Wedding Anniversary Spectacular

A once in a lifetime event occurred on December 21st - our six month anniversary celebrated in other worldly style. The Universe provided the sky show of a full moon total eclipse on winter solstice (also a once in a lifetime event).

Initially it appeared that we would not have visibility for the celestial show as clouds rushed past leaving soggy puddles behind. But just as the moon was about to enter total eclipse the clouds parted to reveal a freshly scrub pristine sky of tremendous clarity. We took full advantage of the viewing walking the dogs to the gate and taking it all in. At the peak of the eclipse we settled into the hot tub with egg nogs and were treated to shooting stars rushing past the red full moon directly overhead (our home is near the eclipse zenith longitude). A few drops of rain began to fall but the southern view of the heavens remained clear. A flash of distant lightening drove us out of the tub and next to the wood stove. As the moon began to emerge from the umbra we were treated to the "Japanese Lantern" effect just before the clouds rushed in from the south closing the curtain on our once in a lifetime celebration.

The Daily Deer of the Mountain

Seeing deer along the dirt road up the mountain to UCM is nearly an every day occurrence. On this particular afternoon Lee and Bob stopped to observe for a spell. As you can see they were all around us and The General was really interested.

Cranberry Harvest

The Southwest Oregon Coast accounts for about 10% of the total harvest of cranberries in the United States. We stopped by a friends bog on Cape Blanco while they were harvesting and took away a five gallon bucket of cranberries (about 25 pounds). If you look close you can see one of them playing with a stand up paddle board (SUP) on the bog.

After the tedious process of cleaning each and every berry it was time to can. We ended up with three varieties of jam.
The most outrageous being a habanero cranberry jam that was reduced down to a very rich and intense essence.

Winterizing the Garden

A total of six raised beds have been covered for the winter. This is double what we had last year. Plantings under the cold frames include Russian Red Kale, Chinese Flowering White Kale, Corn Salad, Collard Greens, Red Cabbage, Fractal Cabbage, Kohlrabi, Rainbow Chard, Broad Leaf Batavia Endive, Ruffled Endive, Mitsuna Mustard, Red Mustard, Parsley, Celery and believe it or not a few raspberries are ripening as well.
The puppies love to walk to the orchard with us.

The shorter days are perfect for cuddling with the puppies in front of the wood stove with a cup of tea!

The Royal Cauliflower

The rapport we have with the ladies of B&B Feed Store is of the finest kind. They are often directing us to cool items or events. Earlier this summer when there were numerous starts in their nursery Mirleen came up to us with a six pack of baby plants that she thought "might be cabbage..." So we took them to UCM and planted them in bed five and soon they little starts took over the bed and it eventually became obvious that the purple bud was a cauliflower! We have not asked but we are pretty sure that Mirleen knew exactly what she was giving us!

The soup that Sylvia made from it was supurb!

VOTE!

Don't Forget To Vote!

The Oregon process is 100% mail in (or drop box) voting. There are no physical polling stations to go to. Your ballot along with a 112 page voter's pamphlet are sent to your home several weeks before the first Tuesday in November deadline.

As in elections everywhere some of our votes were cast, not for a truly qualified candidate but for the least scary option.

Remember to exercise your right, that so many have fought for or wish they had.

Forced to Harvest

Fall Harvest ahead of the first real winter storm of the season today.

Lots of focus on getting things stored or tied down if it was not headed for the cupboard as dried veggies, cold storage or a canning jar.

Where else in America is a coastline pounded with winds to 86 miles per hour and waves over thirty feet high and it is not on national news with a special stormwatch name...

We Love the Southern Oregon Coast!

Saved from a wet and windy fate were the last of the Bush Green Beans, Six different types of ripe tomatoes (green tomatoes are still on the vine), Dill, Green Peppers, Serrano Peppers, Strawberries, Raspberries, two types of Cabbage, Sunshine Squash, Delicata Squash, and BonBon Squash, Pumpkins, two types of Pears, Apples, and Cilantro. There are still lots of greens and carrots etc to be harvested while the winter crops are just getting settled in.

Christian at the Stake

Besides the gourmet meals Christian cooked as a guest at UCM he also contributed his shoulders to some projects around the place.

Here Christian is at the stake, actually five stakes, that he drove in to hold the seasoned firewood in place while preparing for the next load of cord wood to be delivered. Our famous drummers shoulders were also tested driving stakes for additional planking in the orchard for planting areas along the fence. Thanks Christian for all the help and the good food!

Stacked and ready for the winter rains (which started today)!

The freshly painted sun room before the seasoned cord wood was moved in.

Christian at the Gate

Sylvia was off to San Francisco for a Collaborative Drug Discovery User Group Meeting this past week. That left Bob as a bachelor, which proved a good time for Christian his old friend from Seattle to come by on a business road trip and spend a few days at UCM. Since his last visit Bob had painted the house to blend in with the new roof of "chateau green" shingles.

As you can see Christian is at the gate wondering if he is at the correct house in the congested neighborhood. The No Trespassing signs were installed after one to many local Jehovah Witness uninvited visits. Christian however was more than welcome, only next visit his sweetheart Beverly has to join him also!

More 10/10/10 Orchard Stroll

The cool stuff of the UCM orchard is everywhere!

The purple broccoli are outrageous and developing well! They will soon be ready to harvest. We have out praying mantis from bed six to thank for some of that!

The plantings around the new garden shed are exclusively medicinal herbs, which for the most part appear to be deer resistant! The echinacea plant is familiar to many for its cold fighting properties.Today at UCM it was a host for a Lady Bug (bottom left underside). We also like Lady Bugs for their appetite for garden leaf munchers! They are an organic solution to pests like aphids.

