Judy – Page 16 – Dear Liza

Yummy Gluten Free Blondies

Dear Liza,

Auntie Bridgett has been trying to change her diet lately, so there has been some experimental baking going on. She found this recipe for gluten-free blondies (like brownies but with less chocolate).
We used the recipe as she wrote it in her sketchbook.

Feeling up to the challenge, I jumped in, helping and photographing.
First, a can of chickpeas got drained and dried. We saved the juice!

Then some oats got ground into a rough flour in the food processor and everything else got added to that.

In less than a minute, it was a nice smooth paste. We added a handful of walnuts and chocolate chips,(because of course we did.)

The whole batch got poured into a greased and parchment-lined pan and put in the oven at 350 F for half an hour.

While it was baking, we tried what seemed like a very unlikely task… making meringue from the chickpea juice!

Amazingly, with some agave, a pinch of cream of tartar, and whole bunch of whisking, zbridgett turned this into a tasty topping.

The hardest part of the whole process was waiting for the blondies to cool so we could eat them!!

Though not anywhere near a health food, these are a nice baked treat for folks who are sensitive to gluten.

Yummy, too!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Garden Update September 2024

Dear Liza,

Our time in the vegetable is just about over for this year. The weather is cooler, the rain is more insistant, and the plants know it is time.

The zucchinis were the first to go. The plant looked so sad that I pulled it out by the roots and hung it up on the trellis to dry. It was only then I noticed a small, late-season zuke hanging on. It will get pan-fried with some garlic, as is the destiny of all zucchini.

Tha dahlias have just about given up the ghost, and the heavy rains knock their large blooms around. I’ll go pick the last of them this week.

And the tomatoes! The three plants have grown well, but just started bearing a month ago. There are still dozens and dozens of green fruit, and none of them are ripening. Our wet Fall seems to have signaled their demise, as well.

Finally, the lettuces. My end-of-season gamble to get more salad didn’t pay off, and they just sit there getting muddy. So sad.

So once things are a little less goopy, I will take my wagon over and pull the plants up. I do love Fall, but endings are always a little melancholy.

Love,

Grandma Judy

French Map Quilt Update

Dear Liza,

I have been working on the French map quilt a little bit every day. Sometimes it goes smoothly and I get lots done. Other days, I hate every stitch and snip out the day’s work.

Such is the artistic process, I am told, and I am making progress!

I have laid in all the vineyards around Bordeaux, pastureland by Brest, and am now putting in all the apple orchards in Normandy.

The apple trees were very challenging. I tried several different shapes, but they all looked wrong. Finally, I just ‘sketched’ a few with stitches, and found what I was looking for.

I like that each tree has three colors! (….Now maybe I need to go back and add more texture to my other icons?)

Moving forward, I have about half the country to go, and look forward to the next set of conundrums.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Tombstone Twilight Walkthrough

Dear Liza,

I get to volunteer at the Lone Fir Cemetery again! This year the event is called Tombstone Twilight, and will be held every Saturday in October from 4 to 7 in the evenings. (Buy tickets online at FriendsofLoneFirCemetery.com)

This should be an easier to manage, mostly-daylight activity, in contrast to last year’s event. The Tour of Untimely Departures was one, very long, very dark, evening.

I am looking forward to being part of the show, and this year, Auntie Bridgett is getting involved!

We met up with J Swofford and other volunteers at Lone Fir the other day, for a walk-through of the tour. We got to ‘meet’ such interesting folks as Julius Caesar, a formerly enslaved man who made a name for himself as a political orator for progressive causes. He was also a local baseball fan, and on his tombstone, along with his name and dates, are the words “Play Ball”.

Walking in Lone Fir always gives me peace and perspective, and learning about the lives and accomplishments of the folks there shows me the possibilities of the human spirit. (There are also a lot of cute squirrels.)

I will be making the walkabout a few more times before the tour, so I will not get lost escorting folks around, and I’ll tell you about it as it happens.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Re-opening a Favorite

Dear Liza,

When we first moved to this neighborhood, we fell in love with the J. C. Havely House, just katty corner across Belmont Street. It is rumored to be haunted and certainly looks the part. At that time it was being run as The Pied Cow.

The Pied Cow served delicious ginger cake, ice cold sangria, baked Brie on fresh bread, and lots of other goodies. It was amazing. But when the pandemic hit, the strain on both the business and the owner was just too much. The Pied Cow closed and the building was sold.

But good news! The house is soon to be opened as The Foxtrot Lounge, and on Saturday we got to see the inside of the house, the garden, and have a short chat with the new owner, Britain Stephens.

Britain (who is extremely camera shy) and his crew have cleaned up the large garden space and installed beautiful structures. Some of these feel like classy cabanas and will be good for shelter from the sun and moderate rain. Others are just for fun.

Lots of folks were looking around and enjoying the space.

The inside of the Havely House has gotten a facelift as well, and now feels like a friendly, high-end Haunted Mansion. Since the Havely House is home to a ghost called Aunt Lydia, this seems fitting.

We didn’t try any of the food on offer, but there was wine, beer, sangria, and a variety of bruschettas. Britain told us he plans on a proper opening come October… Just in time for Halloween!

And you know we will be there.

