore)! The bookstore (https://www.rdbooks.org/) made me want to sit for hours and scan through everything, especially the cookbooks, and I almost talked myself into buying a super cool horse puzzle, but calmer heads and a bank account that just had to make some house repairs quickly talked me out of it. My sweet friend gifted me Uno Flip from the boardgame store (https://www.fantasticgames.com/ ), in part so we could play over the weekend. I highly suggest it. My family has always been an Uno family, we have the original, the attack version, the spin version, the amped up semi-unplayable attack version (my neighbor put a little external motor on it and now it’s a public danger), and now flip. I can say attack and flip are now tied for favorite version.

Both the little stores on 8th were near the restaurant we stopped at; a place called Tupelo Honey (https://tupelohoneycafe.com/ ). I’ll be honest, it smelled delicious, wafting from the second story balcony, and I think we were all intrigued, but I made some incorrect snap judgements based on the décor. I absolutely assumed the food would be mediocre based on the very trendy styling and buzzwords the restaurant sported and I have never been so squarely put in my place by a restaurant. It was delicious! Fried chicken is never my most favorite thing ever (I know, I can’t believe it either) but I had their Fried Chicken over biscuits and gravy.  I really enjoyed their friend chicken (I had the honey glaze) but absolutely dream about the biscuits and milk gravy. Yours truly will be trying to figure out a make at home option for those very soon.

After a little research, we learned that Tupelo Honey is not a Boise exclusive, however, since it doesn’t exist in their native Seattle, it will be a Boise staple when my friends come to visit for sure.

Our next stop was a cheeky little record shop called the Record Exchange (https://www.therecordexchange.com/ ), which was definitely not my personal vibe, but a very cool one, nonetheless. Much more grunge, hippie, devil-may-care than I’ve ever been, but definitely worth saying we’d seen it. I tried to find some Sinatra records for Christopher, but unfortunately it was busy enough that I wasn’t keen on hunching over boxes and boxes of vinyl. Next time maybe.

Final two stops in Boise included Freak Alley and a little place called JD’s Bodega which promised a “New York” experience. Freak Alley (https://northend.org/freak-alley/ ), for those who haven’t seen the pictures or read the articles, is a street artists exhibit, but also so much more. Under normal circumstances, every few years someone or some people will add, change, or re-imagine parts of the alley with large murals, and it’s given Boise a bit of a reputation as a place where local artists can come and paint whatever they wish in a friendly, art-filled, accepting community. It’s really fascinating to see the range of art and the statements each artist is trying to make. From the silly to the overly serious, you can really see a wide variety of stances in Freak Alley, and it was well worth the trek. It’s in the middle of town, but I admit we walked by it about five times before realizing we had to duck between two pubs. The bodega (https://www.jdsbodega.com/ ) was neat, I don’t think I’ve ever been in a little convenience store that also had basic groceries. I don’t know if my friends cared as much as I did, but I’m pleased to say I have a small idea now of what the New Yorkers in all my novels are going on about now.

Since I-84 was a disaster zone on my way to the airport, we opted to take a historic route home, and while we didn’t give ourselves enough time to stop this trip, we made plans to visit the ghost town and historic drag strip we saw next time they come to visit. There’s so much to explore in southern Idaho.

Well, I’ve rambled on for long enough, I guess our day closer to home will have to wait for the next post. We had just as much fun the second day as the first, so stay tuned for that, next time with a few photos even!

Until we chat again, my Friends!

Farm Visits

Posted on by Farmers Blogger

Hello friends!

I’ve been thinking a lot about visiting farms. Mostly because I have some guests coming soon, and lots of friends and family who are asking about visiting next summer, but also because my dad came home after a long back porch chat with my great uncle and said, “we need to do that more often, it reminds me of when we used to come visit”.

Every summer during my school years we would spend a few weeks out helping my uncle on the family farm. I loved it so much! It was always warmer than the coast, I would get to play in the dirt all day long, and I loved the house and staying on the farm.

See those two upper windows on the front? That was my room. I loved it. This house is well known in the area for it’s beauty. I’m sure you can see why I loved it.

