We've been singing!!

Jon and I and several friends and colleagues, spent early last week in the lovely Swan Valley working with the schools in Condon and Seeley Lake. Here are a few pictures of our "Informances" with the kids. We worked with ages kindergarten through High School, from large full-gym presentations to small, in-class "help-along" sessions.
We actually used a quartet of singers (Hank Jennings-Bass, Jon Rose-Tenor, Sally Ethridge-Alto, and Robbin Rose-Soprano) to sing choral excerpts from Handel's Messiah for these kids - and they were attentive and asked really good questions so we know they were paying attention!!

We were accompanied by our conductor (of course!) Dr. Ron Wilcott, his wife, Debbie on the flute, our pianist extraordinaire Alice Williams, and our Chorus Manager, Kathy Settevendemie. We were in the schools, singing and presenting from 8:30 Monday morning to Tuesday afternoon, then we were joined by the Missoula Community Chorus' Chamber Chorale and presented Messiah to a sold-out house (ok, for that area, it means 100 attendees at the Condon Valley School Gym! - but this is rural Montana!) Jon's opening solos were absolutely perfect and beautiful - someday I'm going to learn how to upload audio clips here.

That evening performance was likely the best presentation we have done so far - all the soloists were spot on, the chorale performed flawlessly, and our chamber group (Alice and Debbie, joined by Janet Haarvig on cello for the evening performance) were the angelic frosting on the cake!

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Patacones!!

PATACONES -made with green plantains - if they have gotten yellow & spotty, they will not stand up to this treatment! Heat about an inch depth grapeseed or peanut oil in a deep skillet. Slice 4-5 green plantains into about 1 1/2" chunks, and then remove the peel. Fry the plantain chunks until lightly golden, drain on paper towels. When a bit cooler, take a heavy pot and squash the plantains flat (they look like "large paws" - patacones -) and dip them (do not soak them!) into a bowl of salted water (about 2c. water and a tbs. or so of sea salt) then carefully place them in the hot oil and fry again until crispy brown! Top patacones with guacamole and fresh salsa, or a garlic/mayonaise combination- they are a great alternative to chips and crackers. Best when eaten hot!!

Medicare for All should be our goal

" Under the greatest adversity there exists the greatest potential for doing good, both for oneself and others ." ~Dalai Lama And one of Montana's Methodist Ministers, Joan Uda, wrote an editorial for the Great Falls Tribune this week, asking essentially, What would God think of this? Here's a small excerpt: I'm startled by the frenzied opposition to health care reform. Are these good people Christians? Do they recall that Jesus will judge us not by how well we've kept our earnings for ourselves but by how we have cared for "the least of these"? Matthew 25:31-46. This is a matter of salvation. I don't believe God supports any particular solution for health care. But I do believe God wants everyone, even the least, included. And I believe Jesus Christ calls us to display our best Christian virtues in the debate on these issues. Here's George Lakoff's perspective on how language influences the discussion on Health Care policies this seas

My Precious Pikle-It

Now that we have finished running about between Missoula and Portland like bees buzzing between flowers, I can tell you all about my favorite kitchen "gadget" this year..... the Pickl-It from the wonderful People at Pickl-It . I got a set for myself and my sister-in-law, - since we both are fermenting fiends. A few years ago, I had gotten a Harsch Gairtopf crock (see earlier posts regarding sauerkraut making) because I was tired of skimming my 'kraut. Essentially, I love kitchen science, but I'm even more enamored of accomplishing kitchen crafts with less oversight! The Harsch crock has a wonderful "burping lid" water lock system that allows you to leave your crock unattended for several days at a time while the fermentation beasties work in a safe environment. My Harsch crock is in almost constant use, and I would never give it up. But there were still times when I wanted something smaller....for those tiny baby carrots, or the 3 small heads of gard

Knitting, Singing, the Universe and all....

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