Moser Good Eats and Good Times: July 2017

According to the girls, "the Best Daddy they've ever had" -

note the wooden bow tie Lauren made for him (he wore it most of the weekend)

We started June with a two-day trip to UC Davis where I attended a Master Food Preserver Conference with attendees from all over California. I had looked forward to the event until I was asked to teach a one-hour session on fermentation. The idea of spending two days as a spectator was appealing; the thought of being a presenter at a state-wide event was a different story. While I managed to survive what I found to be a highly stressful experience, it did bring to focus the realization that I need to establish a better balance between my volunteer work for the MFP program and the many callings I have at home, which have been largely neglected since becoming a master food preserver four years ago. Verne spent one of the days I was at the conference at the California Agriculture Museum in Woodland with his brother Keith. For several years now Verne has pointed out the museum as we drive north on the 5 freeway to Portland. Having grown up on a large farm, the equipment was reminiscent of his childhood days living with Sig and Flo Hansen in Clarkston, Washington. The following day they met again, this time in Sacramento to tour an old car museum. Another interest they share.

Since we’re on the subject of old cars, this seems to be an appropriate time to discuss one of the “callings” I mentioned above. We moved to Volcano in 1995 with about a dozen old cars and added a few more to the collection in our early years here. More than once, Verne has correctly described himself as a “collector” of old cars, not a “restorer.” With the exception of one 52 Chevy truck, almost his entire collection has been sold over the past few years and, in most cases, in worse condition than when he acquired them. I’m not being critical, just honest. Anyway, focusing on the positive, here’s a picture of the truck that Verne (with brother Keith’s help) restored a few years ago.

Verne and his restored '52 Chevy truck

Only one other old vehicle remains from Verne’s collection, a 50 Chevy pick-up that was originally purchased for that Washington farm I mentioned. It holds fond memories for both Verne and Keith as they learned to drive it when they were 9 or 10 years old living and helping out at the farm. The memories don’t stop there. When Verne first met Jeff over thirty years ago, Verne asked Jeff to help him restore the old truck and they spent the occasional weekend working on it. Here are a few old pictures of Jeff and Verne working on the truck. Jeff was 13-years old at the time and we were living in SoCal.

1986 - Jeff removing the wood from the bed

1986 - Jeff working on the pick-up with 2-year old Jana

It was Jeff’s idea that we “keep the pick-up in the family” and ship it to him in Connecticut. He has a close friend who restores old cars and thought this would be a great “project” car for him and his three boys, soliciting help from his friend when needed. Thus, the beginning of the project last summer when they visited and spent a hot afternoon power-washing the truck. Shortly after that we learned the truck must be drivable to be shipped on a vehicle transport trailer, the most economical way to get it from California to Connecticut (a 3,000 mile trip). That changed everything and one thing has led to another. I recently decided that the only way this project is going to get done in our lifetime is if Verne and I work as a team and tackle it together. Just like the Great Wall of China, we’ll take it one brick (bolt, in this case) at a time. Here are a few more recent pictures of the ongoing restoration of the '50 Chevy pickup.

2016 - McKenzie Boys with '50 Chevy pick-up after they power washed it

2017 - Truck body removed from chassis and hanging from rafters

June 2017 - Chassis power washed, sand blasted, and freshly painted

June 2017 - freshly painted

Mid-month we took a break from our auto restoration and drove to SoCal to celebrate Father’s Day with the three girls and their families. Jana and Andy had reservations Friday at a trendy new Italian restaurant in the LA Art District. We started our evening with drinks on the 71^st floor of the tallest building in Los Angeles (until recently), the U.S. Bank Tower. From there we Uber’d to the restaurant, Bestia. The menu changes daily based on the seasonality of locally grown food and everything is served as “small-plates”, including pizzas, pastas, and salads. Great for trying several different choices on the menu and it was especially great for finishing dinner with several different desserts. It was an excellent evening and great beginning to our weekend.

Photo of the four of us in elevator on the way to 71st floor

We started the next day with brunch and cards at the Grand Central Market and were happy to hear that a project is underway to restore the Angels Flight across from the Market. From there we went to a new brewery, Boomtown, where we played more Rummy and learned to play a new card game, Asshole (known by several other names, including Scum). It’s a drinking game, although nobody in our foursome needed to be prompted to drink. Jana, Andy, and Verne love beer and have fun trying the different beers offered by the many artisan breweries in SoCal. We spent that evening with the rest of the family having dinner at one of our favorite chain restaurants, The Old Spaghetti Factory. Quite the contrast to our Italian fare the previous evening, but familiar and good. Kendall, the oldest of our grandkids and only granddaughter, was at leadership camp and unable to join us. However, since our last visit she's gotten her driver's license and (thanks to her daddy who works at the local BMW dealership) sports a brand new mini-cooper.

What cuties (both Kendall and her car)!

Our final June-July 4th road trip was spent in Portland celebrating Scott’s 50^th birthday. Where has the time gone???

A much younger Joyce and 3-year old son, Scott

After picking up Jana and Andy from the airport on our first day we went to OMSI for a special exhibit on Pompeii. Besides several rooms of artifacts, the exhibit included a 4D experience complete with sounds of the volcanic eruption, shaking ground, and simulated smoke from the burning buildings. Exciting way to start our weekend.

OMSI

Lauren fighting the leopard to save her sissy

We spent the rest of the afternoon at one of Portland’s many breweries playing cards (and what else but drinking beer). Jana was the big Rummy winner and, I have to say, pretty obnoxious as she flaunted her success with arms outstretched jabbing her fists in the air. Sadly, I didn’t get a picture so you’ll have to use your imagination. Andy confirmed what I already knew, win or lose she is insufferable! There was then some mention of her taking after her mother. Hmmm…I’ll leave it at that. We had a great dinner that evening at Nicoletta’s Table in Lake O. Jana and Andy are big foodies and Lauren is always challenged to find extraordinary dining experiences to share with them. Nicoletta’s Table did not disappoint from the tubs of fresh herbs growing outside the restaurant, a beautiful little market where they sell their pasta, sauces, and olive oil, and, consistent with our previous meals there, excellent food beginning with fresh made breads and crackers and ending with an affogato, our all-time favorite Italian dessert (since discovering it at Il Fornaio in Sacramento) made with vanilla ice cream, chocolate, and hot espresso.

Scott and family arrived early on Saturday and our festivities in honor of his birthday began. Over the next few days we played games (all sorts), we took a tour of Bob’s Red Mill (much like our experience back in 2013), enjoyed an amazing birthday celebration dinner at Laurelhurst Market (complete with presents, including “Birthday Bacon” from Laurelhurst’s meat counter), and spent a morning picking berries at one of the many farms in Newburg, a rural community about a half-hour drive from Lauren’s home. We girls also fit in an hour of tea-tasting at Smith Tea, this time concentrating on ice teas since weather had finally heated up to the mid-90’s in Portland. I’ll let the following pictures tell the story.