thehostelwitness

Just in time for Cinco de Mayo! Kimchee de gallo recipe - oh yeah.

I don't know why korean and mexican fusion works so well...korean bbq in a corn tortilla with cheese probably one of the best it just works foods out there. So when I joked a few weeks ago about creating a kimchi based sasa, the voice in the back of my mind whispered, you know, that can work! My office does an annual Cinco de Mayo salsa throw down and so this year, I decided to go all in.

Even Lauren liked it, which as an Irish-Norwegian says quite a bit. While I know that this is the perfect salsa for kimchi lovers, it remains to be seen what the office mates will think about it. In any case, I loved it. 

 

Kimchi de gallo

5 diced medium sized tomatoes

3 cups Kaktugi, radish style Kimchi

½ can of black beans, unflavored

5 jalapenos

¼ cup red onion

¼ cup cilantro

 

On an oiled broil pan, slice jalapenos in half and broil skin side up for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and dice. Seeds can be kept, depending on desired hotness. Dice kaktugi to desired size, then In large colander, combine tomatoes, kaktugi, beans, jalapenos, cilantro, and onion. Mix and allow liquid to drain, then place in a serving bowl. And that’s about it.

Making the kaktugi is the hard part (and alas, my mother has yet to give up the recipe), but generally speaking this radish kimchi is not as spicy as its better known cabbage counterpart. It is in fact, quite crunchy and sweet, which lends a good balance to the texture of the tomatoes. The roasted jalapenos offer a nice warm heat at the end of the bite, but you can certainly make it hotter by keeping the seeds in. No salt is needed, as the kimchi generally has enough in it already.

Lillian Creek, a hidden treat along the Elwha River Trail, Olympic National Park

Pat and I took Friday off to do an early season break in and make sure that all our gear was working and accounted for. For the hike, we chose Lilllian Creek, a trail that breaks from the lower Elwha river trail. The creek dead ended after about 7 miles, so we turned around and hiked back, setting up camp back on the Elwha trail. All sorts of interesting things to see - the Elwha dam removal, plenty of deer and harlequin ducks, and of course, a deer carcass right on the trail. The last time I came across a deer carcass, I was also hiking with Pat. As he gingerly stepped over the body, I told him that he always takes me to the most interesting places. The Elwha is a great hiking destination for the early spring. Its elevation remains below the snow line and the trail starts just a short ways outside of Port Angeles. And the forest is just amazing. The gear all checked out and fortunately, we didn't have a chance to test out the rain gear. Maybe next time.

 

Pat, being reflective.

 

My photoshop filter license has been revoked.

 

Descending down to the Elwha. 

Camping among giants.

Another couple of hikers enjoying the trail. 

A trip to Ebey's Landing on Whidbey Island

It's always funny how an impromptu outing can turn into a fun little adventure. This past weekend, Lauren and I had been planning on an excursion to Ebey's Landing, a five mile loop on Whidbey Island. This year round hike is famous for its ties to local history, as well as a unique lagoon that protects the trail from the surging tides.

 

We had mentioned the trip to friends James and McKenzie. When they replied that their family actually had a house just a few miles from the landing, we just decided to make an overnight of it and brave the commute back into town in the morning.

The prairie after the hill rise.

Immediately after getting out of the car, we encountered a pair of eagles, swooping right over the car. The winds were picking up and in the distance we saw a trail slowly meander its way up a steep hill. Luckily, the hill ended up looking more mean than it truly was. Oni was in heaven. She is usually a very reserved dog, reserving her moments of excitement to when just Lauren and I are around, but on this day, she could not contain herself. Dancing on her leash, she pulled me up the hill, through the prairie, and onto the beach.

Unfortunately for me, I had let my camera battery go uncharged, so I contented myself with Instagram which doesn't quite capture the experience, but it is my first billion dollar piece of software.

5 miles and 14,000 steps later (thanks, fitbit!), we headed into Coupville for a cold beer and bowl of chowder. At the house, which was modest but literally just a few feet from the ocean, we bbq'd, opened up a few bottles of Full Moons, and I introduced James to the classic game of rock, where in which one person tries to hit a rock with another rock. Its going to take the world by storm. 

