The week of the 4th we travelled to my brother and sister-in-law’s home in Etowah, NC; I was happy to have our son with us as he brings a different dimension to the mix.  Not only do I have someone to converse with on the trip, he’s fitness-oriented which helps to keep me motivated.  He hiked in the Pisgah National Forest www.hikewnc.info/trailheads/Pisgah, I walked the hills of the neighborhood; he went to the fabulous Y in Biltmore Park, I did yoga in the backyard; he ran 6 miles, my sis and I walked three.  He got poison ivy.  We always go for a Black and Bleu Burger at the Black Rose in Hendersonville but this time we changed it up as we had been eating more meat than usual.  I had an outstanding spinach salad with goat cheese.  Although that area sees quite a bit of rain, the weather was fantastic compared to L-ville, where it was in the 100’s.  There are so many towns to visit in the Asheville vicinity, we try to visit 2 – 3 times a year.  One excursion took us to the River Arts District along the French Broad River  http://www.riverartsdistrict.com/; as usual I’ve let almost two weeks go by with a post hanging fire and now August is a week away.  The Daughter and family were on another trip over the weekend so thinking I’d have less prep for Sunday dinner, I decided to finally get the back porch cleaned.  Last year it just got a lick and a promise (kept up with the big chunks of course) but with most of the storm damage repair complete it was time.  This is also prep for the annual wood preservative application.  This time I’m trying an Olympic product that promises to last more than one season.  You don’t get much service out of the clear coats but this one talked the talk.  We haul everything outside and scrub it down with Dawn and a degreaser.  I chose solar screen fabric for the top areas when we added the porch on to the house – it was a pretty good decision as it provides a certain amount of privacy but with good visibility looking out.  The fabric is strong and hasn’t stretched in 6 years and has prevented a lot of furniture fabric fade.  My husband thinks it holds in the heat but I think that’s a function of an un-insulated screened porch baking in the sun all day. It’s a nasty hard job but so nice when it’s done.  One other side effect of this production is that all the furniture and trinkets have to be cleaned, painted, renewed and/or replaced.  Whew.  I’m happy with this year’s outcome as I hit a great sale at Target and was able to replace the hodgepodge of cushions I’d collected over the years.  The painting wasn’t so bad either as I’m loving the Krylon and Rust-Oleum products – especially the bronzes and stains.  I’ll probably coat the porch this weekend as the temperature is supposed to be a little cooler Saturday.  The boy-o left today for a two-week road trip thru the Northeast territories with his band Quiet Hollers http://www.quiethollers.com/ .  We all got together for a send-off on Pizza Nite – the offerings were  Barbecue, Garden Veg and  a couple of leftover slices of Margherita frozen from the week before. That one was especially tasty as we made it with fresh Cherokee Purple tomatoes

we brought back from Asheville along with fresh pesto with basil from the garden.  As usual I used Mama Mary’s Whole Wheat Pizza Crusts.  The barbecue was frozen leftover shredded chicken breast tossed with Stubbs’ Spicy Barbecue Sauce, an onion sliced and softened by placing it in a foil pack with a splash of olive oil and placing it in the oven while it preheated to 425°, sliced banana peppers and shredded colby jack.  The Veg consisted of a saute of frozen pepper & onion stir fry blend, pre-sliced mushrooms and a sliced baby summer squash; fresh romas and basil on top of the mix and a shredded mozzarella-fontina blend to finish.  We usually cheese the crusts a bit before adding the toppings and always sprinkle cornmeal on the pan/stone before adding the crust.  They bake about 12 – 15 minutes and I turn down the heat to 385° about halfway thru.  I was using convection since I had both oven racks going.  We were watching the 2012 Clio Awards for advertising – I hope they post them on YouTube soon, there were a couple that were insanely hilarious that I’d like to share; unfortunately I can’t remember the products they were hawking.  America’s Got Talent followed, most of us were out on the porch watching while we ate…just about the time I get tired of this show they arrive at the finals.  I don’t like watching anything competitive – life’s tough enough.  I’d like to see what’s happened to  some of the great and bizarre acts that don’t make it..I hope that they’ve been picked up by some talent scout and we’ll see them in a commercial or Disneyworld.    Or TLC.  Or the History Channel with the Swamp People.  After that I ran everyone off and went to bed.

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