Thanksgiving Dinner

It's only Tuesday, two days before Thanksgiving, but we had our Thanksgiving dinner this evening. Since Tuesday is normally the day we have people over anyway and because most people had other plans for Thursday, today was more convenient for getting together. We weren't the earliest Thanksgiving dinner - the Presbyterian (to which we went) and the Baptist churches had their Thanksgiving potlucks on Sunday. We will be joining the Lutheran church-hosted dinner on Thursday.

The menu for this evening was as pictured: Grilled turkey; wild rice stuffing with pine nuts; green beans with sundried tomatoes, olives, garlic, and almonds; roasted carrots; cranberry-orange chutney with cumin, fennel, and mustard seeds; mashed sweet potatoes (yams) with cumin and oranges; apple crisp; roasted brussel sprouts (covered container); dinner rolls (in basket); mashed potatoes (not pictured); pumpkin pie (not pictured).



(Oh, it snowed today. Other than a few isolated flakes a few days back, this is the first real snow in Petersburg this fall.)

Recipe: Mushroom and Potato Gratin

I came up with this dish this past Tuesday. It was well received so I am going ahead and putting it together again for the Thanksgiving potluck we'll be going to this evening at the Presbyterian church.

Mushroom Mixture

• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  
• 1 large onion, cut pole to pole, then sliced across thin
• Pinch crushed red chili pepper
  
• salt and pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
• 1 tsp. dried thyme leaves
• 2 or 3 portabella mushrooms (or equivalent amount of brown creminis), trimmed and sliced
• 1/2 cup white wine
  

In a large skillet heat oil on medium heat. Add onions, chili pepper, sprinkle salt and pepper and fry until onions are soft and translucent. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, about a minute. Add thyme and mushrooms, saute until soft. Add wine and deglaze pan. Remove from heat and set aside.

Gratin

• 5-6 medium russet potatoes, peeled
  
• Mushroom mixture (above)
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1 cup cream
• Pinch cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp. salt
• Black pepper

Preheat over to 450F.

In a food processor fitted with slicing disc, slice potatoes (should be 1/8-inch slices). Place sliced potatoes in a bowl of cold water to prevent browning. Rinse and drain.

In a 13x9 baking dish, create a single overlapping layer of potatoes. Distribute 1/3 of mushroom mixture on top of potatoes. Sprinkle 1/3 of Parmesan over the mushroom mixture. Repeat two more times with potatoes, mushrooms, and Parmesan. Finish with one more layer of potatoes.

In a small bowl combine cream, cayenne, salt and pepper. Pour mixture over the potatoes. Cover with foil and bake for 35-40 minutes until bubbling and potatoes are soft. Uncover, distribute topping (see below, or alternatively some shredded cheddar) over top, return to oven and bake until topping is browned.

Topping

• Panko (Japanese breading mix)
• 1/2 cup Parmesan

Combine panko and Parmesan in a small bowl until well mixed. Set aside.

City-wide Youth Rally

The Ministerial Association had talked about holding a city-wide youth rally for some time now. The impetus that finally kicked it into reality was the realization of how bad alcohol and drugs were becoming among middle and high school kids. We wanted to contribute to efforts by Petersburg Mental Health to prevent and combat substance abuse.

Close to four weeks ago we began making concrete plans, setting dates, etc. to make this youth rally a reality. A couple of Mondays ago there was a Town Hall meeting during which the community was made aware of the problems right under our noses. The newspaper printed a front page article on the Town Hall meeting. A small lead-in guest editorial was placed on the front page, continuing on the second, with the editorial ending right next to an ad for our youth rally.

We weren't sure how all the pieces could fall place in such short notice, but God worked to bring businesses, organizations, and individuals together to be able to put together an event that was both fun and spiritual. Our guest musician and speaker was Nathan Lopez, now living in Wasilla, but born and raised right here in Petersburg.

We had plenty of games and prizes. Petersburg Indian Association lent us the use of couple of their games: padded sumo wrestling suits and a bungee run game. During the middle of the event we were able to hold a $250 half-court basketball shot challenge through a generous donation from the Elks. Many other businesses and organizations donated large and small. We gave away coffee gift certificates and coins, a small TV set, a portable DVD player, and the final big drawing was for a iPod Touch. Pizzas and drinks were provided for reduced cost, and cookies were provided by the various churches.

