I are (hopefully) a college professor

I'm sitting in the living room of my apartment sporting one of my favorite workout shirts. It's a custom-made that I got from my parents as a graduation gift that pokes fun at my incredibly good-spirited mother. It reads "I ARE A COLLEGE GRADUATE." Perhaps in a month or so it should say "I are a college professor." 

Here's the deal: I got a call from the University of Phoenix's Axia College today, and they are moving me forward in the process toward becoming an adjunct professor! I have already gone through a resume review, an online interview and a phone interview; now I get to start online training. Axia College, for those of you who don't know, is the junior college of the University of Phoenix. Its courses are taught almost entirely online. Assuming I make the training cut, I will spend nine weeks as an adjunct professor of a prerequisite communications class. I will have two classes to begin with; and I will, in a nutshell, teach the proper mechanics of written communication, with a business bend. I will have a mentor who will help me during my first nine weeks of teaching. If that person feels I am suitable, he or she will recommend me for full adjunct status, and I will be able to take over up to four classes at a time!

Starting tomorrow, I need to get the college a copy of my master's transcripts and start working on my faculty profile. I have four weeks to prove to them why they should or should not make me a member of their staff. I'm betting on should. 

This is an opportunity I've been waiting for, for a long time. Interesting that it took a move across half of the country and six weeks with nothing else to do to make me realize it. 

I feel in my soul that this is the start of something new. Please send your prayers, your love, your positive energies and your candle smoke this way, and I'll keep everyone informed of how it goes. 

Back in business

At long last today, I started my new job. Well, technically, I started training for my new job. I will be a weekend anchor for one of the area's largest news/talk radio stations. 

It's an AM station with the same programming format as all the other stations that I've ever worked for. That is to say, it holds the syndication licenses for Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck. Which is to further say, it's incredibly conservative. 

But I can handle the outrageously right-wing chatter in exchange for a paycheck. (I tend to be a little more mainstream.) I've decided just to take it all with a grain of salt, and enjoy that I am quite literally back in business. 

On a side note, I completed a telephone interview yesterday with the University of Phoenix's Axia College for an adjunct professorship. I expect to hear on Monday afternoon if they plan on moving me on to the training level. 

If you can't take the heat ...

Then get out of the blacksmithing tent.

 

Banging away at what would become a wall hook.

Andy took his blacksmith course Saturday and seems to have loved every single minute of it! Jack and I walked over to the site (a 4.25 mile trip, by the way) to watch the second half. By the time we got there, Andy had already made a six-link chain, several wall hooks and was well on his way to completing a lovely-and-industrial-strength doorstop. He went on to add a steak turning tool and the stock of a custom-made tool that I think is meant to pull spark plugs from cars.

 

My husband can bend iron with heat, a hammer and his bare hands. Sweet!

Not bad for nine hours!

He was covered in soot, sweating over the heat of an open flame, shooting sparks from his hammer and grinning from ear-to-ear. The instructors told him to stop by any time to keep honing his skill, so I don't doubt that many a summer weekend will be spent with Andy working over the anvil and me walking laps at the magnificent Rock Ledge Ranch Historic Site. 

This is one of his first chain links.

 

What can I say? The man has talent! I can't wait to see what else he comes up with as he hones his considerable skills. 

Happy summer, everyone!

Saturday is the summer solstice, otherwise known as the longest day of the year and the official start of summer. 

Hooray!

OK, so I know pools have been open and boats have been on the water since Memorial Day, but that doesn't mean it's officially summer, yet. The solstice always brings mixed emotions for me: I love the fact that my favorite season has completely arrived. It means the farmer's market, another attempt at growing my own plants, and lots of fresh fruit and vegetables. 

On the flip side, however, it also means that the days are going to get shorter until December. So I guess this is a day to celebrate, with the knowledge that the sunlight will soon start to diminish. 

It's a day that carries with it all sorts of historic traditions. The Spaniards have a solstice tradition that involves young men putting on blue jeans and leaping over a fire. (This sort of logic could be why the armada failed in its stand against England all those centuries ago, come to think of it.)

I will celebrate with a long walk, meditation and picnic in Garden of the Gods. Andy will acknowledge the start of summer with a class on blacksmithing, and I will take in at least a part of that. (Look for photos of Andy playing with an anvil and coal pit later Saturday.)

What are you doing to honor summer's start? Below is a recipe for the perfect dessert to ring in the season of plenty. 

