Roadtrip.

I love road trips.

Even ones that aren’t meant for play. Normally, I hate being stuck in a car for long periods of time, but this road trip wasn’t quite as daunting. I don’t know if it was the beautiful scenery, the low traffic on the roads, the high elevations, the forgotten towns that look as though they are stuck in time, or the fact I really needed a vacation. But it was wonderful. And I took “drive by” photos to share.

Oh how I love the Bitteroot Mountain Range.

The reason we went to Spokane was to attend the Society of American Foresters Career Fair at their annual convention (I wish I had the money to attend the actual convention!). So we decided to make a mini holiday of it and stop for a couple days in Missoula, Montana before we headed to Spokane. Can I just say I LOVE MISSOULA! What a beautiful town nestled in the mountains with forward thinking individuals. I hear they have the best farmers markets but unfortunately, it was too cold. The town was gorgeous and very walkable, which I also love.

Both Spokane and Missoula were a blast and I just wanted to share the highlights of our trip:

Tagliare Delicatessen, Missoula, MT

The best sandwiches. Ever. I love sandwiches. Real sandwiches, not subbies or quizzies, but made from scratch sandwiches. This was our first stop and hands down the best one on the entire trip. I had a pickled beet sandwich with goat cheese, carrots, arugula and a mustard vinaigrette. I am by no means a vegetarian, but that sandwich was absolute perfection. Tart, sweet, tangy. Yum. Zach had the roasted pork, wine soaked pear jam, arugula and a tamarind balsamic drizzle. It was equally delicious. We finished perfection with two mini cannoli’s: a cardamom clove and Strawberry fennel. My mouth is still watering.

Flying Goat, Spokane, WA

We were told this was a hip-hipster joint and they were right. But if there is one thing I love about the oh-so-lovable-hipster is there constant striving-to-be-different attitude applied to food. I was afraid it wasn’t going to be as good as people made it sound because as we walked in, an older couple decided to walk out as they complained to the hostess. Boy am I glad we stayed. We ordered the McLellan Dumplings which was house made sausage with roasted jalapeno and goat cheese wrapped in dough and deep fried, served with arugula pesto and chili sauce.

Seriously?!? Food should not be this good!! It is too dangerous! They were so good in fact that I almost ordered another round (thankfully I didn’t or I would have been one very sorry girl). The sauces were equally amazing and we felt less guilty asking for another round of them to dip our pizza crusts in. We also ordered the Kiernan; a pizza with Italian sausage, truffle oil tossed arugula, house cheese blend, and heavy cream topped with an over-medium egg. It was fantastic. Egg on pizza? Yes please.

Atticus Coffee & Gifts, Spokane, WA

We have a thing where we try and hit every notable coffee shop and bookstore wherever we go. I have to admit, I chose to visit this place because it is also the name of my niece, but boy am I glad I did. They had a great gift selection. Yes, it is just stuff, but I like stuff! Teapots, coffee mugs, books, woodland creatures, etc. This isn’t your grandma’s trinket shop, it’s meant for a younger crowd, like myself, who likes oddball items. So much fun! The coffee was pretty good too.

Paradise Fibers, Spokane, WA

I forgot to mention that everywhere I go, I also have to visit at least one all yarn shops (poor Zach). I love going places where I can touch things and not worry about breaking them. Yes, I am a compulsive toucher. Although all yarn shops are awesome, this was the best of the trip. Partly because I am bias as I love old brick buildings, but mostly because of the selection. It was huge!! They are mainly an online company so they weren’t as “cute” as most yarn shops but they had soooo much to choose from! I love when I can go to a yarn shop and have the option of cheaper yarns as well as expensive. It somehow makes me feel better that I have seen all the colors and price range options before reverting back to the more expensive yarns. I am an addict. I can’t help it.

Coeur Coffeehouse, Spokane, WA

This find was not at all our style…..at first. The palette is white, almost clinical. One is surprised the aroma of rubbing alcohol doesn’t join the wafting scent of fresh ground coffee. The artwork adorning the walls is perfectly symmetrical, and perfectly ignorable. And the barista at Coeur Coffee nearly vibrates with eagerness. I began to worry this coffeshop was too pretentious for me. The barista rattled on all night to another customer about coffee, how to brew it, who makes the best, the price, the origin, he just went on and on and on. Rather than disdain the barista’s passion and snobbery, I started to admire it, for somehow he managed to be innocent and genuine in his love of coffee. They brew Portland’s local legend, Stumptown. Obsessively measured, brewed, and poured, even regular coffee is made with a french press; they don’t drip brew here. One of the night’s pleasures was watching our young earnest barista prepare a large catering order by brewing ten consecutive small french press batches without looking annoyed or impatient. The forty-five minute effort seemed almost silly, but after tasting their french press I knew it was worth it.

