Random stuff that happens in my life

I planted a new variety of cucumber this year and by golly I am impressed. It is called a Quick Snack and it is a small bush cucumber that produces the small snacking size of cucumbers. I was showing a friend the blooms on Saturday and what did I find but 4 little cucumbers. They are the cutest little cukes. About three inches long and they taste great. It is still loaded with blooms and I am looking forward to picking bunches of these little bites of goodness. 

That recipe that was in last week’s column, the Chicken Fajita Pasta Salad, I made a batch of it on Monday and it took me a week to eat it all. So from now on that is a salad to take to the monthly church potluck, maybe I will be able to bring home just enough to have a few days of salad. I didn’t think I could get tired of it, but I was sure glad to see that last serving gone. It is really good, but it just makes too much when I am the only one eating it. 

I have a chicken that is still getting into the yard every day. Now she is getting spiteful about it. She sneaks in somewhere, I am sure she is laying eggs somewhere that I haven’t found yet, because she cackles like a maniac in the greenhouse, then starts screaming like something is murdering her. Of course, I run out only to find her standing by the house looking at me. When I try to chase her back out of the yard she runs under the lilac bush and I can’t get her out. So she stays in the yard and sometime during the afternoon she finds her way back out and back to the chicken house by dark. I thought I had found the hole she has found, but I closed that up and she was still in the yard this morning. I guess it is spying time, to see if I can suss out that place that is big enough for her to sneak through. 

I have a garden hose that almost had a major failure on Sunday. I water my containers my just letting the water run very slowly with a sprinkler head on the end so make it like a bubbler. I thought I would be smart and put a valve on the end of the hose right before the sprinkler to make it easier to adjust the water flow instead of having to walk back and forth to the faucet. We were eating lunch when I remembered that the water was running in the cucumbers right next to the front door. I quickly stepped out and shut the valve off instead of going clear back to the main faucet. A while later I realized that it probably wasn’t the smartest move because the hose developed a big bulge on the side and a hole. Oops. I guess it didn’t handle the pressure. At least it was only a small hole. 

Traditional Polish Kompot

1 pound of fresh fruit. Can be just one fruit or a combination of fruits. Cherries, strawberries, redcurrants, raspberries, apples. 

1 quart, 3 cups water

5 tablespoons sugar, adjust for the sweetness of the fruit

Additionally can add a slice of lemon, or stick of cinnamon, or even a sprig of mint.

Put the water and sugar in saucepan combine water, fruit and sugar. Stir gently to help the sugar dissolve. Bring to a gentle boil, simmer gently for 10 minutes. Cool to room temperature, strain if desired and chill, serve straight from the fridge, or over ice.