Company Comes To The North Rim

Because we live in such a remote area, and have such a small community, whenever someone has company, we ALL have company.  It's not that we are being nosey and and hogging up each other's friends, it's just that we are all starved for news of the outside world. Or, it could be that any occasion is a reason for a party. Whatever. 

Lenny, Kenny, Sandy, Dennis, Walt

So, a last week our neighbor and co-worker, Dennis, came over and asked if he could borrow my dutch oven so he could make some stew for his visitors who were coming the next day.  I gladly loaned it to him because I sort of knew I would be eating that stew, too.  The next day, I was working at the entrance station, when the guys came in. Even though I had never met them, when they showed me their pass and ID, and I saw that they were from Kentucky, I knew they were the guys coming to visit Dennis. Sure enough, they were. I gave them detailed directions to where their friend lived.  

FabGrandpa and Zach

When I got home from work that night, FabGrandpa wasn't here, but I knew exactly where to find him. I went over to Dennis's place, and found him eating the pork and chile stew. When I came in, I was still in uniform and the guys were all, "You gave us great directions" and "How did you know we were the right people?" and someone handed me a bowl of stew. Yum.

 

Me and Kenny

The next night there was a party at Dennis's place. We had a campfire in the barbecue grate. It was loads of fun. Even though we hadn't met until the night before, it was like we had all known each other forever. 

 

Lenny, me, and FabGrandpa

 

Zach, FabGrandpa, and Walt

 

Kenny tending to the fire. 

Dennis's company left the following Monday. Today, Dennis came over with a bunch of bananas. He said one of his visitors left them at his place. So, I thought, when life hands you bananas, make banana pudding!

Trying To Catch Up...

I don't which is worse in the life of a blogger---having so little going on that it is a stretch to find something interesting to write about, or having so much going on that it is difficult to find the time to write.  This is the time of year here at the North Rim where we all start thinking about having to leave, and that brings about a flurry of parties and get-togethers. We are all trying to spend as much time as possible with our friends before the end of the season.

Last year, FabGrandpa and I didn't get to know many of our co-workers and neighbors that well. It was sort of like, we were newcomers here, and people were just used to seasonals coming for one season and then never seeing them again. When we came back in the spring, though, we had lots of people smiling, hugging us, welcoming us back. Although the community here is small, we have  lots of friends this year, and have spent many hours of our time off sitting around campfires, having a few beers, laughing, talking, dreaming with those folks. 

I have so much to tell, and so little time to get it written up. I have to finish telling you about Becky's visit. And then, I have to tell you about our neighbor's company. Yeah, when one of us have company, we ALL have company.  I have loads of pictures to share, and news of a wedding and a new baby in our family to tell you a about. And then there was my uninvited, unwanted company this week:

 

(that is the kidney stone, ugh!)

The enemy only stayed around for a day and a half, but that was way too long! I was so glad to finally see his ugly face and send him on his way. And I hope he never, ever shows up again. Next time I will be prepared, though, as I still have most of that RX of percocet left, and will start on as soon as I know it is coming. 

I am having a dinner party tonight. I'll be making my prize winning gluten free meatloaf, some home made gluten free mac and cheese, and a gluten free cake. My guests will be bringing something as well.  Heck, I can't even keep up with the two Meme's I participate in, Scenic Sunday and Remember Whensday.... 

So, I may have several posts in the next couple of days, trying to play catch up. At least I hope so.....

Dinner On Hold

I have been planning a dinner party for 10 people for the last month or so. When we went to Flagstaff, I bought 3 pounds of tilapia and 2 pounds of shrimp, so I could make a large pot of my Mexican Seafood Soup. Yesterday, we went to Kanab, and I bought six avocados and some corn tortillas. My neighbor, Mark, bought fresh pineapple, cantaloupe, and mangos for his contribution to the party.

