Camping, Again

I have figured out that I like camping because it is simple living at its truest. It's a reminder of the bare minimum that we need to dwell on the earth. We needn't shower or wear make up every day. Comfortable and strategic layering can be more important than nice clothing. We don't need constant access to electricity or gadgets. Barring extreme weather, we can live out of tents and cars. We can eat simple meals, and find entertainment in peaceful reading and walking and talking. Sometimes we can just be.





I went spent the long Fourth of July weekend camping at Quechee State Park in Vermont near the New Hampshire border, about five minute drive to White River Junction and about 15 minute drive to Dartmouth College. Home to Vermont's deepest gorge, the park is a bit of a tourist attraction with hiking, a rocky beach, and antiques, restaurants, and farmers market within walking distance. It is a decent campground with brand new restrooms (with what looked like solar panels on the roof) and shady, albeit not necessarily private, sites, though I suppose I got a bad spot for making last-minute reservations. Also be warned that the bar across the street from the campground entrance has live music on Friday nights, so cover songs and jam noodling could be heard faintly into the wee hours.



This was Milo's first camping trip. Spencer stayed in a kennel in Brooklyn because he is a jerk*, but Milo is mostly a sweet smiling delight so he got to come along and have room to run around, play frisbee, sleep in the shade, hike, and splash in the gorge.









A tie-out stake and long leash allowed Milo to explore the perimeter of the campsite and chase squirrels without risk of running away, which I highly recommend.



In this oppressive heat wave, the shaded campground was the most comfortable place to spend hot afternoons, proving that leafy trees are nature's own version of air conditioning.





I amsupposed to go camping again this weekend, and I am working a guide to packing for camping to share with you.

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Garden Pet Repellents and other Tools of the Trade

I debated whether I would bother doing any gardening this year. One of the dogs has a special affinity for chewing up plants - greens, dirt, plastic pots, and all. (Remember this photo? And the repeated demise of parsley starts?) After watching Milo systematically destroy most of last year's plants over the course of the fall, I felt it would be futile to attempt much more than to hang a few pots out of his reach. On top of that, we may or may not be moving this summer (smack in the middle of growing season) and may or may not have outdoor space if we move.

But, being blessed with (what passes for) a yard in New York City, it would almost be criminal not to take advantage of growing space. I can't let fears about what may or may not happen in the future get in the way of what I want to do now. That's how time slips away from us, leading us to realize years later all the missed opportunities. I can't let the dogs control my life (even though they'd like to). Anyway, due to a recent fence-breakthrough incident, the dogs aren't allowed in the yard unsupervised for the time being.


My plan is to be much more vigilant about using deterrents to keep pets away from the plants. For now, I just gave a spritz of the vinegar-tea tree-water all-purpose cleaner that I keep on hand, but I think it's actually too strong, so I found several other simple options. In particular, it's great that coffee grinds and citrus rinds can be saved from the trash to serve a dual purpose as both repellent and nutrient enrichment. I'll let you know how these work out.

Natural Garden Pet Deterrents

* dilute a teaspoon of vinegar with water in a spray bottle and spray onto the plant on a semi-daily basis, especially after rain
* sprinkle cayenne pepper or other black or hot pepper onto the soil
* dilute pepper in water and spray onto the plants
* soak rags in vinegar and place around the perimeter of the garden
* sprinkle coffee grounds and citrus rinds onto the soil (bonus: this is good for the plants!)
* stick a bar of soap near the plant

Also, that growler is there to prove one needn't purchase special equipment for gardening. I use a large spoon instead of a trowel. And a growler or jug stands in for a watering can (although it does require a few more trips to the kitchen sink).

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Roam the Land

I just stumbled across the blog Grass Doe, replete with photographs that capture moments, faces, and landscapes in perfect stillness and calm. Shhhh, don't show this to my boyfriend or I might be forcibly carted off to a farmhouse in Maine where Milo can roam the land like his bushy-tailed brethren.

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The Snow Bunny

Another big snowfall a week ago. Funny how that childhood longing for a snow day never goes away. When I woke up and found piles of fresh snow outside our window, I had a secret hope that work would be canceled. Milo adores the snow and was out the door first thing in the morning to dig and leap and play. In stark contrast to Spencer, who gingerly avoids the white stuff.

