Kathy & Neil vote for Vice President Palin!!!
He has won the Iron Dog Race in Alaska 4 times....
(A RE-RUN POST ORIGINALLY POSTED AUGUST 12, 2006)
MORE ON THE RV LIFE.............
SEVERAL YEARS AGO WHILE TRAVELING THROUGH RENO NV, WE WERE TRYING TO INTERSECT WITH I-80 EAST FOR A TRIP HOME TO WISCONSIN. IN A LAST MINUTE LANE CHANGE I HIT THE ON RAMP WITH THE TRUCK AND TRAILER, BUT MARY WAS UNABLE TO SWITCH LANES IN TIME. IN THOSE DAYS WE USED THE OLE CB RADIOS TO STAY IN TOUCH WHILE TRAVELING. IN A MATTER OF MOMENTS WE WERE TOO FAR APART AND OUT OF RADIO CONTACT AS MARY CONTINUED ON TO FIND A PLACE TO TURN AROUND AND TAKE A SECOND SHOT AT THE ON RAMP FOR I-80 EAST.
AFTER THIS EXPERIENCE WE DECIDED TO BUY THE HAM RADIO BOOK AND STUDY FOR OUR HAM RADIO LIC. EXAM. AFTER STUDYING MOST OF THE SUMMER WE TOOK THE EXAM IN DUBUQUE IOWA AND BOTH PASSED. THESES DAYS MORSE CODE IS NO LONGER REQUIRED TO GET A TECH. LIC.HAM RADIO OPERATES AT A MUCH HIGHER FREQUENCY THAN CB AND GREATLY INCREASES THE RANGE.WE BOUGHT A COUPLE OF HANDHELD TRANSCEIVERS, WALKIE TALKIES, AND HAVE USED THEM IN OUR LIFE STYLE EVER SINCE. I NO LONGER HAVE TO VISIT THE GIFT SHOPS !!! MARY GOES IN AND LOOKS AS LONG AS HER LITTLE HEART DESIRES WHILE I WANDER AROUND, USUALLY IN SEARCH OF THE LOCAL WATERING HOLE.
WE ALSO USE THEM ON THE ROAD TO STAY IN TOUCH, AND ALTHOUGH WE ARE DRIVING TWO DIFFERENT VEHICLES A HALF A MILE APART WE VISIT LIKE WE ARE SITTING NEXT TO EACH OTHER IN THE SAME CAR. NOW I KNOW MARY PLAYED FOOTBALL IN A PREVIOUS LIFE, BECAUSE WHEN FOLLOWING EACH OTHER IN HEAVY TRAFFIC AND I WANT TO MAKE A LANE CHANGE WITH THE TRUCK AND TRAILER I JUST RADIO TO MARY WHICH LANE I WANT TO BE IN, AND BEHIND ME SHE SWITCHES LANES AND MAKES A PERFECT BLOCK OF THE TRAFFIC WHILE I PROCEED TO PULL IN FRONT OF HER FOR THE LANE CHANGE.
WE EVEN USE THESE RADIOS AT SUPER WALMART. WE HEAD OUT IN TWO DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS IN THE STORE AND START OUR SHOPPING. IF I HAVE A QUESTION ON AN ITEM ON THE LIST I JUST KEY THE RADIO AND SELECT THE CORRECT ITEM. WE ARE SO USED TO THESE HANDY RADIOS WE DON'T EVEN THINK TWICE ABOUT STOPPING SOMEWHERE AND HEADING OFF IN TWO DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS TO DO WHATEVER. HOOKING BACK UP IS JUST A SIMPLE RADIO CHAT AWAY.