After a while of knitting and listening to this guy, my coffee ran dry and I decided to order another. Two girls came in and ordered foo-foo lattes (as I like to call them). He made them both with precision but I noticed there wasn’t a line of flavored syrups blockading the minimalist bar. I was curious how he flavored these drinks and looked at the menu to find they only offered three flavors; chocolate, caramel, and vanilla. Thinking this was odd, I asked him where they get their syrups. He replied that they make their own syrups. Huh!?! Make? No way! I have never heard of a coffee shop making their own flavorings. He told me their caramel was the best as it was a salty variety. I was sold. That latte was by far, the best flavored latte I have ever had. Salty, sweet, rich, but not overpowering. Perfection. Out of all the coffee shops I have been to in my life (believe me, there has been many), these people make the best flavored lattes hands down.

Moving decades.

It is official.  I have time-warped into the next decade.  And I am off to a great start with a little help from my friends.  Well, my boyfriend. is the guiltiest of them all.

And boy did I get spoiled with an assortment of treats.

My mother got me a skein of Malabrigo worsted merino in the Kaleidos colorway, (of course she had to get one for herself so we can knit our scarves together).  Zach’s mother gave me Downton Abbey, because I love all things British and she has been raving about that series.  And, because Pride and Prejudice is my all time favorite book, a Jane Austen inspired knits magazine is absolutely fitting.  During all my visits to the cabin in Island Park,  I have been collecting pine cones, bark, leaves, and needles from my two favorite (western) trees; Lodgepole Pine and Quaking Aspen.  Zach noticed my desire for a new found hobby of dying yarns naturally, so he took it upon himself to find me a book to get started.  And I was super excited to find it actually contains both Lodgepole Pine and Quaking Aspen as dye sources.  Eeek!  I can’t wait to begin!  I also received 3 bottles of kombucha from my favorite Portand Tea Shop, Townshend’s, to quench my thirst during my projects.  (Believe me, there will be more about kombucha and Portland to come!)

And wait, as if I didn’t sound British enough, I also was gifted new tea to try from Adagio Tea Company.  Being that Earl Grey is my favorite tea, I received three different varieties to try; earl grey bravo, earl grey moonlight, and London earl grey.  Also, I am a Harry Potter fan, and Zach found that this tea company also makes Harry Potter themed teas, so he got me my favorite character: Ron Weasley’s blend (which is marsala chai with almond and ginger).  I also got  Adagio’s ingenuiTEA to make my love of loose leaf teas easier.  It works great!  I used it to make Ron Weasley’s blend and it was delicious.  A delicate chai with almond almost gave it a creamy taste.  I loved it!  I am such a lucky girl.

 

Beetles and fungus.

It was a beautiful Sunday in Island Park, and I found myself wandering in the woods.  I quickly noticed under every pine tree mushrooms were sprouting in mass quantities as though the little people in forest were building homes to survive the cold winter.  These mushrooms were erecting from the ground with such ease and grace, it was as though the soil and needle layer welcomed their intrusion. It was such a marvelous site.

I also found scattered remnants of all the pre-winter wood chopping we did a few weeks ago.  My father will only cut down dead, standing timber as he feels it is a waste to have a dead tree not put to good use.  So, because the wood was already dead and dried out, I found this piece of bark that fell off the stack of firewood.  I flipped it over only to find evidence of one of my favorite forest pests!   Although I can’t determine that the Douglas fir beetle (Dendroctonus pseudotsugae) was the cause of mortality, it was most definitely a contributor.

Look at the beautiful marks this insect makes.  It absolutely amazes me that beetles that range between 1/10 to 1/4 of an inch in size can easily kill a tree that is well over 100 feet tall.   Now I too, hate to see a tree die and not be put to good use, but I do admire the beauty and organic movement the bark beetles make with their egg galleries.  And there are so many different types of bark beetles, each having their own signature markings and unique patterns.   I love finding these little artistic treasures.

Aspen falls.

I know fall is finally here in Idaho because the quaking aspens are the most beautiful golden color right now.  While up for the usual weekend trip at the cabin in Island Park, I asked my Dad to take me on a drive so I could take pictures of my favorite hardwood trees.  Unfortunately, the annual wild fire smoke has been quite awful here and my pictures look like I am back in the Smoky Mountains, but regardless, I couldn’t resist sharing.

In a land of evergreen trees and sagebrush, it sure is nice to see that pop of color. It makes me wish I were a better painter.  Did I mention that I love fall?

Another thing that makes me excited about living back in the west is the extended sweater season.  I love sweaters, sweatshirts, or anything I can bundle up in on a cool fall day, but living in Georgia the cool fall never really started until November or December, thus shortening my favorite season.  So in celebration of my first cool September day in seven years, I cast on my very first (adult) sweater!  I am super excited about it.

It is called the Serina Sweater by Gretchen Ronnevik.  I chose to knit from my stash of Swans Island Certified Organic Merino Fingering in the Wild Salmon colorway.  The color is absolute perfection!  (And my choosing this yarn color had nothing to do with my love for the Salmonidae family and how interesting their life cycles are, I swear!)  I can’t wait to see how it turns out, I hope my first attempt is a success!