A lighter note.

It seems that Fall is just around the corner. The days are getting shorter, the sunsets have taken on a brilliance not seen very much during the summer and soon we'll bid adieu to the cruise ships for another season. I've been thinking lately about how lucky I really am, to be living in such a wonderful place. The house is getting refreshed, the job is working out quite nicely and one of the most stellar moments as of late - I found peaches that are TO DIE FOR!!! I am something of a peach fanatic and with the demise years ago of a local establishment back where we came from, The Fruit Ranch, I have been having a devil of a time finding good peaches. Georgia? Nope. California? Nope. They are always too hard and crunchy, have no flavor, or turn to mush in your mouth, none of what I consider to be traits of a truly good peach. WELL! I found some BC grown peaches at a local chain called Thrifty Foods, and they are absolutely spectacular! Perfect texture, juicy and bursting with flavor. My regret now is that I only bought two, fearing once again an inferior product. In the next few days, when I am in the neighborhood, I will have to stop and get a few more. In this house they will not be hanging around very long, that is for sure.

Another indulgence as of late, that takes me back to the days when my age was in the single digits, is cooked peel and eat shrimp. When I was about six or seven years old, in the mid-60's, Mom and Dad and I would go out to eat at a restaurant called Country Gardens. In my eyes this was a fancy place and they did a smorgasbord that seemed to stretch on forever. OF course Mom would TRY to get me to eat a balanced meal, with veggies and such, but all I wanted was hard salami and the cooked peel and eat shrimp. In my developing years since then, with budgetary constraints, shrimp was relegated to a once a year treat that, truth be told, I probably didn't eat even that often. Now with the move to Vancouver Island, and an abundance of local and international seafood, we've dabbled in the shrimp and I am now once again addicted to cooked peel and eat shrimp. For some reason I am not overly fond of hot cooked shrimp in a dish but give me that cold cooked shrimp, with a good cocktail sauce, and I'll be your friend for life. Or until the shrimp runs out.

So, lately life has been pretty darn good. I have incredible peaches once again, I am reviving a childhood fondness for cold shrimp, the job is working out very well and the days leaning toward Fall are sunny with perfect temperatures. And I am taking a break from all the US politics. Don't even ask me about the Canadian election coming up - I'm still trying to figure out all the parties!

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