MANY AREAS HAVE REPEATERS, SAY FOR EXAMPLE IN LACROSSE THERE IS A REPEATER HIGH ON ONE OF THE BLUFFS. WE CAN TALK TO EACH OTHER WITH THESES SMALL RADIOS ANYWHERE IN TOWN. OUT WEST WITH THESE REPEATERS LOCATED ON MOUNTAIN TOPS THE RANGE IS ABOUT 50 MILES. MARY CAN BE DOWN THE MOUNTAIN AT THE CARSON CITY WALMART AND I CAN BE SITTING IN THE CAMPER AT LAKE TAHOE, 30 MILES APART AND STILL USE THESE HANDHELD RADIOS.
WE ALSO USE THESE RADIOS AND REPEATERS WHILE OUT MOUNTAIN HIKING. WE ARE MORE APT TO HIT A REPEATER THAN A CELL PHONE TOWER IF ONE OF US WERE TO FALL AND NEED MEDICAL HELP.
AS WE HEAD INTO FALL, AND READERS RETURN TO THEIR COMPUTERS, WE'VE HAD A RECENT SPIKE IN READSHIP HERE ON THE HAPPY CAMPERS BLOG. LAST MONDAY WE HAD 135 DIFFERNT READERS CLICK THROUGH 217 DIFFERENT PAGES.
IT'S INTERESTING ALL THE DIFFERENT THINGS PEOPLE SEARCH FOR ON GOOGLE AND THEN END UP ON OUR BLOG. RECENT HOT TOPICS HAVE BEEN Z-COIL SHOES, AND THE EVER POPULAR MOTORCYCLING AROUND LAKE SUPERIOR.
MONDAYS ARE THE BIGGEST DAY FOR READERS ON THE BLOG, AND THE REST OF THE WEEK JUST GOES DOWNHILL FROM THERE. THE LAST TIME I REPORTED ON THE BLOG STATS WE WERE AVERAGING 55 READERS A DAY, AND LAST WEEK WE AVERAGED 80 VISITORS A DAY.
SO, IS THERE ANY MONEY IN BLOGGING? NOPE!!!
*****HAPPY 5TH BIRTHDAY ALAN!!!********
WHAT'S THIS? THE UPS MAN LEFT A PACKAGE ON THE PATIO?
DID YOU KNOW THAT THERE IS ONLY ONE CHEESE FACTORY IN THE UNITED STATES THAT MANUFACTURES LIMBURGER CHEESE? THE CHALET CHEESE CO-OP JUST NORTH OF MONROE, WISCONSIN. THIS FACTORY ALSO MAKES MY FAVORITE DEPPLER'S BABY SWISS CHEESE.
I ALWAYS LOOK FORWARD TO THE EVEN NUMBERED YEARS AND CHEESE DAYS IN MONROE TO STOCK UP ON LIMBURGER AND BABY SWISS. WHAT A GREAT SURPRISE SINCE I'LL BE MISSING CHEESE DAYS THIS YEAR.
THIS VALUABLE PIECE IS SEALED IN A JAR, PLACED IN MY REFRIGERATOR, AND WILL BE OPENED FOR CHRISTMAS WHEN MY MOTHER WILL BE IN ARIZONA TO SHARE THE PLEASURE OF EATING IT.
THANKS SO VERY MUCH KATHY & NEIL !!!!
Wow, we are definitely in single digits!! One week from today we will be pulling out of Lake Tahoe. It has been such a stressful summer. The lack of business that the casinos have been experiencing at Lake Tahoe this summer is down right scary. I am very grateful we got as many hours of work as we did, but, of course the money was a lot less. A double whammy for sure. Who knows what next year will bring??
Even though we had to cancel our planned "BB '08" vacation, we have come up with a "Plan B" that will allow us to see our much missed family. Another reason to be grateful, that, and the fact gas prices have come down......a little anyway.
We have today off so I am making my last trip to Trader Joe's this summer. Have to get some of our favorite snacks for our road trip!! I am really going to miss that store!! Before heading down the mountain to Trader Joe's , I will be going to the Farmer's Market for the last time.....I will really miss that too!! I am going early so I can get back to help Rex work on our "hitting the road list". He woke up yesterday with his back out so I will have to help more than usual. This is a terrible time for that to happen!!
