Author: cometsgirl

Thanks to vaccinations, boosters and rapid-tests, travel to Taos for the annual January trip is possible. With a sigh and a yay, I am on my way.

Before I could leave, however, a rapid-test the day before departure was necessary. The red line says it all.

A year ago my friend and I missed our annual Epiphany trip due to lack of any form of disease protections or testing. But after receiving our two vaccination jabs, we were able to travel to Taos in May. It was Spring gorgeous!

Now we return. Still, with Omicron cases increasingly on the rise, it has felt like a long slog to this departure day.

If also feels celebratory!

And freeing!

After what feels like a long time of wondering, are we or are we not going, I’m going!

Traveling mercies.

I’ve been reflecting on my recent Thanksgiving trip to Texas. What strikes me most is the Gratitude I feel….

~ for my son and daughter-in-law who met us in person at the airport, and then took us to a local, legendary place for burgers;

~ for the welcome to their home, and all the preparations made for our visit;

~ for my grandson who drove me to Starbucks every morning, where we shared coffee, chai, and conversation;

~ for my granddaughter who shared stories with me about her work and play, and introduced me to her boy friend ;

~ for bow ties and barbecue;

~ for the annual pumpkin roll;

~ for the delight in observing the feeding of geese and duck visitors;

~ for gathering around the table to enjoy the bounty of Thanksgiving;

~ for an unexpected visit with my best friend at the airport as both of us were traveling home;

Indeed. Amen.

We are headed to Texas to share Thanksgiving with our older son and his family. We have not ventured beyond the forest for Thanksgiving travel for a good while.

Last year we had quite a feast for two. As sheltering at home was required, we made do. The fancy turkey I ordered was to be 12 pounds. Instead the bird was at least 8 pounds overweight. Regardless, it was delicious.

My son fries his turkeys. Taking just thirty minutes or so to fry, it’s streamlined turkey cooking. It’s quite a show when the bird gets dunked in the hot oil. Thankfully, this is an outdoor event.

I’m so grateful for the invitation to gather with the Keller (TX) Heckels. We are bringing the world’s best turkey gravy, prepared and frozen a week ago. This was a two-day cooking effort.

I’m likely to leave the rest of the food prep to others as I relish conversation time with my grandchildren. You can do that when you’re eighty.

I’ll soon take my chair in the sky. Traveling mercies.

I give you…..

West Texas Stacked Enchiladas!

Found in Lisa Fain’s Homesick Texan cookbook, the recipe calls for dried ancho chiles. That is what the fuss about finding the chiles was all about. The enchiladas were amazing!

Definitely worth the chile hunt.

Rub a dub dub, thanks for the grub. Yay God!

While I’m here in Arizona, I’m in charge of two dinners. I’m really looking forward to cooking for our gathering. While I brought measured-out spices and seasonings with me, I did not bring dried ancho chiles. I was certain I could easily find them here in the Southwest.

Not true. Since these are critical to one dish, we set out yesterday on a quest to locate them. I called eight grocery stores.

When I called Fry’s grocery store, I could only speak with a virtual customer service member. After many attempts to speak clearly – dried ancho chiles – I heard this: “you are looking for dry ice? Yes or no?” I hung up.

My favorite call was to Bashas’. When I called, a human answered: “It’s great day at Bashas’! How can I make your day better?!”

I’ll tell you how…. Well, I guess not.

With no other stores left to call, I called my nephew’s wife. They live nearby and she’s quite the cook. She’s also a Brit so she was not familiar with these chiles. I explained they are poblano chiles which have been dried. She suggested buying a poblano and drying it. I didn’t know how to actually do this. She also suggested trying Food City, a local Mexican market.

By now it was time for dinner. We decided to dine at Barrio’s, a local Mexican restaurant. As we were settling up, my sister asked our wait-person if he knew where we could find the chiles. He suggested Food City!

This morning we took off early for Food City. Voila!

A plethora of dried ancho chiles.

Tomorrow I’ll prepare dinner using dried ancho chiles. Stay tuned.

Both my sister and brother live in Arizona – just over an hour apart.

When I travel to see one or the other, I can count on seeing them both. This is such a gift! The bonus is getting to see my sister-in-law as well.

The last time I was in Arizona was 2019. That’s far too long. While my sister came to visit me a few months ago, I’ve not seen my brother in all that time.

So we shall make up for lost time. We will celebrate gathering as siblings once again. And we shall celebrate my brother’s recovery from a recent serious health scare. There will probably be tears all over the place.

My brother’s diet has detailed restrictions so recipe choices for our dinners were screened by his wife who wants to be sure he’s kept on the road to better health.

