We Got the Beets!

Posted on June 8, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

Staging for the daily cauldron of fruit.

It’s on my list but I still haven’t replaced my trail cam so if I can’t see what’s going on out there — maybe nothing is going on out there.

Wrong.

Sadly, the deer have returned. I don’t know how many or for how long but I definitely could tell that my poor little Asian plum tree served as major snack material. There were pieces of tree on the ground. There were deep divots from those cloven hooves. No turds though!

I can see where someone snacked on the apple tree, as well, but the apple tree is more established (relatively) and the damage didn’t look as bad.

I don’t care if they eat roses like some people. Eat the roses! The rosemary is giant — try that. There’s some green weedy stuff that might be delicious if they would just try it. I guess I should be careful what I wish for. Now I know they at least one of them is still alive and roving about the neighborhood.

This weekend I picked beets that I slow roasted with shallots. Delicious! I also picked peas. The peas are insane. I’ve never had such healthy plants so I planted them way too close together. It’s a mass of pea plants and a chore to poke around in there and try to find all the peas.

We had risotto with fresh peas that came out pretty good but I need to refine my technique. I am hoping to make some pasta with fresh peas and I already threw some in the freezer.

The berries are coming on but still manageable. I’ve never had so many of the everbearing before and some healthy looking red raspberries are starting now, too.

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Garden Bounty, Part 2 Berry Edition

Posted on May 30, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

The brand new strawberries that looked like little dirty roots when they arrived are already making strawberries. To be honest, they aren’t that flavorful and have a slightly spongy texture, but it’s still early. Some sunshine and I bet these are terrific.

This is my berry patch. It was so dense last summer that berry picking felt dangerous. My arms always had scratches on them.

I discovered something called thornless berries and immediately ordered 2 plants. At some point, early spring?, I severely whacked back the berry patch. I cut lots of canes and I dug up lots of canes. I wish I’d take an picture but the patch looked so sad and bare.

I’m very greedy about my garden and hate discouraging anything but I wanted room for the new berries and I figured I could live one year with a light crop.

HAHAHAHHAHAHAHA.

It’s like the berries were never happier. Look at this. It is a mass of forming berries.

And look how long the patch is. I checked on my two new plants and they are hanging in there, poor little babies amongst these tall, established vines. I expect to be begging my neighbors to take berries, too. What an amazing problem to have.

Two years ago I started pruning my blueberries as well. They love it, too. I think there’s a lesson to be learned.

Berries never go to waste. We eat a ton. We freeze a ton. Last year I made a lot of jam but we don’t eat it fast enough so not sure jam will save us this year. We’ll share these, too.

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Garden Bounty, Part 1

Posted on May 27, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

(Somehow I wrote the blog for New Orleans Last Day and never posted it. Oops!! That’s why there are going to be a couple posts close together.)

The garden is bursting at the seams. I’ve always wanted a magical backyard and I feel like I am starting to achieve that.

These are the peas. I felt like I was really holding back and just planting a reasonable amount. But everything came up and came up hearty and that is a pea bush. You can’t really see but there are some lettuce plants in between because it seemed like there was extra room in there.

The raised beds are magic.

Here’s some more lettuce. Lettuce is another crop that I felt I really held back and only planted a few seeds. I’m so accustomed to pitiful returns that this whole thing has been quite educational.

I am still giving away lettuce and making new friends wherever I can. There’s a neighborhood association meeting next week and I’m bringing lettuce.

I have 4 tomatoes in the raised beds and I look forward to complaining about too many tomatoes.

Apples! Last year the deer visited during apple blossom time and filled their adorable bellies with all my future apples.

I haven’t see a trace of the deer in quite some time and worry for their health and well being.

But, I am also happy for my yard. Now there are so many apples that the whole tree is going to collapse. I need to keep an eye on them and thin them out when the time comes. I also need some help propping it up.

Honey pears! I love how they grow upside down at first. The pear tree is still pretty scrawny and there are only few pears, maybe 8, but I am still going to keep a close eye on it. Last year we had only 2 or 3 and they were small pears but we enjoyed every little bite.

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New Orleans, Last Day

Posted on May 19, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

Tennessee Williams wrote Streetcar named Desire here.

After two full days of conference, we had one last day. Our flight was later so we had time in the morning to do a few last things.

We went to the Cabildo which was built under Spanish Rule and served as the site of the Louisiana Purchase transfer ceremony.

There was an extensive exhibit about Marquis de Lafayette who is an important historical figure that I feel like I don’t know much about. I put a note in my “to be read” list to track down a book about him. Also, I went through the exhibit backwards so I was trying to piece together the significance without context.

We also went to the Louisiana State Museum, Presbeytère where there was a great exhibit about Hurricane Katrina and lots of interesting Mardi Gras info. (That all is made out of Lego.)

As we made our last walk through the French Quarter, we stopped in to the French Quarter Visitor Center for a little bit of music and looking at plants.

Then it was back to the airport. I like that the cabs have a flat rate but man, those drivers didn’t want to chat or do anything except get back and forth from the airport as quickly as circumstances allowed.

I hope to go back but not sure I’d want to see the French Quarter again. I was a huge Anne Rice fan so I’d like to see the Garden District next time.

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New Orleans, Day 2

Posted on May 14, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

We had one full day in New Orleans to have fun together.

We planned to take the street car to the New Orleans City Park and as we walked out of our hotel we saw the street car coming and you know how you panic when you haven’t done something before and we ran to catch it.

Once we were on it I pointed out that I hadn’t had any hot drink to start my day.

Bob felt kinda bad and when we got off the street car we walked around where there was nothing except a mini-mart. Bob offered to go to the mini-mart and I said: I’M NOT GOING TO A MINI-MART FOR MY TEA. I’D RATHER HAVE NOTHING.