5am came too soon and we packed up the car in the darkness. Still, everyone made it to work on time (if only just), so not only did we get a hike in, but we learned how to stretch every single minute out of a sunny weekend. 

This doesn't really count as travelling, does it?

The Jackson HQ in Alpharetta, Georgia

So during the other days of the year - about 340 of them - when I'm paying the bills, I work for a small staffing company out of Seattle. This weekend was pretty interesting in that I was able to see our parent company's HQ and meet some members of our sister companies - about 11 of them all told, all part of the Jackson Healthcare organization. Jackson Healthcare is one of the largest healthcare staffing companies out there and you don't know it, if only because they've remained privately held. But trust me when I say its big, but not just because they have this large one fountain on the outside, but also because they have one equally as big fountain inside:

And a koi pond.

 

It was really quite the set up and the hospitality was fantastic - gracious people taking a couple hours out of their day to answer questions to complete, pale strangers. Thank you, Jackson. The three of us would be in meetings all day and then would talk for a few more hours at night, just digesting all that we said and coming up with ways to take some of that knowledge back to our work place in Seattle. 

Unfortunately, it was a short trip and even with the sunny weather, I wasn't really able to enjoy any time exploring. As I sat in the airport, reading the latest copy of Garden and Gun magazine, I just wish I had a bit more time to explore and go a bit further afield - until next time, Atlanta?

We're not in Seattle, anymore. 

2012 To Do List

Its April here in Washington and that means that our rainy season has begun in earnest. For me however, April is a signal of the true new year. March is my Christmas, when we unwrap our shiny "permit" presents to find out if we were given the weekends we desire or just a lump of coal. This year, we must have been especially nice, as Ranger Santa gifted us not just one, but two great weekends in the late summer. It looks like Thomas and Shawn will finally, after two futile years, get to experience the best of what we have to offer. 

All dark and dreary winter long (yes, I could have gone backpacking in March, but there was Mass Effect to play), I've been staring at a painting my step father made for me in the form of a birthday card, a scene painted from a picture that I took while on the Wonderland Trail a couple years ago. And with April , finally the new year, its time to start planning out the weekends. 

In May, we're planning a kickoff weekend on the Washington coast for the weekend, the usual M.O. for the group. Shawn and Thomas are going to fly in again to tackle the Enchantments in the early fall. Those two weekends will bookend what's sure to be a great summer of the outdoors. 

On my list? 

Another kayak camping weekend on Ross Lake

A hiking weekend in the Methow Valley

An early season trip along the Hoh River

A return to the Grey Wolf Trail 

Eclipse hunting down on the Oregon coast

A first venture into the Pasayten Wilderness

Cabin camping down in Mt. Hood

 

So yeah, its raining outside, but I don't mind. I'll just keep on staring at Mt. Rainier, my tent, and a blue sky that lets me see right into the future. 

This posting is brought to you by the Stone brewing company.

Brews, Fish Fry, and Marquette - it must be Milwaukee

Its March, which means its Senior Day at Marquette. This year, Lauren elected to join me, so we flew out to the beautiful, and newly snowed in, metropolis of Milwaukee. 

The game was excellent and being able to meet Shawn's girlfriend, Erin, as well as show Lauren the place where I spent some of the most formative years of my adult life was fantastic.

 

 

Meeting Erin and Shawn

Lauren loves her fishfry!

Its cold outside the Lakefront Brewery.

Getting a tour

Inside the Basilica

The basilica was meant to be modeled after the one in Rome.

The Basilica of St. Josephat - by the way, St. Josephat is a fairly polarizing figure, apparently. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._josaphat

Lauren standing outside the Joan of Arc Chapel at Marquette, the oldest structure in the United States - really!

Lauren matches Milwaukee

The seniors celebrate their last home game.

Shawn down front, up and close.

Our seats were a bit higher.

Much higher. But we enjoyed the view!