Nathan spoke on pursuing one's dream, no matter what others may say. He connected it to finding one's ultimate purpose in a life devoted to Christ. We handed out nearly one-hundred New Testaments to the youth present. The count of the door-prize ticket stubs after the event showed that there were probably around one-hundred twenty kids at this event.

Album: PSG Youth Rally Nov 2010

Mid-November

Now that we've been in Petersburg for four years, the sights and sounds really aren't that new anymore. Thus the lack of much updates on this blog.

There is a bit of difference this autumn, however. It's been warmer and the mountains around us don't have much in the way of snow. What little snow has fallen on the tops have mostly gone away. This doesn't bode well for future salmon runs.

Today was another mostly sunny day and I forced myself to go walk outside with a camera. Up this far north, even at 2 p.m. the angle of the sun is quite shallow and the shadows are long.

October and Fall is Here

If September was unusually warm and sunny, October makes up for it. Fall is definitely here and with it plenty of rain and wind. There have been quite a few stormy days with heavy rains and strong winds. There have been occasional breaks and some drying -- enough for me to go out on the bike for an hour or so.

Our church group completed our study of the book of Acts and we are now into the Epistle to the Galatians. This is my third time through this epistle in about as many years and I feel like I am finally starting to understand it. It is a short letter but I suspect we will be in it for quite some time.

Yesterday I baked my first Meringue pie - a Lime Meringue Pie - for the Pie Social at the Medical Center's Long-Term Care. Prior to the pies being consumed by residents, staff, and visitors, voting was held for "The Prettiest Pie." When the votes were tallied it turned out that my pie had won! You can view the pie below...

I'll be doing more cooking later this week for a potluck gathering of the ministers and their families.

Long period of sun

Through yesterday, Petersburg saw twelve consecutive days of sunshine. This is highly unusual for September. In fact this week's newspaper mentioned the word "drought" and reported that the lake, from which we obtain our electricity, the water level was getting so low that restricting the flow was being considered. Fortunately the rains returned today and it looks like it will continue in normal fall fashion for the next two weeks at least.

Since fishing season had pretty much finished, I took advantage of the dry days to get back on the bicycle. I cycled ten of the twelve days and got my fitness back to where it should be. How much will I continue with the rain? I don't know. I definitely felt a change in the weather yesterday. Until yesterday I always rode out of town (heading south) with a tailwind. Yesterday, it was the opposite. The high pressure to the north had broken down and the winds had shifted. It was actually a pleasant change to have tailwind nearly all the way home.

Shelley and a small group from school spent five days over this past weekend in Sitka at a drama and debate tournament.

There isn't much happening that is out of the ordinary. Elise works, Shelley and Amy go to school, and I do what I do -- cook, clean, ride the bike, attend occasional meetings, prepare lessons for church.

Sermon: In Jesus' Name

Midway through last week, I was asked if I could fill in on Sunday at the Assemblies of God church service. Not too long before I had come across a text in one e-mailed devotional piece. At that time I thought the subject matter would lend itself well to a sermon, but for the past half-year, our church hadn't had a sermon.

I could see that I was being given an opportunity, but should I take it or not? I didn't want to do it because I wanted to, but because that is what God was opening for me. After spending a day in prayer and thought about it, I accepted.

The topic is, what does it really mean when we "pray in Jesus' name?" Christian prayers frequently end with this phrase or something very close to it.

I am out of the habit of recording sermons, so even though I brought along a recorder I forgot to turn it on. Someone at the church recorded it, so hopefully I will get an audio soon.

In the meanwhile here is my sermon outline. I find a graphical format works better for me (and it's cool on the iPad).

My first coho

(27 inches, 6 lbs. gutted)

Earlier this week we had quite a bit of rain, becoming almost fall-like. But today the skies cleared up and the sun came out, not that it really matters much as far as fish are concerned.

Yesterday afternoon I fished and thought I caught a large fish, but my reel acted up (at least that's my excuse) and while trying to get it to work properly, the line went slack and whatever was on the other end was gone. I did see a coho jump out in the distance so that was good news: the coho are still around.

The pinks appear to have gone away from the area around our house. I went to one of the creeks earlier in the week and it looks like nearly all of them are on their way up the river. Bodies of fish that have already spawned could also be seen.

This afternoon I went out again and about 45 minutes later I felt resistance, and then the line moving sideways - a sure sign of fish on the other end. I set the hook and pulled and reeled. During the first few minutes the fish was vigorous and pulled the line out, but it seemed to tire fairly quickly. A couple of times it shot up out of the water and did some backflips, trying to dislodge the hook.

