tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55977641880408706662024-03-05T00:18:08.393-05:00Hungry Times TwoWe're always hungry. Scott Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932166101694242131noreply@blogger.comBlogger442125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-76046136810644274932020-07-05T19:12:00.007-04:002020-07-05T19:31:43.572-04:00When Sweet turns to SourThis is not a food or garden post. One of the few good things about 2020 is time at home to reflect, so this is part of my process. A note of caution: this post contains a few references to racial epithets. How long have magnolias symbolized Southern femininity? Surely before the 1989 film that I and so many daughters born in this region can quote by heart. A few weeks ago I walked downErin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-76883656254792858752020-05-09T18:37:00.002-04:002020-05-09T18:49:12.080-04:00Shake and bake: Coronavirus, Day 50ishIt’s officially eight weeks into the “Stay Home, Stay Safe” directive here in Asheville, NC, and today I had the most epic day of mishaps thus far.
In North Carolina, Governor Roy Cooper and state officials tout the three Ws as “flattening the curve” practices. I’d like to propose a fourth, inspired by the opening line of most of actor Leslie Jordan’s Instagram posts.
“Well, shit.”
That’s myErin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com2Asheville, NC, USA35.5950581 -82.551486935.3883256 -82.8742104 35.801790600000004 -82.2287634tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-39683955315556005132020-05-07T07:37:00.001-04:002020-05-07T08:41:59.654-04:00Victory Garden 2020I'm planting my garden this spring like I always do, but it's got extra meaning for me now. It's May 7, 2020 and we've been living amidst COVID-19/coronavirus since early March, and in addition to so many other upheavals, food security's come up. Meat-packing plants are shut down due to employees falling ill, food banks have miles-long lines, and restaurant owners are feeding theirScott Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932166101694242131noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-55161614024918027042019-11-12T18:18:00.002-05:002019-11-12T18:24:48.219-05:00Budget Bites: Funemployed but Eating Well
Scott and I are so many things right now.
Jobless. Unemployed. "Between Jobs," which is one of my least favorite terms, as I imagine us physically bookended by work.
We prefer the term our financial advisor shared with us - the "Intentional Sabbatical" - when we told her we'd both gone and resigned from our jobs in Oregon and planned to move back to North Carolina. We thought Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com3Asheville, NC, USA35.5950581 -82.55148689999998635.3883256 -82.874210399999981 35.801790600000004 -82.228763399999991tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-56513417025680776762019-11-08T16:40:00.002-05:002019-11-08T16:40:23.100-05:00Walking West Asheville: Déjà Vu All Over AgainWest Asheville has some big damn hills.
I forgot about them after 15 years away, but my quads now remember.
Yesterday I walked almost four miles round-trip to see my first West Asheville residence, on Hudson Street. In 2001 I split rent with two UNC-Asheville friends, paying less than $300 each per month for a three bedroom house. During my junior year of college, my dad came up to visit from Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com3Asheville, NC, USA35.5950581 -82.55148689999998635.3883256 -82.874210399999981 35.801790600000004 -82.228763399999991tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-67288552635293214102019-10-28T15:39:00.004-04:002019-10-28T15:42:36.887-04:00Avoid Super 8s and Aggressive Yellowjackets: Road Trip Lessons LearnedRoad trips in books and films always seem so fun, carefree, and adventurous. Or they can be devolving nightmares that can't end fast enough.
Our Oregon to North Carolina trip wasn't quite the latter, but it didn't nearly have enough of the former. Read on for an authentic account of Scott, Erin, and Loretta the dog, packed into a Ford C-Max hatchback for seven loooooong sub-caffeinated Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-27239845242681723912019-10-05T15:33:00.001-04:002019-10-05T15:33:36.037-04:003,000 Miles from Home: North Carolina to Oregon, and Back AgainIf you've kept up with us over the years (thanks Moms, for reading) you'll know we moved from Charlotte, North Carolina to Gresham, Oregon in April 2018.
Therefore, deciding to move back to North Carolina this summer definitely raised some eyebrows.
What can I say? When you know, you know. That female intuition is some powerful stuff.
