12 Blog Favorites From 2011

The RMKK people at Smith Lake

Wow! Another blogging year has come to an end. I sincerely hope my family and I have entertained and informed you in 2011. Thank you for visiting RMKK and sharing your lives with us. We are grateful for your feedback and goodwill.

May you have a happy, healthy, and prosperous NEW YEAR!

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It has become a tradition to share 12 blog favorites from the past year that we hope you will enjoy revisiting, or reading for the very first time. This year's articles include adventure, humor, and reminiscences along with some great photographs and videos. We hope you will enjoy them and share your favorites with friends and family!

January - The Mail Slot - Have you ever thought about the things that you have manifested in your life? I did in this article. Everything from a bat hanging on the screen door to the postman that didn't want to give me my mail.

February - Bar Stool Races in Martin City, the Video - Kalispell teen survives collision with out of control canoe, the driver, Bigfoot, may have been intoxicated. This is a fun article and video of the raucous bar stool races in Martin City.

March - Beauty, Guns, Speed, and Marijuana - Montana has it all! They don't call it the Last Best Place for nothing.

April - Just Call Me Nobody -  Yep, that's me...Nobody. The liberal news media can be very irritating!

May - The Third Time is the Charm - Big Fish - It takes patience to catch a fish. Find out just how much in this entertaining fish story.

June - Cycling Adventure in Glacier - Hikers, Bikers, and Bears! - While plowing progressed on the upper reaches of the Sun Road, vehicular traffic was stopped at Avalanche. This left the road to hikers, bikers, and bears!

July - Screaming Bigfoot - Cyber screams and name calling. You'll be shocked at some of the things people say about our video, Screaming Bigfoot.

August - Karma Came and Got Me - That's how karma works!  After writing an article about quitters,  karma came and got me on the Highline Trail.

September - Talk About a Blast - In this one I feel like Sara Conner. This article could have been titled - "Happiness is a Warm Gun".

October - Discover the Little Gems with Geocaching - It's great to be in the flow! It all fell into place for this extraordinary geocaching adventure. Everything from pictographs to bear scat!

November - So You Want to Move to Montana? -Find out what it's really like living in Montana ...you will have to use an outhouse, get eaten by bears, and possibly get eaten by the abominable snowman.

December - The Saga of the Silver Christmas Tree - A sweet and simple poem about my childhood Christmas Tree.

Have a safe holiday everyone!

Marlene

The Saga of the Silver Christmas Tree

Once upon a time in the 1960’s,
When everybody thought everything was nifty,

Came out of a box,
Complete with branches and stand,

An aluminum Christmas tree,
Of which I was not a fan.

It was thought to be modern,
And space age too,

No chopping, no watering,
Less clean up for you.

It shown in the window,
All shiny and bright,

With color wheel turning,
As it could wear no lights.

It was artificial,
So it had no scent,

Please! Can’t we have a real one,
And finally it went,

Now that I think about it,
So long ago,

I love that Silver Christmas Tree,
With all its glow,

You might think them tacky,
You may call them cheap,

 But now that they are vintage,
Many people think they’re neat.

Me in front on Christmas Day in 1967 in front of our aluminum Christmas Day.

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According to Wikipedia -

At the height of the aluminum tree’s popularity, the trees were sold in the Sears Catalog. Sears’ sales pitch remarked:

“Whether you decorate with blue or red balls . . . or use the tree without ornaments – this exquisite tree is sure to be the talk of your neighborhood. High luster aluminum gives a dazzling brilliance. Shimmering silvery branches are swirled and tapered to a handsome realistic fullness. It’s really durable . . needles are glued and mechanically locked on. Fireproof . . you can use it year after year.” - Sears, 1963 Christmas Book

Season's Greetings!

Marlene

Oh Well, We Forgot the Pajamas

A small crowd gathered on the porch of the Conrad Mansion as the essence of Thanksgiving withered and the Christmas season began to bloom. The mood was festive as a convivial stranger spoke of historical Boston. Finally, the screen door opened and a middle-aged woman looked us over. She told us that it would be a few minutes before we could enter and that the party with the reservations would be served first.

David and I were there to see the night clothes exhibit. Not only would we see 100 year old p.j.‘s, we would have the pleasure of seeing the mansion decked out in all its Christmas finery.

The warmth of the parlor felt good as we were let in to pay for our tour.  A beautifully decorated mantel caught my eye,

...continue reading  (this article has eight beautiful photographs of Conrad Mansion)

Enjoy!

Till next time,

Marlene

I Want My Pumpkin Made in America

It’s batty enough that I prepare my mirlitons with frozen shrimp from Thailand, and not the Gulf of Mexico. I am not about to bake my traditional Thanksgiving Day pie with pumpkin from China.

Bargain Brand Pumpkin, not such a bargain in my books.

Earlier in the season, I had looked for canned pumpkin at the store as my daughter had requested it to use in everyday recipes. A very nice clerk who was stocking shelves, told me it was scarce due to the unusual weather conditions the country had seen last spring. The mid-west had seen torrential rains and flooding – not very conducive to good pumpkin growing. Because of that, the crop wasn’t as big this year, and the store hadn’t received a delivery of canned pumpkin.

