thistle

Yes! anytime, I'm flexible...I would love to hit up Peking Duck, it's one of my locals, that I do not visit often enough.

Leftover soup- chicken thighs adobo, cooked in the instant pot, black eyed peas, & stir fry of mushrooms, green beans, ground pork, water chestnuts, scallions, garlic w/ black soy, fish sauce & sambal- I LOVE black eyed peas.

Probably good that I am posting after your departure, because it's not a light ( or tummy friendly) lunch, but ThaiBox is the best food in the vicinity. Thai or Cajun, your choice...

To all of us, unacknowledged, still sweating out the end of summer, & mowing the lawn, despite ankle high water....

This site has been most helpful for me- http://www.picklemetoo.com

I used a flat rock on top of my preserved key limes & a grapefruit half (rind up) on top of limes, grapefruit, & ginger in honey, to keep floaters down.

Another useful site-http://phickle.com

Astrid, I feel terrible about the pomegranates (which were eaten by squirrels or something), but here are blooms from your roses-

I have Indigo fireball, black Krim, & some other tomato (that I lost the tag)- my word to you is Sungold, the best tomato ever. I was slow off the mark this year, & got the last two at HWV, passed one on to Bart, but they're producing already, & will probably go late into the fall-small, acid/ tart orange cherry tomatoes. & thanks to a trade w/ Bart, I have more peppers than I would have imagined, & many of them are ripe-poblanos, jalapeí±os, Thai Hot- I've also got an Ichiban eggplant for dinner tomorrow. & tons of Thai basil...life is good...

Wow, rain is coming done here, better pull it out of the smoker-moist bbq tomorrow.

Tomatoes- I have Sungold, Black Krim, Indigo Fireball, & one other that I've lost the tag for. Peppers-poblano, jalapeí±o,

Thai hot...

& just to encourage anyone who's on the fence, pick up a 6-pack or a bag of cookies & go to Ft. Hunt Park-it's going to be hot & muggy & Father's Day-but what else do you have to do? Some of us will be there, w/ food & drink- these are among my best memories of this group, the picnics, even (& especially) the last minute ones, that I didn't plan on attending...if you come early, you can help me unload...

I'll also be bringing a camp stove, & a cooler w/ seltzer, beer, & kombucha- if anyone has ever made kombucha, you'll know it's like zucchini for a gardener-once you start it, pretty soon you are overwhelmed by an abundance...

I would love some, I'll have Lizzy hit you up. I have (sort of) whipped my jungle of a yard into shape & would love peppers instead of weeds.

There is an article in this morning's Post about Scheib disappearing while hiking on a trail in/near Taos, N.M., the town where he most recently relocated.  He's been missing since Saturday.  It's encouraging that this is still a search and rescue operation, but it's unsettling that it's been nearly a week.

I saw this, too - I hope for a positive outcome, but hiking alone, with recent flooding, doesn't bode well.

I don't want to tell you how long I have subscribed to various food related publications (many years), I miss Gourmet, now I'm down to Saveur & F&W. The July edition of F&W has an excellent article, Master Class w/ Jacques Pepin, "Life Changing Lessons" , & on the flip side, Best New Chefs- lots of fun to read, while I'm letting my smoker do all the work today.

Star, hope your Grandma has an uneventful stay at the hospital & feels better soon- I'm sorry I have not checked in earlier, but things are crazy around here. However, the smoker is fired up & I will be bringing bbq, slaw, ribs, & pound cake, & arriving early w/ all the flotsam & jetsam (tablecloths, plates, flatware) from previous picnics. I'm just bummed that my DH came into town for a conference (he's doing a Germany tour), but flies out tonight, before the picnic & Father's Day- he did get bbq I made last weekend & ribs. I plan on drafting Lizzy & a friend to arrive 11:30ish & start setting up. I'm looking forward to seeing familiar friends & new faces, & having a lovely picnic in the park.