For most of my growing up, my dad talked longingly about returning to the valley to be a farmer. Don’t get me wrong, he had a strong sense of duty to his community and was a proud LEO, but he always wanted to return to his family roots. My mom and dad moved here my senior year of college. I didn’t realize I would be moving in about 6 months later.

I always knew I wanted to live here as well, I love being outside, playing in the dirt, and the possibility of farm animals. I caught the horse bug on my uncle’s ranch. Little twelve-year-old Amanda fell in love with a BLM mustang that my uncle was housing for a friend of his. I spent hours upon hours out with this horse, I was the first to get pats, and of course, I cried when we had to leave, and I haven’t been away from horses for more than a six month stretch since then. And that’s honestly only happened once or twice.

I called him Sagebrush, for what it’s worth, and my little cousin (who is not so little anymore) called him toothbrush. The horse that started it all. (“Editing Amanda” butting in to say that if I ever find the photos of Sagebrush, I will share, but my archives got put “somewhere safe” and for the life of me I cannot find them)

My uncle also loved to tell ghost stories. I admittedly don’t believe in ghosts, but I definitely think it’s close-minded to assume we know all about our universe, so who am I to say conclusively? I will say, while most of his stories rang of silliness, there were a couple stories where I saw the… weirdness… myself, and I hold those warm nights on the back porch being completely sketched out as very dear memories.

Unsurprisingly, my love of photography (which has been poorly represented on this blog thus far, but I do hope to remedy that) comes from summers wandering around with a camera, usually dragging my little brother or cousins around with me

One such story started when I pointed out a fire down by the river (the house sits on some bluffs above the river, so we could see the shore and stand of trees). I was concerned, as most 9- or 10-year-olds would be, about the farm burning, but my uncle was absolutely not concerned. He told me that happens sometimes, a young man was killed on the banks in the wild days, and that’s his fire. The second time I saw it I made my dad walk down in the dark with me, I don’t have an explanation. I really doubt a ghost needs a fire to stay warm, and I highly doubt… ghost… in general, but that experience lives in my mind, and pops up any time I see a weird light on our farm or out in the valley at night. Although, my uncle also teases that my great-great-grandmother lives in the attic every time the wind blows the doors shut, so maybe take his stories with some skepticism. And also, don’t swear and be sure to mind your manners in the attic… just in case.

I also had my first confrontation with coyotes on that farm. Another creepy nighttime experience to ballast all the lovely farmer’s market days and hay climbing adventures. I walked out to get some water from the garage fridge (Anyone else’s family have garage fridges? For extra water, soda, popsicles, and farm things? Just us? Hmmm) and heard lots of scurrying from the large doors (which are always open short of major storm or snow), but I didn’t think much of it because Simba the Cat and Freckles the Dog liked to sleep on the cold concrete floor at that time. Nothing to worry about, I got my water and turned to see Simba and Freckles staring at me from their respective spots under the workbench. So, what had run out into the yard? I shined my flashlight out (phone flashlight, so not the most powerful) and saw the telltale red eyes shining from the nearby stand of trees.

And then something growled a little closer.

And I made tracks for the house door.

Best part of this tale? I told my aunt what happened, and she sagely said, “The wild animals own the valley at night, stay inside unless you have a companion”, like she just had that quote ready to go. Guess what advice I live by now? I almost never go out after dark alone now. Lessons were learned. Especially now that my little plot of land is smack in the middle of open range and a pretty well-travelled game trail.

I love that house and the land it sits on, and I absolutely adore my great aunt and uncle. I need to take some time this week to stop by and see them again. Marking my calendar right now!

Until we chat again my friends!

August 20th is Fascinating

Posted on by Farmers Blogger

Hello friends!

It’s fall, y’all!

Okay, it’s not, and I’m sorry, but now it’s out of my system. But I’m fully bought in on flannel, coffee, pumpkins, baked goods, and sitting down to write the next great American novel (because that’s what you do all autumn long yes? Along with crocheting cute things and cuddling everything with any body heat at all?). I’m preparing, I’ll be ready for the full autumn experience.

