My New Point-and-Shoot

Presenting my new Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX5. It retails for around $330-325, but I managed to nab this one for a mere $250 (plus about $8 shipping). I bought it open-box, so I saved a bunch of dough. Judging by the pictures that were on it when it arrived, I'm guessing it was B&H's floor model for a little while.

As I mentioned in my hiking post, I wanted to get a small, relatively durable point-and-shoot camera. As much as I adore my D-SLR, it can be a burden. It's big, heavy, and expensive. I can't get it wet, and I certainly can't throw it around in sand or dirt. Thus, there have been many outings where I've been without a camera, aside from my cell phone's mediocre one.

So for hikes, beach trips, rainy days, swimming pools, sledding, ice fishing, whatever... I have this little Sony point-and-shoot. It makes a decent sidekick for my D-SLR, so I'm happy. The photo quality isn't too bad, either:

I dunked it in water a few times to test its waterproofing. It's such an odd sensation -- putting a camera underwater on purpose. All my life I've conditioned myself to protect cameras from the elements. I took a few random underwater shots, without focusing or looking at the screen, and produced some very interesting results. I foresee lots of experiments with this camera in the future!

Fall's Fury

Without any warning, the weather seems to have flipped from melting-hot midsummer to damp-and-dreary, late fall. It's a shock to everyone's systems -- I lost count of how many friends are reporting colds, or just feeling cold.

Yes, it is cold. But it's not winter cold (thank goodness)... not yet. The rain and wind don't help, but believe me... come late January, you'll be wishing for temperatures above freezing. I don't really mind these dismal days. It's an excuse for extra coffee and wearing sweat pants with over sized, fluffy socks.

Inside becomes a sanctuary during the rain. I've got pumpkin spice scented candles and little bits of autumn decor around the house. I hope to gather a few more bits and pieces as Halloween approaches -- we certainly need some Jack-o-lanterns and horror-themed items.

So for those of you sick of this weather, or literally sick from this weather, hang in there. Enjoy your blankets, soup, cookies, and movies. It will pass and we'll be able to hit the pumpkin patches and hiking trails again. At least, for a little while, before winter steamrolls us all into hibernation.

The Trail

Sorry for the crappy cell phone pictures -- it's all I carry when I'm hiking.
I will be buying a durable point-and-shoot soon!
I've been more active in the past couple days than I have been in weeks. Sad, but true -- daily 30-minute walks aren't cutting it. I had Thursday and Friday off, thanks to some Jewish holidays, but found myself without anyone to share the days with. I did what I often do in this situation: I harnessed Dexter and hit the woods.

On Thursday I took a 3.43 mile baby-hike around the Watchung Reservation. Friday we doubled it with a 6.65 mile hike at Jockey Hollow. We hiked the longest trail they had to offer, and it felt amazing! I honestly could hike forever. I had Dexter attached to my waist and he's learning to walk without breaking me in half. I'll probably order a padded "hands-free belt leash" (Dan, go ahead and laugh) in the next few days.

Anyway... while hiking around Jockey Hollow, I started thinking. I'd love to do a really long, multi-day hike -- maybe through part of the Appalachian Trail. I still need to learn a lot -- especially how to pack for such a trip. I'll spend the next year or so training. I need to increase my speed and trail length considerably before I can do anything too extreme (or Xtreme). Not to mention get some real hiking boots -- I don't think Converse sneakers are doing my body any good.

One of the best things about all this hiking is that it makes for one tired dog! On Saturday, Dex accompanied me to the Tails of the Tundra Siberian Husky Rescue fundraising event. It consisted of a two mile hike and lots of other dog-friendly activities. It was really more of a walk than an actual hike, but since I spent the day taking photos and Dexter spent it wrestling huskies, we were both sufficiently exhausted by the time we got home.

Sunday was also spent with canines -- this time, the Howling Woods Farm wolfdogs. No hiking was involved, though. Just taking pictures and educating the crowd. Unfortunately, Dexter had to stay home this time -- not sure my wolfy friends would appreciate his company.

I have more days off at the end of this week, and I plan to scope out some more hiking destinations. If it's cold enough, I may even bike with Dex. We'll see!

My Bread Making Adventure: Part III

First, a disclaimer: this isn't the third time I've made bread with my bread machine. I've probably made about a dozen or so loaves by now. This is, however, the third time I've blogged about it. :)

This loaf was rather experimental. I didn't have all the necessary ingredients for the recipe I was using, so I improvised a little. I have to say, I'm pretty happy with the results.

The original recipe was Bruce's Honey Sesame Bread, but here's what I used:

• 1 1/4 cups water
• 1/4 cup honey 3 tablespoons sugar (I love honey, but it just doesn't pack the same punch as sugar)
• 1 tablespoon powdered buttermilk 1/2 tablespoon powdered milk, 1/2 tablespoon plain, low-fat yogurt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 3 cups bread flour
• 3 tablespoons wheat bran 3 tablespoons whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup sesame seeds, toasted
• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

I can't guarantee that my adjustments make this bread any better or any worse than the original recipe. However, the end result came out quite tasty. The outside was flaky and crispy -- a feat I had yet to accomplish with my bread machine. The inside stayed light and fluffy, with a rich, sesame flavor. Warning: if you don't like sesame seeds, I'd avoid this recipe. Luckily, I love them.

Anyway, I hope my frequent gushing about the wonders of the almighty bread machine have inspired you to make your own breads. You don't need to be the next Rachel Ray, it really isn't even cooking. It's putting-stuff-in-a-pot-and-leaving-it-for-a-few-hours-ing.

Bread is such a staple of day-to-day consumption -- at least, for me. Being able to produce my own gives me the opportunity to save money, eat better, and get creative. So find a $10 bread machine at your local thrift store (I promise, there will be at least three at any given time) -- and get baking!

The Harvest

Yesterday we drove up (er, west, technically) to Chester, NJ to visit one of my favorite farms. I admit, it's very commercialized -- it's as much a tourist destination as it is a working farm. But that seems to be the norm with a lot of NJ farms. I guess we're lucky it's that way -- I don't know any farmers personally, so I doubt I'd get the chance to visit a farm any other way.

We picked a bunch of apples, peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, and raspberries. We grabbed some other produce, cider, pumpkin pie, pumpkin butter, and fresh eggs at their little farmer's market. I love supporting local farms. There's something comforting about food that wasn't trucked half way across the country.

Afterwards, we ended up at our usual supermarket to pick up some stuff we couldn't get at the farm. While browsing, I noticed that the raspberries they were selling came from Guatemala! It's kind of scary to think about how far our food travels. And isn't it weird that we're eating the produce of places we've never even visited? It always bothered me that all my clothes and, well, almost everything I own was made far away, in places I've never seen. But my food, too? Something that only stays in my fridge a week or two, has seen more travel than my 23-year-old body.

The only solution is to take advantage of more locally-grown foods (and anything else, for that matter), and to travel more. I need to see more of the world than my raspberries have!