So we walked into the park and there was a Cafe Du Monde! I even had a cafe au lait which is probably my first cup of coffee in at least ten years. It was okay. I’m just not a coffee person. The beignet was delicious.

We went to the New Orleans Museum of Art and stopped for a snack afterward and then went to the Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden which was fantastic.

Such a variety of sculptures and a lovely place for a walk.

Do you spot the travelers in this photo?

After this we went back to the French Quarter and we went to something but I can’t remember what. I don’t take notes on trips anymore. But Jazz Fest was going on so we walked near the venue and wandered around a cemetery while listening to some of the music.

It was a fun scene and I was glad I wasn’t going to a huge music festival.

That night’s dinner was a bust. We walked around and couldn’t get far enough out of the touristy area and ended up with expensive and super generic food. The server was nice so when he asked me how my food was, I didn’t say: boring.

I have a few more photos. We’ll see if I get them up with any final stories.

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New Orleans, Day 1

Posted on May 11, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

MISSISSIPPI!

I had the opportunity to go to New Orleans for a work conference and I took Bob with me.

We went a day early so we could have some adventures.

We arrived on a Saturday around dinner time. I don’t know how the lines are drawn. Our hotel was either adjacent to the French Quarter or part of it.

We managed to find an amazing dinner and then we wandered around. There is terrific music or art or something cool to look at in every corner. It was a bummer I was so tired from traveling because I pooped out early. But we still heard a lot of fun stuff.

While I enjoyed the French Quarter, it was like of like visiting Las Vegas. It’s easy to have enough. Bourbon Street is loud and smells like weed and sour beer. The food leans heavily to fried. You need to watch what you do in the heaviest tourist spots. But we had fun.

This was an epic salad with blackened red fish that was delicious.

More photos to come from the Sunday adventure.

Monday the conference started. I don’t remember ever being at conference with such a stuffed agenda. I went downstairs at 7:30 to eat and business started around 8, there was activity during the lunch meal and we didn’t stop the last session until 5:30pm.

There were breaks but they were long enough to get out of your meeting room, find something to drink and use the bathroom and then make your way to the next meeting room.

It was a great conference and I’m still sorting through my notes to figure out what’s useful for us.

If you’re wondering whether we talked about AI — we did. A lot.

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It’s May!

Posted on May 8, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

Big tragedy — the trailcam died. It’s been sitting here until I had time to troubleshoot and I have now troubleshat and: it’s dead. I will buy a new one one of these days.

In an ongoing theme, there has been a lot going on. I took today off to see if I can get my act together. I always do this thing where I made a list of 15 chores and errands I will get done and then either

(1) I am overwhelmed and end up back in bed reading; or

(2) I only do 7, a perfectly reasonable number of things to get done, but still feel like a failure.

Today I am trying to pick 3 things and then relax and putter around the yard and walk around the neighborhood giving away lettuce.

Giving away lettuce?

I need to go out and get pictures. I have brand new raised beds and I thought I was planting a conservative amount but everything came up, healthy! The slugs haven’t found it yet. Beautiful pretty lettuce.

If you need to make a salad for 30 and you live near me. CALL! I will deliver.

Also: Bob and I had the opportunity to go to New Orleans. I went to a conference. Bob found all kinds of music and historical related things to do. I tacked on an extra day for us to have fun together and we did. Photos and details to come.

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Even the Giant Bag Must Come to An End

Posted on April 30, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

Remember this giant bag of tea?

I finally finished it.

Well, it’s not completely done.

I keep a pint canning jar in the kitchen and use the tea from that and I just refilled the last amount. I did like this tea but not sure if I will buy again. I need to do some sourcing research.

It took about a year and a month to go through it which actually seems fast for such a giant bag. I don’t drink it every day. But almost every day. I have also been able to find the tea bags again and it’s easier to use those at the office.

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I Like My Food Fun

Posted on April 27, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

(I forgot to add to my I’m so busy post –NCAA Gymnastics. Finals were last weekend so that’s mostly off my list although there are a few semi-final meets I hope to still get to. With streaming there is access to almost everything including the smaller schools so it’s a lot but I love it.)

Seriously: watch this beam routine. Mute the sound. Because of the way the meet went, she was the last performer and got a standing ovation and a 9.9625 for this amazing, amazing routine:

I have loved Kinder chocolate since my first visit to Germany as a little girl and that hasn’t changed. I bought this bag of cookies because I thought it was funny that they were advertised as crunchy and fun.

They were.

Likewise these mini ice cream sandwiches described as “always irresistible.”

I love all the mini ice cream treats available now. I love something sweet after dinner but often just a bite or two is enough. These are perfect.

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Where Have I Been?

Posted on April 25, 2025 by Pamela Rentz

Spring flowers in the front yard

Pardon me for being a broken record but everything remains busy. I seem perpetually frazzled and lurching from one chore to the next, just trying to keep up. When I finally have time, I don’t want to sit at the computer. Although I am writing — it’s not going great or super productive but it’s happening little by little.

I haven’t updated it in a while but I have been reading more than usual. Books read here. I just started a book called The Terror by Dan Simmons which is 784 pages long — I didn’t realize that when I started it. Looks like it’s a TV series, too. It’s an account of the 1845 Franklin Expedition searching for the Northwest Passage and the author has taken an already terrifying story and added a horror element. It’s excellent so far.

I have a tiny window for yard work today, I’ve already deleted a number of things from my list, and I’m still not out there.

Here are the garden beds. This was about a week ago. Things have progressed much since then. I already have greens for harvesting.

We helped out the neighborhood Easter egg hunt. We stuffed eggs with candy and tickets. On the day we helped get things set up. There was a nice turnout with tons of kids and perfect weather. It was super fun.

Living dangerously and not proofreading!

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