And then, this morning, my supervisor, who was also invited to the party, called to tell me she just remembered we have a mandatory staff meeting for our department tomorrow night at 6 p.m. One hour after my party was to have started. She apologized to me for not letting me know when she was invited, but hey, we ALL got the memo in April with all the dates of all our staff meetings for the year. Oh well, we are still having the party, but is has been rescheduled for next Sunday.

Because the party was postponed, I have to figure out what to do with those avocados. I bought some frozen avocados from Schwan's a couple months ago, and they turned out pretty good. I was surprised at how good the guacamole was that I made with them, because, to be honest, I really didn't think frozen avocados would be all that good. So, I am going to try freezing them, and them mash them up next week and make guacamole out of them. I usually serve avocado slices with my soup, but I have also put guac on the top of the soup before, and it was good. I just can't stand the thought of wasting $9 worth of avocados.

So, no party this week. And I was so looking forward to the company of friends.....

Grand Canyon Star party

Ever been to a Star Party? Well, last night we went to one here at the Grand Canyon. George , a volunteer here at the North Rim, hosted this party over by the rim of the canyon. What a beautiful night!


Of course there was food first, and we all got a chance to practice our social skills. I took chicken and rice so there would be something I knew I could eat. MMMM, lots of good stuff . I have to find Andrea and get her recipe for spinach artichoke dip.




Then as the sun was setting we went over to where George had his huge telescope set up, and we all star-gazed. We had been down to the lodge a couple months ago when he had his telecope set up there for looking at the moon. Wow, what a great view it was, too. But last night, we were viewing Jupiter and Venus. You could see Jupiter's moons all lined up. It was gorgeous!



Here I am with the campground hosts, Bill and Dee, and Adam. He brought his telescope, too so we could all take a look. I have never seen such huge telescopes. And you know, aside from the Big Dipper and the moon, I have always had trouble finding the different stars and constellations up there. I am truly in awe of anyone who can read the sky like that.



Here is Jim taking a peek at Venus. And look at that fabulous sunset behind him! While we have had some really great sunsets here, this one is definitely one of the best.



One last view of that great sunset. I am really going to miss this place when we leave here. And not just for the canyon and the sunsets, either. The peole we work with here truly are the best!

Not Much Going On

Yes, we had days off, three of them, but we didn't go anywhere. Well, I didn't go anywhere. FabGrandpa went to Kanab, to have some more work done on the truck. This time, it got a new starter. And I think this is the last thing we will need to do for a while. At least I hope so.

(Kathy and Zach)

He got up and was ready to go around 5:00 a.m. yesterday. I got up just about the time he left, took a shower, and went back to bed. I finally got up for the day around 9:30, just in time to have a cup of coffee before he came back home.

(Shirley, John, Bob, and Gary)

Later, in the late afternoon, we had a dinner party across the street. Kathy and Ace had been gone to the South Rim for three weeks. I had been watering her plants, and a couple of others had been feeding her Kitty, so to thank us all, they made dinner. MMMM, they had potato salad, baked beans, and pork ribs. All of it was very good, and all gluten free I might add. After we all ate, we went out to the fire ring and just visited around the campfire. What a nice, relaxing, day.

(Gary and Sue)

So, since I will be on the late shift when I go back to work tomorrow, I have been cooking all day so we will be able to eat at a halfway decent hour all the rest of the week. I have baked chicken thighs, country style pork ribs, potato salad, rice, jello salad, pinto bean soup and tuna salad. for tonight, it will be stir fried chicken with garlic, french cut green beans, corn and the last of my sweet red Italian peppers. I'll serve it with some rice and a pear salad, then we'll eat the last of that chocolate cake. (John and Zach)

And while all that cooking was going on, we also defrosted the refrigerator, cleaned the bathroom, vacuumed all the carpet and shook all the rugs, and just generally cleaned everything. Yeah, how exciting! But now it is done and next time we have time off, we will go somewhere and I will come back with some fabulous pictures to share. But, for now, just know we are living the good life up here on the Kaibab Plateau.

