Hello Blog Friends!
Here we are on the first long weekend of the summer-Fête St. Jean. It has been a very full week around here when the worlds of both Day Camps and my personal life have seamlessly coalesced.
Last Sunday afternoon I welcomed Jessica and Tyler to High Tea in a belated celebration of their 7th wedding anniversary. As regular readers will know, Jessica has a pivotal role in the preparation of Day Camps as she is responsible for the layout of the Program Manual, the core document that defines all the content of each year’s Theme. She is not, currently, a committee member but has been in the past as well as serving on the travelling teams for a number of years. When she and Tyler visit we both try not to “talk shop” for the sake of Tyler, who is an aeronautical engineer with NASA and thus also has plenty of interesting “shop talk” to contribute to our conversations 😊.
Monday it was back to office work, accompanied by the now ubiquitous city construction crew busy outside ripping up all our front lawns to install the new fresh water pipes.
I have been setting up the PowerPoint template and sending out more notices about the upcoming Summer Team Gathering and on Tuesday there was another round of High Tea as I welcomed Donna and Miriam, the two talented musicians who select and record the Taizé songs we sing at Team Gatherings. That was also a very nice visit as they shared with me their plans for the coming, summer after we had sorted out the worship music 😊.
Both Tuesday and Wednesday mornings my work was interrupted by various people in hard hats who needed access to the basement regarding the new pipes. Mysteriously an electrician was also involved who accidentally tripped the main power switch! He was most apologetic and fortunately no harm was done except that minutes later his taller colleague managed, with his hard hat, to shatter the low hanging overhead light, covering part of the basement floor with tiny shards of glass. He sheepishly appeared asking for a broom and dustpan and did a very acceptable job of cleaning up 😊.
Trying to keep one’s train of thought when designing a PowerPoint or writing emails can be quite challenging and Tuesday morning my meeting with Michelle, in the UK had to be completely aborted as a whole work crew appeared on the lawn just outside my work station and started a discussion about digging through my flowerbed (a topic that I thought had been already sorted out, as needless, to say, I am not at all in favour of this option!!!). After some arguing among themselves, the person positing this plan was dissuaded, much to my relief, so once again I returned to my laptop.
Despite the fact that the project is obviously going to drag on for at least another week, I am glad for the break of a quieter weekend, minus the backhoes and general daily dramas 😊.
Yesterday, I welcomed the Rev. Brett Cane to lunch. Brett is the founder and inventor of CTM Day Camps and my long-time mentor (and boss!) before he left Montreal to become Rector of a Parish in Winnipeg. Since retiring he has moved to Victoria BC but each spring undertakes an epic 3-month “world tour”. He is now on the final leg, visiting friends and family in Québec and Ontario before heading home to BC. Despite his complex itinerary he always makes time for a visit here, where I give him a detailed report on the world of Day Camps, for which he still has a big place in his heart J. As a large portion of this year’s journey had been in Asia I decided to make Summer Rolls for our lunch (with assorted dipping sauces), followed by melon and pineapple and some of by new fave Peanut Miso cookies.
Today the visits continue as committee member and dear friend, Mae Anne, is joining me for lunch. She will be coming from a church worship practice, so we will be eating a bit late and I have decided to make a mushroom frittata as I am still well off for eggs, having last week, been gifted with 4 dozen!!!
Here is the recipe: –
Spinach and Red Pepper Frittata
- 4 oz. baby spinach, well washed and roughly torn
- 1 large red pepper, julienned
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- 2 Tbsps. olive oil
- 1 Tbsp. fresh rosemary
- 8 eggs
- 2 Tbsps. cream
- ground black pepper
- 4oz. grated sharp cheddar
Heat 1Tbsp. oil in a cast iron skillet. Add the red peppers and sauté for about 5 minutes, and then stir in the garlic, spinach, rosemary and black pepper to taste. Remove the mixture to a bawl. In another bowl, beat the eggs and cream then fold in the spinach mixture. Heat the remaining Tbsp. of oil in the skillet and pour in the egg mixture, tilting the pan so it evenly covers the bottom. Cover, and cook over low heat until the eggs are just about set, approx. 15 minutes. Lift the edge of the frittata with a wide spatula; it should be golden on the bottom. Meanwhile heat the broiler. When the frittata is ready, sprinkle the top with the grated cheese and place under the broiler until puffed and browned. Loosen with the wide spatula and slide onto a large circular platter. Serve hot or at room temperature. Serves 4.