We harvest everyday blessing for our table - gifts of the bounty of the earth. This little pile of herbs contains rosemary, sage, thyme, marjoram, and oregano. The Serrano peppers gave the sauce just the right edge to the fresh tomatoes and garlic.

10/10/10 Orchard Stroll

We walk down to the orchard at least once a day and more often than not, twice a day.

Every day is different and with its unique charms.

Today was typical in the variety of events only today we had the camera with us to capture a few samples of the moments and chores of the garden.

The praying mantis is inverted and working the underside of the purple broccoli leaves. We love her as she (the dudes get eaten remember?) is a natural predator of aphids.

The flocks of geese flying overhead and honking in support of the wind piercing lead bird were constant throughout the day.

They were all moving south - Winter is on its way.

Bob and Sylvia's Solstice wedding had guests delivering many additions to our garden and orchard. These piles of dirt and rocks are on their way to becoming the Wakefield Rhubarb bed and the Asparagus bed. The sifted gravel will be used to provide a foundation for the pavers of the ceremonial circle to be installed next year. The medicinal plant horse radish also a perennial will be placed on the end of the bed on the right.

UCM loves its Garlic!

Sylvia planting next years crop from local organic bulbs!!

All of the fruit trees of the orchard are beginning to establish and no harder worker is in the orchard than the Liberty Apple of Olga Morrow. Here Bob displays one of the sweetest apples on the planet from the tree Olga planted for herself!

Rainbow Season Begins

The rainbow season has begun here in Langlois with the onset of fall.

The first of the fronts crept towards shore with a series of sprinkles and sun breaks which left the valley arched in a glorious rainbow. One of many gifts from the rain!

Posse Brick Visit from Atlanta

It has been an absolute treat to have Atlanta members of the brick posse visiting Upper Creek Monastery. Craig, Ann and "Cosmo" the pug spent several days with much merriment and relaxation for all. Here you can see they are all excited to see their brick in person.

Beyond the normal charms of a visit to UCM - the green beans and tomatoes off the vine, organic salads or sitting on the bench in the middle of a crystalline night watching the shooting stars fall, our Atlanta visitors toured the area including a trip to the Cape Blanco Lighthouse and south beach. Yes the black dots to the right are our visitors.

The dynamics of the three dogs in the house was fun to observe. Young Coda and Cosmo hit it off with much amour and hours of mouth wrestling. This seemed to leave General Lee a tad peeved that his playmate was spending so much time with this young pug. So he growled his way to clear dominance. To Coda and Cosmo's credit the playing never really ceased.

Green roof is on (almost)

The roof is almost on and ready for winter. The roofers have our fifty year - and more importantly - 130 mph wind roof installed. There was inital concern on Bob's part when, after removing the old shingles and felt the interior truss system of the double wide manufactured became visible.

Unlike the heavy duty rafter or truss systems designed for snow loads of 60 psf (pounds per square foot) he was familiar with this manufactured home is designed to hold 20 psf. That means a truss every 24 inches that is built with lumber one and one quarter inch by one and one half inch. It was a serious yikes moment when the weight of the new sheets of plywood and and felt and shingles were considered on the old OSB

Finally the château green shingles (chosen to blend into the environment) are all on and only awaiting the ridge shingles to complete the job. Next will be some paint in the same color scheme as the garden shed. And despite the construction crew Coda continues to pursue our efforts at throwing sticks for recovery!

Old Roof lift-off

The 15 year roof on our 17 year old home has shed its last raindrop.

AC Construction tore off the old roof and will be installing new plywood over the old OSB finishing with 50 year shingles good for 130 mph.

Just in time for winter!

Supper In The Field

OK

Really...

Because of the off season rain (is there a rain off season in Oregon?)

It actually ended up being supper in the shed. But what a WONDERFUL Dinner it was!

One of the great joys of living here is the abundance of outstanding organic food that is available and there is no better source than the Valley Flora Farm in the valley below us who hosted the gourmet event which was a fund raiser for their trip to Italy for the "Slow Food" Conference. Because of their tremendous skill and activism they were chosen to represent Oregon. And we benefited from their throwing open the doors to their garden and kitchen from Tomato Zucchini Gazpacho to Marinated Smoked Leg of Lamb with ample quantities of Oregon and Italian wines!

Yumm!!

Of course Footwear is critical for any formal dining event. Here Sylvia discusses the benefits of five finger shoes vs muck boots or hiking boots worn by two of the organizers.
This epicurean delight just happened to be on Bob's birthday. He was surprised when the strolling troubadours and fifty guests sang happy birthday as his Strawberry Shortcake with Chantilly Cream arrived in flames!
A tour of the Valley Flora gardens and orchards preceded the appetizers. In the foreground is the orchard we helped them to plant this spring.

We learned that Mom insists that everything they do on the farm should be at least 51% art.
The setting was romantically elegant with the horse collars (yes they really do use a team of horses for all of the tilling of soil) and fine settings accented with just cut flowers.

It rained long enough to bring adventure to the consumption of Caprese Skewers, Caramelized Onion Tart (OMG), and Curried Zucchini Fritters backed with champagne made with fresh raspberry puree.

We are hoping the Divas of Dirt are chosen for the conference next year too.

A gift well placed

The first piece of art to be introduced into the garden shed was hung yesterday.

This was a gift from Bob's niece Martina and her husband Roger Duncan who took the photo many years ago while biking in Oregon. It is also significant because it graced Olga Morrow's room in assisted living and brought her much joy.

UCM and the orchard was a very special place for Olga and to have a circular reconnection is a wonderful gift. Thank you Roger.

BTW - Congratulations to Roger for his promotion to Chief! Way to go!