Sunday In My City - Road Trip, Auburn NY

This weekend, for Unknown Mami's Sunday In My City, we took a trip back in time.

Sort of.

Even though Auburn, NY is a bit of a hike from where I live, the ride really didn't seem that long. Perhaps it was because after the multiple snowstorms we've experienced over the past several weeks since Christmas, it felt good to finally get out and just relax, enjoy the scenery without having to shovel a path to it. The roads were clear, the sun was shining and the snow was slowly melting, the 8-foot bank at the edge of my driveway is down to about 5 feet. It almost makes me want to put on some shorts!

Almost.

The first thing I thought as we approached Auburn was how it looked like we were stepping back in time. Check out this old image from the late 1940's or early 1950's...

And this one....

The Auburn of today is remarkably unchanged. They've left a lot of the historic buildings intact, lending charm to the city.

And they didn't get as much snow as we've gotten, and the weather was unseasonably warm. Warm enough for that crew to be out painting that old bridge...

Well actually .......

We only made it as far as Springfield, MA to the Eastern States Exposition where every January they hold the Amherst Railway Society Railroad Hobby Show!

Here are the "colorized" versions of those photos!

And photos do not do it justice...as the wife of a sometimes model railroad hobbyist, I can assure you, A LOT of work went into these displays.

The detail is just amazing.

And a special thanks to the Pepperell Siding Model Railroad Club for taking me "home" every year....

Part of their display includes a model of Pepperell, MA where I was born and my Dad's family lived for generations.

(Pepperell photos are is from the 2010 Model Railroad show...because I can't find the cord to download photos from my daughter's camera...)

Maybe next Sunday in My City I'll take you to the real Pepperell!

Sunday In My City - Moore State Park, Paxton

Unknown Mami hosts a great feature called Sunday in My City, where you share with the world what's going on in your city each Sunday. I have had so much fun participating as well as catching a glimpse into other bloggers' Sundays!

This Sunday, my little one (who has her first loose tooth!) and I went for yet another hike. This time we traveled to our neighboring town of Paxton, Massachusetts to visit Moore State Park, a lovely and serene 400-acre piece of conservation land.

We passed through Paxton Center, another typical New England town center. Here's the church (I show you a lot of these, don't I? I have a thing for steeples, I guess!)

And just beyond the church is the town hall...

A bit further down the road is the entrance to today's destination...

Moore State Park...and I must say that so far this has been my favorite place to hike/walk. Of course, the fact that it was a gorgeous warm but breezy day helped, but the park is beautifully maintained without feeling too "civilized". It was one of the most serene and glorious places I have visited.

You start out near a beautiful meadow near the parking lot...

Moore State Park is a bit different than the trails we hiked last week in that our four-legged friends are welcome!

The paved road that leads from the parking area is open to pedestrians and bicyclists only, and is a pretty gentle and shady hike.

A good thing when you're accompanied by a five year-old with a loose tooth! I don't recall them being so debilitating....

I don't think I captured it on film, but this road is lined with rhododendron bushes - you can bet I'll be back next spring when they're in bloom! Must be gorgeous!

There's lots of greenery though, like these beautiful ferns....

It took me 27 shots before this shy butterfly showed me her wings....so pretty!

We passed another smaller meadow, framed by one of the ubiquitous stone walls that criss-cross the New England landscape.

Not far from the entrance is a pretty pond, Eames Pond...

And in the distance we came upon this sight...

Aptly named "Enchanta Bridge", it turned out to be a beautiful spot to sit and rest, gazing out over the tranquil pond....

Sigh....

The water runs below it into a stream - this is the view from behind as we moved along...

Just around the bend we spotted another structure, the Old Sawmill....

On the way, some "wild animals" made their way over to say hello....

"Quack! Quack!"

The Old Sawmill was pretty cool...

Other than a brief thunderstorm the other day, we haven't had much rainfall so the water hasn't risen high enough to pour over the dam more than a trickle...

Here's the side...the water would normally flow right underneath the building...

And here's the view from behind....

There were several other trails nearby, as well as an orchard and some historic buildings, but we had to head home, so we said goodbye to Moore State Park.

