p.s. du jour

One Thing I Do Miss (besides people of course)

JOSEPH'S HUMMUS! The best hummus ever made, by far, is nowhere to be found in this lovely little city. Believe me. I've tried all brands, all flavors. Joseph's Original is the best. The best... and not here. After a little internet searching Paul found their website, which revealed the creamy concoction is produced in New Hampshire. Paul wrote the following email.

Hi Jody,
We recently moved form Boston to Tucson, AZ. After scouting out the local grocers we have yet to find our beloved Joseph's Hummus on the shelves. Could you let me know if Joseph's sells to any grocers or distributers in Tucson? My girlfriend is obsessed with your hummus and I must admit that I'm also quite partial. We have been trying other options, but nothing seems to compare. Please help!
Thanks,
Paul

Gotta love him.

Adventures with Humming Bird Watchers

Paul and I went to this cool farm that is a private home that became a big hummingbird hang-out. They have a bunch of feeders and anyone can go and check out the lovely birds and other animals at there place (they have a box out asking for donations). Paul and I know very little about names and categories of different hummingbirds but were lucky to be observing with several very knowledgeable folk who had traveled far, brought their professional quality cameras and hiking outfits, and told us a thing or two about the White-Eared Magnificent. Apparently we saw some rare ones!

This last one is a frog we saw. That's all I got.

A Bite To Eat

Sarah and I have been making good use of our nice, bright kitchen. It's fun to start filling your fridge and cupboards from empty. Plus, this has been an opportunity to reassess what foods we are eating. There is only 1 item in our apt that contains high-fructose corn syrup. It's a condiment that is hard to go without. Can you guess what it is?

Our local grocers give us a good selection of fresh produce, meat, and fish. So, we have been shopping the perimeter of the store, venturing into the middle isles as little as possible (where HFCS, high-sugar, & refined-carbohydrates live). Doing so is costlier. But we believe it's worth it!

The best part is having leftovers. I love leftovers, and thus far haven't needed to buy lunch! Enjoy the photos... I'm getting a snack :)

Grilled local zucchini & eggplant stuffed with herbed goat cheese and spinach. Served with grilled hot italian sausage, fresh tomato & avocado, & sweet-potato wild-rice.

Slow-cooked boneless pork ribs with asian-mustard barbeque. Served with fresh broccoli slaw & leftover sweet-potato wild-rice.

Grilled tangy lemon chicken. Served with leftover broccoli slaw & fresh pineapple, strawberry & yogurt.

Grilled salmon fillet with fresh pesto. Served with grilled zucchini & savory herbed quinoa.

Chicken fajita. Served on blue-corn tortilla, with home-made refried beans, sauteed yellow peppers, guacamole, yogurt, salsa, & cheddar-jack.

Stir-fried salmon & pineapple with fresh zucchini, green beans, yellow pepper & onion.

Touring the Facility

Visiting A Vast Void, aka: Colossal Cave

This past weekend Sarah was in charge of our destiny. She found some excellent places to visit. One of them is a natural cavern about 30 minutes south of Tucson. It's name, seen above, is fitting. It is big, but I might have reserved "colossal" for one of those cathedral size caves you see in National Geographic. It's been used by many people over the years, from ancient Hohokam Indians to excited bank robbers using it for a hide-out back in the 1880's.