We're about a month away from the total solar eclipse and the zone of totality runs right through northern Oregon on its way east. We're about 30 miles south of that zone so we'd get a pretty good view of it, but a) we live in the woods, and b) the next total eclipse of the sun doesn't happen for another 100+ years, so this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You can't find a campsite or hotel room anywhere in the zone, and some hotels in eastern Oregon have been sold out for four years.
One option is to go to the local H.S. which is opening up their football field for people who want a good view of the eclipse, which hits its peak about 10:15 a.m. Another possibility is to drive north 30 minutes and find a parking lot somewhere, get there plenty early, and get the lawn chairs out of the back of the Kia.
One of our favorite restaurants is in Harrisburg, 20 miles north of here. It's an old school joint only open for breakfast & lunch, is a hangout for old guys wearing John Deere hats and bib overalls, and serves up some world class BACON. They open at 6 a.m.
I'm thinking we're there when they open, have a great breakfast, and then drive another 10 miles up to the tiny town of Halsey where there's a H.S., a couple of churches, a farm implement store....
I started preheating the oven at 4:30 this morning and had the blueberry pie baked by 5:30. The crust looks a lot better than the first one I think because I went from an 11" pan to a 9" pan. That meant I didn't have to roll it so thin in order to get it to cover the bottom of the pan. I also added just a bit more water.
This isn't brain surgery. I'm following the Better Homes & Garden recipe to the letter, including all of the things I added to the fresh blueberries, some of which I'd never guess should go in, like a very small amount of ginger.
My mom, a master in the kitchen, is right; the crust is the trickiest part because it has so many variables. "5-7 Tbsp of cold water." And I read that if you roll it too much the crust comes out tough. So maybe I've just been lucky, but I'm also having some fun. And this pie turned out pretty good. Pam's diet doesn't allow her to have more than a taste, so I'll knuckle down and eat the whole thing.
Next up: Marion Berry pie.
I don't agree with Sen. John McCain on everything. I consider myself a moderate and find some of his positions a bit too moderate. That said, he's a legit American hero with a lifetime of courage and get-it-done, no bull straight shooting. And he nailed it with his speech on the floor of the Senate today. I'd like to think what he said will make a difference, but I doubt if even he thinks that's possible.
I leave a week from tomorrow (next Wednesday) for Michigan, a red-eye flight that leaves Portland just before midnight and gets into Grand Rapids about 9 a.m. on Thursday. I'm speaking at Grace Adventures Sunday morning. If you don't know the place I won't try to explain it, but there will be about 1,000 people at the worship service, most of them there on vacation because it's right near Lake Michigan in an area with lots of vacation homes. I spoke at one of their chapel services most summers when we lived in MI and it's one of those settings that a preacher loves. Happy people, great energy, responsive....
I'm looking forward to it.
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