Little Shutterbug

Toledo Zoo as photographed by Z

I was quite impressed by the shots Z took at the zoo last Friday!

While watching the polar bears I realized she was quite adept using the zoom feature as well as framing a shot.

Her patience let her get this photo of the bear lifting an “ice block” (Styrofoam) he had been playing with for a long time.

She was quite observant and caught the camels from another area of the zoo.Even though the outdoor penguin exhibit was being renovated she found the hanging plants above the moat interesting enough to want to capture its beauty.
Within the indoor portion of the new children’s area she took some more pictures.


The “closeup” below (it's the acutal photo she took - it is not cropped or photoshopped in any way) reminds me of something you might see in National Geographic. Do you know what it is? (place your answer in the comments and later I’ll post the distance shot Z took of this object)

It's a mushroom top inside Nature's Neighborhood Forest at the zoo.
It reminded me of the fairy forest area of Splash Village in Frankenmouth.

I think she has a good eye for design with potential as a photographer! ~~K

Bear’s Bounty

Thanks for the fresh produce!

Zucchini Herb Whole Wheat Bread made in the Toastmaster Bread Box 1142 I’ve borrowed from my sister (recipe in the manual) was a nice change from so many zucchini breads I’ve eaten that seem like a banana bread exchanged with the squash.

It’s a bit misshapen but its texture and taste are smooth, mild, and subtle. I’m sure the honey, basil, and sesame seeds were key ingredients. Sliced thin I even think it would make a nice sandwich. Of course I had a slice for breakfast; and BEB took a slice to have with soup for lunch.

What a refreshing change to have pickle cucumbers rather than the large green ones usually found at market! I’ve been hungry for bread and butter pickles…and found the easiest, quickest small batch recipe ever: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Microwave-Pickles/Detail.aspx Thankfully, all necessary ingredients were already in my pantry!

Even right out of the microwave (yes, it’s a microwave recipe) they had the correct “smell”.
When they were cool enough to put in the jar I had a most delicious slice - crispy, tasty - yummy!

They’re supposed to chill for 4 hours when they’ll be even better - I doubt if there will be any left in a week which is the minimum “setting time” for most bread and butter traditional pickle recipes.
~~K

Fairy Garden

After looking at several fairy gardens - various nurseries, online, and one at the A2 Art Fair, I decided I had to make one! Scouting around for necessary materials proved that the project could become more expensive than I thought. So, I had to put my ingenuity to work!

Scrounging in the garage I came up with a terra cotta container I had purchased at a garage sale several years ago, but never used. (With “W. Germany” etched in its bottom I couldn’t resist thinking D might appreciate it.)

I still had some potting soil on hand leftover from the containers I prepared for the front steps earlier this summer.

I broke down and bought some wooly thyme on sale for 99 cents at Gedert’s Nursery - most places still have not reduced prices for herbs and small perennials - are they on to the popularity of those plants for fairy gardens?! After looking at Hoen’s fairies, plants, and completed gardens ranging in prices from $50 to $150 I’m sure demand is keeping the prices from being reduced.

Miniature plants are less plentiful (and more expensive) than I imagined, but I did find out that if you keep Creeping Jenny clipped it can be a nice addition to a fairy garden. After all of these years of trying to unsuccessfully eradicate this prolific creeper, I had a difficult time locating any - thankfully there were some small starts near the pond that were a great size for a miniature garden.

Finding a fairy at the Dollar Tree was a compromise. I only liked the upper 2/3 of it since it was too tall and sitting on a mushroom with a flower, but the “perfect” sitting fairy at Hoen’s was $6. Creativity was needed, but with some clear caulk and tiny pebbles, you wouldn’t recognize her as the same fairy! She’s even very secure in the planter since I had to bury the bottom third after attaching pebbles to hide the mushroom and her legs. A pebble path (glued onto a piece of roof shingle) seemed to complete that portion of the garden.

Height was added by inserting some grapevine twigs I clipped from the edge of the yard by the bocce court. A “bare” spot needed an accessory so I cut a twig as a base and glued on a marble so the fairy had a “gazing” ball in her yard. A spider plant “baby” completed the greenery.

All things considered, I’m quite pleased with this fairy garden. Hopefully, it will only get better and better with love and care. ~~K

Heidelberg

http://heidelbergannarbor.com/index.html
(Note: prices are higher [entrees about $4 more) than indicated on the online menu)


Talk of Oktoberfest and HofBrau last weekend whetted our appetite for some authentic German hospitality. We had heard favorably of A2’s Heidelberg but didn’t recall ever walking past it. Now we know why - it is outside of the Art Fair boundaries, closer to Kerrytown. Since we always park at St. Thomas on the north side of town it was doubly fitting that we end our great day eating and imbibing in the Alpine Dining Room.


Bsides the authenticity of the décor, the entire wait staff (not just our waiter) were among the most attentive to our table that we’ve ever encountered - water glasses never empty, polite comments and smiles at each passing, empty plates promptly removed, etc. Quite obviously this is a tightly-run, family-owned restaurant; this was restated by the manager as we complimented her on the food and service.


Spaten Premium Lager and Warsteiner Dunkel were our brews of choice.



Tradition ruled - we have a hard time going to a German restaurant and not ordering Weiner Schnitzel! Accompanied by potato pancakes and spaetzle, we again ended the meal quite satisfied if not slightly over-stuffed.


A pleasant walk by Kerrytown on the way back to our car has given us another new “plan” for next year’s Art Fair visit - we’ll start in Kerrytown and perhaps eat at Zingerman’s (you’ve probably heard of their great bread used in many local deli’s) before getting caught up within the confines of the exhibits.

A great end to a great day in Ann Arbor. ~~K

Blue Tractor

http://www.bluetractor.net/annarbor/

(Note: prices are a bit more than indicated on the online menu)

Change is good - we decided to break tradition in A2 this year. Instead of heading east in the morning and eating lunch at Ashley’s we started walking west with no idea where we would eat - it just had to be a “never eaten there” watering hole with food.

What better choice than a micro-brewery? Of course we like to try different beer, but instead of their sampler we had them draw two different pints for us: Bearded Pig Pilsner (a crisp lager with a perfect balance of malt and hops)and Red Barn Ale (a smooth, malty amber ale). D preferred the RBA, but I couldn’t choose - they were both a great treat with our lunch.
Even though BBQ is in its name, we both chose “fish”!

D’s Fried Catfish Po’ Boy with shredded lettuce and green tomato chowchow on a fresh hoagie roll met his approval since it was “greaseless” - too often pub fish sandwiches have too much grease for his palate.

I opted for the Half Sandwich Combo (a specially created half sandwich, with your choice of a market salad or bowl of soup). Today’s special sandwich was a chunky salmon salad on multi-grain bread with lettuce and tomato; soup was a hearty smoked chicken and sweet corn chowder. Both meals were delicious and more filling than anticipated.

Now we just needed to keep walking off that wonderful food so we could try another new eating establishment for supper. Stay tuned…..~~K

A2 in A2 during AF

Annual Adventure in Ann Arbor during Art Fair

Architecture, art, adventure, etc. - pictures rather than paragraphs today!

Pleasant residential areas with eccentric yet colorful co-op houses - some very inviting.

Look up - it’s a nice view complete with “onion tops“, “Oxford-esque-ness”, enemy flags, beauty, etc.

College of Law Courtyard - complete with gargoyles

Q. Which is real?

or

A. Gray man! And A2 is also real.

The perfect BIKE bike rack?

Tattoos, hair, and ribbons that just keep going; nuns and metal

Another enjoyable day in A2! ~~K