Gadding About With Dorian in Cape Breton

Leaving North Carolina for a brief vacation in Cape Breton, I thought I would leave Dorian, who was heading for the Carolinas, behind.  Not so!  Dorian followed me to Cape Breton.

I picked up Zach and Rachel at the airport on Friday in Halifax, and we thought it best to hunker down in Halifax for the night when Dorian was expected to hit. Their hotel had a generator, and I was staying with Becky and Bruce with no generator, but with the well-prepared for a hurricane couple.

Dorian arrived in Halifax around 6 pm.  It was raining hard and there was a swift wind when at 9:00pm on Friday we lost power.  Never fret,  Bruce was prepared.  He fetched his little Lee Valley Lantern and voila we had power of a sort. (Reminder: Add purchasing one of these to my to-do list.)

Juno, their newest Husky, by lantern light. 

Breakfast Saturday morning was no problem for Bruce, a scout leader.  Out on the deck with a Coleman griddle, he prepared breakfast of eggs, toast and sausage.

Breakfast from the griddle. 

Saturday morning was beautiful, clear and sunny.  Zach, Rachel, and I decided to go to our house in Marble Mountain, knowing that we would be off the grid for our brief stay there.  It would be an adventure of sorts.  No water, no power, no Wifi, no cell phone, no landline.  Just the beautiful scenery and helpful neighbors.  We did have a supply of bottled water and half a bottle of Marble Mountain red wine.   And we picked up sandwich supplies at Sobeys in Port Hawkesbury.

A good local wine.  This vineyard is just down the road from our place in Marble Mountain. 

The most fun perhaps was playing Scrabble by candlelight and flashlights.

Scrabble by candlelight. 

We had external chargers to keep our cell phones charged so the phone flashlights worked.  There were two candles in the house and three flashlights. And wine!

Rachel used a head lantern. 

Zach in the glow of Rachel's headlamp contemplating a play. 

This may be the first time that Zach has been completely off the grid for 24 hours.  He survived, and we were pleased that we made the trip out.  There was no kayaking, ergo, this calls for another trip to Marble Mountain!

Three Friends and Their Hats (A Repost in Memory of my Friend Christene)

Three friends in August 2014.

I'm reposting this in memory of my friend Christene (left in photos) who passed away today. I was fortunate to be able to visit with her last week when I was in Cape Breton.  She was a good friend and a delightful lady.  We had so many good times together.  I will miss her terribly.  RIP my dear friend.

In the summer of 2013 my friends Michealette and Christene came out to Marble Mountain to spend a leisurely day walking on the beach, playing Scrabble and just catching up.  In the course of the afternoon, David (Christene's son) took photos of the three of us, but we could not get Christene to have her photo made without covering her face.  We told her she was camera shy.  So this summer when they were out for an afternoon we decided to try and recreate that same photo.

Photo from summer of 2013.  L. to R. Christene, me, Michealette.

Photo from this summer 2014.  An attempt to recreate a similar photo.

We persuaded Christene not to be camera shy so she agreed.

Christene camera shy no longer.

In the first photos I was wearing Michealette's hat and Christene was wearing a white hat that has been around the house here for as long as I can remember, but for our final photo this year, we each wore our own hats.  Christene had just got back from a trip to Vancouver and  was sporting a new hat from there.  Michealette had her original pretty sun hat, and I had my visor from the US Open which was in North Carolina this year. 

Photo from this year 2014 each wearing our own hats. 

The three of us always have a good time when we get together.  It's not just the young who can have fun, those of us who are not so young can continue to have just as much fun.  Stay tuned for next year's photo update.  

Friends for 75 years!!!

Celebrating our 81st.  

Last week I was gadding about with Pat W. and PJ in Nova Scotia.  We've been friends since first grade which was 75 years ago and that means we were also celebrating the year that we all turned 81.  Yes 2018 has been a big year for us.

We arrived in Halifax, (Pat W was sitting in my wheelchair.) 

After flying from Charlotte to Toronto (where we missed our flight to Halifax but were able to get another one) we arrived in  Halifax to spend a couple of days.

I wanted to be sure my friends saw some of the South Shore of  the province.  We of course hit Peggy's Cove and then Mahone Bay and Lunenberg.  Along the way we had to have a meal at the famous Tim Horton's.

Peggy's Cove

Beautiful Church in Mahone Bay. 

A pretty B & B in Mahone Bay. 

Lunch at Tim Horton's. 

Back in Halifax we visited Becky, Bruce, and Sherri Campbell, and we were charmed by their new little husky Juno.

Juno, the newest member of the Campbell family. 

Then off to Marble Mountain in our rented Lincoln MKK, a vehicle too smart for us.  We were constantly having to check the manual to see how something worked. 

Our Lincoln MKK.  Leaving for Cape Breton.  

The weather was perfect  and after we arrived in Port Hawkesbury we had dinner at the Fleur de Lis, shopped for groceries and headed out to Marble Mountain.  (to be continued)

The Little Foxes of Marble Mountain

These two look like "book ends" or mirror images. (All photos by Anthony Benson.) *

On my May trip to Marble Mountain, my son-in-law Anthony accompanied me.  He proved to be a terrific traveling companion, not the least because he is an expert photographer.   And upon our arrival we learned that a litter of eight foxes was being raised in a den under the unoccupied Catholic church in the village.  The baby foxes with their adorable antics proved to be a perfect subject for Anthony's photography on this trip.

