Saturday
June 4, 2016
It was another foggy day today and since we felt mostly caught up on the mowing, we decided to do some inside stuff and a couple of longer videos too (which we hope to start posting soon).
After a breakfast of mixed fruit, yogurt, and granola, we did a few chores in the house. Nothing too exciting, just some organization stuff that we’ve wanted to do but have been putting off for a rainy day. I guess the main thing we did was rearrange the bedroom we’re sleeping in. It has a gabled ceiling on the side Patty’s been sleeping on and she has to duck to get around and into bed and I would just about have to get on my knees if I was on that side. Everything fit when we moved things and we had outlets where we needed them so I think our new layout will work well for us. Besides that, Patty spent some time getting seeds in the ground in the spice garden area just outside the kitchen (separate from the main garden). I went down the hill and did a
longer video in and around the Cove and another walking up from the Cove to the Lighthouse. My goal is to make a separate video for each area of the island to post on Facebook or YouTube. Whatever else we did, it took the remainder of the morning and before we knew it, it was afternoon already and we were both getting hungry.
For lunch, we had a big plate with apple slices, cheese, carrots, crackers, hummus, mixed olives and five left over scallops from dinner the other night. Patty re-heated the scallops in the cast iron pan for just a few seconds on each side and they were just as delicious as before. When we were eating breakfast this morning, I noticed the container of Stoneybrook yogurt had a suggestion for yogurt-based marinades….neither of us had really ever thought of doing that. So, right after lunch, we found a
simple recipe for the pork chops we were already thawing for dinner. It was a simple recipe – just yogurt, minced garlic (Patty did this), fresh grated ginger (I did this), and chili pepper. We mixed up the ingredients, slathered the marinade on the pork chops in a baking dish, and put them in the fridge to think about themselves ‘til later.
In the afternoon, we did a few more little things around the house and then headed down to the Donkey Engine House together to take a look at the door. It had a pretty bad sag to it so that it had to be lifted to close properly. I noticed when it was lifted, the hinges weren’t tight and would move. The wood around the door frame and hinges is kind of soft (maybe slightly rotted) so we were
hoping that longer screws on the building side and nuts and bolts on the door side would do the trick. When she was here with us the first week, Cyndy told us that every job here takes some exponential amount longer than in it does in the real world. Reluctantly, I’m learning that to be true although never being in a rush makes it ok. Why is that you might wonder? Well, first off, most things need to be MacGyvered a little because the one thing that is absolutely required is not available. And we’re not running up to Harris Hardware (or Rogers in this case) or down to Lowes like at home. So, Plan “B” is pretty much where things start after confirming you don’t have what you need for Plan “A”. Today’s example involved countersinking bolts ½” because the bolts we had are ½” shorter than the ones you need. Next, just when we think we have every tool that is needed with us, something changes and we really need the tool we thought we wouldn’t need and is therefore up the hill in the Whistle House. With all that said, we did get the door fixed so that it closes now without being lifted and we only had to go up the hill one extra time to get the needed tools. Actually, I’m writing this kind of tongue in cheek because it’s fun to see if we can come up with a fix for something when the obvious or common fix is not an option. So far, so good on that front I think.
We have an idea for something that we want to build and leave here as our legacy. To that end, we’ve been keeping an eye out for driftwood to help us build it. We’re expecting astronomical high tides so I was down in the cove clearing some drift wood to keep it from hitting the dinghy if the water gets really high and uncovered what I think is a perfect piece to get started with. It’s the base, with a few big roots, and trunk of a tree – maybe 10’ or so long. It’s on the big side but it washed a while ago so it wasn’t water logged and didn’t weigh too much. I pulled it up the steps from the cove beach and carried it up top to the Whistle House where it’s now drying out some more before we get started with it soon.
For dinner, I grilled the pork chops (in our yogurt based marinade) on the gas grill and Patty made sides of asparagus and potatoes baked in the same marinade. Everything turned out really good and we realized as soon as we started eating the chops that it had a very Indian flavor. Duh. Well, I guess we had had yogurt based marinades before and just didn’t think of it while we were preparing this.
The weather turned pretty nasty as evening approached and we heard a call on the VHF coast guard station for missing kayakers as well as calls out to a boat in distress that hadn’t reported their position. We set off the fog horn when we heard that call just in case it might help someone. It was pretty interesting to listen to radio chatter – we sure were glad to be safe and warm inside and not out on the water.
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Favorite Moment(s) – Cooking pork chops outside on the grill with a new recipe
