Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Squatch Hunting



Posted up for awhile, hoping to find Squatch. No luck yet...

Sweetness in Seattle

Yesterday, while exploring the Capitol Hill neighborhood in Seattle, we stumbled across a tiny community garden that occupied a roundabout in the middle of the street! We almost passed by it, but a lovely painted sign caught our eyes and invited us to take a taste of what the garden had to offer. Someone had planted carrots, broccoli, sweet basil, peppers, tomatoes and more, so that the community could enjoy the free food on the street. Pens and pieces of wood were supplied so that people passing by could leave comments.



Finding this garden was such a sweet surprise, especially since public places in cities are becoming harder to come by. In fact, we were so startled about how hard it is to find a place to use the bathroom, to get water, even to rest our feet free of charge in cities! Often having human necessities met is hard to do, when you're expected to pay. And here was a garden that was there specifically so that the public could enjoy it, free of cost. Hopefully more people will be inspired to beautify their neighborhoods and make it more inviting to others that live there!

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Jam-Hunt: Glacier!



We spent a night in a little mountain town at the foot of Mount Baker. Glacier is home to some of the coolest mountain-folk I have ever known. Winter is coming and the town is a-buzz with talk of how gnarly the snow is supposed to be this year.

The Glacier Skatepark, known as the Coal Pad - because it's built on top of piles of coal, has been a growing project for several years. The closest skatepark to glacier is about an hour away and when there's no snow, there has to be a way to satisfy the itch to shred. The mountain-folk took it upon themselves to start pouring concrete in a secret place tucked away in the forest. The community put together enough money to pay for a shitton of concrete, and we were lucky enough to be around when they were pouring it. So many people showed up to shovel concrete!
There have been many diy skatepark projects - including Washington Street in San Diego, and most notably, Burnside in Portland - but I think this has the potential to be gnarlier than anything else. example: check this hip. dang.




Next stop: Seattle!!!

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Spiced Plum Jam

We've been making a ton of jam and jelly to prepare for our upcoming road trip. We plan on sharing our favorite preserves with the various folks we meet along the way, so we've been trying to make as much as we can while the season is still offering so much beautiful fruit! Jonah has a beautiful old Italian Prune Plum tree in his yard, right next to an apple tree; I've been picking a lot of plums to make jam with and hopefully when the apples turn, we can make applesauce with my Grandmother's recipe!

I went to Olympia for a few days to visit some friends and when I walked in the door of my friend Whitney's place, I couldn't take my eyes off the shelves full of different preserves that Whitney and my friend Kate had been making all summer. Yum! There were blueberry, apricot and blackberry preserves, ketchups, tomato marmalade and so many other delicious things that lined the shelves. One flavor that caught my eye was Spiced Grape Jam. I didn't have access to grapes, but I knew that I had a whole tree of plums to use back at Jonah's house! Both Whitney and Kate are fantastic cooks with great foodblogs that are totally worth checking out! You can find Whitney's here and Kate's here. Thanks for the awesome inspiration, ladies!

Yesterday, I made Spiced Plum jam. I think it is my favorite jam I've made so far, it's the kind of jam that you can just eat out of the jar with a spoon. So good! As soon as I put all the spices in with the plums, the whole house smelled delicious and comforting. The jam is a beautiful, deep red color. The next time I make this jam, I definitely want to add rum or brandy for a little bit of a kick!



SPICED PLUM JAM

6.5 cups pitted and quartered plums
Half of one lemon
Pectin + Grated apple skins (for more pectin if needed!)
3 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 all spice
2.5 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
Dash of anise seed

Put all the fruit in a pan, I mashed some with the bottom of a canning jar because I couldn't find anything else to mash with, then added all of the spices. Simmered on low heat for awhile and added the lemon juice, pectin and 1/4 cup of sugar so that the pectin would not clump together. Stirred regularly until the mix came to a full boil, then I added the rest of the sugar. Brought to a full boil again, then canned and water bathed the jars for 10 minutes. This recipe made 9 8oz. jars.

I wish I could keep some for myself!

Friday, September 18, 2009

Labels!

We finally got around to making something to put on all these jars of jam!

forget jam-hunt... it's the Bellingham beer-hunt!!!

Inspired by Erick Lyle's On the Lower Frequencies, we organized a Free Beer Scavenger Hunt for all of Bellingham. We thought the idea of finding free beer was so cool that we decided to plan one for other people to be just as happy! The clues are hidden in places that we believe more people in Bellingham should be aware of that support the community in different ways. Happy hunting!

Good thing no one reads this blog yet, because here are some pictures of us and a great Bellingham personality, Tom (who volunteers at KUGS-FM - a great student run radio station), hiding the grand prize. If you do happen to read this and know where this spot is, last time we checked, the beer was still there.


Tuesday, September 8, 2009

The Jam Hunt

We believe communities are a lot like jam. Community, like jam, is dependent on its natural surroundings. A community’s physical location is the first component of the character and identity of that community; it affects the sort of people that are located there, what type of industry exists, the entire folklife of that community is dependent on location. The same goes for jam. One has to use whatever fruits, berries, herbs or flowers that are available in the local region to make a delicious preserve. For example, a jam on the east coast might be made from wineberries, where a jam on the west coast may be made of salmonberries.

Both jam and communities require a lot of participation, everyone can contribute in one way or another. Berries need to be picked and smushed together, canning jars must be sterilized, sugar needs to be added, lemon must be squeezed and someone has to clean up the sticky mess afterward. Some may choose to work together for the entire process, taking turns in the picking, cooking and canning procedures.

For both of us, jam making is like creating a story; the finished product is something that can be shared, and the process is something that can be taught to others. We both came from different backgrounds, (Jonah grew up on a farm in Washington State while Liz grew up in a small, commuter town outside of New York City) but we share the same love for a lip-smacking, delectable jam. While we learned to make jam in different ways, (Jonah’s grandmother taught him while Liz learned from a cookbook) the entire process is something that we both enjoy and share with one another.

Once made and preserved, jam is something that can easily be shared and indulged in. We believe that communities are the same way, once preserved (recorded instead of canned!) the regional folklore, local and material lore, including local names for flora and fauna and topography; handed-down history (experiential and fictitious), group identity and place-based individual identity, and all of the emotions that are attached to the place can be shared and enjoyed by everyone.

This is why we are traveling from the top of Washington State to San Francisco, California, to pick the berries of communities along the way, hearing stories and lore and learning about the vibrant and flavorful communities that are close to us. We want to record everything we see, hear, touch, smell, taste and learn on our trip, becoming aware of this local life that surrounds us and then share these stories with others!