The Davis Vertical Feed Sewing Machine

The Davis Vertical Feed Sewing Machine....oh my. This is a unique machine in that it does not have feed dogs! The fabric is propelled via the needle and the presser foot as seen in this video:


http://youtu.be/1rxpWrP5Wrc


I have watched my sewing machine friends talk about their DVF machines and always felt a little spark of envy. I had only ever seen ONE of these machines in the wild, and it was in terrible condition, with a price tag of over $100! I left it where it sat...somewhat reluctantly, but I seldom pay very much for my sewing machines. There are too many folks that just want to get rid of old machines for me to pay that much for one in terrible shape! I continued to haunt the antique stores and local Craig's List hoping to find any of the several machines that I would like to be a caretaker for. (Can't feel like I "own" it...they have too much personality! It would be like owning a child!) Then, one day last week, it was there!!! A Davis Vertical Feed!!!!!!!!! An EARLY Davis Vertical Feed!! With a coffin top cabinet!!!! I called and asked for more photos of the machine and cabinet, knowing already from the small photos on Craigslist that I was going to have to refinish the cabinet. These are what the gentleman sent to me:

I was in love. Especially when the gentleman told me that it had belonged to his mother in law's mother, and his mother in law was 82 years old. I wrote an email to him and explained that I didn't have the asking price, and the machine and cabinet were going to take some work and money to refurbish....and made an offer of what I thought I could do for a top dollar. He called me a few days later and told me that he had talked to his sig. other and her mother and they had decided that they would rather I had the machine, since I love them so much, than to sell it to someone else who might not appreciate it like I would!! I was FLOORED and totally honored. I made arrangements to pick up the machine from the mom the next day. When that garage door opened and I saw the machine, I was totally enamoured! Mind you, the cabinet, as you can see, is rather crusty, the machine is missing some of the decals and has some cleaning to be done, but it just oozed charm. After a little chat with "Mom" (names withheld for their privacy) I learned that she had sat near her mother as her mother sewed her clothes. Clothes that she said she hated, because they were always too big, so that she'd be able to grow into them. It made me smile. My mom used to do the same thing for me when I was little. "Mom's" mother did it because she was a child of the Great Depression. My mother did it because we didn't have much in the way of money and she had to dress 5 kids! "Mom" told me her mother's name was "Hazel", and then ammended it to add that her name was actually "Bertha Hazel", but she didn't like the name "Bertha" so always went by "Hazel". This machine's name, therefore, is Hazel. :) (And yes, I always name my machines...just like a lot of guys name their cars or motorcycles!)

I came home, and armed with "Mom's" age of 82, looked up the family on the 1930 census to find out when Hazel was born. (The woman, not the machine) I found that she was born in 1896, and because of that could not have been the original owner of this machine. SOMEONE had owned it before Hazel did! I wish I knew who, for sure...I'll bet it was a relative tho. This particular machine was made in Watertown, NY and the Davis Sewing Machine Company moved it's operation to Dayton, Ohio sometime between 1888 and 1890. The machine had to have been made sometime AFTER the last patent date on the shuttle slide which is May 12, 1885, and 1890 when the factory started work in Dayton, Ohio. Hazel the Woman would have been 2 or 3 years old when Hazel the Machine was brand new. History lesson over. ;)

I brought Hazel the Machine into the house and set it down in the dining room. As I looked her over, the task seemed daunting. I've never tackled this much restoration before. The cabinet, as you've seen, was missing much of the finish. The coffin top also needs to be worked on, and has a small hole in the back of it that I'm not even going to TRY to fix. God Bless my husband tho, he immediately sat down and started trying to figure out how to take things apart. He got the wooden top of the cabinet off. He played with the base, trying to figure out how to remove the wood pitman that operates the treadle action between the base and the machine. We gave up on that, for fear of breaking the wood. That's another indication that the machine is pre-1900...most of the big companies, and Davis was a big company, stopped using wood for the pitman arm before 1900.

Thanks to my friend, Skip, I've stripped what's left of the finish from the top of the cabinet. I used denatured alcohol, and it worked like a charm. Skip has also told me how to re-apply shellac so that it'll have a nice finish. This cabinet will always have it's flaws. There's a black water ring on it, and other flaws that give it character. I don't think I'll stain it, I don't think the original was stained. This is what it looks like now. I'm trying to avoid stripping any more of it than I have to, and so will leave the drawers as they are and just apply another coat of shellac to them to "freshen" them up.

