Adventures in tomatillo salsa and murphy beds

Keith and I have a special place in our hearts for burrito joints. First there was Taco Del Sol in Missoula. When we moved to Portland, Laughing Planet, a short walk from our apartment, was a frequent dinner/lunch option. And in rural Idaho, we have a taco truck! Amazing, right? It's good, too.

But we've always wondered about the recipe for the green salsa at Laughing Planet. Slightly sweet and delicious, it's not your regular salsa verde.

My co-worker gave me some tomatillos from her garden, so I had a bright idea and Googled "sweet tomatillo salsa" and the first result was a winner. And super easy! This is my new go-to.

Tomatillos after being boiled for 10 min. or so.

Finished salsa, about 10 min. later with all ingredients added.

The popcorn is almost ready. Keith's picked a couple of ears to dry and then we'll stick them in the microwave or something and that's the true test. They're beautiful, whether they pop or not.

The garden is coasting at this point. We've been dealing with tomatoes and cucumbers and not much else. In fact, tonight we went and fed some delicious organic produce to the neighbor goats. Produce we'd picked but it was starting to turn after sitting on the counter for over a week. The goats enjoyed it anyway. They come running any time we even walk in that direction.

(new goats on the right, little black one and little brown one)

That goat would kick Lazlo's ass if it got the chance.

Keith has been Mr. Mechanic (The Renger has major health problems), so the interior of the tiny house is on hold for now. I painted the window casing/trim with primer (with a roller) and we're seeing how we like that before I finish.

We're kicking around the idea of having another bed. A different bed. A bigger bed? Two humans (one over 6' tall) and two pit bulls in a queen size bed = animosity and, often, a bad night's sleep.

The dogs not sleeping with us is not really an option, in practical terms. We've tried. As soon as we go to sleep Lazlo jumps up on the bed, leaving Mia to shiver on their beds on the floor. Also, Mia is thin-skinned and has hip problems, so I feel guilty leaving her on the floor all night. Short of some pigeon spikes, the dogs are a permanent fixture.

Two options: putting a king-size bed under the window, put a king-size murphy bed on the same wall we're on right now. Both would require a considerable amount of work. Maybe neither one will work, or we'll find something altogether different that will work. That's the tiny house adventure!

In my "spare time"

In quotes because it's a joke between me at the "ad girl" at work. As in, we don't have any, spare time. Work is the busiest of the busiest right now and she's gone next week so I get to do both of our jobs. When you get used to working part-time, working 5 days a week is hard! I'll probably be putting in over 40 hours! The horror!! This morning I went in at 7a and wasn't able to take a break until I took my lunch at 2:45p. Ugh. Good thing I had coffee and Donettes to push me through!

My sister brought her new puppy down to visit last weekend. A chocolate lab named Cliff.

He's not cute at all. Nor does he smell good. Nor did I try to kidnap him when she wasn't looking.
Lazlo was uberjealous and snuggled up against Keith and I all that night.

More film experiments/trials developed @ Costco. I'm not willing to shell out the bucks for a good lab while I'm still learning. So I'm fairly happy with these. Still daydreaming about the mobile darkroom (and Keith is dreaming about the camper in general - so happy to show it to my sister this weekend).

Keith is still busy (intermittently) working on the interior of the tiny house. Currently putting up tin in the kitchen. All of the windows are cased and trimmed out and it's a much nicer place to put Things.

Red soldier is on perpetual lookout.

We have wire, hooks, and ferrules to complete the bookshelf supports in the bedroom. Sorta like a Golden Gate Bridge project. The shelves are already pretty sturdy, though, so I cleaned off my nightstand of the books I own and haven't been reading lately since I've been keeping stocked with reading material from the library to see just how much weight they could hold. And the answer is: at least 3 books worth.

Infinite Jest
Sometimes a Great Notion
The Essential Rumi

Taste the rainbow. And some more barn wood.

