Thursday, October 13, 2005

Clinging Desperately to Summer

Eh. It's not that hard. Not in Marin.
I know it will be over in two weeks. I'll have to concede that the tomatoes are fini, and yank them out. The rain will begin.
But, oh, what a great October we get around here.
So, today.
Gazpacho at the Civic Center lagoon. Picnic table. Canada geese and mallard ducks. Sea gulls. Even a snowy egret. I think I saw a loon!
We brang the doggie, and he parked himself on the table, right next to the path, so everyone who walked by had to come over and pet his highness. He's nice to people (and scared of dogs).
Here's the soup. Pure. Just tomatoes, cukes, onion, sweet pepper, a little jalapeƱo, a bit of bread — blended. Oh, sure, and some salt and vinegar, plus my secret ingredient of a swig of Two Buck Chuck cab.
Then swirled in the bowl with garnishes of chopped cuke, tomato and red onion. A twinge of fleur de sel (in that fancy Limoges dish — don't worry, I didn't have to pay for the Limoges).
Can you believe this is a public picnic place? It was like personal heaven.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

For a minute there, I thought the geese, ducks, sea gulls and egret were on the menu! Glad to see they weren't.

The gazpacho looks divine and I can imagine that spot exactly. I often pull off the highway when I'm in that neck of the woods, just to go for a walk along that path that goes through the lagoon.

Greg said...

When our kids were little we would take them to the CC pond for picnics. Great place. I need a picnic soon.
G.

cookiecrumb said...

Well, hurry, or else the title of your blog is a LIE!
:-)
I recommend you do it in the next two weeks. You could do it Sunday and tie it in with a market visit.

Farmgirl Susan said...

The last time I went to the CC lagoon it was overrun with ducks who knew EXACTLY what we had in our plastic bread bags. (Of course this was in a different century.)

P.S. Gazpacho sounds delish. And your word thingies are getting more difficult. Do you do this on purpose when someone has already left numerous obnoxious comments?

Farmgirl Susan said...

P.S. Don't mind me. I'm just cranky when reminded that Two Buck Chuck is actually Two Bucks and not THREE like it is in Missouri.

P.S. All the new vintages (or at least the ones they've sent out here) aren't any good. The 2001 Cab was the last decent Chuck I've found. Although the 2003 Shiraz wasn't too bad.

cookiecrumb said...

Girlie:
Difficult comment requirements! I had no idea! But then, I'm a word puzzle fan (crosswords, cryptograms, Jumble -- and now, Sudoku). Sorry, though.
I'm still liking Chuck (though I am apologetic we get it for 30 percent less... ). When it gets lousy, I'll quit. Already, Jack at Fork & Bottle is teasing me for drinking it. Let's not even talk about Budweiser.
When was the last time you were at CC lagoon?

Farmgirl Susan said...

Last visit to CC lagoon: when I was like seven. I realize I had no right to even comment on the place. But those duck memories stick with you.

Budweiser, um, sucks. We brew our own beer. As far as Three Buck Chuck, you're the only one who knows I drink it ('cause you're the only other person who's ever admitted to buying it!)