HIGHS'n LOWS

First the high:  California has wonderful sunsets, and last night I saw a sun that looked three times its normal size.  By the time I got parked and took a picture, it was dipping behind trees, but it was stupendous.  You'll have to trust me on this.

Now the low:  Same evening.  I attended my first (and last) Daughters of the Utah Pioneers meeting.  There were four women besides me.  The captain sort of officiated and brought brownies.  One of them read a three-page, single-spaced, history of her grandfather.  And one of them gave the lesson....on purses.  It actually might have been interesting if she hadn't read an entire pamphlet to us.  After about six pages, my eyes glazed over and I had to really concentrate to keep from falling off my chair.  I am not nearly infirm enough for this group yet.

Saw this bike in the hall the other day.  So I started watching the biking sisters, who are Islanders.  When they ride, they take the flowers out of their hair so they can put their helmets on.  When they get where they're going, they wipe the sweat off their brows and put flowers back in their hair.  The bikes they ride are loaners from the Elders, so they make quite a picture in their skirts on men's bikes.  They're tough.

Sisters Angimarau and Agavale

GOURD FESTIVAL

Every Gourd Society in Northern California, and there are a surpringly large number of them, displayed their wares at the Gourd Festival today.  There was quite a range, with the top of the scale being breathtakingly beautiful artwork.

There was a cultural diversity theme in the entertainment and food.  We watched authentic hula dancing and some Aztec-inspired dances.  Lunch was Bratwurst with sauerkraut and German potato salad, and Italian ice for dessert.

Cute Chloe taught me how to rotate my pictures.  Still takin' care of me from afar....

 There were corn mazes and all the fun kid stuff.  One thing I'd never seen before was the bubble ride pictured here.  Wouldn't that be great fun for everyone except claustrophobiacs?

Temperatures were in the high 80's, but we had a good time, in spite of the heat.  Since no one dressed up as gourds, though, the Chicken Festival wins, handsdown.  Can't get too worked up about the eggplant festival next weekend, but we'll see......

The mission's going gangbusters this month.  There were 25 baptisms today, and 26 more scheduled for next Saturday, bringing the monthly total to 91!

FOOD COLUMN

First, a funny story.  For Sister Wells' birthday I bought a large tiramusu cake from Costco.  I didn't have room on my side of the fridge to store it, so I put it in the fridge at work.  (The mission home is housed is the chapel where we also attend church.)   I checked on it Saturday afternoon; all was well.  When I went to retrieve it on Sunday for the birthday dinner, the "cupboard was bare."  I finally figured out that the scouts found it in the fridge and concluded that it was a donation for their fundraiser, and auctioned if off.

My own fault for not putting a note on it.  Had I been in charge of the auction, I probably would have surmised the same thing.  Anyway, word got around, and while we were having dinner, Sister Wells got phone calls from members inviting us all to their homes for cake and ice cream.  Both Sister Wells and I felt that the cake had gone to a good cause, and she got mileage from it on Facebook, so the birthday was a success.

Now for a recipe shared with me by Elder Fifita.  Bring a saucepan of water to a boil with the seasonings from Ramen soup.  Put the compacted noodles (still compacted) into the water for only 45 seconds to a minute.  Then drain and coat on both sides with egg mixture, as you would for french toast.  After cooking this, layer on some cheese and enclose in bread.  It's known in the mission as a Tongan Pancake.  Can't vouch for it personally, but maybe without the extra bread?

Elder Fifita

CHICKEN FEST

Chicken Day was all that I'd hoped for, and more.  I didn't factor in people wearing zany costumes and chicken hats.

Eat your heart out, Heather.

And, yes, they did serve chicken, which I thought was irreverent, if tasty.  There were surprisingly good bands playing country music, food and craft vendors, and everybody's dog in attendance.

I don't know why I keep taking "sideways" pictures when I don't know how to rotate them in this program, but I have to share the 81-year-old woman who was handing out suckers to the children from her chicken bag:

Later that evening, we returned for a community theater production of Best of Broadway.  The venue was great and the tap dancing was fun, but the sound mixing was off and many of the singers were sub-par.  Still, the addition of roosters crowing at odd moments added to the fun.  (They really do wander throughout the whole village, free range.)

Sisters Porter, Wells, and I in our festival T-shirts

We were celebrating Sister Wells' birthday, and we had a great day.

APPLE HILL

There's an area in the Sierra foothills, just north of here, known as Apple Hill.  I don't know how many square miles it encompasses, but it began with 16 original "ranches," and has more than that now.  I haven't figured out why they're called ranches, because they're orchards.  From Labor Day until Christmas Eve they are open to the public, selling apples and all things apple, plus some other fruits and arts and crafts.  Some of the bigger ranches have ponds for fishing, ponies for riding, etc.  Closer to November, the Christmas tree "ranches" start selling trees.

Brooke and I went there last Saturday.  The fritters weren't great, but the cider is wonderful.  Best of all was the scenery.  It felt like we were driving through a National Park.  Even though it's next to a freeway, it's so shrouded in trees that it feels more remote.  I loved it--even saw 1 or 2 leaves that had turned color.  Great celebration of autumn.

This Saturday is the Chicken Festival in Fair Oaks Village, where the chickens roam freely all the time.  I already have my chicken souvenir, though.  At Apple Hill I found a chicken made from horseshoes--perfect for my place back home.

With the Gourd Festival coming up next, I should be able to celebrate all season long.

Oh, and the work's going well, too.

CITY BY THE BAY

Great weekend!  Ben, Chelsea, and Tweety Bird (Emma) came for a visit.  When I introduced her around, one of the other sisters remarked, unprompted by me, that she was just a little Tweety Bird, so I think her title stands.

We ate nutburgers in Old Fair Oaks, which is becoming obligatory for all visitors.  Emma was intrigued with the chickens that roamed wild...until one flapped its wings at her.

We drove to Mill Valley on Saturday and toured Muir Woods.  Prior to coming here, Emma had been camping in the Uintahs and had seen a moose.  So whenever I pointed out big trees to her, she responded with "Nana, moose?"

Early Saturday found us going across the Golden Gate Bridge...in total fog.  We could have been on an overpass on I-80 for all that we saw.  But we made Ben cross it off his Bucket List, anyway--no time for do-overs.

The city was pretty deserted early in the day.  We were able to ride cablecars, walk down crooked Lombard Street (my calves are still sore), and visit Chinatown and Pier 39 by early afternoon, when the mobs descended.  So we left and drove to Stanford University to appease Ben for not taking the boat to Alcatraz.

The beginning of the day was chilly; it was hot and sunny at Stanford; but sitting on the wharf eating clam chowder in sourdough bread bowls at noon was perfect!  One of those moments to tuck away and revisit often.  Emma inserted herself into a Latino family, where she really stood out.

On Monday, Labor Day, after introductions at the Mission Office, we hung around Fair Oaks.  We did a little shopping, swimming (Emma's an intrepid little fish), and sightseeing:  Folsom Prison and, for contrast, the Sacramento Temple.

Even though all the pictures and most of the text feature Emma, I love having all three of them here.  And I'm happy that Emma hasn't forgotten me....she even still likes me.  And I adore her!