Flawless, flourless chocolate cake

Is there a better way to ring in the summer than with this magnificent chocolate cake, complete with homemade whipped cream and fresh berries? I think not. It comes from the very prolific and gifted kitchen of my mother, Sherry Foster. 

While recipe calls for strawberries, I imagine that raspberries, blackberries, blueberries or any other fresh summer berry could work as well. 

Preparation time: About one hour to let the butter and eggs come to room temperature. (I know it it sounds gross, but this is the easiest way to separate the eggs and to cream the butter.)

Ingredients for cake: 

• Cooking spray

• I T cocoa powder

• 1/2 C butter, softened. 

• 1 C sugar

• 1 C finely ground almonds

• 1 C semisweet chocolate

• 4 eggs separated into whites, yolks

You'll also need: A 9 inch springform pan

Directions for cake:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit. 

2) Coat the pan with cooking spray, cocoa powder. Shake off the excess cocoa powder. 

3) Beat butter on high until smooth. Melt the semisweet chocolate.

4) Add cup of sugar and beat until the mixture is creamy. 

5) Add ground nuts, chocolate and egg yolks. Beat thoroughly. 

6) Transfer chocolate mixture to a clean mixing bowl and scrub electric mixing bowl. 

7) Beat eggs on high until soft peaks appear, about 10 minutes. 

8) Stir one-third of egg whites completely into chocolate mix until completely incorporated. Gently fold in remaining two-thirds of egg whites to batter, it will be soft and milky.

9) Scrape batter into the prepared.

10) Bake 35 to 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Rotate cake 180 degrees half way through. 

11) Allow the cake to cool at least 30 minutes before taking off the outer rim of the pan and transferring to a serving platter. 

While the cake is cooling, make whipped cream and slice strawberries. 

Ingredients for whipped cream

• 1 C heavy whipping cream

• 2 T sugar

• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

• Fresh cut strawberries

Directions

1) Combine cream, sugar and vanilla. 

2) Beat on high until soft peaks form, 5 to 7 minutes. 

3) Top cake with cream and strawberries. 

Rethinking John Denver

So, I admit it. I grew up with the late John Denver.

He was a stalwart stand-by on every annual trip to Vail, and a frequent guest on Sunday and Christmas mornings. We were encouraged, if not strong armed, to sing along with "Rocky Mountain High" on nearly every family trip - something my brothers and I did with great gusto, if not talent. 

And yes, John Denver has been playing on constant repeat in my head since Andy and I decided to move to the Centennial State. AudioSlave, take me away. ... 

But since setting up shop in Colorado, I have to admit the guy makes sense. He's ceased to be a hippie to me, and has become a folk singer with a mission. A humanitarian and a naturalist with a poetic streak and a guitar. 

Take, for example, that song "Sunshine on my Shoulders." It made no sense to me until my first morning here, when dawn broke at 5 a.m. with a chorus of every bird in El Paso County singing on our front porch. I've come to realize that this is not every bird, and they weren't doing it to show off. They're actually a handful of REALLY LOUD birds that, as Shakespeare would say, herald the morn - at 9.5 decibels damn nearly every morning. 

And given that the area we're living in gets an average of 300 days of sunshine a year, yes, sunshine on my shoulders really does make me happy. 

And sunburned.

By popular demand ...

I've decided to post requested recipes on the blog. Andy and I got a kick out of the demand we heard Saturday night for a few barbecue recipes, and while I meant to post these on Sunday, I didn't get around to it. I was too busy feeling stupid about missing my parents' anniversary. 

So here, by popular demand, are the recipes for sweet and smoky pork tenderloin, coffee-encrusted pork tenderloin and red-eye barbecue sauce. I should note that these come from the mighty 'que' and cooking show of Pit Master and Barbecue-guru Steven Raichlen. (Check out his bible of barbecue "BBQ USA: 425 Fiery Recpiles from all across America." Copyright 2003 by Steven Raichlen,  published by Workman Publishing Company, Inc., of New York.) I wish I was half this talented!

One other note: If you don't already have one, it's totally worth investing in a meat thermometer that will tell you at what temperature the meat you're cooking is finished. It takes the guess work right out and reduces the risk of turning chicken into charcoal. Also note, Andy and I would go to the store and get a gigantic, six to nine pound Hormell pork loin and divide it into thirds. We'd freeze them separately and use them for entertaining or to make five to six pork chops from. Each chunk was just the right size for these recipes. 

I'll try to post a new recipe every week. Maybe next week, and just for Max, it will be my mom's flourless chocolate cake. ;)

Sweet and Smoky Pork Tenderloin (YUM! This is also heaven on pork ribs, try it there!) 