But we'll be back!

Thanks for joining us on our hike! I'm pretty excited about next Sunday in My City...first of all, it will actually be in a city for a change (not that there's anything wrong with woods and hiking and wildlife, but I do live a stone's throw from the second largest city in New England...) and there is a really cool event taking place that I hope to share with you! It might be a bit of a major challenge ( <- Hint, hint....) to capture it on film, but I'll give it my best!

What's happening in your neck of the woods this fine Sunday? Hope you pop on over to Unknown Mami and join the fun!

Happy Sunday to all!

That's It! We're MOVING!!!!

Can you guess what those two red blobs are?

I'll give you a hint:  They make me want to move to New Mexico.  Or maybe Kansas.  Someplace with clean-cut, smooth borders.

They're supposed to be Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.  And as I was trying in vain to cut them out, I said words that rhyme with "Nantucket".... A LOT.

Why I even bothered to cut these tiny fragments of fabric out is beyond me....I could have simply used a drop or two of my blood...

Anyone wanna buy an island?

Well, I suppose I'm joking!

This is pretty much my "New England" quilt square:

And despite the fact that Martha and her Vineyard tried to kill me, despite the fact that my original Maine - after going cross-eyed cutting out that rocky coastline - was, um...backwards!  And that's not meant to be an insult to my friends and relatives in Maine...that's more like a "tsk tsk" to one not-so-bright marvelously mundane woman in Massachusetts who (duh!) traced her Maine template incorrectly, and despite the fact that my original Connecticut's fabric was too similar to my background fabric...

Despite all those things, I think I'll stay.

It needs some embellishment, but I'm not sure where to go with that just yet.

I did pick up these feathered friends...

Massachusetts and at least one other New England state lists the Black-capped Chickadee as their official state bird.  The one on the right looks like he's ready to swoop down and gobble up my Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, though, so I might save them for another use!

I think I'll be making a second quilt block...and this one involved no swearing at all...

Well, except during childbirth nearly four years ago! :)

This photo is one of my favorites of my little "Punkin", and was my Allrecipes avatar for a year or so, so I think it would be a good contribution to the quilt.  I may let Punkin decorate that one.

I'm still nursing my wounds! :)

A New England Tradition

I was beginning to panic as I started to see all those quilt block photos being posted over on Allrecipes.   

If you don't know what I'm talking about, the AR Community is putting together a quilt - anyone who wants to can chip in a quilt block or two, and in the end there will be a drawing to select who gets the finished product.  Might even be a traveling quilt, which I think would be cool!

While I love quilts, have a friend that sews and quilts beautifully, and have even lent her a hand on occasion, my talents involving needle and thread are still in their infancy.  My original plan was to cross-stitch, something I'm MUCH more comfortable with, some pretty lilac (sigh!) pattern, as the subject of my block.  I found a gorgeous pattern on-line, ordered it, skipped into the house from the mailbox...and then realized I would have to come up with something else.  While it's a gorgeous pattern, it will take me about 6 years to complete, it is so intricately detailed.  This I know to be true.

So it was back to the drawing board.  What could I do that represents me or where I'm from?  I've lived in Massachusetts all my life, and I always will.  I started thinking about Massachusetts and my favorite things about where I live...

"Pumpkins, cranberries and fall apple-picking!  

Cape Cod, and clam bakes, and Sox when they're winning!

Soft serve with jimmies (you call them sprinkles).

These are a few of my favorite things!

Homemade clam chowdah, and pahking my caaaahhhh..."

I hate when I lose my R's....

Anyway, it's not really just Massachusetts I love.   We have pure maple syrup....mine usually comes from Vermont.  And blueberries grow wild everywhere here....but I drive four hours into Maine to get wild Maine blueberries in season.  From where I live in central Massachusetts, the other New England states are between a 20 minute to two hour drive away, and while they all have their own specialties and their own claims to fame, they all feel like home to me.  Kind of like in your house you have a kitchen, a living room, a dining room, a bedroom or two, a porch...well, I've got six states.

