Brilliant show!

The northern lights put on a stunning show over the past weekend. They set the skies ablaze with breathtaking colors and movements for those lucky enough to be outdoors at just the right time. Must sadly admit, I was not one of the lucky ones, but have seen the photos, and heard descriptions from those who were. Maybe tonight will be the night.

God must have a special place in His heart for mothers, because He treated us to marvelous weather for Mother’s Day, and the day before that as well. In fact, it was warm enough for our entourage to pack up and go to Leftfoot Lake for some swimming and kayaking on Sunday afternoon. It was also warm enough to turn on the air conditioning. The rain and chilling winds didn’t start until sometime around dark-thirty, when everybody was either back home or inside anyway. Am embarrassed to report that, having forgotten to turn the thermostat down, the furnace kicked in Sunday night!

MOTHER’S DAY DINNER

Someone just posted a meme advertising McDonald’s offer of 0% financing for 36 months to help purchase one of their value meals.

How times have changed!

When I first became a Mom many, many moons ago one of my favorite sisters-in-law was also celebrating her first-ever Mother’s Day as a mother. Our hubbies celebrated by taking us out to eat at McDonald’s. Price of a 3-course meal there - burger, fries and a beverage - was 99 cents.

We didn’t have much money back in those days, so even that was a rare treat.

IT MAY RAIN

As someone recently said, that’s why this month is called May.

It may rain, it may snow, or perhaps the sun may shine.

We may need swimsuits and sandals, or we may need overcoats and mittens.

One thing is certain right now. There are marvelous flowers in just about every yard and roadside ditch, and when the sun is shining, their beautiful scents fill the outside air and waft in through the open windows.

Not only flowers, but the grass itself in Spring smells sweet and new. Someone recently suggested that they should make cologne that smells like a newly mown lawn or field of alfalfa. 

BEAR FACTS

The bears are definitely out of hibernation, a least in the Crivitz area. Have been seeing great photos of them, and also of the damage they can do to plants and bird feeders.

GROWIN’ THINGS

It’s time to be planting some seeds outdoors, and time to get the soil ready for plants to be set out once we can trust that there will be no more frosts until fall.

If you don’t have a compost pile, start one, if you have a yard. The simplest type is simply a pile that can be enclosed by wire, wood or blocks or not. It should be in a well drained area with a nearby water source. Start with a four to six inch layer of “brown” materials - dry leaves, twigs, branches, wood chips and such. Also newspapers can be put down. Next add green materials like food scraps (even moldy ones), grass mowing, pulled weeds, and the like. Fruit peelings go there nicely, especially banana peelings.  Avoid meat scraps, bones, fats, dairy products and pet litter. They say to avoid citrus peels and onion scraps, but I ignore that and have not had a problem. Top the pile off every day or two with a layer of browns so the odors don’t get out of hand.

If the pile gets too dry, water it. Turn it with a garden fork once in a while, working from the outside in. Temperature inside the pile should get to 130 to 160 degrees if it is “working” properly. 

Once the bottom layer is rotted you can start shoveling out the mulch to use for potting soil or work into the garden.

ON THE SOAP BOX

The debate continues over what to do with the UW-Marinette Campus once UW-Green Bay ends its lease, which is expected to happen in July. The campus is owned by Marinette County, which means all of us who live here.

Part of that campus is the beautiful Runnoe Park, one of the few public beaches in the City of Marinette, and one of the few places in the city where the public can even get a good unobstructed view of the Bay.

The other is Red Arrow Park, but that is closer to Lake Michigan and the mouth of the Menominee River, and has a different feel from the Bay of Green Bay. The other areas along the Bay Shore that once were available for public enjoyment have been sold for some high priced housing.

Pine Beach, directly to the north of Runnoe Park, is owned by members of the Pine Beach Association and the public is not welcome.

Runnoe Park was a Marinette city park and a very popular public beach long before the UW-Marinette was built 60 plus years ago.

I grew up not far from that wonderful park, and trekked there regularly, towing my younger siblings along in a wagon. The beautiful sandy beach was child friendly, stayed shallow for a long way out before it dropped off at a sand bar. The water at Pine Beach Park was much warmer than at Red Arrow, and it was not as windy. There were picnic tables and playground equipment, and a sandy beach for sand castles. The picnic area was - and still is - wide enough for youngsters to run and play without needing to worry about traffic. Mom and Dad often came there too, and we had picnics on the beach.

In winter, when conditions were right, we went ice skating there. And there were ice boat races. Ice did not seem to pile up there like it does on the windier shores of big Lake Michigan.

KEEP THE FLIES AWAY

Keep flies away from your picnic by wiping the table with undiluted white vinegar or laying some citrus peels on the tablecloth, preferably coarsely grated ones for the sake of appearance. Dried up old fruit peels might drive the people away as well as the flies.

COOKIN’ TIME

Fresh locally grown asparagus is on the market, many rhubarb plants have stalks ready to harvest, dandelion greens are sweet and tender, and several varieties of wild mushrooms are waiting for the right folks to harvest them. Time to enjoy the wonderful flavors of Spring in the north country.

BACON BUNDLED ASPARAGUS

Who doesn’t love bacon? It adds its own smoky flavor to asparagus in this easy recipe. Plan to have these when you’re baking something else, or cook on a covered grill.

1 pound  thick asparagus, stalks trimmed

4 slices bacon, not thick cut

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, or heat the grill to quite hot. Divide the asparagus stalks into 4 bundles. Tightly wrap one slice of bacon around each bundle. Try to get nearly all the asparagus covered. In a small bowl mix together the butter, garlic powder, brown sugar and pepper. Arrange the asparagus bundles on a baking sheet and drizzle the butter mixture over the top. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until bacon is crispy. You could also cook these on a baking sheet in a covered outdoor grill. Then if the bacon doesn’t get crisp enough for you, finish it right on the grill, but be careful not to set the bacon on fire.

RHUBARB CRISP

Easy, and so good! Put the rhubarb leaves and trimmings on your mulch pile.

Crust:

1 heaping tablespoon sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 tablespoons cold butter

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 egg (large)

1 tablespoon milk (and maybe a little more)

Filling:

3 cups rhubarb (1 pound or so) sliced

1 small box Jello, (3 ounce size), strawberry or cherry

Topping:

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8×8 pan with shortening or butter, or spray with buttery cooking spray. Mix the crust ingredients together and press into the bottom of the pan. Spread rhubarb evenly over the crust and sprinkle on the dry Jello mix. In a separate bowl mix the topping ingredients together and then crumble it over the rhubarb layer. Bake for 45-50 minutes and allow the pan to cool on a cooling rack. Serve warm or chilled. Good by itself, or with ice cream or whipped topping. Refrigerate leftovers.

Thought for the week: Thank you, God, for showing us the wonders of nature, and for blessing us with Your bounty. Please bless the youngsters who are getting ready to graduate. Keep their hearts pure, their minds clear, and hold them in Your loving care. Amen. 

(This column is written by Shirley Prudhomme of Crivitz. Views expressed are her own and are in no way intended to be an official statement of the opinions of Peshtigo Times editors and publishers. She may be contacted by phone at 715-927-5034 or by e-mail at shirleyprudhommechickadee@yahoo.com.)