Realistically, it is not quite yet fall, and realistically, I’m very okay with a longer slope into fall that allows me to hold on to my summer times just a little longer, but August 20th has hit, and despite the fact that it catches me off guard every year, I’ve learned that’s the cutoff day.

Do I sound crazy? Let me explain.

When you live in rural areas, you learn very quickly to put little stock in your tv forecast and much stock in your local farmer’s feelings on the subject. Most TV forecasters are lovely humans who are primarily focused on the areas in which their prime viewership lives, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, in fact, it makes sense to share information about where it will do the most good, but it doesn’t always help us that live way out in the boonies. So, often our weather is a little different than they suggest on the tv.

On the other hand, the farmers, ranchers, and random old gentlemen who make a habit of coming into town to have coffee and reminisce? They have it on lock. They can tell you what the forecast will bring, if it needs prepping for, and how much snow you should plan to shovel just by the look of that one tree on the south side of their farm or the way the crickets chortled that morning. One guy will say the arthritis in his knee says rain, and the other will tell you the cattle talk of storms rolling in.

“Mooooom, it’s too early to wooooork, and it’s coooooold! Moooooom, you’re the woooooorst!! ….Can I have cookies and a brush though? I’m awful cute and definitely deserve it” – Nellie, anytime I try to work them before 8 am lately

My family has its own legends on how to tell the weather, there’s a specific mountain peak I wait to clear before I plant my garden, and I learned to listen to the wind’s whistled tone for potential storms coming, as well as watching how the animals act to see if it’ll be a dry or wet storm. When the birds’ nest in, you should too, and if you walk out and the air is just all sorts of wrong, it’s time to secure everything, high wind is on its way. But the biggest and by far the most reliable legend, says that the weather fundamentally changes on August 20th each year, at least here in the valley, and no matter how long the summer lasts, after that day the nights really start getting longer and colder in earnest, the plants make plans to rest, and your sunny warm days are numbered. It’s been right on time every year thus far, and I don’t think it’ll change any time soon.

Ro wants you to know that she was totally justified in trying to steal cookies through the fence, and alsoI’m very mean for not moving the scary tarp that came undone in the wind storm again.

The valley is that orange soft fall wrapped up in warm nostalgia and slightly burned coffee. Absolutely full of fresh harvests, warm drinks, farmer’s markets and hayrides. Fall festivals and bazaars and anything else you can think of. I am very excited about the prospect of peach cobbler. I make it homemade, and not many each year because it’s a lot of work to peel the peaches, but it is my uncle’s favorite thing. Last year I prepped all my peaches, got everything put together, it smelled so good, everything was perfect…… and then I dropped it pulling it from the oven and spilled the whole unset thing on the bottom of the oven. I cried, my house stunk like burning peaches, and I didn’t try again. Luckily the dish itself survived to bake another day. So, this year, everyone is very excited for my peach cobbler since it’s two years waiting, and I’ve had several people offer to put it in and take it out of the oven for me, so I’m all covered there.

I’ve also got several requests for pumpkin bread. That isn’t a specifically fall recipe, but it is a much more common occurrence in the fall. The flavors just make sense during the cooling, blustery months. It’s my mom’s old recipe, I think she probably got it from my grandma, but I am honestly not certain. It’s super easy, I made the mistake of teaching my younger brother to make it and every once in a great while, I come home to a disaster kitchen and loaves upon loaves of bread. At least he’s good at it so it’s tasty.

My brother has a much appreciated habit of sending me animal photos when he knows I’m in a scary or stressful meeting. This was a rare Joe-Scooby cuddle, when they share a bed, you know it’s getting chilly. Photo Credits to Christopher

Well, I’ve thoroughly made myself hungry, so I think I’ll wrap it here. Maybe when I get around to some baking, I’ll also get around to some recipe sharing, and some photos. Life should be slowing down, and I should be out of the sling and more independent again soon, which will hopefully mean taking my actual DSLR out and about again. Such a pleasant thought.

Until we chat again, my friends!