- New Dishes. I have a very loose, “let’s see how this goes” goal of making one new thing for dinner each week, or, trying one new recipe. These are two different things as I am notoriously poor at following recipes when it comes to dinners. I am essentially one of those people who I loathed when I worked at YMC, a person who changes pretty much every element in a recipe, and then comments on that recipe, but without the commenting part. So, I guess not at all like a person I loathed. In any case, this week’s new recipe was cold quinoa salad with lots of veggies and edamame, a Thai-inspired dressing, and crispy chickpeas and lentils. If you’ve never had crispy lentils, I recommend it: I tossed some drained and rinsed canned lentils in olive oil, salt, and pepper and roasted them at 400 convection for about 20 minutes; they are small little things so I wasn’t sure how long to do it, and I checked on them every five minutes. My whole family loved it, I repeat, my family of meat-lovers LOVED THE LENTILS. I normally dislike leftovers and never eat them, but I put aside a small container for myself, as it was a perfect lunch to take on our hike the next day.
- The Path Sometimes Taken. I also have a loose goal to go to the mountains More Often, which is about as loose a goal as one can get. Yesterday the boys and I hiked around Stewart Canyon which is about seven kilometres and not as much elevation as I typically like in a hike, but it was a lovely day. Once we reached the end of the trail, there was a small path with a sign that said “Warning: Path Ahead Not Maintained,” so of course, we took it to see what would happen. What happened is that we had to climb over many fallen trees until we got to the point where the path was completely blocked, at which point we turned back and ate the afore-mentioned lunch.
- There’s A Sign, Read It. Speaking of signs, we have a No Soliciting one on our mailbox. At least ten years ago, but probably more, our doorbell stopped working. I asked my husband, who is very handy and who has repaired many, many things in our house over the past 22 years, to please NOT fix it. At the time, I was home alone most days, and the only people ringing the doorbell were door-to-door solicitors, and I am never going to want to save money on my heating bills or purchase a paper copy of the Calgary Herald. If I was having company, I’d watch for people at the door, and all my friends know to knock, anyway. This was great for a time – it’s pretty easy to not answer the door when there’s no doorbell – but then solicitors started knocking. Can I just say the best thing about 2020 was that door-to-door soliciting stopped? Anyway, sometime in 2021 it restarted, which is when we put the sign on our mailbox, which is directly beside our door. Yesterday I was relaxing after our hike, reading, and I heard a very loud knock at the door. I looked up, thinking it was a delivery and wondering what we had delivered, when I saw a man looking in the window at me reading in my chair. I could see he had a lanyard and a Telus uniform, and I just knew, the way you know about a good melon, that he was here to talk to me about changing internet service providers. I opened the door, and as soon as he greeted me, I said “I have a No Soliciting sign, and I ask that you please respect it.” I said it pleasantly and politely, with my face arranged in a pleasant and polite way, and then I shut the door. I could see him lift up his hands and shake his head in a what’s with this woman kind of way and I will tell you, I was VERY annoyed. This is the second such interaction in as many weeks. The first was a fellow with no lanyard and no uniform who told me he was selling “organic meat and seafood,” which a) ew, b) I eat neither meat nor seafood, not that he would know that, c) who sells MEAT door-to-door, d) we are in land-locked Alberta, SEAFOOD, really, e) this sounds like a scam, and f) I HAVE A NO SOLICITING SIGN ON MY DOOR. I could have pointed out any of those things but I went with f. Anyway, after yesterday’s interaction I found myself unaccountably enraged. I mean, over-the-top, screaming-into-the-void enraged. I immediately texted my very good friend and neighbour Taryn (HI TARYN) and asked her if I was overreacting. She very gently said that I had every right to feel that way but also, perhaps, my emotions were near the surface as I didn’t have a fuzzy companion by my side when I opened the door. She was 100% right, of course. I went into the garden to calm down a little.
- Bzzz Bzzz Bzzz. I have been spending a lot of time in my garden this week; Tuesday was a particularly low and sad day, but I found it healing to watch the giant fat bumblebees buzzing around. They seem to love the flowers just below the kitchen window, and I could watch them forever, collecting their pollen, as busy and purposeful as can be. The first of my daylilies are blooming, my roses are just about to, and my columbines are putting on a glorious show. This weekend I will have my THIRD cutting of kale, which is the upside to this very cool and rainy start to the summer. It’s maybe not great for the rest of the garden, but I have a tiny little pepper on one of my plants, so there’s hope.
- Reliable? Or “Reliable?” This sign is on my running route and it cracks me up every time I pass it.
Happy Friday, friends! xo
That quinoa dish and your hike sound amazing…
Chills from your friend’s insight about your reaction to opening the door to solicitors. Sending love and hope you’re getting through.
