Wednesday, June 30, 2010

A quick rewind:

Truth be told, this all took place last weekend before the blog was actually set up. If anyone feels especially cheated then I guess it doesn't have to count towards the goal.
Perhaps I need to form an oversight committee to rule on these types of issues.

On to the real story...

Growing up, my grandmother, May, would always cook a special meal for each of her children's and grandchildren's birthdays. While the dinner menu may have changed over the years, the dessert never did. As long as I can remember, my birthday dessert was homemade caramel cake with peach ice cream. So last Saturday I set out on an adventure to create homemade peach ice cream from freshly picked South Carolina peaches.

The hurdles came early and often. First off, the peaches on the trees would not be ripe enough for ice cream so I had to settle for a basket of very ripe peaches. In my defense, I did at least take the time to wander through the orchard and I promise to return sometime soon to actually do my own picking.

Where to go:
Fisher's Orchard
Greer, South Carolina
www.fishersorchard.com

After a slight detour to Campbell's Covered Bridge and the Tomato Vine, I made it home with my pre-picked peaches and began the ice cream adventure. After hours of boiling, freezing, peeling and squashing, the mixture was ready to go into the fridge but oops, I put the freakin’ stuff in the freezer. So here I am on Sunday morning trying to thaw out the creamy peach ice block. Lucky for me the summer heat worked its magic. So all was going well and I proceeded to prepare a massive southern meal for some friends. After hours of refilling ice and salt, I figured it was set so I got lazy. By the time we finished eating, the mixture had completely melted. Luckily I was able to resuscitate the mixture 30 minutes later just as our butter and salt comas were lifting.

Thanks to some good friends for giving me a great excuse to cook and for sacrificing their bodies to the 30x30 cause.

2 down and 28 to go!
(Blog and Peach Ice Cream)

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

The start of some things new...


So here I am, one year and some odd days shy of my 30th birthday. For whatever it’s worth, this is not a quarter, third or mid-life crisis. Simply put, I just want to try new things. You see, less than a year ago I began a new life for myself. I realized (much like in the book Eat, Pray, Love) that I have a tendency to lose myself in people, relationships, situations, etc…In plain English, I just felt bored with myself.

With that said, I am starting a blog to try 30 new things before my 30th birthday. Some of these things will be small and trivial, some large and significant. I welcome your input and insights. And further, if you’d like to join me on one of my so-called adventures, well then, I’d like that too.

Here's a rough draft of some things I'm considering:

1. Write a blog
2. Take a French cooking class
3. Take a First aid class
4. Take a self defense class
5. Take a meditation class
6. Cook a dish with mussels
7. Make homemade bread
8. Teach Maddox a new trick (or just to behave)
9. Volunteer to help underprivileged children
10. Join a networking group
11. Bike the Swamp Rabbit Trail
12. Run the Cooper River Bridge Run
13. Build something
14. Make a triple layer cake
15. Send birthday cards
16. Go camping
17. Explore local waterfalls
18. Go to a roller derby game
19. Take French lessons
20. Bake croissants
21. Take a group to First Fridays
22. Get a Concealed Weapons Permit
23. Take a golf lesson
24. Learn a new song on the piano
25. Visit Happy Cow Creamery
26. Join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)
27. Visit the Makers Mark distillery
28. Host a dinner party
29. Take shag lessons
30. Make peach ice cream
31. Buy a lottery ticket
32. Bake Christmas cookies
33. Take a group to a hockey game
34. Wear a sock monkey costume downtown

This list will certainly evolve over time but I think it's a good starting point for now. And just a note to anyone wanting to suggest something for me to try, keep it clean. That's all I'm going to say about that.