The Catholic church in the village is not used.  There's not a sufficient congregation in the area. 

The entrance to the den under the back of the church. 

Although folks in the village confirmed there were eight in the litter, we only saw four out at the same time, and usually there would be maybe one or two.

Four at play.  

The foxes seemed to be accustomed to a car driving up and people watching them from a distance.
First they would stick their head out to see if the coast was clear, and then they would venture out. 

  Is it safe to came out?

Staying close to the entrance to the den. 

Wondering "Who are you?"

The mother fox and the father fox were always close by and were keeping check on their pups.

Papa fox keeping check.  

Mama fox checking out what's going on. 

Eventually the foxes would engage in playful activities, just like little dogs. 

I named this one Forrest as in "Run Forrest Run!."  

I can't wait until we return next May, because I know that foxes often use the same den for raising their pups year after year. Maybe there will be a litter under the church next year.  I hope Anthony will be along and that he will have his camera ready.

*Many thanks to Anthony Benson for accompanying me on this trip and for these exceptional photographs. 

Blueberry-Lemon-Sour Cream Squares

Wild Blueberry Lemon Squares

One of the nice things about being at Marble Mountain in August is it is the peak of wild blueberry season, and this year there was a bumper crop.  There are fields of wild blueberries near our place and friend Beverly went blueberry picking with our neighbor Maggie.  She brought home almost a quart of berries.

Beverly's wild blueberries.

I decided it was time I did some baking.  Having the blueberries, a lemon, and some sour cream on hand, I googled a recipe using these three ingredients.  Blueberry-lemon-sourcream bars fit the bill.  I enlisted the help of Rufus (introduced him to home baking.)

Blueberry-lemon-sourcream Bars

Ingredients:

Crust

• ½ c butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
• ½ c light brown sugar
• 1½ cup all purpose flour
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp salt

I didn't have the ingredients for making the crust, but I did have a ready made graham cracker crust.  I crumbled this and had Rufus add melted butter until all the butter was incorporated.

Mixing melted butter with crushed graham cracker crust.

Graham cracker-butter mixture pressed into bottom of parchment lined pan.

• Filling:
• 2 cups fresh blueberries
• ¾ cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• ½ c sour cream
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp all purpose flour
• 1 egg
• ½ tsp vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 and prepare an 8×8 square pan by lining with parchment paper and spraying with cooking spray.
2. Make the crust by whisking together in a medium bowl the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add the melted butter. The dough will be crumbly but make sure all of the butter is incorporated.
3. Reserve ¾ cup of the crust and press the remaining into the bottom of your 8×8 prepared baking pan.
4. Combine the fresh blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice in a small bowl until the combined and set aside. 

   

   Mixing blueberries with sugar, corn starch and lemon juice.

5. For the sour cream filling, mix together in a large bowl the sour cream, sugar, 1 Tbsp flour, egg, and vanilla. Pour over the crust in your 8×8 pan.

   

   Sour cream mixture poured over bottom crust

6. Spoon the fresh blueberry mixture evenly over the sour cream.

   

   Blueberry mixture spread over sour cream mixture.

7. Sprinkle your reserved ¾ cup crust over the top and bake for 25-28 minutes or until golden brown. 

   

   Ready for the oven.

8. Cool completely and serve in squares. 

   

   Blueberry square served with vanilla ice cream.

   This can be stored in the refrigerator.  With Rufus helping this took only minutes to prepare and we had dessert for several meals. 

Dinner At Marble Mountain Hall

This year's Dinner was sold out. 

 Each summer Marble Mountain has a special weekend festival, and we arrived this year just in time to participate in some of the activities. The Saturday night Dinner at the Community Hall is always not to be missed if at all possible.  The ladies in the community prepare wonderful dishes and for $10. one can enjoy a great dinner and also meet and greet others in the community.

Justin the fire chief of the Valley Mills Volunteer Fire Department arrived in this "antique" fire truck.

The tables laden with wonderful dishes prepared by the ladies of Marble Mountain.

Dan (front left) has just about cleaned his plate.

These two sisters are ready to enjoy their dinner.  One is dressed like Anne of Green Gables.

This year there was even a sing-along.  Someone had written a song about the Marble Mountain Road that is know as the road of potholes.  This was a nice touch to the wonderful meal and the socializing with friends.

I'm so glad we were able to attend the Dinner this year.

Manitoba Blueberry Pie

Manitoba Blueberry Pie

Our friend Frances was here the other day, and she mentioned the blueberry pie she had made recently, and she pronounced it the best blueberry pie she had ever eaten.  It is called Manitoba Blueberry Pie, and I looked up the recipe on the internet and proceeded to make one.  We had lots of fresh blueberries.  Here's the recipe. 

 Bake a 9 inch pie shell.

 Baked pie shell ready for the berries.

Cook1 cup of the berries according to directions and when cool mix in fresh berries.  Place berries in the prepared pie shell.

Cooked and fresh berries mixed together and placed in pie shell.

When filling has cooled, add whipped cream and refrigerate. 

Pie ready to refrigerate.

Ready to eat.

This is a good pie alright, and it is a bit unusual in that in combines cooked and uncooked berries. 

Note: I used about 3/4 cup of sugar in the berries and only 1 tbs in the whipped cream.  We don't like our pie too sweet.  It was perfect for us.  The almond flavoring in the whipped cream is quite good.