Grilling method: Indirect

Advanced prep time: 4+ hours to cure the meat

Ingredients: 

For tenderloin

• 2 to 3 lbs. pork tenderloin, trimmed of surplus fat and that weird viscus layer

• 1 C firmly packed brown sugar

• 1/4 C sea salt, or coarsely ground Kosher salt

• 1/8 C freshly ground black pepper

• Barbecue sauce, for basting and serving. 

For ribs

• 4 racks of baby-back ribs (about 6 to 8 pounds total)

• 2 C firmly packed brown sugar

• 1/2 C sea or coarsely ground Kosher salt

• 1/4 C freshly ground black pepper. 

You'll also need: About 2 C of smoking chips (I like hickory flavor, Raichlen suggests apple) soaked for several hours and drained. 

Directions

1) Mix the brown sugar, salt and pepper together. I like to use my fingers to make sure all the lumps are smashed up and that it's well blended. 

2) Using a sharp knife and lots of care, clean the meat of the shimmery, silvery viscus goo (Regan's word, not Raichlen's) and surplus fat. Discard the viscus and fat.

3) Rub the meat with the brown sugar, salt and pepper. Put into an air-tight container and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for at least four hours. The longer it's in there, the stronger the flavor.

4) Set up the grill for indirect heat. This means, if you're using charcoal (as Andy will highly suggest), you have a drip pan directly under the meat and charcoals on either side of the drip pan. If on gas, turn on the burners on either side of the meat, and use a drip pan. Either way, don't put the heat source directly under the meat. Heat the grill to about medium.

5) When ready to cook, place smoking chips either directly on the charcoals or into a smoking box (if gas). Place the meat over the drip pan. 

6) Cover and grill until the meat is tender and well done. This generally takes about 30 minutes for a thick pork tenderloin or 1 to 1 1/2 hours for ribs. (With ribs, you can tell they're done because they start to pull back from the bone.) Baste them with barbecue sauce half-way through. 

7) Transfer the meat onto a platter and allow it to rest for a few minutes before carving.

8) Serve with barbecue sauce and ENJOY!

Coffee-encrusted pork tenderloins  

I served this once for Max and Justin, Scott and Diane. It was a huge smash, the entire tenderloin was gone, and I didn't fall asleep until 3 a.m. If you're caffeine sensitive, that's a good thing of which to be aware. 

Grilling method: Direct

Advanced prep time: 4 to 12 hours to marinate the meat

You'll also need: 2 C of wood chips soaked for a few hours ahead of time and drained.

Ingredients: 

• 1 1/2 pounds of pork tenderloins, trimmed of surplus fat and viscus

• 3 T ground coffee (I like to use a blend with a hickory flavor like breakfast blend)

• 1 T coarsely ground kosher or sea salt

• 1 T dark bround sugar

• 2 tsp. sweet paprika

• 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

• 1 tsp. garlic powder

• 1 tsp. onion powder

• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin

• 1/2 tsp. ground coriander

• 1/2 tsp. unsweetned cocoa powder

• 2 T canola oil

• Redeye Barbecue sauce, to serve

Directions

1) Place the pork tenderloin on your work surface and carefully, using a sharp knife, trim away the surplus fat and viscus. Wash your hands.

2) Place the coffee, salt, brown sugar, paprika, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, coriander and cocoa into a small bowl and mix them together. Like the sweet and smoky rub, your fingers work better to make sure there aren't any residual lumps and everything is well blended. 

3) Rub the seasoning mixture all over the meat (hence the name "rub" for this kind of preparation). Drizzle oil over the meat and rub it in well. Place the meat into an airtight container, and refrigerate while it marinades. The longer it's marinading, the stronger the flavor will be. 

4) When ready to grill, set up for direct grilling. With either charcoal or gas, this means the heat source can be directly under the meat. Preheat the grill to medium-high. 

5) Brush the grilling grate with oil or spray with a non-stick cooking spray. Pam makes an excellent spray for grills that can withstand the higher temperatures and still helps keep your meat from sticking to the cooking surface. Add the smoking chips. If on a charcoal grill, put them directly on the charcoals and if on a gas grill, put them into a smoking box. 

6) Place the pork tenderloins on the hot grate and grill until they are cooked through. For a thick slice, this can take 10 to 15 minutes per side. For the smaller tenderloins (1 or so pounds each) that you get at the store, it's more like three to five minutes a side. Cook until the internal temperature shows 160 degrees Fahrenheit.

