Life's Passions

     Two of my passions in life (outside of my children and family) have always been photography and cooking.  When I started having all of my health problems, especially the loss of vision, I didn't think I would enjoy either one ever again.  I will not say that I was wrong, but I will say that I was pleasantly surprised.

     For the longest time, I refused to even pick up a camera.  It was a reminder of what I was losing or what I had already lost.  However, my husband refused to let me just lay down and give up.  He took me on a road trip through the North Georgia mountains.  He made me take my camera.  When I did not want to get out of the car to take a picture, he made me.  He made me see that just because my left eye wasn't working, I still had a partially good eye and imagination that would help me take some damn good pictures.  He was right.  My pictures may not be as good as they once were, but it makes me feel better when I am taking them.  My favorite pictures to take are wildlife, landscapes, and sports.  A sample of my work is below.  I am considering making a photo book with stories to sell to help me with some of my medical expenses.

     Now, about my other passion.... COOKING.  I have found a whole different type of joy in this pursuit.  I love being creative and putting together my own recipes.  My kids call these "mommy concoctions."  However, now, they help me with the cooking and the recipes.  For most of the time, they have to do most of the work.  Even though I do have good days, a lot of days the headaches and vision are so bad, that I cannot do a lot.

     Even though my daughters are now 18 and 21, (and the 18 year old is a "vegetarian") getting them to eat vegetables and eat healthy is a chore.  However, last night, for the first time, I succeeded in getting both of my daughters and my husband to eat Zucchini for the first time.  Here is how I did it.

•      I cut the zucchini into large chunks and put the chunks in a sauce pan with chopped up onion and bell pepper.  Seasoned the water with salt.  Let the mixture come to a rolling boil, and let it boil for 30 minutes.  So the zucchini was incredibly tender.
•      After draining the mixture, I put a stick of butter into the pot and let it melt.
•      Using my immersion blender, I mixed the melted butter, vegetables, 2 cups of shredded cheese, a quarter cup of mayonnaise, and one egg together.  When that was sufficiently mixed, I added a packet of Stove Top Savory Herb stuffing mixture into the pot and mixed it all together.
•      Finally, I placed the mixture in a casserole dish.  Cooked it for 30 minutes at 350.  For the final 5 minutes of cook time, I placed French friend onions on the top. 

 

     I told everyone it was stuffing - leaving out the part that it had zucchini, onions, and peppers in it.  And everyone loved it.  The entire thing was eaten.  This was my own version of "semi-homemade" cooking.  I do this quiet often and I don't write down the recipes.  However, when something goes over this well, I have to remember it.

     



A baby elk.  Taken in the Great Smoky Mountains close to Cherokee, NC.  Taken after I had surgery on my left eye.



Baby black bear cub.  Taken in Cades Cove, TN in the Great Smoky Mountains.  Taken before my surgery.