Thanks Maya, I am, it’s getting better each day, a little.
Several years ago when it was even harder than it is now to find a recipe that everyone liked, I started a manila folder called “Everyone Ate It” and when I’m out of inspiration, I consult it. It doesn’t have to be an out-of-the-park hit, it just needs to be something everyone ate, though sometimes North will say, “I am eating this, but please don’t put it in the Everyone Ate It folder.”
Most of our solicitors want to convert us (we live two blocks from an Adventist church) or want money for non-profit organizations, or want our votes for political candidates. We never get anyone selling products door to door. My work desk looks out on our porch and I have been known to slowly lower myself to the floor and sit there when I see someone with a clipboard or a lanyard approaching. I kid you not.
I’m glad your garden is a comforting place.
That is an amazing visual and I would probably do the exact same thing, if I had a desk looking out on the porch. I haven’t had anyone try to convert me for a while, but maybe those people are actually reading the sign.
I love the idea of an “Everyone Ate It” folder, StephLove. Borrowing this!
Ugh. Solicitors. We should probably get a sign, too. They always seem to come at dinner time at our house. My husband is more ruthless about ignoring them than I am. But I know that feeling of rage! But I love that you have a friend/neighbor that you can run your reaction past and she can give you a kind and compassionate answer.
That salad sounds delicious! I will have to try doing that with lentils and maybe I can convince my kids to eat them as a snack. They actually love lentils/beans so the 4yo could probably be convinced.
Our summers are polar opposites – ours has been dry and hot. I am very glad I don’t have an off-site garden like I used to. I would need to be over there watering way more often than my schedule would allow for! Last summer was the same. We badly need rain!!
It’s a really tasty crunchy snack!
I admit when I get phone solicitors I just immediately hang up, which fills me with a bit of guilt – they are only doing their job – but just a little.
Those mountains are amazing and getting out into them more is a great goal! There is something that happens when we live close to something; we take it for granted and assume we’ll get there often enough. I live within 45 minutes of Washington DC and yet I go there maybe once a year. That lentil dish looks so good and falls into my favorite category of food which I call “food pile.” I must try it!
This is so true, Sarah! We do take things for granted when they are close by. I’m trying not to but it’s pretty natural, I think.
Your hiking photos are just beautiful.
Your garden flowers are also stunning. I’m glad you have your garden and wonderful hiking trails nearby. Thank the heavens for peaceful sanctuaries away from reality.
We have a No Solicitors sign on our door, and we occasionally get people who either don’t understand what it means or choose to ignore it. I’ve learned not to respond, or to point to the sign, smile, and shut the door. Gah.
Why is reliable in quotations? WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN? 😂
Xoxo
The quotations are just so funny. Do you want a reliable car? Or a “reliable” one? What kind of road trip do you want?
Your garden is SO beautiful and I love your goal of getting into the mountains more! We should all have more mountains in our lives! And the knocking despite the no soliciting sign would enrage me, too, although I can completely understand that your emotional capacity to deal with SUCH brazen idiocy may be a little low right now. Hope you have a happy weekend, Nicole. <3
I agree, we should have more mountains! I hope you get some on your road trip!
Ha, I challenge anyone to turn away from a “path ahead not maintained” sign. We don’t get a lot of solicitors but their visits are memorable-in-the-wrong-way when they happen. Just no.
It’s like saying “don’t open that door!” I mean, you’re going to open the door.
I used to follow a blog that posted daily photos of unnecessary quotation marks on signs. It was always good for a laugh.
I remember someone on another blog once posting about having a no solicitors sign and how it was regularly ignored. We don’t get many door to door knockers around our small town – mostly just high school kids selling us coupons to stores and restaurants we don’t frequent, but always end up buying because I can’t say no to a teenager who was brave enough to talk to a stranger – but I think I would lose my sanity if it happened more than three times a year. Your neighbor is very wise and I’m glad she was able to pinpoint the source of your stress. Hopefully someday soon it will be easier.
We never get teens selling items like that – that said, years ago, before my nieces became Girl Guides, we would sometimes get GG selling cookies. I cannot turn down a Girl Guide cookie. I probably would buy anything if it was a kid selling something for a fundraiser but we never get that. Maybe they read the sign? Maybe it’s a pandemic thing?
Back in the day, I usually wasn’t home during the day – so I have no idea whether we got solicitors or not. Sure the school kids would come by after dinner selling whatever fund raiser – and I always bought something. Since the pandemic, we’ve only had a few people come by. One was a pollster back before the presidential election and we’ve had a few people from a company doing work on one of the houses in the neighborhood – but usually, they would stick a card near the door, ring the bell and leave.