Love,

Grandma Judy

End of Summer

Dear Liza,

I know it’s not quite the Fall equinox yet, but we are definitely there. Saturday was the Belmont Street Fair, which is our last street fair of the year.

The weather started off chilly, then the clouds passed and the sun came out.

People were ambling down the street, walking happy dogs and chatting with friends.

Auntie Bridgett visited with Steph at Happy Anyway while a face-painting friend decorated Steph’s arm.

We even got to go inside the wonderfully historic J. C. Havely House, soon to re-open as The Foxtrot Lounge.

I’ll show you more about that tomorrow.

I ran out of energy and came home to rest. By the time we had dinner, the skies opened up and we had a fine gullywashing rain storm. Welcome, Fall!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Autumn in the Neighborhood

Dear Liza,

Our weather is changing here in Portland. Reds and oranges are creeping into the wide swaths of green in our Laurelhurst Park and all through the neighborhood.

The dogwood trees are fruiting, all those pink blossoms fattening up into bumpy red berries. The birds and squirrels are noticing, for sure.

This colorful plant needed some looking up, because it is all over one block. It’s even coming up in the sidewalk! It is called Amaranth, (also called Love Lies Bleeding) and is an ancient grain. It is very healthy to eat… I wonder if these folks know that.

Another crop that is escaping and going rogue is this hops in a parking lot. The soft-stemmed hops plant has found an obliging maple tree to climb on and a blackberry bush to hang out with. Aren’t they pretty together?

I hope your Fall neighborhood is pretty!

Love,

Grandma Judy

A New Friend for … Halloween?

Dear Liza,

We got a special delivery the other day… a skeleton! Auntie Bridgett has named him Mr. Bones and has randomly assigned him the male gender. But you can bet he’ll be seeing lots of costumes.

Mr. Bones came in pieces, and it took some doing to get him together. But he is 5 feet 6 inches tall, pose-able, sturdy, and has marvelous posture.

Our plans for Mr. Bones are still a little vague, but it is a month and a half until Halloween, so we have lots of time to play.

When Grandpa Nelson got him properly put together and in the rocking chair, Mr. Bones got a nice kitchen towel and Halloween garland kafiya.

And let Halloween begin!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Auntie Bridgett’s Birthday!!

Dear Liza,

Tuesday was your Auntie Bridgett’s Birthday, and we had a fine time.

After a quiet morning of breakfast and language practice, she opened her presents, including tee shirts, sketchbooks, and a fabulous Snoopy quilt her Momma Donna made for her. Isn’t it amazing?

Once Bridgett had her celebratory red Converse high tops on, we caught the #20 bus downtown to Powell’s City of Books, which we haven’t visited in far too long.

Just being in the space makes me happy!

They have a new café inside, called The Guilder Café (after a country in The Princess Bride). The food was good and not very expensive, and the seating area has regular tables along with some arena type seating and comfy chairs. We spent more than an hour eating, reading, and browsing. It was delightful.

Then, after taking pictures of one of Coraline’s Curious Cats in her lovely urban environment, we caught the #20, connected to the #6, and headed up to the McMenamin’s Coffee Roastery. Considering how many McMenamin’s venues there are, I was amazed at how small the facility was! This one room, one giant roaster, and one guy named Chris.

Chris gave us all the lowdown on coffee… where it’s sourced from, how long you roast it for, and some of the dangers. Did you know that Auntie Bridgett’s favorite dark roast needs to get to 500 F, and will burst into flames at just 700 F? Dangerous work!

After we heard all that Chris had to say, we caught the #6 and then the #15 to get home, where we all had a nice rest. Birthdays are exhausting!

At dinner time, Grandpa Nelson was still pooped, so he stayed home and I walked the Birthday Girl up to Dov Vivi pizza. We love their cornbread based crust and Quattro Fromagio (Four Cheese) pizza.

We ate out on the patio and watched the world go by. Moms with strollers, kids on skateboards, old dudes getting off the bus… busy city life going on all around us.

We needed to bring half the pizza home, but it will make a lovely lunch tomorrow.

Happy Birthday, Bridgett!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dopamine Menu

Dear Liza,

Every once in a while, I find a magazine article that doesn’t just speak to me, it calls my name and chases me down. Abbi Henderson, writing for Stylist Magazine, has written such an article. She talked to neuroscientist Nicole Vignola and got some great ideas for helping us feel better on days when peace and happiness feel out of reach.

She calls this list her Dopamine Menu, after the chemical in our brain that gives us joy. Doing these activities releases dopamine and can lead to happier, calmer moods.

I do most of these things, and now that I know WHY they make me feel better and have a convenient list, I can make joy whenever I feel blue, stuck, or just flattened out.

Stretching

Playing with a pet

Enjoying a coffee

Grabbing a snack

Doing a short burst of exercise

Putting clean laundry away

Cooking a meal

Working on a hobby

Exercising

Being creative (painting, drawing, writing, for example)

Listening to music

Listening to a podcast

I have been fortunate to fill my life with Dopamine-enhancing people. Ruthie Inman and Auntie Bridgett Spicer encourage my arts, which gives me courage at my crafts, and everyone loves a walk in Laurelhurst Park!

Maybe people who seem “naturally happy” have, consciously or unconsciously, found their own way to their Dopamine fix.
Maybe this list can help you.

Love,

Grandma Judy