Gravy.

I went down to Portland this weekend- my weekend, which was a day longer than usual- with Aki, his girlfriend Vanessa, and his brother Masato. It was a nice little getaway.

Highlights/Recap: Porchetta sandwich from People's Pig food cart- pickled romanesco?!? More please. I will also be copying this item on my next menu as closely as possible.

Dinner with Trever and Nicole at a cool Italian bar. Monday lunch with Meghan at ClarkLewis, and then cocktails at the Ace Hotel and the Benson Hotel. I like hotel bars. They usually have quality drinks and are full of people who are like me- nowhere else to go....

I also obtained the 2nd to last piece of my Halloween Costume. I am going to be a gravy robber.

It's rather esoteric:

FMA.

I have completed a month-plus plan of pulling off this farmers market event. It had the rather long-winded official title of, "Farmers Market Alliance-UDistrict Chamber of Commerce Fall Market Harvest Celebration." It is an unwieldy acronym.....

Anyways, I woke up stressing out yesterday, for no real apparent reason. After being at work for 30 minutes and taking account of what was what, I realized I could enjoy myself and cook some excellent stuff. There were a couple minor details I wasn't happy with, but at the end of the day, everything I could do/did do made people happy. I was grateful for the farmers that donated produce, and love that community. Here's the menu of what I did, but since you didn't eat it, you lose.

Boom.

I cannot wait.

And the Dart usage is extra appreciated.

Catch-Up.

Just enjoying a day off, during which we're getting these lovely Indian Summer days. I have no idea why they're called that. But I drank coffee and read outside earlier, and though I wore a jacket, it was only because of the light breeze.

I have cleaned up my room, which was a big event. I still hadn't put away my camping thing from last week. A tent spread out to air, the various contents/accouterments of camping I own (including 2 sleeping bags, and 3 tents) really takes up a lot of room unpacked. It takes up almost all of the small closet I have in my room, and it's stacked up, and packed away in 2 backpacks for order. It's crazy. But it's been put away, and the room dusted for probably only the 4th time I've lived here. It's not grungy ever, because it's so dark in here....

I am plotting next week's "farmers market alliance/U-District chamber of commerce fall harvest celebration." I have lots of fine things on order, and I will let you know more about this in the near future. Now I have to go back to enjoying Wilco's double album "Being There."

Le Beach.

The ocean was great.

It rained only a bit, in the morning. It was empty, devoid of campers. The night was full of stars, and constellations I have no idea of. We cooked over the fire, pondered, and drank smooth whiskey, a requisite part of a fine camping experience.

Brought back 2 albacore tunas, weighing around 11 pounds apiece, of which I have only eaten raw (classic Japanese sashimi with fresh shiso, cabbage, perfect rice and miso as one meal, and a Spanish approach to the belly: sliced thin, with green olives/pimientos, oregano, and fine, grassy olive oil, sea salt, black pepper and fresh lemon. Both are pretty good....) and have to preserve the remainder.

Tonight is a stay-at-home night; big living overshadows daily necessities, which become dire, such as laundry or cleaning ones room....

Oct.

I have ended up at the other side of the day that was circled in my calendar as "the day when everyone wants something, be called, or I have an appointment." I was not looking forward to the day, especially when I somehow double booked two big things concurrently. But, alas, I have made it happen, and have survived.

The really big thing is my brother has gotten a new job, and has returned from Alaska to the outskirts of Washington, the fabled Tri-Cities. (Not as fabled as Olympia and its two hanger-ons...) He woke up in Fairbanks to 5° F and headed over to the eastside of the state, where he said it'd be 85° F. Drastic.

But, more personally affecting: my new menu. It was a firm departure from Summer's Freewheeling Produce Array (the name of my gypsy folk/sky/Euro-dance band) to the full harvest time. Tomatoes are winding down (no! I hadn't eaten enough!) Fishes too. I am turning to pumpkins and braised dishes. Peppers are utilized a lot. Corn, I recognize now, should have seen some sort of play. Kimchee has been made from cabbage, and I should make a sauerkraut batch. But that's next week, if I am lucky. Loads of other things to take care of!

But here it is; October in all its glories:

Saturday, Sounders match (will they make the playoffs?!?!) and the farmers market. Sunday was going to be camping up in the mountains (which I haven't really done this year) but now looks to be out at the ocean with Aki (which also hasn't happened this year...)

Should be good.