I accepted that, and knew to keep my eye open for canned pumpkin. If it didn’t show up on the shelves in the coming weeks, I would buy a small, fresh one for pie.

A few weeks passed, and Mallory was sent to do the weekly shopping. I love when she does the grocery shopping because she sticks to the list, comes home with lots of fresh fruits and veggies, and is a super fast shopper.

On this particular trip, she bought some canned pumpkin. I was delighted that she had found some, and at a bargain price. It wasn’t our usual Libby brand pumpkin, and I honestly thought the grocer had substituted it for the national brand, due to a shortage.

She used the canned pumpkin for yummy pumpkin oatmeal and thick pumpkin lattes.

When Thanksgiving shopping rolled around, I picked up two cans of the bargain pumpkin and stored it on a shelf in the basement.

Several days went by before it was time for the holiday baking. The aroma of baking cornbread and savory stuffed mirlitons filled the kitchen. Next on the to-do list:

1. Bake a pumpkin pie
2. Bake a fresh cherry pie

Before getting started, I looked at the label on the canned pumpkin. My brow furrowed at the sight of PRODUCT OF CHINA. This was an outrage – I couldn’t do it! I simply could not bake our time-honored pie with pumpkin from China. I told my husband, David, what I had discovered, and said I wanted to return it for pumpkin MADE IN AMERICA. It seemed absurd to me that we would buy pumpkin from China when we (Americans) are perfectly capable of producing our own pumpkins!

Beware! Festival Pumpkin, a product of China

With 2 cans of pumpkin and receipt in hand, I explained to the girl with the oogly black and platinum hair that I had to return the pumpkin because it was made in China.

“Okay,“ she said, but I have a hunch she was a bit bewildered by my request.  The younger generation just doesn't get that America used to be a manufacturing giant.

David and I went down the cake mix isle and found the Libby pumpkin. With some apprehension, I checked the label to make sure that it was made in America. It was – Ohio.

I brought the can of pumpkin back to customer service where I exchanged the 2 cans of made in China to the one can made in America. I received a penny back.

I know it isn’t much, but I left the store feeling like I had done a small part to preserve our manufacturing know-how of producing canned pumpkin in the United States.

Both American Made

 Till next time,

Marlene

The Big Tire Adventure

Costco really should give out numbers at their tire center.

You pick a number when you go to the Department of Motor Vehicles and you also pick a number at Economical’s deli department so you’ll know when it’s your turn to be served. It makes everything nice and efficient; there’s no rushing to get a place in line because you have your number.

Your number holds your spot; unless you go off somewhere to another isle for a jar of Blue Plate mayonnaise, let’s say, and you don’t hear your number being called.  After they call “13, 13, anybody got number 13?”, and you don’t speak up, you’ll miss your turn and the lady with number 14 will get her prosciutto before you get your sliced ham.

As I was saying, Costco should have numbers. continue reading

The snow flies while we wait for tires.

Till next time!

Marlene

A Watched Pot Never Boils

A watched pot never boils. If you’ve ever boiled an egg, you know this to be true. You wait and wait and wait, and nothing happens until you walk away. Then, voila! The water starts bubbling like crazy, and in 10 minutes (13 minutes in Kalispell, higher elevation instructions for hard boiled eggs), you have eggs cooked to perfection. Firm yellow yolks, with no green ring!

Mallory and Eileen on the bike path.

Watching my apple butter come to a full boil was just as monotonous as anything else. Pots do this to torture us, I believe. I had to stir and stir, and stir some more. For what seemed like an eternity, I watched my apple cinnamon, brown sugar spice goop - do nothing. After what seemed like an eternity, I called on M and E for relief. Their poor little wrists couldn’t take the constant stirring, and they pooped out pretty quickly.

I finally got impatient and turned up the heat. Not much. Just a tad. I didn’t want to scorch the mixture. I boldly looked away.

- It began to simmer and then came to a full rolling boil.

- I cooked it down and filled the canning jars.

- I processed the jars in a boiling water bath.

- I took them out and set them on the baker’s rack to cool.

- Next day, I checked my seals and cleaned the jars.

After a few days, I opened one. What a disappointment! After all of that tedious work, it was too thin. It didn’t come out thick and creamy, but is tasty enough. It makes an excellent topping for vanilla ice cream.

This past weekend was a lot like watching a pot waiting to boil. A winter storm was forecast to blow through Kalispell; we were expecting snow. I kept looking out the window and checking the thermometer to see if it was getting colder.

Whenever I looked out, all I could see were dark skies and drippy rain. And the temperature? It was in the 40’s and bone chilling!

Where was the snow?

The yucky weather persisted throughout the weekend. When Monday came, I felt jipped.

Then, the wind picked up, the wind chimes chimed, and snow began to swirl. Yippee! The storm had arrived.

Moral of the story - have patience.
Everything comes in time to him who knows how to wait. ~Tolstoy

Till next time,

Marlene