Music Abounds at the Saturday Market

* Note ~ This Blog is not necessarily on chronological order.

I just had to mention the musicians that were present today from the Cello player...

... to Banjo Man ...

... to the off beat trio playing "Hey Diddle Diddle." They were all very good and the trio was as energetic as a mongoose fighting a cobra.

We parked in our usual spot across from the alley next to the Hotel Smeede.


The Hotel Smeede has some ground floor windows that look into a very nice art gallery and from the inside look out on the alley.

At the end of the alley is a cool looking building in a blue-grey with lots of angles, white trim, and one red door.

It also have a rather over planted patio at the entrance.

To say the booth operators are colorful is an understatement.

The chillies were colorful.

The honey sticks were even more colorful.

Even the veggies were at high color.

I took a couple of close ups of the garlic and ...

... something that looked like Brussels Sprouts but my neighbor Scott says it is something else a tomatillo pepper. Soooo try this recipe:

Corny Tomatillo-Red Pepper Soup (Mexican)
Chunky, colorful, and with a pleasantly sour undertone to the sweet summer corn, this mostly all-New World soup is an excellent stimulant to appetites that flag in the summer heat. Serve hot to 6-8 people as a first course.

* 1 Tablespoon corn oil
* 1 onion, finely chopped
* 5 tomatillos, husked and quartered
* 3 cloves garlic, minced
* 4 ears fresh corn, corn sliced off and divided two into equal piles
* 4 cups vegetable stock
* 3 Tablespoons cilantro, chopped
* 1 Tablespoon corn oil
* 2 large red bell peppers, diced
* 1 jalapeno pepper, chopped fine
* 1 Tablespoon sugar
* salt and pepper

Garnish: A tomato, cilantro sprigs, and green onions, chopped into a relish with lime juice

Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in a saucepan on high, then sauté the onion, tomatillos, and garlic for about 5 minutes, until softened. Stir in half the corn kernels, 3 cups of stock, and the cilantro. Heat to a boil, then purée in a blender, solids first.

Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in a large saucepan on high, then sautée the red pepper and jalapeno pepper for about 5 minutes, until softened. Pour the purée back into the pot and stir in the rest of the corn, the remaining 1 cup of stock, and the sugar. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Chop the tomato, cilantro, and green onion into a relish, squeezing on lime juice.

When ready to serve, ladle the soup into bowls and swirl the relish through each.

Some of the buildings around this market have lots of character and even more bricks.

Here is another look at the Hotel Smeede and gallery inside.

Of course the front of the Smeede is a little dressier...

...and you can even get a haircut next door.

So where do you go after the Farmer's Market? To PC Market of Choice for a couple of pounds of shrimp.

Scrabble Score ~ Scrabble Queen +? the Contender -? (I'm just guessing because the Queen was being humble and didn't mention the score - my guess is she won by at least 50 points)

Quote of the Day ~

"I used to wake up at 4 A.M. and start sneezing, sometimes for five hours. I tried to find out what sort of allergy I had but finally came to the conclusion that it must be an allergy to consciousness." ~ James Thurber (1894 - 1961) was a U.S. humorist and cartoonist. Thurber was best known for his contributions (both cartoons and short stories) to The New Yorker magazine. Dorothy Parker, contemporary and friend of Thurber, referred to his cartoons as having the "semblance of unbaked cookies."

Here is one of his cartoon images.

Grants Pass shhhh don't tell Californians

Grants Pass is a jewel on I5 just north of Medford.
"It's the Climate" shouts the banner. It's a familiar saying to Southern Californians and while I still prefer Weather over Climate it was a beautiful day today in Grants Pass.


We parked the Musemobile two blocks from the Farmers Market and I took this shot of some red stems, blue berries and a green bug on the way there.


I'm not prepared to say Oregonians are weird but we are all unique individuals.

Even our tomatoes are uniquely individuals.

Our peppers are pretty when peacefully, placed near uncovered peds (feet)

This cool guy very nicely playing the Beatles on his hand made Dulcimer so I increased the weight on his turned over hat. The Appalachian dulcimer, a fretted, plucked instrument which is also referred to as a mountain dulcimer or just a dulcimer.

Now this is a standard farmer who looks like he belongs in Kansas. His eggs looked as great as his smile. (Yes he IS smiling)

Someone should tell this pet Grasshopper/Cricket to be careful playing instruments at a farmer's market...

With a booth for insect eating plants nearby. The man in the booth suggested (I overheard this conversation) 2 Tablespoons of soy sauce and about 1/2 cup of vegetable oil in a container with steep sides for killing earwigs.

Some kids are just plain pampered but I think this idea was more for mom's sanity.

We were invited to visit the Butte Creek Mill for some grain on an upcoming stay in Eagle Point for a Vince Gill concert nearby. It looks like a great place for photographs.

OK so I got a picture of me taking a picture of both sides of this lady's head in one shot.

Of course there were flowers...

...and some great art. There are two markets actually going on here. The Growers Market and The Artisan & Crafters Market. These art works are part of a musician series by Kurt Mottram.


Here is a quote:

"Kurt Mottram a notable and potentially rising talent worth watching—was also there with prints from his series of pen & ink musician portraits, along with a few of his recent oil paintings."

I wish I'd gotten this gentleman's name but he does marvelous metal sculptures. One I took a picture of I'm not going to show here because it's a utilitarian thing that could be used in most cities and I would hate to see it reproduced because of my image. He was a very interesting person to talk with.

As we left the market area I took this shot through the opening in a produce cart larger but similar to the one my grandfather used to sell produce on the streets of Houston, Texas.

Of course this is a great Dalmatian Fire Plug.... OK I get it dog-fire plug-fire plug- firemen-firemen Dalmatian.

