Mary always brings me coffee in the morning!
It’s almost 7:00 am, and we’re ready to go! I’ve had enough coffee to power a small country, and my socks are officially on a mission to find their matching pairs. We rolled out of bed before the sun changed its mind and returned to bed!
Mary wakes up full of energy, and I can hear her singing clearly in the office while she makes coffee in the kitchen. This almost makes all the local dogs howl, and it scares the small children.
I can hear her making coffee in the kitchen (So can all our neighbors)
My oh my, the calendar is bare, meaning we will be home together all day long, YEAH! We did our morning reconnoitering of the garden and found no evidence of the pesky wabbit.
The steel wire mesh is working. If it did not, I had a backup plan: I’d take them bare-handed by sleeping in the garden and attacking them first before they got to the veggies!
Bye, be wackily wabbits!
We went to the gym at 8:30 am and rode the bike for 30 minutes, followed by a strenuous exercise session. Twenty minutes into my routine, I decided I don’t sweat; I sparkle.
Exercise is so challenging for us that we are both torn between cardio and pizza. The gym was decorated to look like an innocent establishment, but the sound-proofing does not always work—the screams of agony can be heard for miles!
The gym was decorated with pesky bunnies!
After the workout, we were hungry, so we stopped at Ralph’s and got some asparagus. While Mary prepared the broiled asparagus, I cooked the steaks!
Our favorite dish is broiled asparagus drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt and parmesan cheese. It’s so good that it might just turn you into an asparagus enthusiast—who knew stalks could be this charming?
Brunch is served
Our square pan with ribs is perfect for fixing steaks; four minutes on a side at medium-high, and we are ready to go. We ate two of these beauties, and the other three were sliced and readied for this week’s salads. Oh, and Luigi got half a steak and loved it.
Yummy; plenty of steaks all week long.
After brunch, we headed to the garden and were surprised by a voracious man-eating duck sitting by the pool, taking in the rays. I wondered why he was up so early, and then it dawned on me. What time do ducks get up? The quack of dawn.
I attempted to sneak up and catch him by putting salt on his tail, but his peripheral vision caught me in the act. When he showed his teeth and hissed with fire coming out of his beak, I immediately backed off and threw him a steak as a peace offering.
What do you call a duck that breaks into people’s houses? A robber ducky!
What are you doing here?
Mary and her trusty sidekick joined me for an afternoon stroll in the garden. Mary spotted the first rose of the season, called a “Butter Cup,” because it resembles the color of some butter.
Ready to go to work on the kumquats!
The roses will be beautiful this year. Tomorrow, Sunday, Mary plans to weed around the base of the plants and feed them! I shall have a first-aid kit ready and 911 on speed dial.
The first rose of the season!
What is this? We spotted a varmint in the roses. A grasshopper, my oh my!
Here’s a more detailed look at grasshopper facts:
Ears: Unlike humans, grasshoppers don’t have ears on their heads but rather a sound-detecting organ on their bellies called a tympanum.
Eyes: Grasshoppers have five eyes: two large compound eyes and three smaller ocelli (simple eyes) that detect light and dark.
Jumping: Grasshoppers are known for their impressive jumping abilities, propelling themselves into the air using their powerful legs.
Flying: While known for jumping, grasshoppers can also fly, using their wings to escape predators or travel long distances for food.
Sound: Some grasshoppers make sounds by rubbing their legs against their wings, while others bang or even rub their wings together.
Diet: Grasshoppers are herbivores, primarily feeding on plants, including leaves, stems, flowers, and seeds.
Predators: Grasshoppers have many predators, including birds, spiders, beetles, and lizards.
Ancient History: Grasshoppers are among the Earth’s oldest insects, dating back approximately 250 million years, predating dinosaurs.
Locusts: Locusts are essentially grasshoppers that form swarms under certain conditions, such as after heavy rains.
Good Luck: In Japan, grasshoppers symbolize good luck and are sometimes kept as pets.
Edible: In some parts of the world, grasshoppers are a good source of protein and are eaten by humans.
Camouflage: Grasshoppers often have colors and patterns that help them blend in with their environment, providing camouflage from predators.
I thumped him with my finger, sending him over the fence into the neighbor’s yard! It was difficult to make out, but I heard him say, “OUCH, what the heck was that?” in Grasshopper.
Bite our roses, and we will bite you!!!
Going back inside, we spent two hours preparing kumquats, which meant cutting them into quarters, using a paring knife to remove the pith and seeds, and then chopping the quarters into quarters.
Kumquats, known as “golden oranges” in Cantonese, are unique citrus fruits where you can eat the entire fruit, including the peel, which is sweet, while the flesh is tart.
They are delicious to pop in the mouth and eat!
While the kumquats were macerated for two hours, we slipped into the swim spa and relaxed while we macerated the kumquats.
Macerating, in a culinary context, means softening or enhancing the flavor of food, especially fruit, by soaking it in a liquid, like sugar, juice, or alcohol. This allows the fruit to absorb the liquid and become tender and flavorful.
Mary found the glasses we used three years ago to house this marmalade, and we sterilized them in the dishwasher before filling them with the kumquat marmalade, which had just been cooked and boiled down into the proper consistency.
The jars are sterilized and ready for the kumquats!
The kumquat syrup is ready to be poured.
Four cups of prepared kumquats.
While we waited for the kumquats to get ready, we slipped off to the TV room and continued watching Everwood! We finally crashed around 10:00 pm.
Happy Birthday to our oldest grandson, Jonathan! Thirty-five years young, he and Sarah were such a joy to be with this summer as we toured the Caribbean together.
To make the salsa, I chopped the ingredients and placed them on a baking sheet in the oven at 350 degrees for twenty minutes. This brings out the moisture and flavor.