But there are no snow days here. Public transportation allows life to proceed as usual, work and drinks with new friends and dance parties with sisters, and all. Thankfully I have no car to dig out or move to alternate street parking. Snow in the city has none of the hassles and all of the pretty. Until it turns to slush the next day. Thanks to all that blacktop and concrete and underground steam, last week's snow is nearly melted already, though I am sure we will see some more slush come our way before the winter's end.

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Snow and Sunshine

January was a dark time for me. It's not the cold weather getting me down this winter, as usual, but the state of my life. All those New Years reflections snowballed, and it hit me that 2009 was not a good year: unachieved resolutions and aspirations, a total lack of exercise, a summer of stress, the realization that I've been living in an isolated dirty hovel of an apartment for six months, and the fear that I will trapped in this rut for six months more.

In February, things started looking up, little by little, or I am at least more hopeful that they are. It helps that February is all snow and sunshine. What winter should be. The kind of crisp air that is perfect for long walks and bundled jogs around Prospect Park. With the puppy in tow, for snow and the outdoors are his natural environment. Spying lots of snowmen and sledding. Hoping for ice skating next weekend. Still working on putting my 2010 resolutions and plans to paper. Only one month of winter left, and I think I can make it. How is February treating you?

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Dogs and Couch Lust

I imagine most of you come home from a long day of work and are able to plop into a big comfy couch for some relaxing.  Sounds nice. Have a glass of wine, a fuzzy blanket, and cozy up for a movie. Not in this household.

In our last apartment, we had a futon instead of a couch because no couch could have fit through the hallway into our home. The futon was perpetually covered in dog hair because we never trained Spencer to stay off it. So I'd have to change into my pajamas if I wanted to sit on it, so as to not ruin my clothing. Looking back, the situation wasn't so bad. In fact I'd love to go back to those relatively peaceful one-dog days. But futons are not especially comfy; it still did not fill my void for a soft place to crash.


Then we got the puppy and moved into a new apartment. We could definitely fit a couch in here. However, it would be a serious waste of money because the puppy is a serious force of destruction. Back before Milo was housebroken, he had the habit of peeing on the futon every now and then. Okay, we thought, we'll get a new mattress and cover it with a plastic mattress protector and cover THAT with a sheet so that the mattress itself doesn't get ruined and we can just swap out the dog-haired sheet for a new clean sheet every now and then. Sounds like a genius plan right?


Well we went through three mattress protectors - the dogs tore through each one while we were at work. They also tore through the sheets and started chewing holes in the foam mattress. Oh how Milo loves foam.


Here's what we've worked out now: we keep the mattress itself stored away in a closed room most of the time and only put it out when we have company or want to watch a movie with the full HDTV-huge-speakers experience instead of the laptop-on-the-bed experience. I have yet to patch the holes in it. Our living room is dominated by the empty futon frame.

Funny thing is, Spencer is so in love with lounging at an elevated height, he now uses the coffeetable as his "couch." What does he think he is, a mountain goat?



Of course, when the mattress is down and we don't happen to be sitting on it, the dogs go to town. Silly humans, this isn't for you - this is our playground! Spencer was never trained to stay off furniture, so it was impossible to train Milo to stay off too.

As a result, I have some serious couch lust and drool over the comfortable clean lines of your lovely sofas, like Maria's over at Vintage Simple. But sadly I don't see it being possible until I have enough space for a dog-free living room someday. What home features do you lust after despite their impossibility?

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My Life With Dogs

Milo (seven month old golden retriever/german shepherd/husky puppy)

Spencer (five? year old pitbull/terrier shelter dog)


I'm putting together a series of posts about how my dogs ruin my life. I know a lot of you out there think you want a dog. Because they're cute and cuddly and friendly and great companions that keep you safe and especially cute with babies. All true. But it's really important to consider how your life as you know it will change, and not necessarily all for the better. I have plenty of cautionary tales testament to this. Tales that explain why I'm so jealous when I read about your cute little (comparably) easy cats.