It is ironic that all summer we have been getting only 3 or 4 days of scheduled work...now with the Labor Day holiday weekend, we are scheduled 4 days in a row, which is the last 4 days we will be here so we have a lot to do on our last two days off, today and Thursday!! Good thing we have our routine worked out and can execute it like a well oiled machine!!
The clock is ticking and we will soon be "on the road again"!!
The motorcycle poker run has become very popular in our area. There is one most every weekend somewhere. It is a simple event, usually involving a starting tavern, several others separated by 20-40 miles each, and an ending tavern. You get a stamp on your entry paper at each tavern, then draw a poker hand at the last stop for the prize, which has never happened to me. This is at one of the stops at a recent poker run........
......you get a T-shirt, the spaced-out guy in the center of this picture is modelling this year's Phipps Run T-shirt.....
The first time you try to use a Dutch Oven you burn the crap out of your food!!! Sound familar? It happens to everyone.
When baking a pie I use the trivot and a glass pyrex pie dish. Now if I'm not sure about the bottom of the pie crust, I lift it out and take a look! Oh, you'll love cleaning up the Dutch Oven after using this pie baking trick.
* The same principal works for this pan we use in the oven on the trivot. The round glass dish works great for checking the bottom of the food. We love to bake bread pudding in this one.
This next pan is effectionly called "The Dog Dish". We use this pan because we are able to surround the pan with baked potates to cook at the same time to go along with our meal. We even have a favorite recipe called "Dog Dish Meatloaf" that we use this pan for. I'll try to include this recipe in a future post.
* Today's last tip is to take your time, and enjoy the cooking experience with your Dutch Oven and a cold beer.
"Sunny & 80"
REMEMBER THE OLD SONY TV WE REPLACED A MONTH OR SO AGO? I GUESS IT'S OUR UPBRINGING, CONSERVATIVE MID WEST PARENTS, AND GRAND PARENTS THAT REMEMBER OR LIVED THROUGH THE GREAT DEPRESSION. AT ANY RATE IT NEVER MADE IT'S WAY OVER TO THE DUMPSTER.
THE OLD SONY TOOK UP RESIDENCE OUTSIDE ON THE PATIO. IT WAS MOVED FROM ONE SPOT TO ANOTHER. REALLY IT DIDN'T WORK THAT BADLY, IT'S JUST THAT, I COULDN'T HEAR IT CLEARLY. YA, I HEAR YOU THINKING HEARING AIDS.
THERE'S NO DOUBT I HAVE A LITTLE HEARING LOSS, JUST ASK MY EX-WIFE OR KIDS. I'VE READ THE SYMPTOMS OF HEARING LOSS ON THE INTERNET. REPEATING, NOT TAKING PART IN CONVERSATIONS, TURNING UP THE TV, ETC......
AND WELL I LIKE THE TV TURNED ALL THE WAY UP, AND I'VE LEARNED TO KEEP MY MOUTH SHUT AND LEARNED HOW TO LISTEN TO THE CONVERSATION INSTEAD OF TALKING ALL THE TIME. BELIEVE ME WORKING IN A CASINO WITH ALL THOSE SLOT MACHINES, HEARING LOSS ISN'T ALL THAT BAD.
AS WE ARE GETTING ORGANIZED TO HIT THE ROAD, THAT OLD TV JUST HAS TO GO, BUT I YELLED AT MARY TO COME GIVE ME A HAND AND BRING MY TOOL BOX. OH BOY, REX AND TOOLS, I WONDER IF THE EMT'S IN CALIFORNIA ARE WELL TRAINED?
