Polish Kielbasa Spaghetti

 

Song:  Linger

Group:  The Cranberries

Bummer:  My elder sister and her husband won't be coming after all.

My sister's husband is not feeling well...

and they are both so tired after their cross country tour...

but, she says she will come in a couple of months.

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Today...

I felt like eating an Italian style meal...

so...

I decided to boil a whole package of spaghetti 

and slice up two packages of Polish Kielbasa.

This was the first time I had made it...

but it was absolutely delicious. 

Hillshire Farm makes the best sausages

(and the best hot dogs are Hebrew Nationals).

As I sit here reviewing my article...

I realized a grievous mistake I had made...

although it didn't much matter this time...

as these meat products are fully cooked.

I had stupidly used the veggie cutting board to slice up the meat

(I also use different knives for each).

In order to prevent cross contamination of uncooked meat to veggies...

the meat of which may contain certain dangerous strains of bacteria...

which when cooked, destroy them...

but on cutting boards...

if the uncooked meat is first cut on the board...

even though it is carefully washed afterwards...

it is very bad practice...

and could lead to food borne illness.

After slicing up the sausages...

I put them into a wok on medium high heat.

As the sausages come already fully cooked...

I just heated them up and seared the outside.

After straining the spaghetti...

...I put the noodles into a large mixing bowl...

and drizzled over some olive oil.

I do this to not only add a bit of flavor...

but to allow the seasoning to stick to each noodle.

I used two heaping handfuls of this seasoning.

I then thoroughly mixed in the seasoning.

Then came the sausage.

I then mixed everything all together.

As there were plenty of leftovers...

I put them into a couple of glass containers...

 and then into the fridge...

for another day.

My meal was so delicious.

I will be sure to make this particular dish every so often in the future.

My usual accompanying veggie for most of my meals...

 is Sauerkraut. 

Bandi always waits patiently for me to feed her part of all my meals.

Bandi is simply just too cute to resist.

After my meal...

I spent some time looking at the views...

and then retired to my room to type up this article.

I now have another easy to prepare...

and delicious to eat...

meal.

It really is so flavorful.

This is another must try dish.

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In just another couple of months...

my life is going to take a dramatic turn...

one I am anticipating to be a very happy change...

and one that will be the ending of an almost 10 year era...

and the starting of a new one filled with adventure.

I will write all about it in a couple of months.

Breakfast At The Pantry / Another Asian Market

 

Song:  Theme From Midnight Cowboy

Original Composer:  John Barry

Cows usually freely graze on the grasslands in my community...

from late Spring through Autumn.

This was just after I had left my mountain ridge...

and just shy of the main thoroughfare leading to the main road leading to town.

-------

I decided to eat a meal at The Pantry in the small mountain town of 

Green Mountain Falls...

just this side of Manitou Springs...

after which I would try a small Korean / Japanese market in Colorado Springs.

On the main thoroughfare leading to the main road...

about halfway there.

I was on my way to the town of Green Mountain Falls to eat.

The town of Green Mountain Falls is just a few minutes down the highway from my

normal shopping spots of Safeway and Walmart in Woodland Park.

I arrived in the small town of Green Mountain Falls...

where one of the restaurants I decided to try today was located.

This is another restaurant I will try in the future...

located in the same parking lot.

The restaurants are located adjacent to my favorite small lake.

This is the same location where they fly the beautiful kinetic art near Autumn.

I had initially sat at a table which had a retracted umbrella.

I later switched to the one in the photo.

The sun...

while not unbearably hot...

would soon sunburn me...

so, when the pictured table opened up...

I switched to it.

The Pantry...

specializes in breakfast and lunch only.

A photo of my old table from my new one.

It was much better under the umbrella.

I love a cool place to eat.

I had ordered a BLT sandwich and Sausage Gravy over Biscuits. 

They made excellent BLTs...

as they make their own bread fresh everyday...

and their bacon was done to perfection...

not overly crisp...

and not undercooked.

It had a smokey goodness which made each bite such a tasty pleasure.

Their sausage gravy over biscuits was good and filling.

The view towards the end of the parking lot.

After I had eaten...

I took a little walk around the backside of the lake.

This little park is just so relaxing.

During some days...

they have the lake's fountains going...

which really makes the mood of the park come alive.

I then departed the park...

on my way to Colorado Springs.

I arrived at this small Korean and Japanese market.

Although it was okay...

it was simply too small for my liking.

I just wanted to see what the other Asian markets had to offer

(there are many smaller Asian markets in Colorado Springs).

Although there is another huge Asian market in Denver...

which I will try later...

for the time being...

I will just stick to The Pacific Asian market for now...

as they have many items from so many different Asian cultures...

from Korean and Japanese...

to Chinese...

to so many of the Southeast Asian cultures

(from Thailanese, Vietnamese to Laotian and Cambodian cultures...

and Filipino and Indonesian cultures...

and even from parts of Polynesia)...

and so...

the name...

The Pacific Asian market  :)

I had bought more snacks for my elder sister and her husband's arrival.

(I had initially misunderstood their arrival date.

They will be arriving in a few days).

I especially wanted to try this hot and spicy nori snack from Korea.

On my way home from the depths of Colorado Springs...

with rush hour nearing.

There is quite a temperature difference between Colorado Springs and my home.

Colorado Springs is at an average elevation of around 5,500 ft (1,656 meters)...

while my home is at 9,650 ft (2,941 meters).