We have two not-so-well behaved dogs, and you're probably thinking, but I would train mine right. Well, that's what I thought before we got a second puppy. It's not always possible. It depends on the dog's temperament and its past experiences (in the case of a shelter dog), and it's hard to raise a big dog in a small space and be able to give it the attention and exercise it needs, AND it's hard to work with other household members to consistently stick to proper training to keep the dog in check. After all, I'm not the only one struggling to live with their dog. I've written before about my frustration at not being able to have a normal life with dogs like other people, but things have not gotten any better since then. So please bear with my woes, and any words of advice will be much appreciated.

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Dog Beach

Tucked away in a corner of a lily-padded pond toward the south end of the Long Meadow in Prospect Park is a wonderful dog beach. I don't know how this beach came to be, but whoever thought of the idea is brilliant! We took Milo there last Saturday. Apparently he loved to swim in the lake when he was a baby puppy growing up in the woods of the Adirondacks before he came to Brooklyn.


It was the perfect activity for such a hot day, now that New York City's infamous horridly humid summer days are here. Milo got to cool off in the water, while I stood on the sidelines with the camera and the other, water-fearing dog who refused to even touch the water.



Even if you don't have a dog, it's worthwhile to stop by on a walk through the park for some cute overload. Dogs leaping to play fetch in the pond, splashing, playing, treading water, carrying sticks in their mouths. It's an adorable spectacle that gathers quite a crowd.



ED Note: Apparently the dog beach is filled with giardia, so it's actually not such a great idea to take dogs there. But fun to stop and watch the unsuspecting dogs whose owners don't care, nonetheless.

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Meet Milo!

Among the many backlogged updates that await you...my boyfriend got another puppy! (Yes there are now two dogs living in our apartment).


One morning last month my boyfriend couldn't sleep and was browsing puppies on the internet. He woke me up around 6am, brought over the laptop and showed me a very cute blurry looking puppy (to my groggy eyes). "Yeah he's cute," I said but thought little of it. But surprise! once I got to work, he called to say that he really really wanted the puppy and so...


Milo arrived at the apartment late at night, plucked from the wilds of the Adirondacks. He has two different colored eyes, is fairly mild for a puppy, loves to hide under things, and is good at some commands (sit, down) but not so good at others (Off!) The other dog Spencer was depressed for a few days, but he finally started smiling again earlier this week. The two dogs are getting along surprisingly fine. And oh it is such a pleasure walking a dog who gets along with everyone (ie. not Spencer who has to kept on a short leash lest he bite someone/thing).

But let me tell you, if you are thinking about getting a puppy, it is a LOT of work...a lot of cleaning up...keeping a close eye on him so you can use every opportunity you can get to train...hiding things so they don't get chewed...feeling like the house is a kennel with dogs running around and jumping all over the furniture (since we currently have no yard for them to play).

Anyone out there have any advice or good books on training puppies?

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Dog Ate My Pizza

Yeah, there he goes looking all cute and innocent again until...

First the good news. Last time I tried to make grilled pizza, it was a gummy disaster. I think that dough recipe, which works wonders in the oven, was probably just too thick for the grill. Meanwhile, tons of people out in the blogosphere have made grilled pizza with no problems. So I was determined to try again using a different, thinner dough. I wisely chose the mother of all thin crusts: Heidi's whole wheat pizza dough, also following her grilled pizza tips.

Tonight, I came (home from work), I saw (raw sausage and radish leaves turn into a delightful sauteed topping), I conquered (grilled pizza). However, I was so worried about the giving the pizza ample time to cook through in the middle that I let the first couple pizzas burn a tad, but at least it was edible and delicious, compared to last time. Heidi's pizzas are actually so thin that they don't really have a middle, just crispness, so there was no need to worry. Next time, I will leave my dough a little laxer instead of stretching it out parchment thin as she recommended.

But here comes the bad news. I made three pizzas tonight with my own blood, sweat, and tears (okay more just like a little easy labor with the help of a friend). We ate up two of the pizzas but didn't touch the third. It lay there waiting patiently to be packaged into an amazing lunch for tomorrow. I walked my friend to the door when she left. I was gone for about TWO minutes. I came back upstairs. Huge gasp - the pizza is gone! Without a trace. Because my dog ate my pizza!!!