This is about half the tomatoes we picked tonight. And peppers. And onions.
Everything's prepped - tomorrow: pasta sauce!
I love the variety in color! The orange ones (Golden Boy, we think) are my favorite!
Mutant fruits and vegetables are common around here, but check out this one!

The point was hard, too! What's up with that?

Keith's been doing more work on the house.
This is the lower part of the bathroom wall.

I'm just giving you a frame of reference so when you see the finished product... well, let's hope it all makes sense. We're improvising as we go. As we are wont to do.

And this is the bookshelf Keith built for me. It's cedar, but I'm going to cover it in white primer. Which is what I did for the bookshelves in the bedroom, which are also cedar. And the bedroom window is getting trimmed out/cased in cedar. Everybody together now: "That I'll cover in white primer."

We had planned for a larger bookcase in this spot (like straight up and down with the same footprint), but we decided to go for steps to make it seem less crowded. Small spaces make a big difference in a tiny house.

Bookshelves & barn wood: up!

(box painting is in storage right now)

(pano from the bed)

(pano from the kitchen)

(the man responsible for all this goodness)

I love it.
Keith relented and let me rough paint the (cedar) shelves with primer.
And he did the rest.
(see: before)

The barn wood is really... REALLY dusty.
Moldy and dusty.
It is barn wood after all.
Here's hoping we don't get Hantavirus.

Before we start piling on the books, we're going to give the shelves wire supports that will help bear the weight. Hooking from the front of the shelf to maybe every other rafter above.

I'm still conflicted about what to do with the ceiling. Assuming we follow through on plans to put dirt on the roof. I don't really want to insulate the roof from underneath because it would lower the ceiling and cover the rafters. And dirt would work. It's just WHEN.

So, thinking about how to make the ceiling, between the rafters, attractive. I've been thinking wheat pasting paper up there. Probably something white or light colored for the illusion of space. Maybe different paper above different parts of the house...bedroom, kitchen.

Tomorrow Keith's going to start, on another barn wood projects since we're in the middle of it, building the wall that will separate the bathroom from the front door.

This is the inspiration for it....from a house in Salt Lake City.
Although obviously we're scaling it way down and instead of a fireplace on the bottom there will be a space on the top for a piece of glass we have.

The front will be sided with barn wood, but the back will be open for storage on the bathroom side.

I think Keith's working on the house all week. !!!

Wedding weekend highlights

Being the not-primary photographer was great because I didn't have as much stress. But it was time-consuming. Not something I'd want to do for a living - you're totally at the mercy of the bridal party. The bride and groom were great, though, and it was a really good experience.

Playing second-string wedding photographer

Last night was the rehearsal.
Today is the big show.

Keith was/is my top-notch Trusty Assistant.

And a slow cattle drive

"How to use a slave flash"
I really don't know.
(A bad thing to admit?)
I am schooling myself.
Advice welcome.

Inglourious Basterds did not disappoint.
Bought a tripod from a guy on craigslist, $15. It extends to, like, 8' or so.

And Keith spotted an enlarger--the only part missing from the $10 darkroom kit I found a while back--for only $20 at Missoula's Goodwill.

It's sitting in the pantry for now. Impatiently.
Keith has offered to equip the new/old camper into a camper that is also a mobile darkroom. So that's exciting. Such a great husband. But that's on hold for now.

Long day over the pass and back, but a good time in Missoula. I like that town.
Home late Friday night and up early Saturday to meet my parents camping up near Lolo Creek Campground.

The doggies think they're in prison, riding in back. Whiners. Really.

Keith and my mom made Improv Sourdough Waffles.

Yes, that's a sourdough waffle sandwich with an egg cooked into one side and bacon in the middle. And Keith said it was delicious.

I caught a frog.
Which I hadn't done for a really long time.

Keith and my dad went fishing.

Lazlo sat at the edge of the campsite and waited for them to come back.

Mia's not totally sold on camping. It's fun for a bit, but then let's go home and sleep in the warm bed. Under the covers.

Saw this on the way home. This is just a few miles from where I grew up, outside of town.

And a slow cattle drive.