Piles of trunks

This is one of the piles of grape trunks that was dug up over the past couple of weeks. When the digging was done, they set them on fire. Now there are two neat cones of ashes out there. At least, there were the last time Tasha and I walked by.

A pile of trunks before the fire.

Today is a holiday in France (Easter Monday), so it should be a quiet day. We'll be having leftovers for lunch. I may get out and do a chore or two that don't involve motorized tools. The weather is supposed to remain clear and warm for the next few days. Yahoo! 

White asparagus

You've seen it here before. It's a specialty of our region (also down near Bordeaux). It's the same plant as green asparagus, the difference being that green asparagus are allowed to see sunlight while they grown. White asparagus are kept in the dark (buried in soil) until they're harvested. These went into one of our favorite seasonal dishes: asparagus tart with ham and a cheesy egg custard.

White asparagus, peeled (you must), trimmed, and ready to be steamed.

As today is Easter Sunday, there will be no grass cutting. In our town, domestic noise is only permitted between the hours of 10h00 and Noon on Sundays and holidays (Easter Monday is a holiday). Most people don't bother, so it's a quiet day. Yesterday I got another swath of our yard cut. I'll pick it up again next week, depending on the weather.

By the way, we're not having asparagus today. And we're skipping our traditional rabbit meal in favor of a blanquette de veau, a veal stew in white cream sauce. 

Upstate

There's a lot of beautiful countryside in upstate New York. This is part of the Schoharie Valley, not far from where I grew up. 

I'm glad I don't have to cut that grass. Schoharie Valley, Spring 1994.

I took the rider lawnmower out yesterday for the first time this season. I reinstalled the battery (which turned out to be easier than I expected) and, to my happy surprise, it started up! I began to cut some of the grass in the north forty, but it was too wet and I had to stop. It should be dryer today, so I'll give it another go later.

Memories

For lack of new photos, here's another from the NYC World Trade Center collection, May 1994. I'm amazed at how the skyline has changed over the years. I don't know the City very well, but I can pick out (in this photo) the Empire State Building and what was then known as Citicorp Center (now Citigroup Center) in Midtown.

Looking upstream (Hudson River) from lower Manhattan, May 1994.

The weather gurus tell us that some warming, however short lived, is coming, along with a little less rain. We shall see. 

Second try

Here's another attempt to capture the tiny new leaves on the grape vines out back. They become more visible each day. I'm sure the growers are keeping their fingers crossed that there are no freezes over the next few weeks. 

These aren't the chardonnay vines. I don't know what they are.

In domestic news, I've got to go to the pharmacy to refill prescriptions. Tasha goes to the vet for her annual vaccinations next week. I picked up fallen branches in the back yard yesterday. They're from the tilleul (linden tree). Now, if we could get some dry days, I could cut the grass.

Poisson d'avril

Here we are on the first of April! But we're still suffering a stubborn spring. It's so not spring-like that I typed March instead of April. Turns out, I'm the April Fool. Even Tasha was saying, "Huh?"

Blurry grape leaves. The camera focused on the wrong stuff.

There's a section of a vineyard parcel just to our north that is planted in chardonnay. I believe the grapes are used for blending in the winery's sparkling wines. Imagine my surprise when, while walking over there last evening, I noticed that many of the vines already have leaves! Better pictures soon. Happy March April! 

Just so you know: I had two ideas for a post this morning. As I worked on them they sort of merged. When I tried to separate them, this is some of what I got. What a mess. 

Early birds

They start before sun-up. Can you dig it? Changing the clocks made things darker in the morning. The lights on the digger look much more spooky in person than in this photo.

Digger in the dark.

The weather is still a little wintry. Each morning, it seems, the ground is soaked with dew, ready to freeze at any moment. I'm sure the grape growers have their eyes peeled, looking out for frost warnings.