Next problem was how to land it. It was high tide and the shore is rocky. After attempting it a couple of times, I finally got it close enough to grab and after a couple of attempts got it grabbed around the collar. Then it jerked and broke the line, but I had it securely and took it up where I hit it over the head with a rock. I took the hook out, gathered up my tackle and headed home where I measured it, photographed it, then gutted and cleaned it.

What's up...

So what has been going with us the last month?

We returned from our Lower 48 vacation. The weather in Petersburg has been quite warm and dry for much of the time. We've had a few showers here and there but not a whole lot. Looking at the forecast though, it looks like we are headed into a cloudy and showery stretch, and perhaps will remain that way until mid-Fall.

The church group that meets together, after meeting in our home since early Spring, has moved to the Presbyterian church. This is to accommodate some of our older members who have difficulty with mobility. Our home has stairs leading up to it unless a person goes all the way to the back. The path to the back is narrow and cannot accommodate motorized wheelchairs. The Presbyterian church has a ramp going up to the front entrance. We are working our way through the book of Acts as a weekly Bible study.

The group also comes together every Tuesday evening for supper at our house. Being in my own kitchen allows me to put together more interesting menus than when we held this at the church.

The group has also grown by a few people. We now have two younger girls who joins us regularly and their mother, when she is available.

Shelley has started work at Papa Bear's pizza, though it appears she is experiencing some difficulties there. We are encouraging her to stick with it a while longer. Shelley has also been baby sitting a couple nights a week. The mother goes to work and Shelley stays overnight in case someone is needed.

I continue to spend time fishing. I caught my fifth pink salmon today. I had been out there over an hour and I was packing it in, casting out for the last time when the fish hit. It fought valiantly but in the end I prevailed. The hook was quite securely set in its mouth. It turned out to be a 24.5 inch male. The photo below shows his spawning hump starting to develop.

Seems quite a few pinks in the sea

I went out around noon to see what I might or might not catch at low tide. I hooked another fish, probably a pink (did not see it) and I played with the line for a couple of minutes until suddenly the line broke. It wasn't going that hard and the place where it broke was unusual. I had just replaced the leader line on the lure with a brand new line, so there shouldn't have been any problems with it. Usually one of the knots would fail, but the break was in the middle of the leader. The only thing I can figure is that as the fish dove around, the line rubbed on rocks or barnacles and that caused the line to break.

This evening I went out to catch the high tide and not too long after I got out there, I hooked a pink and after several minutes of fighting I was able to land it and bring it home. It was 21 inches long.

Pink #3

I woke up this morning early, about 5 a.m. I did a few things and then about 6 a.m. looked out the window and couldn't help but notice how absolutely beautiful and perfect it was outside. The water was nice and calm. It seemed like a perfect opportunity to go and toss out the line. If I caught a fish, that would be a bonus.

Once out I saw pockets of schools of fish feeding near the surface. That could only mean salmon had to be nearby. I saw a few fish follow my lure but they were all pretty small.

It was after I had been out there close to an hour when I felt a definite tug and jerking on the line. I began to reel in and pulled tight after a few seconds to set the hook. Then it was a waiting game of letting the fish go out with the line, reeling it in, back and forth for several minutes until it was weakened enough to bring it home.

Once close enough to the shore I could see that it was definitely a pink and a good sized one at that. I pulled it in a few times to see if it was weak enough, but it still had strength to go out. Finally it no longer fought and I pulled it in. The tide was far enough out now that I could just drag it onto the beach - much less chance for it to give a final jerk and spit out the hook.

I took it home, measured and weighed it: 23.5 inches long and close to 4.5 pounds.

More salmon

This morning I cooked and consumed the last of the king salmon. I broiled it with some tarragon and then sprinkled some lemon zest and juice after I placed it on the plate.



I caught another pink salmon this afternoon. It was 20.75 inches long and weighed in at just over 3 pounds.



When I opened it up I discovered it was female with quite a bit of roe. I hadn't a clue how to get the roe prepared, or even if it was possible to do so. I saved it just in case. After I had finished with the fish, I searched on the web for instructions on preparing the roe. The simplest method I found is to prepare it in brine and save it in a jar. It is supposed to keep up to two weeks this way.

