Summertime, and the livin' is easy

We have thornless blackberry vines in our backyard, and I harvested this bowl Saturday morning. They are pretty good. I prefer raspberries.

We have been making pizza at home with crust dough made in our bread maker. Our latest creation is based on one from Hell Pizza, with salsa, refried beans, red bell pepper, green onion, tomatoes, cheddar cheese, spicy chilis, and avocado, after it comes out of the oven. Here's a photo of it. it was YUM.

The following photo is my brother-in-law at the Kumeu Wine and Food Festival. The stall was selling "American-style" hot dogs. We had a really nice time visiting the different wineries and breweries and food stalls.

Darin found a Bavarian import beer/liquor that was really interesting. Check out the beautiful food decoration at the Thai restaurant's booth.We were supposed to bring home a Rottweiler puppy this weekend, but we decided against taking the one the breeder selected for us. My sister and I did a puppy aptitude test (Volhard) on the 3 pups, and the little girl showed some less desirable responses. Her temperament appeared to be more of a challenge than the others, and the breeder thought this would be fine for us, because we're experienced owners (this will be our 4th Rottie). If I ever breed a litter of pups, I'm not going to sell a pup to a family with a 16 month old child and it's their first Rottweiler (I'm slightly bitter). I was really sad about it but now realize it's the right decision. I've done well by following my gut instinct before. The right puppy will be there for me, when the time is right.

I went to a concert on Valentine's Day with a friend I used to work with, Interpol. We had such a great time, the band was awesome. You can watch music videos on their website (link is in name above). I hadn't realized how elf-like the lead singer is, hah! This friend also told me about the elf-worship of FIGWIT, which stands for "Frodo is great...Who is that?!" because of a scene from Lord of the Rings in which Brett McKenzie (of Flight of the Conchords) plays a non-speaking elf role. I find it highly amusing that he has this fan base that was so profound that a documentary film was made about it. Flight of the Conchords, by the way, is so funny!!! They just won a Grammy- way to go guys! The other half of Flight of the Conchords, Jermaine, is in the movie Eagle vs. Shark. Why haven't you seen this yet? It is funny and sweet and made by a Kiwi.

Darin and I had dinner out at the Bluestone Room. They have a Saturday $10 dinner deal, and it's a very atmospheric place. Good service, beer, and food too. It's in a restored historic (1850's) building in downtown Auckland. Here's a picture of the bar. I'll definitely go back there.

Somewhere over the rainbow

We almost found that pot of gold! This was taken last weekend as we returned from Murawai Beach and entered Kumeu. This rainbow extended into a full arch. It was about 7 pm, and the sun was beaming on this raincloud. Here's some puppy photos from the beach. They are 5 weeks old.

I forgot to mention in my last post that I attended the memorial for Sir Edmond Hillary. A large screen was set up in the Auckland Domain to show live feed from the funeral in the afternoon. He was an amazing man, to hear his children, grandchildren, and friends talk. He is New Zealand's most famous citizen, and I wish there were more people like him. According to his son, Peter, it didn't matter if you were good at something, the most important thing was that you tried. He is on the NZ $5 bill.

I finished reading The Epicure's Lament, the first fiction I've read in awhile. I enjoyed it, but in the end, I was glad I'd borrowed it from the library and not bought it. It's about a man who's a nicotine addict, and supposedly an epicure, but it really has very little to do with food, and a lot to do with death and pain. I'm now reading What is the What, which is really pulling me in. This is a fictionalized biography, and it's very compelling. Reading a book like this makes you appreciate what you have. It also reminds me how horrible people can be. Similarly, No Country For Old Men follows this same thesis. I love the Cohen brothers' films, especially Fargo, Hudsucker Proxy, and O Brother Where Art Thou?

Darin finished his sailing course and had a great time. He's keen to continue on to his Day Skipper certification.

Dog days of summer

We have been in a holding pattern since the agreement to purchase the farm (which needs a clever name, any suggestions are welcome). Several phone calls to the solicitor/lawyer, Kaipara District Council, and the bank have advanced the campaign, and next week we'll "go unconditional". This means we'll pay for it.

The summer has been very dry. The weather has been gorgeous, really spectacular and perfect for the beach. I took Fargo to Bethell's (the local west coast) beach on Monday, and gave him a bath afterwards. The garden has needed water more than I have been watering, so the tomatoes are struggling, but there are plenty of small green ones on the vines. The zucchini plant just keeps giving, and the silverbeet/chard too. The pumpkin (volunteer plants) has dominated one corner of the garden and spilled over into the rest of the yard. There are several pumpkins on the vine looking mighty tasty. The lemons, OH the lemons, so many, what to do? I kept thinking I should make cookies or muffins or sorbet or something, but it never happened. Finally I remembered the saying that "if life gives you lemons, make lemonade"- so I did. We developed a delicious strawberry lemonade with lots of ice, using fresh strawberries, that was perfect for these warm summer afternoons. As they say here in NZ, "choice" (SO 80's!) We are going to have a massive crop of blackberries, which are growing on thornless vines, fortunately. They are currently plagued by little grey moths, so I've been going out there after work to spray them with my homemade pesticide garlic spray. I have no idea if it works or not, and I might be infusing the berries with garlic- yikes! I'll find out soon enough, eh!

We saw the movie Cloverfield last weekend, and really liked it. I thought I might get motion sickness from the handheld camera movement, but it didn't bother me. It was predictable, but that was part of the fun. I recently found a few DVDs for less than $10, so bought House of 1000 Corpses, The Thing, and Evil Dead 2 to add to my collection. I had an awesome collection on VHS before we moved here, and am trying to rebuild it slowly on DVD.

Darin is away this week, so this is a perfect opportunity to watch horror movies.I watched House of 1000 Corpses tonight after being inspired by all the fresh raw meat we picked up at the home kill butcher's home. It cost $1 per kg, and the bill was $188 so I guess 188 kg! Well that's based on the cow's carcass weight, so the cut meat would be less than that. Darin saved the liver, heart, and tongue for the pets. I fed them the tongue this week, and they really liked it. Barb gave her cow tongues to a Philipino co-worker, who made a dish with them she claims her family is very fond of. Bones were also saved for the pets, but they look good enough to use to make stock.

Darin is on his 5 day sailing course, and having a great time. He's in cell/mobile phone range sometimes so calls or texts in the evening or morning. I encouraged him to take this course because I was sure he'd be good at it, and pretty sure he'd enjoy it. I have such a hard time finding good gifts for him, but this one is worthy. Expensive, but worth it because now he will have a skill he can apply recreationally.