It was harder for Scott to leave theErin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-11805627743069993262019-08-12T03:31:00.001-04:002019-08-13T15:50:22.050-04:00Grow some food and grow some friendships
I read A LOT .. so I can't remember now where I first saw this. Oh yeah, it was on a planning listserv that I follow. I recall reading a Linus Pauling quote noting, "The best way to get a good idea is to get lots of ideas." I'm a community gardener and think this is a great idea - for the elderly (or "HonoredCitizens" as Tri-Met aptly notes) and anyone looking to meet new Scott Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932166101694242131noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-4319695020001003282019-06-18T20:33:00.000-04:002019-06-18T20:33:13.654-04:00Finally getting the hang of Portland restaurants I started to think we had bad food luck in Portland.
There was the "legendary" riverside spot with mediocre $35 salmon platters.
The "authentic" longtime Chinese place off 82nd that, for what it lacked in flavor and freshness, rocked a lively karaoke and lounge scene.
A three-hour wait for a table at a tiki bar.
The inedible greasy burgers and fries at a much-lauded Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-86915869088498532122019-05-29T21:17:00.001-04:002019-05-29T21:17:13.293-04:00Enjoying Oregon's 'Ocean Beaches' and Dungeness CrabIn the 13 months Scott and I have lived in Oregon, we've done our best to visit the varied landscapes of the Pacific Northwest.
To mark our 12th wedding anniversary in April, we chose the coast. Or, as the highway signs here redundantly declare, "the Ocean Beaches." We've twice day-tripped to Astoria, camped at Bullards Beach State Park near Bandon, and spent a terrific weekend in Pacific City.Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-39948824243860043862019-05-21T19:12:00.000-04:002019-05-21T19:18:55.752-04:00Wheeling through Austria's Wachau Valley Telling people you've just returned from a Viking River Cruise will earn mixed reactions.
A few people smirk and ask how old I really am (yes, I know from the PBS Masterpiece Theatre underwriting promos that I'm a little under their target demographic). Some want to know what makes it a Viking cruise (no, I didn't don a winged helmet and pray to Norse gods, but that would be pretty amazing). Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-39252144804926004152019-05-13T15:07:00.000-04:002019-05-13T15:07:27.649-04:00We're waltzing, we're waltzing... Vienna. After our Budapest stop and a cursory tour of a pleasant-but-not-incredibly-memorable Bratislava, Slovakia, our ship cruised on to Austria's capital city of Vienna.
I'd visited Austria before in the mid-1990s during a high school spring break trip, but my tolerance and appreciation for art, architecture, and history thankfully improved since my teenage years. The Viking ship was docked at a Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-38192534385720914892019-05-10T20:12:00.000-04:002019-05-10T20:12:41.201-04:00Soaking up Budapest Something is amiss.
I'm not waking up to breakfasts of small hot cups of macchiato, a ridiculous range of soft cheeses and breads, or eggs made to order. I'm not checking my daily agenda for included and optional excursions, and there's no one to make slightly awkward small talk with at meals.
Nope, I'm definitely not on a Viking cruise ship anymore.
Last summer my mother invited me to join Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-67757476264694440662018-09-24T17:57:00.000-04:002018-09-24T19:05:42.901-04:00You Know What I Did Last Summer
My preciouses
Can you tell what I've been up to in my first summer in Oregon?
It turns out if you put 12+ tomato plants in your garden, you best be ready for the tomatoes. Despite a historically hot and dry Summer 2018 here in Multnomah County, our Early Girls, Oregon Springs and San Marzanos thrived.
Being "job free" this summer had its perks. After breakfast and feeling fully Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-86010060067620584082018-08-09T18:30:00.001-04:002018-08-09T18:30:25.830-04:00In The Zucchini Zone
One of our first garden hauls, on the best tea towel ever.
Three zucchini plants.
Three!
Were we mad with garden fever, or just not paying attention when we planted two green and one golden/yellow zucchini in our community garden plot in June?
It's now August, and at one point last week, I couldn't tuck anything else in our crisper drawers because the zucchini crowded everything else Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-78073924641978840692018-07-26T17:38:00.002-04:002018-07-26T17:38:55.928-04:00Tillamook County, Oregon - Almost Heaven (With Apologies to West Virginia) I think I found my happy place.
A spot with miles of green cow pastures, cool coastal winds, tasty seafood, and spectacular hikes along the shoreline. And CHEESE. Man, there's a lot of dairy goodness there.
I'd been to Tillamook County once before, but a longer return visit this month - a spur of the moment weekend trip (aren't those the best kind?) - secured the place as one of my top Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-48540055564926103972018-07-17T22:16:00.001-04:002018-07-17T22:16:27.333-04:00Feel Free: Budget-Friendly Garden Ideas Cleaning out our car last week, I decided we're treating our little hybrid hatchback like a haulin' a&# truck for garden duties.
