Quiet Morning, Empty Lake

7:03

7:04

8:31

 It's 8:40, Evie's up, and I just returned from an hour and ten-minute paddle on a calm lake. Lake traffic was minimal as we begin the slide into fall and winter. Weekdays will be quiet, weekends will heat up some but nothing like the summer. 

Kayak Morning

Paddleboarding

Osprey

Labor Day was mostly uneventful in our neighborhood as many headed home. We were having Ron and Linda over for dinner, but much of the preparation was already done, so we both had a leisurely day. I wanted to get in some activity, so around 10:30, I drove to Mayville Park and rode two sections of Webb's Trail and Sea Lion Drive for a good hour of biking. It was still cool enough, so it was a pleasure to be out riding. Interestingly, the first two legs of the trail took 16 minutes, but the return, a slight downhill, took eleven minutes. I enjoyed the return. 

Biking Webb's Trail

When I returned, Evie had finished making Nora Ephron's peach pie,  a favorite, and was sitting in the side yard, sunning and reading. I heated up the leftover pasta and a bowl of corn chowder for lunch so I was happy. The afternoon seemed to go slowly because neither of us had much to do other than Facetime with our granddaughter, Marisa, and her kittens, in Austin, and sit around and wait for 5:00 when Linda and Ron arrived. 

Muffin

We had planned a cruise, but the wind picked up so we sat on our front porch with a beer, cheese, and pretzel appetizer, and drinks. It was a perfect evening for porching it, a slight breeze to keep us cool. Around 6;15, Ron and I went out and grilled the marinated butterflied leg of lamb. We struggled with three different thermometers to get the temperature right, brought it in, and let it sit for 15 minutes before carving it. Despite the thermometer, the lamb was raw and had a gristly texture. Thank goodness Evie made a delicious ratatouille, rice, and a salad. Linda and Ron were nice about the lamb, saying it was 'fine,' but I couldn't eat it, the only honest one. What a disaster. Dessert, however, was fabulous, the Nora Ephron peach pie. Around 8:45, Ron and Linda bid us adieu, and Evie, tired from the day, went up to bed. and I cleaned up the kitchen, watched another episode of Fauda, and went up to bed to read and sleep around 10:00. 

Another Labor Day

Sauerkraut Sunday Morning

Sauerkraut Boys

7:34

It's just after 9:00, and Evie's working in the kitchen. I've just returned from a 70-minute paddle on another fine Chautauqua morning, with no wind, lots of sun, and a bevy of cormorants. I listened to a podcast called China Watch, and the most interesting tidbit was that a hospital in China uses virtual AI-powered robots to serve as doctors that can diagnose, treat, and monitor patients. 

Kayak Morning

Cormorants

Bald Eagle On The Pines

Sunday was a different day, although it started out the same, with an hour of paddling. I returned home at 8:25 and realized I was supposed to head to Tommy's to help with the making of sauerkraut at 9:00. I hurriedly wrote the blog and was picked up by my neighbor Jim at 8:50. We made it by 9:05, and Tom and two buddies were ready to go. We had two hundred pounds of cabbage, and Jim and his friend cut the core out of the cabbage and halved it. Then either Axel or I would get a tray of cabbage and put it through the meat slicer, put the sliced cabbage in a pot, and then take it to Tom, who pressed it into crocks with salt. This is the second year for Jim and me, the 40th or 50th for Tom, who grew up making it with his Dad. It took close to two hours to fill up five crocks and clean up. It was a fun way to fill a Sunday morning.

Tom Pressing The Sliced Cabbage In A Crock

Tom And Julie's Camp Sign

I was home by 11:30, and Evie was making eggplant pasta for our dinner and ratatouille for today's dinner, so she was busy. Around 12:30, she made me a couple of fried eggs on toast and I watched another episode of Fauda. By the time I was finished with lunch, Evie was finished in the kitchen and out in the side yard reading. I cleaned up the kitchen, then read and took my usual nap before joining her out on the dock, admiring the clouds until it became too windy and we returned to the porch. 

Clouds

Blue Sky And Clouds

We had our wine at 5:00 as the lake traffic dwindled and then had the eggplant pasta and garlic bread for dinner, one of my favorite meals. We watched a home improvement show and another series, but neither grabbed our interest. Evie went up to bed early, at 8:15 and I cleaned up the kitchen before watching another episode of Fauda and I was happy to go to bed and read because I am really enjoying my book Descent. It's very well written by Tim Johnson.