Sweet!

I ended up with two cups of maple syrup.  Sweet?  S w e e t!  Delicious and natural and will be really good on my cream of wheat cereal, my homemade maple syrup.  A single ingredient, tree juice, boiled for hours to a wholesome, aromatic, liquid treasure. I have enough to last me a year. 

Maple Trees Starting To Form Flower Buds

I saw today that one of my maple trees has started to form flower buds.  I pulled the sap taps and set the sap to boiling.  I didn't get a lot of sap but I hope to have enough for a couple pancakes at least.  I had about 2 gallons of sap.  Not all of it fit in the pot at first so I boiled some down before adding the rest. I'm boiling the sap in my new, top of the line, orange Lodge enameled cast iron cookware that I got for Christmas.  I love my new orange pot and I use it all the time for soup, making cheese, or anything that needs sauteing before baking.  I just don't know how I got along without the new pan.  The house feels a little humid right now.

Happy I Heard My First of the Year Sandhill Crane Today

Traveling With Pomegranates

I read Traveling With Pomegranates written by  Sue Monk Kidd and her daughter Ann Kidd Taylor.  The mother and daughter duo traveled to Greece twice and wrote about their travels.  And when I saw travels I mean physical travels, spiritual travels and relationship travels.  Both women are very introspective and possibly anxious.  I can imagine traveling with them would be quite frustrating because they would stop and stare at a mundane thing like the roots of an olive tree for hours while contemplating their place in the universe and how that related to Greek mythology.  I enjoyed the book but I am a fan of Sue Monk Kidd.  If you aren't a fan of hers, I doubt you'd like it.

A Man Called Ove

Fredrik Backman is the author of A Man Called Ove. As I read it I noticed a pattern.  I would read something about Ove that caused me to judge him harshly and then the author would give us some background on Ove that made his actions seem reasonable.  I would think Ove is a mean curmudgeon who deserved to be thrown out of a hospital after punching a clown but then I learn that Ove is sweet, loving, and principled; a man of virtue.  The story was a delightful mix of contrasts.  Brutality mixed with love, Ove has had a difficult life.  I had to connect with him in regard to his feelings for the cat that showed up in his life.  As much as he doesn't like cats and doesn't want the responsibility of a cat, he treats the cat with respect even though the cat disdains him and gave him a look, "as if I owed it money."  The author is a very funny man and he wrote a wonderful book. The book gave me a lesson on judging (or not judging) others. While I read it I lived in a suburban neighborhood of Norway and it felt good to get out of Minnesota if only for a little while.

Tap Time

I tapped my maple trees this weekend after asking the tree expert his opinion on maple syrup this year.  (He didn't know.)  As soon as I attached the spout to the tree the sap gushed into the tubing.  Yesterday I collected almost a full gallon of sap.  So maybe this will be a good year, I won't know for sure until it's over.  I think it would be better if the night temperatures went below freezing but we shall see.  To top that off, the ice went out on the Rum River yesterday.  The red shouldered hawk is back in my yard talking, talking, talking.  No other bird has as much to scream as the red shouldered hawk.  AND I saw a red convertible car with the top down today.  My favorite season has begun. 

Officially Spring

On my lunchtime walk near Laddie Lake I heard my first of the year red winged blackbird calling.  I heard it call six times. As I walked further up the shore I saw it perched in the dried reeds.  Just for my benefit, the bird sang as I watched it hammering in the fact that now spring is officially here.  Welcome back you handsome blackbird!