7) Transfer the meat to a platter and let it rest for a few minutes before carving. 

8) Serve with Red-Eye Barbecue Sauce on the side. 

Red-Eye Barbecue Sauce

I love to make huge batches of this, keep a small bottle in the fridge and freeze the rest. It keeps so well and it's infinitely better than the store-bought barbecue sauces I've tried. It's also super easy to whip up while your meat is marinading. It can be served hot or at room temperature and is awesome on any type of meat. 

Ingredients: 

• 1 T butter

• 1 slice bacon, finely chopped

• 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 3/4 C brewed strong coffee or espresso (Andy and I like the espresso roast for this, but use with caution - it's strong!)

• 3/4 C ketchup

• 1/4 C worcestershire sauce

• 1/4 C heavy whipping cream

• 2 T Dijon mustard

• 2 T brown sugar

• 2 T molasses

• 1 tsp ground cumin (Regan's special ingredient)

• Course sea or kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions: 

1) Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the bacon, onion and garlic and cook until lightly browned, about three minutes.

2) Stir in the coffee, ketchup, worcestershire sauce, cream, mustard, molasses brown sugar and cumin. Allow the mixture to gradually come to a boil. 

3) Reduce the heat slightly and let the sauce simmer until thick, about 10 to 15 minutes. Whisk regularly to prevent the bottom from scorching or forming a crust. Remove from heat

4) Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

Bon appetite!

Here's to love

The happy couple at their surprise 40th wedding anniversary bash. 

My parents, Larry and Sherry, celebrated their 42nd wedding anniversary on Thursday! Forty-two years! Amazing! Especially since they're not old enough for that. 

Like the fool I am, I was busy working on a sample story for a newspaper that *fingers crossed* will want to hire me full time, and completely forgot about it at the time. 

But since then, I've had some time to reflect on my folks' life together. And, yes, I mean life. Because although it's plural possessive, it's been one life lived as a partnership with loving harmony, a surplus of joy and even the occasional tear. 

In a time when people swap marriages more often than they do hair, nearly a half-century together is a remarkable accomplishment. 

Speaking from experience, I know that marriage to a good friend and loving partner is the most joyous union imaginable. But while the vast majority works well, it ain't always hearts and butterflies. Opinions sometimes differ, personalities occasionally clash, and once in a while, feelings get hurt. It can be hard to swallow your pride and admit when you're wrong and sorry (or right and sorry), but it's a fundamental part of working it out. 

My parents have been text book role models for working it out. They taught me, by example, how a marriage should work; how couples should share both the ups and the downs, in richer and poorer, for better or worse, till death do them part. (Although that will be a LONG way from now, for everyone involved, right?) 

All I can hope for is, 40 years down the road when Andy and I are celebrating our 42nd, our nieces and nephews can say the same thing. 

So here's a toast to love, to life and to longevity. 

Congratulations, Mom and Dad! And here's to many, many more. I promise I'll not be so belated next time. :) 

Crags Trail, revisited

Andy and Jack are geared up and ready for action on the shores of a mountain stream. 

Just an interesting note: The trail that we walked Sunday that included, oh, a mountain, is called Crags Trail and it's located near Cripple Creek.

Andy's new boss lives out that way and told him yesterday that the path we followed cuts through mountain lion territory!

 

Trekking through mountain lion territory. We didn't see any, which sounds like a good thing. 

Cool! So, next time we go, we'll have to take bear spray. Not for the tigers or bears, but for the lions. 

Oh my!

Hurry up and wait

I had forgotten how much of a journalist's life can be spent waiting for the phone to ring. 

My interview with the Business Journal went really well: So well that they want me to write an 800 word (roughly 27 inch) sample story for them by 10 a.m. Friday. I decided to get a head start and really focus on the piece today, which means I had a ton of messages left by 11:30 a.m. 

Now starts the waiting game. 

I wanted to try to get in an 8 hour day on this piece today. It's part of my get-back-to-work-mentality plan. But when you're working from home, there are SO MANY distractions! Like blogging, walking the dog, laundry, planning dinner. 

How do you keep focused at home, when not being home isn't really an option?

The Petersons went over the mountain

And this is what we saw. ...

I can see my house from here! The valley views to the south and east of the mountain where we ended up. This is roughly looking back towards Colorado Springs.

Hi, everyone, in case you didn't know, Andy and I are training for the Breast Cancer 3Day walk. I'll be back to Chicago for the walk in August, he's going on long and ridiculous hikes with me to help keep me motivated. 

