Hawaii Slide Show
July 18, 2008 – 4:07 pm | by nerd's eye viewSomeone asked me recently about photo tools and I remembered the oh so fun to play with Animoto. Off I went to make a new slideshow. Let’s go back to Hawaii, okay?
| Posted in » Intertribal Canoe Journey at Alki Beach
July 17, 2008 – 7:47 pm | by nerd's eye view
“It’s a cedar bark hat” he said. “We’re making the Canoe Journey. We’re going to Suquamish next. It’s 30 miles.” His name was Joe, he was a big guy, and friendly, and told us they’d had a great day, the weather was good and the tides were on their side. I was feeling lucky to find the paddlers at Alki - especially because we had a guest in our company for the afternoon and this was an event unique to the Pacific Northwest.
Northwest Native culture is something we’ve had the unplanned fortune to stumble upon before. I like it when that happens because it’s not culture pre-packaged for my consumption as a tourist. We find people to talk to, maybe eat some salmon or hear about something new, and then, we’re on our way. I appreciate the realness of it, they way it’s not scrubbed from modern details to make me think native culture has some how stopped in time like a TV fantasy. The way a guy wearing a beautifully woven traditional hat with a feather can also be holding big cup of coffee that says Tully’s on it in big letters.
We shook hands and then Joe had to run off and pass along that big cup of Tully’s coffee to his cousin - fuel for the next part of the journey, I’m sure. We went down on the sand to take a better look at the canoes.
We hope the weather treats these travelers kindly, that the breeze is at their strong backs, that the tides run their direction, and that they enjoy their journey as much as they enjoy the destination.
There’s more information about the 2008 Paddle to Cowichan here.
Fish Wednesday: Salmon, Swiss Chard, and Sparrows Edition
July 17, 2008 – 9:44 am | by nerd's eye view
We have sparrow issues. The little brown birds have found my swiss chard and they will not get out of it. It’s like a salad bar to them. Do they care if I chase them off? No. Do they care if I am sitting right there? No? They give me the stink eye and then, they just help themselves. They have punched holes in half of my gorgeous swiss chard. I pulled up and tossed out an entire plant, so transformed from swiss chard to swiss cheese it was. I have to build a scare-sparrow.
The sockeye are running - we were up at the Fish Ladder the other day and the numbers were small but the fish were big and gorgeous. There’s also fresh sockeye at Costco for 7.99/pound - a good price. I could eat salmon every day, I think, so we were fine with buying a Costco sized package. In addition to swiss chard, we have a lot of peas and I love peas and salmon on pasta. Because we have enough salmon, that’s on the menu for either lunch today or tomorrow, and yes, I will grill the salmon again.
The chard, I sautéed in olive oil - stems first, they take a little longer - and then tossed in a can of organic tomatoes. This is one of my favorite ways to eat swiss chard. The fish, I tossed in a little olive oil, a splash of balsamic vinegar, and tossed a few capers on top. All that went on a very hot grill. Simple, no fuss.
Crosscut has a swell story up about subsistence fishing for salmon. And the other day I found Beyond Salmon, a blog that Fish Wednesday could totally make friends with.
Eat your fish, it’s good for you.
Book Review: The Ridiculous Race
July 15, 2008 – 7:52 am | by nerd's eye viewDisclaimer: As you probably guessed, Holt sent me this book.
Steve Hely and Vali Chandrasekaran have a crazy idea. They are going to race each other around the world, one going east, the other west, and whoever makes it first wins a very expensive bottle of scotch. Oh, part of the challenge? No airplanes. They have somehow managed to convince their publisher - Holt - that it’s a good idea to fund this project in exchange for a book about their adventures when they’re done. Along with making it home first, there’s an “awesomeness” contest - meaning the guys are trying to each have the most awesome travel experience. This is a ridiculous premise for a book, an absurd idea, and man oh man, how do I get a publisher to fund my insane junket around the planet?
There’s plenty of “dudes doing crazy things” in The Ridiculous Race
It’s a funny book, full of sweeping generalizations accompanied with unapologetic explanations that all come under the “what do you expect from a guy who’s in Mexico for, like, 20 minutes?” (My paraphrasing, not a quote from the book.) Nothing that happens is truly surprising because you get the sense that anything can happen from the get go. All the rushing about leaves you with a feeling of amused mania and an ardent desire to avoid traveling like these two. They’re the guys you meet on a train ride and after they get off, you shake your head saying, “Man, can you believe that? What kind of way is that to travel?”
The book is a fast read, it’s entertaining, snappy, and yeah, totally ridiculous. And a little maddening. On bad days, I feel like some guy is always going off to do some thing and getting someone to pay for it. Riding a Segway across the US. Eating his way across the planet. Racing his buddy around the world for a bottle of scotch. Whatever.
Let’s be honest. I totally envy them.
Travelbloggers at BlogHer
July 12, 2008 – 11:27 am | by nerd's eye viewThis coming weekend is the BlogHer conference, a huge gathering of women (and yes, some guys) with opinions and Internet connectivity. About a month back - I think it was a month back - I’d finally made up my mind not to attend. There are a bunch of small complicated reasons - my dislike of large crowds, a program that doesn’t resonate with me, too much girly girl stuff on the edges. That’s all my point of view, your mileage/interpretation may vary and all that.
The bigger reasons, the ones that ultimately kept me from booking a flight were simple. The only travel event on the schedule is a 40 minute meet-up. Combine that with a price tag of about 800 dollars. That’s with my contributing editor pass - those who write for the site get to attend the conference for free. A nice perk, truly, given the 300+ fee. I have, without hesitation, ADORED (in all caps) meeting my fellow travelbloggers, but I think you understand that 800 dollars to hang out with you for 40 minutes is a little steep.
Fish Wednesday: Basil & Orange Halibut
July 9, 2008 – 9:38 pm | by nerd's eye viewDon’t pay extra for halibut fillets; fish is expensive enough as it is. If you cook it properly the fish comes right off the bone, it’s super moist and delicious, you won’t miss the fancy cut.
Marinate the steaks for as long as you feel like - mine sat for about an hour. Brush the grill with olive oil and then, get it good and hot. Cook the fish for about 10 minutes on each side - it’s done when it’s just starting to fall apart. I brushed plenty of extra marinde on the fish every couple of minutes dumping lots on just before I turned it. Be generous with the oil on the grill or the fish will stick - mine did a little, but it was fine.
We ate this with swiss chard braised with olive oil and grilled orange slices. The crispy basil and bitter orange peel are a really nice combination of flavors. If, like me, you used basil that you grew in your garden, you might taste a tiny bit of extra smugness, enhanced by the deliciousness of a perfectly cooked piece of halibut eaten outdoors on a lovely summer evening.
For the marinade, mix together:
1/4c. orange juice
1/4c. white wine
1/4c. olive oil
3-4 tbsp. finely diced orange peel
3-4 tbsp. fresh minced basil
1/4 tsp salt
splash chili oil (optional)