Kelp Greenling with lime, butter, and cilantro

This is what kelp greenling looks like after it is cooked. It is a white flesh fish. I marinated the fillets in lime juice and salt, and then pan-fried them in butter. After setting them on the plate, I drizzled some of the browned butter over the top and then placed some cilantro leaves on top.

It tasted quite a bit like cod and lingcod, both which are relatives of the kelp greenling.

On a slightly different note, I got to use the fish spatula that I purchased during our vacation a few weeks ago. I cooked these fillets in the All-Clad stainless steel pan and they didn't stick. I really like the way the pan heats evenly and quickly and how I'm able to use fairly low heat settings and still get the food to cook.

My first salmon

As I posted yesterday I went out last evening to try to catch salmon. As I also posted, I ended up with a greenling and no salmon.

This morning I decided to try Blind River Rapids. I dislike fishing here because all I do is lose lures. But I heard there were still kings migrating upstream. When I got there, indeed there were salmon making their way up. I spent about two hours there. I snagged lures so many times I was surprised I only ended up losing 2-1/2 lures (the 1/2 was a BuzzBomb where I actually was able to retrieve the main lure part but lost the hook and the rubber washer). I was highly annoyed.

The timing was just right so that after I got home, I got a quick lunch and then went out to the Narrows just down from the house. I spent an hour casting and retrieving. I saw a handful of salmon jumping, but always way off in the distance. I tried BuzzBombs, a hoochie/flasher, a Zinger, and finally a Kastmaster. I gave myself until 2 p.m.

Then I felt resistance on the line. Did it get snagged on the bottom? The possibility was there, but low since it was rather high tide. Did I snag a huge piece of seaweed? That possibility was much higher, with the ever-present debris in the waters. But it wasn't acting quite like seaweed. Hmm... It was certainly heavier than a typical Dolly, and even more than a largest Dolly that I've experienced.

I decided to play it safe and release the tension on the baler and I could see and hear the line going out. Ah. This was likely a real fish on the end. I've previously lost what I suspected might be large catches by tugging and pulling too rapidly and hard. As I began to play with the line I could definitely feel the fish moving about. It went this way and that, in and out. It would rest and then try to zoom away. I could see that the hook was caught right around one of the jawbones - a tenuous location that pulling too suddenly might have broken. After several minutes the fish was beginning to tire and now I had to figure out a way to land it successfully. With Dollies I usually just fling it up and over, but this was too big for that. I carefully pulled it closer to shore, reeling in the line and then slowly pulled it out.

I had set it down and had pulled out the hook when it flipped and I lost grip. Aaaaaahhhhh! I didn't want to lose all my hard work back into the water. It was considerably weakened so after a short, desperate scramble I wedged it under my knees then grabbed it in its gills to secure it and whack it over the head with a rock a few times to stun it. With all that accomplished I brought my trophy home, showed it to the girls (Elise is working - so she'll get to see it tonight), then cleaned it.

Here is the humpy (pink salmon), 22-1/2 inches long:

Kelp Greenling

I was told there were humpies (pink salmon) at one of the creeks, so I drove out and fished there for a few hours. There were indeed humpies, but they weren't biting. They were going up the creek. You'd think that having lived here for nearly four years, I'd have seen salmon going up rivers, but oddly enough this is the first time I've actually seen it in the wild. It was a cool sight, watching the fish fight the current, jumping up small rapids. (It would have been better if I had caught one... but that's another story.)

What I did catch were a couple of small sculpins and the kelp greenling (female) pictured here. I wasn't quite sure what I had caught. Greenlings include the lingcods, so I was pretty sure it was one or the other. After returning home and looking at the sport fishing handbook, I was able to identify it. Next time I catch one like it, I will know. The next thing to figure out is whether this thing was worth cleaning. After doing a few web searches and learning about kelp greenlings, including the Wikipedia entry above, I learned that indeed they can be quite tasty. I had already figured that since lingcods are prized fish, kelp greenlings were at least edible.

The first thing I discovered upon starting to clean it was that this fish is quite scaly, unlike the Dollies I've been catching. Well, it is quite kosher, for those that care. I scaled, gutted, and cleaned before bringing it inside for the photo shoot.



Given my lack of experience with most freshly caught fish, this fish looks very "fishy." What was most surprising is that it really doesn't smell fishy at all. If I stick my nose right next to it and inhale, I can tell that yes, it is fish.

Oaks Amusement Park

Yesterday we went to the Oaks Amusement Park located in Sellwod, OR. It was a rather hot day (though apparently not has hot as it will get today and tomorrow) and some of us ended up with sunburns.

