end of the season

visitors

We don't get many trick or treaters here in the dark woods of Lincoln but the bonfire may have attracted them. This was quite a trio.

From left to right: Alice in Wonderland, a Firefly (with the oh so familiar New England Halloween phenomenon...the jacket over the costume!) and Poseidon, Greek King of the Sea.

Before leaving, Alice asked if I would like to hear a poem.

Did she KNOW who she was talking to? What could make

me happier? She recited this from the book by Lewis Carroll.

How doth the little crocodile

Improve upon his shining tail,

And pour the waters of the Nile

On every golden scale!

How cheerfully he seems to grin,

How neatly spreads his claws,

And welcomes little fishes in

With gently smiling jaws!

Full disclosure; turns out the two girls were from Cambridge, just here

visiting their friend, Poseidon. This must have been their second

time out, since trick or treating in Lincoln was postponed until last night due to the storm.

Cambridge was unscathed. Alice had already had a trial run. Very Lewis Carroll.

thirty years!

Carrie turns thirty!

The Party:

Fire outside

Fire in the barn woodstove

Clear night, half moon, stars and good company

Jeff and Jenn. Jeff is a friend from college.

Abid and Alia. Alia attended Columbia with Carrie and is now living in Boston.

The Cooks:

Eliza made two loaves of sesame topped braided challah bread.

Suzanne beginning the butternut squash soup with coconut and spinach and tofu.

Kate checking Epicurious on her ipad for lasagna recipes, stuffed dates and more.

Sisters!

Suzanne is from Austin, TX. Carrie and Suzanne met in Biloxi, MI working for Hands ON USA.

Carrie and Kate are friends for college. They drove down to Biloxi together to volunteer right after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Apple Crisp and ice cream. The end to a perfect birthday meal.

Twenty five of us gathered in Lincoln to celebrate Carrie's thirtieth birthday. Carrie, Suzanne, Kate and Eliza showed up around two o'clock after stopping at Whole Foods on the way to gather ingredients and began cooking up a storm. I joined in for the apple crisp part of the menu. Now this is the way to give a party. Many cooks!

Guests arrived as it was getting dark. Friends had traveled from as far as New York City, Washington D.C., Freeport, Maine and North Carolina and from nearby Cambridge. David lit a fire in the courtyard and in the barn woodstove. Guests migrated from barn to house and back again. The moon was bright and I realized how we all love to stand around a fire, drinking mulled cider, talking and occasionally just staring at the flames. The piñata in the barn topped off the party. Nothing like blindfolded revelers swinging baseball bats! It was a great evening.

Happy Birthday, Carrie!

neither snow nor sleet nor heat nor gloom of night....

Our mailbox was flattened by an oak limb. The sound of cracking wood lasted all night while the freak October storm raged. It's a mess around here; roads are closed, power is out all over town, school was closed on Monday and Halloween postponed!

This October storm was more like a spring storm when trees are leafed out and can't take the weight of heavy, wet snow. The oaks really suffered, so many came down or lost major limbs. I am glad now that we took down the four leader oak by our front door. We could have roof damage on top of everything else.

I just couldn't believe that the mailman delivered the mail as if nothing had happened. As I drove up the hill after teaching a class today, I paused at the bottom of the driveway and there was the New Yorker, a film from Netflix and some catalogs all neatly secured with a rubber band wedged under the piece of metal that was once our mailbox. I wonder how long we can get away with not fixing it. Or more to the point, how soon must we get a new one?

The good news is that 1. we got our mail, 2. the power is back on and 3. Halloween has been rescheduled for Saturday night.

All is well.

ode to summer

Can you believe this shade of orange?

Hot chilies!

I love a hand painted sign.

Some of today's haul.

Every Thursday afternoon, I take my bags across town to Lindentree Farm. Entering the barn, I cross my name off the list of members of the CSA and take my allotted vegetables for the week. What ever is in abundance in the fields, I take away in my bags. Many are not things I would choose at the grocery store if I even knew what they were, but I take it all and figure out what to do with the lot when I get home. Celeriac was my great discovery this summer. Celery root makes the creamiest of soups.

My favorites this summer have been things on the "free" table. The farmer is very picky and wants his customers to get the best looking produce. The overly ripe tomatoes with occasional black spots and juice oozing out are delicious. I fill my bag until I can barely lift it.

On to the corn stacked in a wooden crate in the corner. I peel back the husk to greet a corn borer, radiant in its green attire. The cardboard sign on the box indicates that this corn is "for soup." But I know different. Chop off the worm and the gnawed brown tip and the corn is the best you will find anywhere. This worm eats well! Local and organic! The worm is my canary in the coal mine. If the corn is good enough for the worm, it is perfect for me. No worm would eat food sprayed with chemicals!

That's it for the free stuff. I take a handful of parsley, some beets, eggplant and hot peppers. There's the kale, so good sautéed with onions and garlic. Carrots and potatoes are looking good. Watermelons, spaghetti squash and pumpkins are fall's bounty. Gone are the lettuce, spinach, raspberries and cherry tomatoes of high summer. Looks like the frost has blackened the zinnias. Mine are still colorful across town.

Wait, what do I see in the green house? Piles of dark green acorn squash that are blackened on one side. Free for the taking! I load my bag to the brim and stagger to my car.

My afternoon is now spoken for. I will spend it peeling, chopping, roasting and freezing all that I have foraged. I will remember the warm sun on a cold day in January when I pull tomatoes, corn and squash from the freezer. I will close my eyes as I take a bite and think of summer...and the worm.

African Summer

Hi all,

I recently completed an iMovie project compiling photos and videos taken by myself and my co-leader this summer in Tanzania. Overland, the organization I work for, asks that leaders create a slideshow for parents and students considering the trip for next summer. It is a nice, compact recap of the summer, and a quick and easy way for Overland to advertise their program online. It's also a nice way for my friends and family to see what I did!

Here it is: Overland Field Studies Tanzania, Summer 2011

Love, Eliza

A Family Affair

As the Head of Residential Life at Coastal Studies for Girls this year, I have campus duties nearly 24/7. One of the perks of this demanding job is that I am motivated to make the very most of my time off. A few weeks ago, I took full advantage of a Friday night off by corralling all four O'Neils up in Maine, plus my future brother-in-law Tim (has that really not been announced on the blog yet?!), to join Roz, Lucy, and Chris for Date Night in Arrowsic. Talk about making the most of time off!

We had a delicious dinner made by Roz, a slumber party in her cozy house, and the requisite lunch at Five Island the next day before parting ways. We had perfect Maine weather while enjoying Jenny's Special and the freshest lobster in the world in the company of wonderful family. I hope this will become a tradition now that I've staked out a home in Maine this year. Thanks for a great weekend, all!