So that's my plan for my quilt block - New England.  If all goes well (or not, because you know how I love to laugh at myself!) I'll post a pic soon.  Meanwhile, my excitement over my New England theme got me reminiscing about my childhood, family gatherings, summer vacations at the beach...and since my husband was working tonight, and tomorrow is Father's Day, my gift to him was for me to make this for dinner...

I'll give you a hint:  It's something he would never, ever, EVER eat.

And here is the most important ingredient:

Johhnycakes, you say?  Nope. But that is a Rhode Island thing, like celery salt on your hot dogs.

Here's a couple more clues:

Buttah.  Gahlic.  Cheap Beer. (The "r" is silent in beer, by the way.)

(Tomatoes are just for show.  And Cabot butter and cheese from Vermont is one other reason to love New England.)

Give up?  

OK, this is the final clue.

They're called clams!  Although, when I went to the fish market today I didn't buy "clams", I bought steamers.  (Again, the "r" is silent).  Growing up, THIS is the only kind of clam I knew.  I suppose you'd call them soft-shell clams, although they're not soft and may cut you if you step in a broken one barefoot.  

Now, I know some folks won't be into this.  I've grossed out a few visitors or dining companions before, so I'll tell you when to close your eyes.  Don't worry, I have yet to gather the courage to try sushi or cow tongue yet, so I feel your pain.

First things first, when you buy your clams you want to rush them home, place them in a big pan or baking dish and cover with water - ocean water, if you're near the beach, but I use fresh water.  Sprinkle a fair amount of corn meal over them.  Trust me.  Gritty clams are like nails on a chalkboard to me.  They are alive and will ingest the cornmeal which will"clean them out".  (I told you it was important!)

Are you grossed out yet?  Oh, it gets better, my darlings!

Stick the pan in the refrigerator for at least two hours...we've done it as long as 24 hours, and I think I heard if you use ocean water you can keep them there up to 48 hours, but you might want to Google that to confirm...like I said, I use fresh water.

First things first, clams take like five minutes to cook, so start melting your Cabot butter. 

Meanwhile, in a large stockpot, pour in enough water to cover the clams by about an inch, then add your beer...

Then the rinsed clams...

And a somewhat smashed clove of garlic...one big one or two normal sized ones.

Now, there may be some dispute here...some people bring the water to a boil, then dump the clams in.  My Uncle Jim always started them in cool water, poured in the beer, let the clams mellow out a bit, then gradually turn up the heat.  So that's what I do.  And don't waste your Guinness on this, folks.  Traditionally, we used Schaefer or Schlitz.  The water:beer ratio is probably going to be 4:1 anyway, so pick a beer that Canadiens laugh at.  Cover and bring to a boil.  Boil for about 4 or 5 minutes.  

WARNING!!! WARNING!!!  Scroll down slowly in case you're not ready for this....

This is them done - you can tell, because the shells are open.  If you have any that are still closed up, toss 'em.  They're no good.  

Remove from heat, BUT DO NOT STRAIN THEM! Transfer the clams to a large serving dish with a slotted spoon.  Then, through a coffee filter (or for larger batches, paper towel lined) strainer, strain the broth.

(Or not.  Uncle Jim didn't)

I'm flying solo tonight, so I just used about a cup and a half or so.

Pour your melted butter into small dipping bowls - everyone usually has their own bowl of broth and their own bowl of butter. 

WARNING!!! WARNING!!! 

THE FOLLOWING PICTURES MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR ALL VIEWERS!! 

 

To eat a steamer, first you remove them from the shell.

If only I knew Photoshop well, I could have applied a nice French manicure action.   But of course, if you're "ew"-ing right now, it's probably not due to my lack of manicure!

WARNING!!! WARNING!!!

THIS IS NOT A DRILL!!!!

Next step, you'll want to peel off the membrane  (yes, I said membrane).  You'll know it when you see it.



Then, dip the clam into the broth, then into the butter, and enjoy!

 If you dare....

And if it makes you feel any better, I was kind of grossed out tonight too.    While my husband couldn't stand to be in the same room as someone eating steamers, I did make his favorite cake for him for Father's Day....

How I married a man who doesn't like homemade cake is beyond me.  :)

Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there!