There's an apartment on the street #occupygarbage

My Uncle complains that I don't post to this page enough and that's true. So here you go, Uncle.

I don't know what the story is or why, but someone's apartment has been dumped in front of my place. There are cats in the bags, rummaging. Neighbors have descended on it like vultures, picking over for a prize. Family photos sit in the dirt. And with darkness descending, I'm sure The Homeless who make their way to the park at night will have their pickings. Don't be surprised when the mattress ends up in the middle of the street.

The apartments are senior housing, run by the city. I don't know if someone died and no kin was around or if this was an eviction, but either way don't you think a call to goodwill would have been better than this?

Grrrr....

Please tell me that's papaya on your pants

My boss pointed it out to me this morning. "What's that yellow stain on the front of your pants?" she asked.

I looked down - it was all over the front of my slacks. 

"Oh you know," I replied. "Papaya."

About this time last year, I had jumped headlong into running a marathon for some reason. It was never an ambition of mine, nor was it on a life list. I told Lauren about it and she looked at me with wary eyes (a look that, by the way, I've grown quite acustomed to). To her credit though, she didn't poo poo the idea. She just kind of rolled with it. Just like she does whenever I announce something monumental. Like how one day I'm going to name my children Bishop and Ripley. 

That look. Whatever you say, dear.

Long story short, marathon was trained for and marathon was ran. Months later, my shoes sat in the closet, gathering dust. Until one day, about a month ago, I just decided I missed running and would start running the 2 miles into work in the morning and then the 2 miles back. Turns out, its faster than the bus and the only sweaty, smelly person I have to worry about is me.  

The challenge with running into work, is that you have to have your clothes on your back. This creates some logistical challenges and frankly, there is nothing I love more than planning and logistics. What kind of bag do I run with? (REI's Flash Pack does nicely!) Do I stack my work shoes one atop each other? Do I put the belt in the shoes with the socks? How do I pack my shirt so it doesn't come out a mess at the end of the run? Where do I put the tomato?

I happen to like a mid-afternoon tomato break. Getting this thing to work would be slightly problematic. 

The first time I put the tomato in the bag, I felt the firmness and judging it to be sound, placed the tomato on top of everything else. At the end of the run, much to my dismay, I had turned my bag into a giant V-8. Tomato juice was everywhere. On my white shirt. On my nice slacks. In my shoes. Safe to say, it was a bit of a mess. Apparently, the weight of the tomato caused it to work its way down to the bottom of the bag, where it became ketchup. 

So, this morning. Tomato - safe in a ziploc bag. Placed firmly in the middle of the pack. It made the run fantastically. Unfortunately, I didn't think to do anything for the papaya.

I happen to like a nice papaya in the morning. 

 

 

Backpacking the High Divide, Olympic National Park

Late August, John, Pat, Jayson, and I spent three days hiking over 25 miles of the high alpine wilderness in Olympic National Park.

The High Divide trail climbs up into the Alpine wilderness of the Olympics, some place that I haven't been before. Due to the unusually high snow pack, even in late August we were warned to pack ice-axes.

The trail is listed at about 20 miles total - leaving from Sol Duc Falls, you can hike the Deer Lake Trail, then jump onto the High Divide. From there, you can descend into the 7 Lakes Basin before continuing on past Bogachiel Peak. Rounding Bogachiel, you join up with the Sol Duc Trail to return to the Falls. All told, you gain about 3,000 feet in elevation from the trail head. 

Bugs are pretty heavy in the late Summer, moreso with the late snow melt, so bring plenty of bug juice and thick clothes. Even wearing a poncho and a sweater (in 70 degree temps, no less), John, Pat, Jayson, and I left with about a 100 love bites a piece.

Hiking the East Bank Trail at Ross Lake, North Cascades National Park

Ross Lake on Fourth of July weekend.

It just so happened that we lucked out this year - again - with permits to go over the Enchantments. I've been fortunate enough to hike the Enchantments three times previously, but this year, with permits and four days to spend over the 4th of July, I was hoping