I GOT THE OLD SONY APART, REMOVED THE SPEAKER, AND SPRAYED IT OFF WITH ONE OF THOSE CANS OF AIR YOU BUY TO CLEAN UP YOUR COMPUTER. IT ACTUALLY WENT BACK TOGETHER, AND I CAN HEAR IT JUST FINE!!! I WAS CAREFUL WITH THE COMPRESSED AIR NOT TO BOTHER ALL THE YEARS OF SMOKE AND DUST COVERING EVERYTHING ELSE INSIDE THE SET. SO EVERYTHING INCLUDING THE SPEAKER IS NICE AND STICKY...
SO THE OLD TV HAS BEEN MOVED FROM THE BEDROOM OUTSIDE TO THE PATIO. I WONDER HOW LONG IT WILL HANG ON LIVING OUTSIDE IN THE WEATHER? WE WILL KEEP YOU POSTED AS I AM SURE IT WILL PARTICIPATE WITH THE NEIGHBORS AND COCKTAILS ON THE PATIO!
WHAT YOU BEEN UP TO?
GLAD YOU ASKED, OUR TIME IS GETTING SHORT AT LAKE TAHOE. THERE'S A CRISPNESS TO THE AIR IN MORNINGS AND IT'S ABOUT 10 AM BEFORE THE SUN WARMS THINGS UP PROPERLY, A SURE SIGN OF FALL IN THE MOUNTAINS.
OUR FRIENDS AT WORK ARE EITHER GOING OR HAVE BEEN TO THE CALIFORNIA STATE FAIR IN SACRAMENTO, CA. IT'S INTERESTING TO ME THAT AS BIG AS THE WEST IS, THE STATE CAPITAL OF NEVADA AND THE STATE CAPITAL OF CALIFORNIA ARE ONLY 150 MILES APART.
WE AREN'T INTO EITHER STATE FAIR, BUT INSTEAD ARE FOCUSED ON THE "SPRINT" HOME TO WISCONSIN. THE FIRST LEG OF THE SPRINT IS COMING TOGETHER NICELY WITH UNCLE NEIL TRYING TO PUT TOGETHER A GREEN BAY OUTING, SOMETHING ABOUT A BIG TREE REMOVAL FROM HIS YARD, SOUNDS LIKE AN INTERESTING BLOG ALREADY!! OF COURSE UNCLE HANS HAD TO POINT OUT THAT HE AND UNCLE NEIL WERE TAKING MY VACATION FOR ME AND DOING SOME MOTORCYCLING AND "TWO GUYS WITH A BANNER".
OTHER STOPS ON THE FIRST LEG OF THE "SPRINT" INCLUDE VISITING THE COLORADO KIDS IN DENVER. WE'VE BEEN BACK AND FORTH TO THE WEST MANY TIMES AND HAVE ALWAYS AVOIDED INTERSTATE 70 BECAUSE OF TOWING THE TRAILER, BUT THIS TRIP WITH THE HONDA HAS US TAKING INTERSTATE 70 AND THE ROCKIES!!! YAHOO !!!
WE'RE ALL SET UP AT THE GUEST HOUSE ON CABLE LAKE IN SPOONER, DINNER WITH PAULIE IN PAHRUMP, SOME TIME IN DANNY'S CABIN, THE BADGER BAR AND THE PACKERS VS THE COWBOYS, MARY'S 40TH CLASS REUNION, SHRIMP AT THE LOGAN, AND WHO KNOWS WHAT ELSE WILL POP UP?
THE SECOND LEG OF THE "SPRINT"? WELL LET'S JUST SURVIVE THE FIRST LEG FIRST AND THEN WE'LL GET TO THAT.........
"SUNNY & 80" (ON THE PATIO IN THE AFTERNOON)
I've noticed when I write about Dutch Oven cooking here on the Happy Camper's Blog that a lot of readers tune in to read what I've written. With that in mind I've decided to do a series of articles on Dutch Oven Tips, or Short Cuts.
The International Dutch Oven Society has some very specific rules for their competitive cook-offs and all of these short cuts are sure to get you disqualified. These short cuts are for those camping trips to the local State Park or the back yard cooks, especially those lazy, beer loving males.