The temperature difference is between 15 - 25 degrees F...

depending on the heat of the day.

Today...

there was a heat wave.

The temperature when I had left home around noon was in the low 60s F...

but in Colorado Springs...

it was in the mid 80s F...

so I had to use the air conditioning as I drove through Colorado Springs.

Now...

it is in the mid 40s F at home.

I just love the mild temperatures of home that my elevation affords.

On my way home driving on the Hwy. near Manitou Springs.

Nearing Woodland Park.

Just leaving Woodland Park.

Continuing my drive home.

I usually do not drive into town in the midday...

as the traffic increases dramatically.

I was in the middle of rush hour in this photo.

Although the traffic was not bad...

especially as compared to most other places...

I am used to driving on almost completely empty roads...

as I pick days and times when they are usually wide open.

But...

as usual...

I still enjoyed my country drive.

------

I am unsure as to how long my elder sister and her husband will stay.

Hopefully, it will be at least a couple of weeks...

as there are many places I wish to take them.

Besides places of natural beauty...

there are many restaurants to which I wish to take them.

It should be sometime in the next few days...

as they are driving back this way from the upper East Coast...

and decided to stop for the night in Ohio.

Once they start in the morning...

they will still have another over 1,200 miles (almost 2,000 kilometers)

to go to reach my home...

so...

most likely they will split up that distance with another night in a hotel halfway here.

A Magical Journey Into Yesteryear

Song:  Nostalgia

Artist:  Unknown

The above song is one of the most beautiful songs on the piano I have ever heard...

so much so that I am going to do my own version of it (cover)...sometime in the future.  

I will play the left hand on the piano (the continuous arpeggios)...

and I will layer in the Bass Flute for the right hand melodies.

 

It is so beautifully simple...

and yet...

 so rich in emotion.

 

This song had come up on my playlist as I was leaving home on my way to fulfill

a mad craving I had for some BBQ in Woodland Park.

 

And the inwards journey I took as I drove there and back...

was fueled by the music by which I was transported to a place and time which was...

for me...

pure magic. 

 

--------- 

 

This BBQ restaurant is famous for a very friendly and welcoming atmosphere...

along with a special style of BBQ.

 

Their BBQ has a mild taste...

which appeals to many people.

 

 

 

I almost always choose off days or hours to eat. 

 

 

I ordered a BBQ pork sandwich, with a side of potato salad...

 

 

...and a half rack of BBQ pork ribs...

and a peach cobbler for dessert. 

 

 

I took some of the ribs back so Bandi could also enjoy them. 

 

 

As I headed back...

I again played the included deeply moving song over and over...

as I enjoyed the country drive home. 

 

 

Cows are often used to keep the grass Mooed (terrible joke)...Mowed...sorry  :) 

 

I was just minutes away from my mountain ridge turnoff in this photo. 

 

 

I love seeing happy animals. 

 

----------- 

 As the morning had earlier been softly accented with a beautiful Spring rain...

and as the temperature was a perfect 53 F (11.6 C)... 

as I drove to town with all of the windows down...

which allowed the always refreshing country air to flow freely throughout the car...

and with this absolutely beautiful song playing over and over...

my mind went to some of my favorite memories in life.

 

To be in a melancholy mood...

is not one of a depressed state (I have never known depression)...

but one of a sweet and deep reminiscing of truly magical times experienced...

and is to have cataloged a rich source of the most breathtaking times of the past...

of which may be freely retrieved and relived to make the present 

as exquisite as were those magnificent moments permanently emblazoned upon the soul

(Not mere thoughts...but the deep emotional feelings which had initially wrung the heart).

 

I often alternate between being highly enthusiastic and energetic in life...

to that of being in a deeply reflective mood...

a highly creative mood...

of being in a serene world of heart swelling emotion that enriches life

to a degree that erases any past pain...

and fills any void with intense and profound sensations

of which give life its rich and savory flavors...

and sates the yearning for something more in life...

for in those moments...

there is nothing that is more ethereal and enchanting....

so acutely and sublimely felt...

that all of life takes on an awe inspiring grandeur...

in memory...in the present...and in the projected future.

 

 

 Nothing in life...

stimulates my deeply treasured and sacred times of melancholy more...

than does beautiful music (especially the above song)...

and that of a magnificent display of colors in the sky...

or that of dark clouds with a whispering of rain or fog...

especially while experiencing a country drive with a refreshing breeze caressing my face... 

and flowing through my hair. 

 

It is to be as an eagle soaring at 15,000 feet...

amidst amber and pink hued clouds...

the mist cool upon my face as I fly through them

as I see the faces and actions of people with whom I had shared laughter  

and times of true happiness...

and for whom I had deep affection...

all the while knowing that our limited time together made it all the more special...

and all buffered by the knowledge that while they would soon become

a ghost of the past...

the cherished memories would be forever...

hauntingly beautiful as I remembered them in times of ever sweet melancholy. 

 

--------- 

 

Always embrace your emotions...

and know what stimulates them.

 

They are the richness of life...

and are what spur you into positive action...

which then leads you to your ultimate destination of complete and utter happiness.

 

Control of the self...

in body, mind, and emotions...

 independent of others...

is the ultimate freedom in life. 

 

 I love life so much...

and...

yes...

I am still in a deeply rich and sweet melancholy mood...

 one of life's great experiences.