Just desserts

This is my last day in Holland. The weather is getting hotter, more like a June day in Virginia. They are making hay, something that isn't happening at home since it is so hot and dry but here it feels familiar. The Dutch are melting and I am smiling.

Holland is in the World Cup and while their flag is red, white and blue there is Orange everywhere! That's because the Queen's name is Beatrix Van Oranje-Nassau, so the color orange is on buildings (entire buildings!) clothing, awnings, flags and more. They won last night which is a good thing. I cannot imagine what would happen if they lost!

Dinner last night was another wonderful meal (Angele my chef this time) with mint pesto for dessert with Ben and Jerry's raspberry/mango sorbet and fresh cherries! This mornings breakfast was cottage cheese with fresh raspberries. I am getting spoiled.

Heading home tomorrow. Looks like the heat will break a little before I get there - only 80's for a high instead of 90's. But no rain in sight. Might be feeding hay to the horses before long but the fatties have plenty to live on for now.

Puttanesca and Hollandaise

I arrived in the Netherlands on Wednesday and have been enjoying more epicurean delights. It seems I now rate my clinics not by the horses or riders, but by the food. As I am wheat intolerant I cannot live on bread and cheese as so many Europeans do. But I think I have the advantage.

Because of my wheat intolerance I get treated to wonderful meals by organizers, friends and taken to excellant restuarants. I feel very well cared for not to mention the chocolate that appears by my chair before lectures.

For this clinic Jeroen, is my official dinner chef, He is the boyfriend of one of the organizer's and he has nothing to do with horses but he loves to cook. I am happy to oblige by eating his dinners. Tonight we had asparagus and strawberries with whip cream for desert.

Asparagus season is officially over here in Holland. Apparently they stop cutting it on June 24th all across the country so that the plants can grow and be ready for the next year. White asparagus is more common here than the USA and has a more delicate flavor than the traditional green, which makes it perfect with hollandaise sauce!

rewind the seasons

One thing about traveling is that I get to see the seasons over and over depending upon which direction I travel. This year towards Finland and on to Holland.

The weather in Finland is still cool and springlike.

The lilacs are furiously blooming and the lupine along the highway is gorgeous colors of white, pink, dark and light purples. Asparagus is still in season.

The light is the give away that we are at midsummer.. The twilight lasts all night, well at least until 2am. I didn't say up all night to find out about the early hours.

It was interesting to watch the rays of the sun through some of the clouds it was like they were on the same plane so that it looks like it was woven across the sky. An unusual sight even for my Finnish friend.

Packing my bags...

You would think I might have this figured out by now - packing.

but it seems every clinic is different.

Different weather.

Different interests.

Some new clinics.

Others old friends.

What to take this time? Of course the advance copy of the new book.

and then what?

Kindle (saves a lot of weight!)

Boze headphones (blocks out airplane noise)

Melatonin (so I can get into their time zone)

Eye covers (sun doesn't go down in Finland this time of year!)

But the rest is in a constant state of flux.

Ah well, the moment of decision will be upon me soon....

then it is whatever fits in the bag.

Cattails Saga Part 6

The other day She Who Must Groom Me (SWMGM) and He How Must Play With Me (HHMPWM) were out in my GARDEN. They were making a nice place for me to lay but they did not realize they had pulled up a MOST IMPORTANT PLANT (MIP). They did not even know it was there!

I of course am observant and sensed that this plant was in the TAKE STUFF AWAY pile. I leapt in and began to show them this MIP. I rubbed on it, and rolled on it until they noticed. SWMGM placed my MIP on the SUNNY LAY DOWN PLACE and I continued to show her how important this plant is to me.

SWMGM AND HHMPWM got the message. They put the MIP back in the earth and now I am training them to give me small pieces of it every day. I sit on the SUNNY LAY DOWN PLACE and look at them. I roll on the dried pieces of MIP. I stare at them again. They are very observant. They know it is time to give me another piece of MIP.

Now that I have SWMGM and HHMPWM trained I will have my silly roll and dreamy sleep every day.

"I once owned a farm in Africa"

Last Friday I drove up to Connecticut for a clinic. From my home it takes about 10 hours give or take depending on traffic. I have to admit I don't mind traffic jams so much anymore. I think it is because when I am sitting in traffic my Prius is not using any fuel. It sits quietly, no loud motor noise and waits patiently for the cars to crawl along. I am mostly running on battery when the traffic is really slow but there is something in that quiet that takes the stress away. Pretty amazing since I used to be the kind of drive the fussed and fumed by the slow moving cars....

Another of my favorite things to do on a long drive is listen to books on my iPod. I can plug my iPod into my car stereo system so it plays through the car's speakers. This time I purchased "Out of Africa". I have never read the book but of course, seen the movie. As I was browsing through iTunes looking for something to while the hours away I found this book. I listened to the sample for a moment and realized the readers voice was perfect. A lovely woman with a British accent. As she read the words a vivid image of the area of the Ngong Hills was painted in my mind. I have been in the town of Karen and seen some of Karen Von Blixen's furniture at Giraffe Manor so it was about time I "read" the book.

The hours slid by as I was bathed in the sights and sounds of old Kenya. On my return home the book ended just as I pulled up to the house. How perfect I thought that I don't have to drive around the block or find some excuse the next day to go for a drive to hear the end.

Today I looked at my zinnia seeds beginning to sprout in their trays. They are almost ready for planting. I thought of those words and thought "I once owned a farm in Virginia and on the farm I had planted 3 flats of zinnias..." Somehow the feeling of story and that lifestyle surrounded me in my own home with my little garden. The sense of the land and its beauty so strongly influencing my life here near the hills of the Blue Ridge Mountains on this perfect, lovely clear, blue sky day.

You never know...

You never know what is going to happen. I think that's what I find so interesting - the curiosity of what might happen next.

While I was recovering from the pneumonia I decided I should get out of the house to get a bit of fresh air. Brad and I went for a drive to Culpeper via the back roads looking at the countryside and seeing where the last storm had rearranged things. We came onto the main drag, Route 29 and were driving into Culpeper when we passed a Ford dealership. Brad has been thinking about what kind of company car he is going to get in the near future. He has been talking about the Ford Fusion hybrid. I haven't sat in a Fusion so instead of driving past the dealership we decided to turn in.

Brad and I were looking at a Fusion when a salesman came over. He brought out the keys and we took the car for a test drive. Afterward we went inside the dealership to get a brochure. While inside Brad filled out a form for a $2500.00 cash giveaway prize for an upcoming event they were having.

Yesterday Brad got a call from the dealership. The message was that they had good news. When he called back today Brad found out he won the $2500.00! I have never won a big prize and this is the most Brad has ever won. You just never know what might happen if you take a chance.

I am already angling for a nice dinner out of the deal since it was because I had pneumonia that we wound out there.