We never get kids for fundraisers, but I’d probably support that. I end up doing that anyway with my friends’ kids!
I can see why hiking in the mountains more often has become a goal for you. So beautiful.
Excited for your salad. I’m trying to remember your husband’s quote last year about the hours of work building the raised beds and how he was glad it resulted in enough kale for one salad. (something like that? – makes me laugh).
I’m reading those quotation marks as ‘in theory’ or something along those lines. Oops.
I keep meaning to look for some salads with quinoa. I vividly remember taking Ed on a college visit and eating out. I didn’t like the salads on the menu. I asked if they could make me a cobb salad. No, Ed made fun of me for not wanting to try something new. I ordered the salad with quinoa and it was AMAZING. Unlike you, I follow a recipe to.the.letter, so I would need exact directions/ingredients.
After the tornado last summer, people came to our door NONSTOP to try to sell us a new roof/roof inspection. I started calling from the kitchen to the front door, WE’RE GOOD. THANKS. PLEASE DON’T COME BACK.
Hahaha! Yes, my $1500 salad! It’s paying off, Ernie!
Quinoa would be so good for you as it’s GF! And so yummy. I will try to be precise in my measurements and then I could pass the recipe to you.
Oh, I would appreciate that.
Great idea to have a goal to make something new/different every week; I’d like to try that — also loosely but make it maybe once a month!
So you roasted both chickpeas and lentils? I like to eat quinoa salad with chickpeas but oh, the idea of something roasted/crunchy like that sounds amazing! I’ll have to give it a try.
My girlfriends and I who recently got into vegetable gardening laugh at ourselves that our gardens are definitely not saving us money — but it’s for the feels! It feels good to see your baby plants grow and reward your efforts by giving you fruit! I love looking at my plants bearing fruit that I often don’t harvest and they get too old; I evidently get more joy looking at them more than eating them.
I NEVER answer the door when I’m not expecting people. I sometimes get curious and peek out through the slightly open shutters but that’s about it. When I was a decade younger (ha!) and didn’t know any better, I’d open the door and they’d ask if my mom is home or if the lady of the house is home, and I’d say, “Oh, no, she’s not” and my husband and I would giggle about it all! Now, I look old enough they want to sell me, not my mother or the lady of the house, their wares and it’s hard to get rid of them so I just don’t answer.
Your hikes look awesome. I enjoy hiking to some degree, when the sun isn’t beating down on me. Your weather in the summer sounds perfect for it!
It IS perfect for hiking – it’s just nice enough for no jackets, but not too hot!
If you haven’t roasted chickpeas for a snack – oh, you must. So delicious and crunchy. I was pleasantly surprised at how tasty lentils were, when roasted, as well!
I added lentils to my grocery shopping this morning, for curbside pick up in a few hours. I can’t wait to try! I have bought roasted chickpeas in more of a snack form before and they were yummy. I just didn’t think to add them to my salad. Thanks for the ideas!
That salad sounds amazing! I know we would like it. Last week my husband made a vegan Caesar salad with crunchy chickpeas. i can’t say that EVERYONE liked it, but my husband and I did. I’m going to try the crunchy lentils.
Yeah, I’m always saying I want to get to the beach “more often.” But I would trade our beach for your beautiful hiking paths and mountains in a second.
Ha ha… some people just don’t understand what quotation marks are for! That’s a funny one.
Oooh the beach is so nice too! We are landlocked here, but the lake is a pretty okay second to an ocean beach.
The no-soliciting solicitors would irritate the heck out of me too. Your friends insight about Barkley was spot on. I’m glad you found some solace in your garden..which looks amazing.
I love your dinner/left over lunch…and that hike? WOW!
Thanks so much Suz! I know we both love gardening!
Your “no soliciters” issue makes me very glad I live in an apartment, haha. The worst we get are little flyers left on our door every now and then.
I love that you went to the mountains – I am sure that is so soothing for your soul while you’re grieving. I hope you’re hanging in there. <3
I don’t mind flyers at all, even though I just recycle them. On our street, the fellow that delivers them is quite developmentally disabled, and he’s so proud of his job, that I always happily take the flyers!
I am a big fan of lentils AND chickpeas! Sounds like a wonderful new dinner addition – esp. when the rest of the fam loved it too.
The “no soliciting” situation makes me crabby just reading about it. We don’t have such a sign (but we should get one!), luckily Jon is very “alert” and usually notices when people are roaming the neighborhood, so we close the door and pretend we’re not home (most of the time).
But if you have a sign on the door, these people REALLY shouldn’t knock or try to engage you in their selling tactics. Rude!
I agree! So rude!