Devil dog strikes again. All of my hard work wasted on his already-fed stomach. What misfortune will he bring next? Only his pea sized brain can tell. And that's why I have no pictures to show for my work, either, because as you could say, the dog ate my homework!

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The Dog Days

A simple dinner tonight of pasta caponata and a smoothie, that I forgot to photograph. So here are some pictures of my dog Spencer instead; more on him below.

I first made caponata last week, and munched into it atop toasted whole wheat bread spread with goat cheese, inspired by lunch I had a while ago at Landmarc in the Time Warner Center. Caponata is a Sicilian dish of eggplants, peppers, and/or tomatoes and other veggies, diced and cooked together until soft and mushy, spiced with olives and capers. However, olives and capers aren't local or budget friendly, so I left them out, and didn't find my caponata lacking at all. Instead I spiced it up with lemon, crushed red pepper, and red wine vinegar, which were already handy in my pantry.

Tonight I had tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers from the farmers market waiting patiently in the fridge to become caponata again. But I didn't have enough bread to serve it on, so I decided it would work just as well with pasta. And it did, though I found myself craving a little sausage in there too. Most recipes for caponata call for you to roast the eggplant first, but in New York City's oppressive summer heat, I grilled the eggplant, and it was a much quicker way to tenderize rounds of slightly-chared and oiled eggplant.

For dessert I made a peach and nectarine smoothie with Ronnybrook yogurt. I don't like to eat fruit or yogurt on its own, but I do like them in smoothies and baked goods. So I decided I would buy the ingredients at the farmers market to make smoothies, in a concerted effort to be healthier. Since I'm not a big fan of peach flavor, I also threw in the last of some frozen strawberries that had been hanging around in my fridge for, oh at least six months, to brighten the flavor - but if you like peach, then plain ice cubes will do just fine for cooling down your drink.

And as for the dog days...does anyone have advice for remedying a sweet-turned-vicious dog? We adopted our dog from the shelter and accepted his growling nature toward other dogs as a hazard of his troubled past. Because he's just so darned cute, and, though he doesn't like other dogs, he loves people and is a bit of a whore with seeking out petting from other people on the street.

Until suddenly after two years, for the past two weeks straight he has started growling and trying to bite random people. For no apparent reason. The people he targets run the gamut of teenagers, old ladies, construction workers, and guys just sitting on their stoop. It's scary, and I don't know what to do. And it's so bizarre! It's bad enough that I have to walk this guy every day when I could be getting a few more minutes of precious sleep or gallavanting about town instead of coming straight home after work, that we leave the energy guzzling AC on during the day for him (at 75-77 degrees), and that he gets a full third of the bed at night! And now he's turned into a devil dog! But then he's just so darned cute and lovable with us, and you have to forgive him/forget all his sins...

Grilled Eggplant Caponata
olive oil
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
3 green peppers
3 tomatoes
1 large or 2 small eggplants
zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
1 1/2 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
salt
pepper

Dice onion and mince garlic and sautee in olive oil over low heat. Dice peppers and then tomatoes and add to pan. Let cook over low heat, with the tomato juices simmering away slightly.

Meanwhile, slice eggplant into thin rounds, brush with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Grill over medium heat, about 4 minutes on each side, until eggplant is tender with browned grill marks. Remove from grill. After eggplant has cooled a few minutes, dice eggplant and add to the pan, along with the remaining ingredients. Continue to sautee another 5-10 minutes, until vegetable mixture is evenly softened and flavored.

Serving suggestions:
Toast slices of bread, top with goat cheese or mozzerella, and then top with caponata.
Let caponata cool in the fridge, and then eat with pita chips on a hot summer day.
Make 4 servings of pasta, toss pasta with caponata along with 1 tbsp olive oil and 1/3 cup grated parmesan for caponata pasta.
As an accompaniment to fish or chicken.

Peach and Nectarine Smoothie
1 small peach
1 small nectarine
2/3 cup yogurt
1 1/2 tsp honey
2 frozen strawberries or ice cubes

Wash and roughly chop peach and nectarine. Add yogurt and honey to blender, followed by the fruit and frozen strawberries or ice cubes. Blend until smooth. Makes one whopping glass or two small glasses.

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