Let's start with the beginning, the fire. I use the Volcano Stove made in Salt Lake City. This stove adds a measure of safety to your burning charcoals by containing them. Being the lazy guy I am, I used the stove for easy clean-up. The day after I just shake the ashes out of the stove and put it away.
I set the volcano on these blocks of wood, so that I don't have to bend over so far the reach my oven. The fourth block off to sit is where I set the hot lid while serving or checking the food.
The Volcano can be adjusted with three thumb screws to accommodate a #10 or #12 Dutch oven. Here I'm backing off the screws for the #12 Dutch Oven.
Here I'm tightening the three set screws to hold the #10 Dutch Oven.
If you use a larger Dutch Oven, say a #14 the oven will have to sit on top of the stove and a lot farther from the bottom hot coals.
Another option of the Volcano Stove is a damper. You can actually set this damper and use less charcoals for cooking by extending the burn time of the coals to two hours.
The next option is called a wind ring. We spend the majority of our time camping in Nevada, we love the "Sunny & 80" weather and no bugs. The price we have to pay is a lot of valley winds. This wind ring is added on those days to slow down the burning of the charcoal on the top of the oven. Back in the Mid-west we've used foil and clothes pins to cover the wind ring and keep the rain out.
The last option is the grill which fits on the top of the Volcano Stove so that you can use it as any charcoal grill or stove top.
Ok, let's get it started. Lay a paper towel in the bottom of the oven and add the proper number of charcoals to cook your dinner. Squirt on the lighter fluid, the paper towel will keep the lighter fluid from puddleing in the bottom of the grill. Try to keep the charcoals in a single layer. Open the draft all the way and light the fire.
Here is where you need to be careful, the charcoals, with draft take off, well like a volcano. Be sure your Volcano Stove is not under the awning of your RV when you light it!!!
So how many charcoals should I use? Tune in next time for some tricks and answers.
JUST GIVE THEM A QUICK SEAR ON THE GRILL. A COUPLE OF MINUTES ON EACH SIDE SHOULD SEAR IN THE JUICES.
NEXT WRAP THEM UP IN PUFF PASTERY DOUGH OUT OF THE FREEZER CASE.
WE BAKED THEM ON A FOIL COVERED TRIVET TO KEEP THEM FROM BURNING ON THE BOTTOM IN THE DUTCHOVEN. WE USE RELEASE NON-STICK FOIL, A GREAT PRODUCT TO USE IN DUTCH OVEN COOKING.
MARY BRUSHED THE OUTSIDE OF THE DOUGH WITH EGG WHITES SO THAT THE CRUSTS WOULD BROWN NICELY.
TODAY WE BAKED THE BEEF WELLINGTON IN THE NUMBER 10 SHALLOW DUTCH OVEN AT 350 DEGREES, 14 CHARCOALS ON THE TOP AND 8 COALS ON THE BOTTOM. OF COURSE WE USED THE VOLCANO STOVE TO MAKE CLEAN UP EASIER AND PREVENT ANYMORE CALIFORNIA WILD FIRES.
HERE'S THE FAST AND EASY BEEF WELLINTON.........
OF COURSE I SHOULD END THIS POST WITH A NICE CUT INTO THE BEFF WELLINTON STEAK, BUT WHO THINKS OF THE CAMERA WHEN IT'S TIME TO EAT SOMETHING THIS GOOD !!!
"SUNNY & 80"
ON EDIT: WE'VE HAVE A COUPLE MORE SUGGESTIONS FOR THIS RECIPE AFTER THE SECOND TRY. WE USED LESS PASTRY DOUGH, AND WE CUT THE BOTTOM OF THE DOUGH OFF THE STEAK. WE FOUND THAT THIS PREVENTS THE SOGGY BOTTOM ON THE BEEF WELLINGTON.