Oaks Park

Vacation Odds and Ends

There were a few photos from Discovery Bay that hadn't been posted so I got those up into an album. I also included a few photos from our lunch yesterday at Sinju Japanese restaurant in Bridgeport Village located in Tualatin.

Odds and Ends 201007

Shelley got a Karaoke machine at Toys R Us. It is one that she had been wanting ever since she used it at a friend's several months ago.

I weighed our filled suitcase and it came to 50 pounds. I moved a couple of heaveir items to our second suitcase. It too, is now filled and feels like it is right around 50 pounds.

Yesterday we also went to the cinema to watch our first 3D movie on the big screen - Toy Story 3D. (We have seen 3D movies, but only at the various Disney theme parks.) We enjoyed the movie and the 3D, but the admission at $12.50 per adult was a bit of a shock to us. (The IMAX admission is even steeper...)

New roads

Yesterday evening on our way to visit a friend we drove around the neighborhood where we lived only four years ago. I had the GPS navigation directing me and it was taking me towards a path that did not exist then. With a little doubt I went along and discovered that the road that used to dead end now goes through, resulting in a much shorter drive.

On our way back we drove up to the neighborhood where we lived to take a look. It looked pretty much the same except that the trees along the street were noticeably larger.

On our way back we drove the route that we used to take, but at the intersection where we would have turned left, it was now a four-way one with a road going straight through. "Odd," we thought, and I moved out of the left turn lane to go straight, wanting to know about this new road. It turns out that the roads near this intersection was realigned, and the road that I wanted was the one that indeed went straight through. If we had gone left, we would not have found the road that used to be to the right just a hundred feet down.

We continued with more shopping yesterday. We purchased a couple of large suitcases to take back with us. We filled one, but have yet to weight it. I'm not sure if is already over 50 lbs.

I also purchased a nice duffel-style luggage. It doesn't look that big, but it is about the same size as wheeled carry-on luggage and can fit more due to the lack of wheels and frame. With this I should be able to comfortably travel without having to check-in luggage.

Shop and shop

What do Alaskans do when they go on vacation? They shop. That's what we did yesterday -- all day long.

Elise and girls went with their grandmothers (yes, plural) and did their thing. I went on my own to run a few necessary errands and then hit some stores to find out if what I needed was available and if not, to place some online orders to hopefully get them delivered in time.

I went to the bank, got a haircut, dropped in a few luggage stores, had some coffee, looked at vacuum cleaner bags, looked at kitchen equipment, went to pet supply stores, Home Depot to get some replacement faucet handles, a late lunch...

Then we all met at the Washington Square Mall. Elise got an iPhone and wanted a case. We got much more than that. I picked up an All-Clad 10-inch stainless steel fry pan (now I have a fry pan that can go under a broiler, yay!). I also got an additional 10W power adapter for my iPad. (It includes a 6-ft cord, which makes it much more useful than the one included with the iPad.) And then I finally found a sporting goods store that carried BuzzBomb lures at a good price - $2-4 less/each than in Petersburg. I picked up 13 of them plus more line and some fishing tools.

Meanwhile the girls found a prom shop where each of them found and purchased dresses for next year's prom.

We ended our day by having dinner at the Cheesecake Factory.

More shopping today? Yes... We need to get a couple of suitcases to replace broken/worn ones that we left at home.

Weekend

We did not do much this past weekend. On Saturday we drove over to the Sequim Seventh-day Adventist Church and enjoyed the service there. We met some people who have been in or lived in Alaska, including a couple who had been in Petersburg before. We met another couple who spends part of their summer fishing around Bristol Bay.

With the Lavender Festival going on, the westbound traffic on US-101 looked slow going for many miles. We were happy our way back was eastbound. We took a break in our condo for the remainder of the day.

On Sunday it was time to pack up and head south to Portland. There was still a good amount of perishables and leftovers sitting in the refrigerator, so we made a concerted effort to finish all of that off. We did pretty well and only ended up throwing out a small amount of leftovers.

Shelley wanted a car charger for her iPhone. We first drove up to Port Townsend but discovered that the Radio Shack there was closed on Sundays. Our next stop: Olympia. When we got there we discovered that it was a full shopping mall with a Best Buy. We picked up a charger and then wandered about the mall for another hour.

The drive down itself was rather uneventful and we arrived in the evening.