That Time of Year

Tonight, dinner was "Blueberry Pancakes for Dinner Night". I'm almost to the end of the '09 blueberries that I horded in the freezer.

As Fin helped himself to the blackberry syrup he asked, "When do the blackberries bloom?" I replied, "They're blooming right now." "Oh good" Fin answers, "now we don't have to be stingy" (with the syrup).

I pointed out that we won't have blackberries until May (the end of May). He then pointed out to me that it was a good thing it was the end of April.

Of course, although I tell Fin that we have to use the syrup sparingly because it's only a renewable resource once a year, the truth is that each time he (or I) spoons out a big pancake swallowing helping I flashback to weeks on end of coming home from work and then out to the blackberries to wrestle those luscious little berries out of the bramble. I remember the countless scratches, blackberry canes trying to eat my hat, and then the hours of processing berries, boiling juice, heating the water for the water bath, and getting jars and rings ready. When the last blackberry was processed and put away last summer, I knew that I might never give any of that syrup away. After all, I'm the only one that will ever be able to truly appreciate the value of one of those little jars of syrup.

Gratuitous Cheese Cake

This is the cheese cake I took to work this week.

When I was a child, about the worst thing you could do in my Mother's household, next to saying "God" in ANY way that might possibly be vain, was to manifest pride in oneself. I know my mother meant this for the best and was doing her best to keep a series of quirky, talented, wild things from getting the "big head" but it also instilled (at least in me) a lifelong guilt complex about pride in general. A complex, that I'm working diligently to overcome.

To contribute to this effort, and also to assure you, the reader that I am not being simply "prideful" it is important that the following is understood to be an important part of my personal development and growth. AGAIN, this is not merely empty ego boosting braggadocio. This is in fact, quite serious, truly.

So, for my own personal growth... Let me just say that above cheese cake was FANTABULASTICALLY AMAZING. Really, even people that don't like cheese cake, like this cheese cake!

This is my "not-so-famous but should be" Turtle Cheese Cake with an Oreo crust. If this cheese cake were served in a restaurant, it would be listed on one of those "Top 10 Worst Restaurant Deserts EVER" lists put out by the healthy people. In fact, I'm pretty sure that one of these puppies could supply a small impoverished village with enough calories for a week.

Truly, amazing.