We’ve chosen three wonderful meals for the three nights they will stay with my sister and me. Packed in my suitcase are the recipes, measured-out spices and seasonings, and my just sharpened chef’s knife. I’m prepared!

It’s been a beautiful day to fly. I love Arizona and gazing out my two windows – yes, two windows, I can already feel the high desert below.

Traveling mercies.

I’m on the second leg of today’s return trip to the United States. I’m flying to Houston with my friend to spend a few days before I return home the end of the week.

I’m listening to music as I soar south. As I write this, Margaret Rizza’s exquisite composition, her music for Eucharist is soaring through my ears. It makes me feel “this is just too beautiful”.

I’m reflecting on my trip to the Faroe Islands and I realize this reflection is soaring in my heart just as the music soars in my ears. And I think “this was just too beautiful”.

There were so many beautiful moments during the ten days we lived in the Faroes.

Moments that showed the out-loud majesty of the islands.

Moments that showed the quiet majesty of the people.

And the many moments of delight seeing sheep quietly munching at all times and along all by-ways.

Also moments of surprise when driving through tunnels with art installations.

I feel forever changed by things too beautiful.

Having around twenty-four hours between touch-down from the Faroe Islands and take-off for the United States, allowed for a drive from Keflavik airport to the capital city of Reykjavik to have lunch.

It’s about a thirty mile drive from the airport to the restaurant. What else are you going to do on a rainy day? In our case, it’s go to Reykjavik for lunch.

Skal! was our choice for lunch. Located in the first food court in town, we found it to be unlike any we had experienced when we dined there several years ago.

Arctic char for my friend and beef skirt steak for me. The food was exquisitely prepared and delicious!

For dessert we shared a Skyr mousse with rhubarb granité and hazelnut crumble. Bliss! Happy milestone birthdays to us!

After lunch we drove to my favorite church in the world, Hallgrimskirkja,

We have worshipped here several times on previous travels.

We then walked around town for awhile in the chilly drizzle, ending up at Reykjavik Roasters to complete our lunch trek to the city.

A short drive back to the airport to return the rent car and check into the hotel.

A quick early morning walk to the airport and we’ll be on the way home.

Traveling mercies.

I don’t generally recognize heroes in my day to day life. This time in the Faroes has not been day to day life by any means, so I’ve recognized a few heroes who have crossed paths with me, and with Beth and me.

The young man, a construction apprentice, who when asked by Beth for help when I had high-centered our rent car, walked with her to our car and immediately called the police. He assured us there had not been a violation.

The man in the parking lot where I fell, who upon seeing me on the ground, jumped out of his car and helped me to stand.

The doctors and the nurse who stitched me up and back together and sent me on my way with a current tetanus shot.

The healthcare workers who administer COVID tests, without which we could not travel home.

The delightful young woman who came into our lives serving cappuccinos and conversation. She enriched my time in this place.

And today, when the car’s steering wheel locked up when we were on a remote road headed to a waterfall, a man on his way to work stopped to help when others had refused. He took the time to jump in our car and did what we believed was the impossible. Announcing he “was a strong man”, drove off as we were now able to do so as well!

“I think a hero is any person really intent on making this a better place for all people.” Maya Angelou

For my best friend and me, travel is best done when there is a zigzag pattern to the day of traveling out and about. This day was no exception.

The destination is chosen, with a general route of how to get there. Then let the zigzagging begin.

Pull over here. Enter the roundabout and take the second exit. Oops that was the first exit. Well let’s see what’s down this road. Loop around and go back.

Today we made a stop early on so Beth could paint. I wandered about. I kid you not. I gazed out on the water and there it was.

A zig-zag.

Today we drove up the west coast of Streymoy Island. After the painting stop, we swung west and proceeded to climb up

and away.

We hung out in Vestmanna for a time, seeing the sights.

Do you know that if the church is locked, you can still see in. It’s a photog trick Beth taught me. Just hold your Smartphone against one of the church windows and you can see right in.

We spent a fair amount of time diving into pull-outs designed for oncoming cars to squeeze by – or in our case, for photo-ops. As seen in the image below.

A planned zig-zag was to return to Torshavn late in the afternoon to take a COVID test for travel to Iceland on Monday and the U.S. on Tuesday.

Then back on the road for one more zig-zag of the day. A viewpoint for a waterfall.

Dinner at suppugarðurin for Japanese soup. A warm deliciousness on this rainy evening.

Now zigzagged out, it’s time for rest. Oh, we both tested negative! Tomorrow more zigzagging.