(Ace and FabGrandpa)

Hammy Ham Ham

When I was growing up, we always had ham on Christmas Day. My mother cooked it on Christmas Eve, and it made the house smell wonderful. We always got to have ham sandwiches on pumpernickle bread for dinner on Christmas Eve. When I was a kid, I used to think it was a such a special treat—the very best bread in the world, with a good smear of mustard, and that sweet juicy delicious ham fresh from the oven! I can still feel the mustard smeared on my cheek after the first bite. But when I got older, I finally figured out that we had those sandwiches because Mama did not have time to make anything else. That did not make the memory any less sweet, though, and I still yearn for a ham on pumpernickel whenever I smell ham baking in the oven.

When my own three children were young, and I was the one in a frenzy on the night before Christmas, I started a new tradition. Instead of spending all my time in the kitchen away from my three very special guests, I made a cocktail party for them with all the grownup hors dourves---sausage balls, raw veggies and dip, a cheese and cold cut platter, olives, pigs in blankets. And I got out my real crystal wineglasses and served up punch or koolaid. We all got dressed up in our best clothes, put on music and danced, even when the oldest of them was only five years old. The first year that my son was in the Air Force was the first time I didn’t make the traditional party for them. After Christmas, my son, who was home on leave, said, “It just didn’t feel like Christmas without our party.” I truly didn’t know it meant so much to him. I am wondering if he is doing this for his own children now.

The reason I am having these rememberies is because I bought a ham this week. I cooked it yesterday, but not before I made a loaf of gluten free pumpernickel bread. Well, not REALLY pumpernickel. I used Bob’s Red Mill Hearty Whole Grain Gluten Free Bread Mix. I add four tablespoons of brown sugar to the mix because I don’t like the taste of it if I don’t. It turns out a very dark, spicy, nutty bread much that tastes a lot like pumpernickel. And unlike the last time I made it, I actually used two 8” X 4.5” loaf pans. The result was two beautiful, if small, loaves of bread.

So, what is a two person household going to do with a nine pound ham? Well, the first night we had baked ham, collard greens and bread. The menu for the coming week looks like this:

Ham and Potato Casserole
Leftover Collards
Bread

Bean Soup
Ham Sandwiches

Ham Salad with Rice and Peas

Macaroni and Cheese with Ham
Pear Salad

Homemade Vegetable Soup
Cornbread

Ham Omelettes
Stir Fried Squash and Peppers

There are also four ziplock bags of ham scraps and fat trimmings to be used to season soups and other dishes later on. I would say that this $9.00 ham purchase was a real bargain!

Here is the recipe for my Ham and Potato Casserole

4 or 5 medium red potatoes, peeled and sliced
2 cups cubed cooked ham
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon thyme
1 small can evaporated milk
enough water to make 2 cups when added to milk
¼ cup sour cream
¼ cup tapioca flour
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 8 oz container of fresh mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded Italian blend cheese

Spray a casserole dish with olive oil. In a large bowl, mix together the potatoes, ham, salt and pepper, thyme. Cut up the mozzarella cheese into small pieces, and add to the potato mixture. Mix well, pour into the casserole dish.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Add the olive oil. Add the onions and cook until they are transparent. Add the tapioca flour and stir well. Add the sour cream to the evaporated milk and water, stirring to combine. Pour into the saucepan with the onion mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened. Pour over the potato mixture in the casserole dish. Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 1 hour. Take out of the oven and let rest for 15 minutes before serving.

Note: The sauce will not look like a white sauce made with wheat flour—it will be less thick and clearer. But it will taste very good.

The Univited Guest

At the place where we are working this year, there are ten other couples and a few single work campers. We get together often at someone's campsite for a campfire or cookout after work.

One night a few weeks ago, we were celebrating the fact that we had made it through Labor Day Weekend and survived. (It doesn't take much for us to have a reason to celebrate!) We each took a covered dish, something to drink (wink!) and brought our own meat to put on the grill. Someone put on some music and some people were dancing. It was just a very good party--until a skunk wandered up to the campfire. What a hoot! I have never seen some of those folks move so fast!