There are scraps of bamboo, scrapes from cement-laden fenceposts, and splinters from wood shims scattered around the car's interior. At first I was a little irked at the mess, but now that the garden is producing, I kinda see these things as little signs that we'reErin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-1331549202761172232018-07-02T17:39:00.003-04:002018-07-02T17:39:40.259-04:00No Dog Days of Summer Here: Gardening in Gresham, OR64 degrees, friends.
That's the current temperature here in Gresham, Oregon, at 1:30pm PT on Monday, July 2.
This southern-born transplant is in awe. Yesterday while reading on our patio in mid-afternoon, I donned a long sleeve because of a light, cool breeze. If I was back in Charlotte right about now, I'd be removing as many layers as legally possible.
It's a transition Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-33803774739426744222018-06-20T13:55:00.002-04:002018-06-20T13:59:54.013-04:00Settling In & Ready to Cook - with Books!One of the trickiest but also most rewarding things about moving to a new place is adapting to the food scene and culture.
A common response Scott and I heard when we announced our Oregon move to friends and family was "OMG. The beer. The wine. The FOOD." While we're very excited to try out many of the notable restaurants, plentiful food carts/pods, and the crazy explosion of breweries and Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-56827498808672887412018-06-06T01:40:00.002-04:002018-06-06T10:58:53.607-04:00Powered by Pimento Cheese, The Adams Make a Move for Oregon If you review the photos on your phone, you will notice trends. Maybe it's cute baby photos, snaps of your pets doing something adorable and/or ridiculous, shots of your culinary feats or fails, or travel pics.
For me, my photo album is bookended with images of mayonnaise.
I can explain -- really.
When Scott landed his planning job for Multnomah County, Oregon earlier this spring, Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-18773889630958571432018-03-12T14:29:00.001-04:002018-03-12T14:29:16.735-04:00Friends with Benefits: Meet EV OriginalsI love that feeling when a friend accomplishes something wonderful.
Maybe because I'm a only child and thus friends often feel like family, or maybe it's just because we all need a little more raising up these days.
So when I heard that a friend from the Nashville, TN area who co-founded and operates a catering business decided to share her culinary talents with the masses and create a line of Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-86216262742415346132018-02-07T19:56:00.001-05:002018-02-07T19:56:26.098-05:00Some Like It Hot -- And Toasted on Both Sides The latest news in appliances seems to indicate there's no love for the good ol' traditional Crock-Pot.
Fictional drama aside, the slow cooker most of us grew up with is receiving some healthy competition from the new hot thing, the Instapot.
But in our house, we're having a face-off with a completely different category of kitchen appliances -- it's the Toaster vs Toaster Oven.
Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-84459319478857645262018-01-23T21:33:00.000-05:002018-02-09T14:27:49.583-05:00'Party Time, Excellent' Books: The Food Lab, Smitten Kitchen Every Day, Beard on Food, FarmetteOne of my favorite pastimes is to visit the library & peruse new and old cookbooks.
I think this is probably most definitely violating copyright law, but when I check out cookbooks and find recipes that I like, I'll copy them and file them in my almighty 3-ring green food binder. This binder holds recipes torn from magazines and newspapers, family recipes emailed and handwritten, takeout Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-10510499325329521392018-01-04T20:56:00.000-05:002018-01-04T20:56:01.549-05:00You Better Shop Around Bored with what's in your cupboard or on your grocery list? Or hopelessly devoted to your local neighborhood market?
It's easy to get into a food rut, buying and cooking the same food and dishes due to time constraints or just plain OCD-esque habits. But friends, I'm here to tell you there's another way.
Shop around.
The next time you need groceries, don't automatically hit up the sameErin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5597764188040870666.post-23872656259446331292018-01-01T20:46:00.001-05:002018-01-01T21:01:20.991-05:00Oh Hygge Yes: Soups for Making Your 2018 Cozy & Warm On the first day of 2018, the scene is set.
The fireplace is blazing. Our dog Loretta is curled up on the love seat next to me. Candles on the mantle are flickering. My small-ish second glass of red wine blooms warmly with each sip.
There's no Netflix on the TV. No radio blaring the latest news.
Quiet. Gentle. Cozy.
I'll have a second and third helping of this in 2018Erin Adamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12834771817458772666noreply@blogger.com2