My cousins spent the previous (rainy) day in DC, hitting the obvious sites-Lincoln memorial, the mall, museums, White House, & after spending about 3 hours w/ me at Mount Vernon, were going to the Pentagon memorial & Arlington cemetery, & then going to a Nats game- I wisely bowed out. I am too old for hard core sightseeing.

Reading that article today, I was just waiting to see all the comments (& I was not disappointed)- as one who leans towards a curmudgeonly,grumpyass view on small children in restaurants (I am a parent, who held off on taking kids to a nice restaurant until their behavior was manageable), it was QUITE interesting to read everyone's varying opinions on child diners. It doesn't affect me much, I cook at home most days, but it was an interesting read.

Can I put in a shameless plug for Mount Vernon? (My husband works there- full disclosure.)  They do fireworks during the day on July 4th and have other cool events I didn't really know about until MK started working there.  You can also take the water taxi to/from old town to Mount Vernon, which is fun.

My favorite things to see/do in Washington as a tourist before I lived here and just living here other than Smithsonians/ memorials is to get a tour of the National Cathedral, go to the rehearsal for the Capital 4th concert with a picnic and hope it doesn't rain AGAIN, Eastern Market/Union Market.  Drinks at POV (even though it can be kind of clubby now, great view still). Oh, and a Nats game, I love going to National's Stadium.

My cousin & his wife came up last week to visit their son, who lives up here now, & we did Mount Vernon, because I live right down the road. I advised them to put on sneakers & we had a great visit (still haven't toured the mansion, because it's a huge time sink), we did get to see a friend of mine, who is fortunate enough to work w/ the animals at MV, shear a sheep, & tour the gardens. We also visited the gristmill, which is quite interesting, & much less crowded.

After reading a Gawker article about people who wonder about living in NYC, I realize again how lucky I am to live here-out in the burbs, close enough to the city, w/out exorbitant rents & the smell of garbage. I am a fortunate woman, in many ways, & I try not to forget that fact.

Ok, now come up with a word that correctly describes your relationship w/ your child (whether it's an anagram or homonym)- right now mine is a mix of expletives ( as I think back to the crap I put my own parents through).

I don't think the site has a grill (& if it does, it's a small, grungy one), but I'll be bringing a camp stove that has a small grill & single burner.
I won't be cooking on it, so it's open for grilling & reheating.

Millions of peaches, peaches for me, millions of peaches, peaches for free- damn, now I have an earworm.

& just look at the lyrics-

Take a little nap where the roots all twist

Squished a rotten peach in my fist

And dreamed about you, woman,

I poked my finger down inside

Make a little room for an ant to hide

Nature's candy in my hand or can or a pie

Rises above canned peaches.

I have all the random leftover picnic stuff (tablecloths, plates, plasticware) stored in my garage, & I plan to be there to set up (I live right around the corner). I'm having fun thinking about stuff I could bring, besides pulled pork & pound cake, things I think I have brought to every picnic I've been to. It would be wonderful if we had a lot of new folks (or people who just haven't been able to make it to a picnic before) show up, we could hang out, eat good food, drink alcohol, & complain about how hot it is (end of June, guaranteed, sounding like that Cajun guy).

I still go to Su Pollo about once a month (because I can cook chicken at home, when I'm not lazy), a step above grocery store rotisserie chicken (actually, I've never bought any), rice is decidely average, salad forgettable, but double dipping white & green sauce is priceless.

& my dogs really appreciate the chicken skin.

Hate to say it, but that song was the first thing I thought of when I saw the topic, & probably the only thing I can relate to- fresh peaches are great, dried apricots are awesome, & so is that song. I don't think I've eaten a canned peach in years.

I picked up a couple of Jalapeí±o Gigante plants the other day & I need to clean out my Earthboxes to plant them, & also pick up some Sungold tomatoes. I should clean out the stacking planters, too, & make room for herbs & lettuce. Lovely weather that we're having lately...