"The famous spotted coat is unique to the Dalmatian breed; no other purebred dog breed sports the flashy spotted markings. The breed takes its name from the Croatian province of Dalmatia, where it is believed to have originated."

A bear with an eagle on it's back? Must be a Grant's Pass thing. They were also the guys that greeted J.F.K. on a campaign appearance all (Except Kennedy) dressed as Cavemen. This is a jumping off place to visit the fascinating Oregon Caves.

Sunny Valley is a little north of Grants Pass and we stopped there to see the Grave Creek Covered Bridge. But first a little history (ugh reading but just grin and bear it)



"In the fall of 1846, the first emigrant train from Fort Hall, Idaho, to travel the southern route to the Willamette Valley camped on the north side of this creek, then Woodpile Creek. Martha Leland Crowley, 16 years old died of typhoid fever during this encampment and was buried 150 feet north of the creek on the east side or a white oak tree that was later removed for the present roadway, thus the name "Grave Creek".

When James H. Twogood laid out his land claim in the fall of 1851 and filed it on May 1st 1852, he named it the Grave Creek Ranch in memory of that unfortunate incident.

McDonough Harkness, his partner, was the first postmaster of Josephine County in the newly named town of Leland on March 28,1855. Harkness was killed by the Indians in April 1856 while riding dispatch for the Army during the second Indian War of southern Oregon which started in October of 1855.

A stockade was built around a log wayside and the hotel building at Leland. The small town was the gateway to the lower Rogue country where Indians retreated so it became the gathering point of a large force of regular army and volunteers and was known as Fort Leland.

A major encounter of the war took place some 8 miles west of the Fort known as the Battle of Hungry Hill. This ill-fated engagement produced some 37 dead, wounded and missing. Some of these soldiers were buried north of the Fort at the corner of the present Leland road and old Pacific highway.

The last remnants of old Leland are the three large maple trees to the north on the east side of the road and the Ft. Leland rock-lined well on the west side of the road both on private property. In 1860 the Grave Creek Ranch became an overland stage stop for the California Oregon Stage Line. A new hotel known as the Grave Creek House #2 was built and operated until it burned down in December of 1875. A nearby farmhouse was enlarged enough to accommodate the stage company and was known as the Grave Creek House #3 or Harkness Inn. President Hayes, his wife and entourage spent the night here on September 28,1880.

Throughout the years the Grave Creek watershed was home to hundreds of gold miners. Many millions of dollars worth of gold came out of this area."


I did my usual crawling around underneath the bridge for the next few shots. This is the underside of the bridge from the creek bed. Elmer Nelson built the bridge for $21,128.65 in 1920.

I got low to shoot some pictures of the creek flowing over the rocks.


I'll count these as my artsy pics


And I really like this shot of an old fence post. I guess I just like the little things in life I used to walk by and never notice their beauty. It really comes from using the camera for a long second look.

Scrabble Score ~ The Scrabble Queen is back with a resounding 423 to the Contender's measly 292

Quote of the Day ~ on this date 07/28 The Hamburger was created by Louis Lassing in Connecticut, the year was 1900.

"It was not her sex appeal but the obvious relish with which she devoured the hamburger that made my pulse begin to hammer with excitement." ~ Raymond Albert Kroch (October 5, 1902 – January 14, 1984) was an American entrepreneur, famous for significantly expanding the McDonald's Corporation from 1955.

Hill climbing made difficult

Well here we are at 7 Feather RV again.

This time I was sent to harvest Oregon Blackberries from the hill in front of the Musemobile (our Winnebago Sightseer) because we need more berries for the winter.

While on the hill being stuck by blackberry thorns I came across these strange little balls. I think they fell from a tree but I wasn't pleased with being scarred by thorns so I moved on.

This is Oregon and anything that stands still for a moment gets covered with something green, grey or black. This fallen limb got the green stuff.

While on the hill I got a good shot of the Musemobile and our campsite.

So here is a husband and wife team parking a huge land cruiser luxury coach. She gave hand signals like a catcher in baseball. I think one is for fastball and two is for curve.

Hands down must mean you are doing fine, keep coming.

Touchdown - Wait that's a football signal.

Watching the show was Dick, Jane and Fido from across the creek.

Our neighbor Bill Becker was too bust creating a walking stick to notice. He later showed me a great collection of walking sticks he had made. They were all wonderfully hand crafted and each one unique from the different woods including a Yucca Stem that was strong but light as a feather.

Of course I took some weird shots of the sun filtering through the trees giving a prismatic glow...

...and beautiful streaks of light.

I liked the effect of this shot of a tree in the light framed by others in the shade.

Another interesting thing was the roots of two trees exposed by creek erosion.

Bill is a great neighbor I really enjoyed talking with him today. He is what makes Marines great through and through.

Bill's wife Mabel and a dog and a cat or two are their traveling family -- oops I can't forget the Pepper plant resting on their picnic table. Mabel plays the accordion and plays it wonderfully. I got a treat listening to her playing today as I sat in the Musemobile playing on the PC.

The creek is essentially dry except for this small pool of water in a deeper spot. It's probably from the evening watering the RV park does.

Scrabble Score ~ Scrabble Queen 392 - the contender 285 Yucky Yucky Yucky !!!

Quote of the Day

"The raising of that flag on Suribachi means a Marine Corps for the next 500 years." ~ James Forrestal - Secretary of the Navy - 23rd February 1945

I have received more than a few emails from veterans of the battle for Iwo Jima asking if I'd fought there or was a relative of a man with the same name as mine. It wasn't me, however. The closest I came to that battle was watching Clint Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima." It was a movie that anyone who doesn't understand respect for our soldiers should see.