Today we were supposed to walk 10 miles so we chose a trail in the Cripple Creek area, further west and into the mountains than Colorado Springs. It was great until the trail suddenly disappeared up the side of a rather steep and gigantic mountainside. 

An impromptu family self-portrait during a breather break about half way up the mountain. Behind Jack, you can see the valleys spread out a few thousand feet below.

A half mile to three-quarters of a mile, and roughly 1,500 feet in additional elevation later, we emerged to these unbelievable vistas. It was snowing at the summit and spring at the base. Go figure. For the whole story (*shameless plug*), check out my Quest for the Cure blog, by clicking under the "blogroll" tab to the right. 

Otherwise, enjoy the photos! Andy's pretty awesome with the camera.

Are we there yet? This is near the top of the mountain, only about 100 feet higher to climb. It's a pretty awesome vista looking north. Not sure it's the type of place to build your summer home, though.  

This image from the summit also looks roughly north toward Denver. 

Hey, look, a mountain! That gigantic brown thing is the rear side of Pike's Peak, which people around here tell me is a pretty important mountain or something. Yes, Virginia, that white stuff is snow. In June. 

A very Clampett move

Not that moving is ever easy, but try it across half the country on a limited budget with three house pets and a pair of personal automobiles. 

This is how we worked it out. It was a very Palatine Hillbillies sort of relocation process, but it worked. 

1) We rented a gigantic, 26-foot truck and loaded it with everything in the house. And Andy's bay at work. We spent Saturday at that process, but had a ton of help from Mom, Dad and John Peterson, from our friends Allison and Michael, from our friends Scott and Diane and from the eternally upbeat Max. That process only took all day - literally.

2) On Sunday, we reattached the tow bar that we originally got to bring my Jeep back from Alaska, and towed the Jeep behind the rental truck. First, we retrofitted the Jeep window with screen, propped up the back seat, placed a stuffed turkey into the driver's seat and released the cats in the car. Yes, they had access to their litter box and a constant supply of water, and they actually rode more comfortably than they ever do in their carriers. Andy drove that monstrosity.

3) We packed the must-have stuff in the bed of the Toyota pickup, piled in the dog, our dear friend Max and me into the cab and drove. 

And drove.

And drove.

For 10 hours to Sioux City, Iowa - my parents' place - where we stopped for a day's rest. A MUCH NEEDED day's rest. Andy sighted in his bow, Max and I rode horses and we all forgot that the next day we'd be hitting the road for an even longer time. 

On Tuesday, however, we had my mother, Sherry, with us. She was a God send and meant that Andy was able to get some help behind the wheel of the big rig. She rode with me in the pickup and Max bravely donned the leather cowboy hat and rode in the moving truck. 

Fourteen hours later, we arrived safe and sound at the apartment complex. With the help of two college movers we found on Craig's list, we got the entire truck unpacked, Andy's tool box to the shop and everyone to the airport on time. 

It took a lot of work, and a lot of patience on the part of our amazing work crews, but we got here and are all settled in. Thank you to everyone who helped out on the move: Whether it was hand scrubbing the racks of the oven, hefting boxes or "Dysoning" our living room, we never could have done it without you! 

Bidding a fond farewell

There's nothing to make you appreciate how appreciated you are like saying goodbye to the people you love. Although, I must add, as I pointed out to my dear friend Allison, while tears were flowing down here cheeks after helping us move, it's not really "goodbye," as much as "see ya later."

We had two farewell parties, one for mostly Andy's friends from work and one for mostly mine. There's a lot of overlap there, though, so it's hard to be selfish. Here are some fun photos from the shindigs, and thanks to everyone who came out to either one!

Andy bonds with Max, our friend who not only helped us barbecue enough meat to choke a horse, but then climbed into a truck to drive 24 hours and help us move.

A gathering of mind over matter. :) Max laughs with (from left) some girl I don't know, me, hostess Diane Robertson and Sandy Bressner.

 

I love this photo, which I believe is a Sandy Bressner original. That's Scott Robertson, our gracious host and favorite Rangers fan, in the background flashing the peace signs. 

Not sure how this happened, but that's Nick Swedberg on the left and Jim Butts on the right. And a complete goof in the center. 

After some serious swing dancing, I tried to dip David. Didn't turn out so well ... I think I'll let him lead next time. 

Miss you all very much! come see us soon. 

-Regan

Few people realize it, but in his spare time, Tom Musick volunteers with the developmentally disabled. In this case, me.