Baker's Cafe

[PaulO in MA]

Did something pretty neat yesterday. We visited Tower Hill Botanic Garden. Very close to us.

http://www.towerhillbg.org/

My wife was getting a haircut yesterday morning, and I looked for something to do. Mystic Seaport was considered, but I didn't feel like dsriving that far on a holiday weekend.

I spoke with my mother ysterday morning. I sent her a GoldTouch loaf pan from William-Somoma, and she called to tell me she received it. Mom mentioned that she read in the Hartford Courant that hotels in Mystic are sold out for the weekend.

http://www.courant.com/business/hc-summer-tourism-20110701,0,1640747.story

Yes, not one for large crowds and traffic, Mystic was out of the picture for this weekend.

I do want to get there this summer. We are members, and the Charles W. Morgan, the last remaining wooden whaling ship, is out of the water for restoration. Probably the only time it will be out of the water in my lifetime, and it is fascinating ot see the progress being made on the ship.

The Botanic garden was neat. It is called Tower Hill, elevation 641 feet, because there was a surveyor's tower on top of the hill for the construction of Wachusett reservoir in 1905.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wachusett_Reservoir

Great view on the hill of Mount Wachusett, elevation 2000 feet, in the distance. Mount Wachusett is the closest ski area with a respectable vertical drop (i.e., 1,000 feet or more)

Wachuseet reservoir is interesting. It is fed by a couple of rivers and also the Quabbin reservoir to the west. Then, it sends water to Boston and 40-plus other communitits by gravity.

Will suggest we go to deCordova Sculpture Park and Musweum today.

http://www.decordova.org/

Also very close to us. Never been there and it's free to Bank of America / Merrill Lynch credit card holders the first full weekend of the month.

[PaulO in MA]

Received the following two e-mails from my wife today.

At 7:59 AM:

"Will bring home some fruits and vegetables today. The IT guy that loaned me a computer has been on vacation last week and this week. He told me and another colleague to take his farm share for the two weeks so it wouldn't go to waste. The other colleague is on vacation this week as well, so he took the farm share last week and I'll take it this week."

At 11:26 AM:

"Got a lot with the farm share. 3 ears of corn, 2 large tomatoes, bunch of onions, 2 large peaches, 3 cucumbers (or 2 cucumbers and a squash - city girl), 2 radishes (I think), 3 other squash type things, plum tomatoes, some leafy green, basil. Boy, I really am a city girl, I can't identity half of what was in the share"

[Red Apple Guy]

Sounds great. A farm share is a new concept for me.

Red

[duonyte]

This is a CSA? I was going to sign up for one this year but when John broke his leg, even a half share seemed iike too much, and then the one I was interested in dropped its distribution point that was reasonably close to home.

[PaulO in MA]

My wife referred to it as a collective.

I asked how much it cost. She didn't remember; she thought it was somewhat expensive. I'd consider it to support local farmers.

[PaulO in MA]

Need to figure out what to do with the basil. I might mince it, make a paste with cooking oil, and freeze it in an ice cube tray.

[PaulO in MA]

Wow, last post in Baker's Cafe was 6 months ago? Where does time go?

Nan has a quandry. She likes raptors. She also likes ducks.

Raptors also apparently like ducks.

It leaves the larger mallards alone and was buzzing the wood ducks this morning.

Hawk on a branch in the woods. Look past the corner of the gutter.



I've cleared out the woods since we moved here an migrating ducks stop every spring on their way north for some food. We saw a hawk a few times last year. I hadn't seen it yet this year, but one of the guys from the heating and A/C company that was here two weeks ago to replace the furnaces and A/C units said that there's a hawk around a lot.

I was making French toast yesterday morning, looked out back, and saw the wood ducks being buzzed.

There was a pile of feathers in the backyard a few weeks ago. Think that was a smaller bird.

Any idea what this was?

Species - birdica unluckyus?