Vidalia Onion Pie

      A pair of grilled strip steaks was on the menu for dinner and usually baked russet or sweet potatoes would be our side dish. However, the waning of summer brings an abundance of garden vegetables and herbs to the kitchen so instead this pie was assembled and served alongside the steaks. Vidalia onions sauteed in butter were combined with eggs, milk, paprika, salt, pepper and cheddar cheese, then poured into a  Ritz cracker crust. For added flavor (and, of course, presentation!) sliced cherry tomatoes and chopped chives topped the pie. Thirty minutes in the oven yielded just enough time to set the table, fire up the grill and cook the steaks. Dinner was delicious and the custard-y pie was also a treat for lunch the next day.

I Spy a Cardinal

     Every year I do some pruning to this Japanese Maple to keep it from becoming overly large for the small garden area near the front porch. (Although it was labeled "dwarf variety" at the time of purchase, it has since aspired to reach a much larger stature.) This summer I discovered too late that I had unwittingly removed the leaves that hid a cardinal's nest, exposing it somewhat to the elements. I felt like such a plunderer, ravaging an avian home in such a manner. Therefore I was relieved when a short time later, a female flew in and settled on the nest, appearing unruffled and tolerably camouflaged.

 

    Later that day I was able to photograph these five beautiful eggs while the mama was away. A busy week intervened and I wasn't able to take another peek until the following Saturday. I was horrified and heartbroken to find the nest totally empty. Was it my fault? Did a midweek thunderstorm wreak havoc? Did a predator pillage the nest for a snack? I searched the ground underneath and found an eggshell fragment but nothing else.
     Poor mama cardinal - I mourn with you!

Borador Dunc and his Duck

     Duncan likes to "help" his dad skim the pool every day. Usually he just hangs on the edge and supervises, but on this particular day he ran suddenly back inside the house and returned with one of his many toys - a stuffed duck - and placed it carefully in the water. We were nonplussed at the connection the little smartypants made all on his own!

Peach Cream Pie

 
      Peach season will soon draw to a close and yesterday we pondered how to use the last of a peck we had acquired a couple of weeks ago. The decision was a lovely peach cream pie featuring a crumbly brown sugar topping, that we savored after dinner. My favorite way to eat peaches is to simply peel and cut them up, adding a just touch of sugar, but this pie may run a close second because it is equally
good warm or cold!

Polyphemus Moth

     A fluttering of wings on one of the hydrangea shrubs caught my eye as I prepared breakfast this morning. Thinking it was an unfamiliar bird, I grabbed a camera, crept out the door and moved close enough to see that it was not a bird but a giant moth. After snapping a pic, I went back inside and researched moth species, finding the fellow easily enough by his impressive size and appearance. The wing markings are striking but his legs are rather creepy!

Walenty and the ANREF (Polar Bear Expedition)

     When I get an urge to become more organized, and begin going through papers, photos and other stuff in my genealogy files, without fail I get sidetracked by something interesting. Such was the case when I came across this invaluable gift from my aunt - WWI dog tags that belonged to my grandfather, Walenty Janus. I had seen his draft registration card online but had no idea about the scope of his participation in the war.  So, hoping against hope to get a clue, I Googled the numbers that were etched on the tags: 339th Infantry Regiment, Co. E. which resulted in way more than a clue - I hit pay dirt! And now I know my grandfather just a little bit better.

     Walenty immigrated to the U.S. in 1910 at the age of twenty, most likely leaving his homeland of Poland because of economic oppression, unemployment and to escape mandatory conscription into the Russian army. He worked in a furniture factory until he was drafted into the U.S. army and was trained in England, along with many other first generation immigrants from the Detroit/Grand Rapids area, for the 339th Infantry Regiment.  Valued for their ethnicity, they were chosen for the American North Russia Expeditionary Force (ANREF), whose mission was to secure the northern Russian ports of Archangelsk and Murmanks. The crossing of swamps and dense forests, and mismanagement by their British commander, played havoc with the operation, and many soldiers died from disease and exposure. Their incompetent general was replaced and the expedition then endured an extremely harsh winter and fierce combat with the Bolsheviks until the fighting in Europe ended in November 1918. The 339th returned to the U.S. one year after departing for Europe and demobilized. As a testament to its service in the icy clime of North Russia, the members were awarded a unit insignia of a polar bear and the regiment's motto "Bayonet Decides" in Russian.*
     So that's the story of Walenty's military career in a nutshell - the details are obviously more prodigious but to me, the gist of this narrative is paradoxical: a young man departs Europe to avoid Russia and ends up returning to the very same. I wonder how he felt about that and I wonder too at all the unknown complexites that form a person's life.

*Sources for photos and information: "On Point - The Online Journal of Army History" 

and the Library of The University of Michigan

Log Lips

     The first half of summer was just plain wet. Rainfall totals broke records and green things grew where they had never grown before. Even our firewood sprouted living appendages! These white half-circles (which looked like lips to me) are fungi and some research proved them to be a species called oyster mushrooms, and upon closer inspection, they did indeed resemble oyster shells. Supposedly they taste like seafood - we did not verify that first-hand...

Daniel Boone's Home and Village - Defiance, Missouri

Because these historic buildings are remarkably preserved AND beautiful...