The base for the treadle is another issue. Oh my!!! Look at the first photos. Do you see any decals on that black base? I didn't either, until I started cleaning. Once I did a little bit of a wipe down, I noticed them! Many of the decals are damaged or gone, but it still has quite a few of them left!! I'm tickled pink! After a few hours with a spray bottle, and after going through 3 large terry cloth rags, I broke down and put it into the bathtub, washed it down, and sprayed it off with hot water and the shower head. I'll be touching up missing paint and then using car wax to spiff it up. This is a "before" photo. They had used some kind of glue to glue the machine to the treadle! That's what the white stuff is....

This is after it's bath. William painted the foot pedal and bar, and as soon as I get done polishing the rest, he'll put it back together for me.

This is the "coffin top" to the cabinet. The hooks that hold it to the cabinet are broken, I'm not sure where I might be able to find them, but I will be looking! I haven't started on cleaning this up yet...

And of course, this is "Hazel the Machine". She's waiting patiently to get back into her cabinet...and I hope she's VERY patient, cuz this is gonna take some time!!! ;) Please ignore the messy looking table...I tend to pile things on it, and I just pushed them back to make room for the machine.

Well My Friends, there you have it. The Saga of Hazel, The Davis Vertical Feed Sewing Machine to date. I promise to post more as the process advances. I'm loving the process, and feeling a sense of accomplishment, even tho it's far from done, and most likely won't look perfect....I'm learning, and Hazel is helping me! I like to think that Hazel the Woman is watching and proud to know that her much loved old machine is once again much loved and being cared for!

Busy Week!

I've been a "fishing widow" for the past 3 days, and while I sometimes enjoy the solitude, I miss the spousal unit terribly and am anxious for him to get home tonight! In order to encourage the boss to go with him, I volunteered to work on our normal days off, so instead will be taking off tomorrow and Friday. Can we say, "YARD SALE!!" LOL I don't usually get to go to them, since I work weekends. I'm a bit excited! Maybe I'll find a new machine to bring home with me! :)

Worked on genealogy a bit this week, trying to find the parents of my Martha Ward. She was born in 1840, in Texas, orphaned by or before 1850, where she appears on the census for Walker County, TX living with Wm. and Mary Cummings and their 2 small children, as a 10 year old. There's no relationship information on the 1850, so we can't tell if Mary was a sister, or if they were guardians for her... I did find an 1846 tax roll for Walker County, and it listed a Jacob Ward...maybe her daddy? Will be digging deeper if I can!

Have not sewed at all this week. Maybe tomorrow afternoon/evening or on Friday afternoon/evening. Have some projects that I need to get finished up..they've been around too long!

On the political front: A question for you all. Do you think Obama stands a chance of reelection? The more I read/listen, the less chance I think he has! To be honest, I do think some of the problems are a result of prior administrations. "SOME" being the operative word. I think SOME of them are the fault of good old American greed.

When will Americans learn? Yes. Chinese made is cheaper, Philipine labor is cheaper, but if you don't support the American Worker, the American Worker can not support you! How hard is that to figure out for all of the big companies that farm out jobs (outsource) to other countries???? Put Americans out of work, and they won't need tech support for your product, because they don't have a job and can no longer afford it. DUH!

Nuff said for today.

YAY!! It's My Friday!!

I'm tickled pink! Today is my Friday...we take off from work on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and I'm so ready for it today!

Tomorrow, I have to go to the doctor. I've been having some pain in my left arm, and it's becoming a problem. I have trouble dressing, I can't reach into the backseat of the car, and so on. The pain can be dibilitating! I'm not looking forward to what she'll tell me....I've put on some weight in the past year, I haven't yet quit smoking, and I stopped taking the statens that are supposed to lower my cholesterol. Not to mention the cost of fixing whatever is wrong. Oh well...que sera! What will be, will be! We'll work through it, no matter! :)

Let's talk about happy stuff! Like Obama's popularity ratings!! ~grin~ How is it that the "popular" man that won the presidency is no longer so much loved? Joe Biden said it himself before he was the vice presidential canidate. "The Oval Office is no place for on the job training!" (and yes, he said it about Barry!)


Happier yet? SEWING MACHINES!! I so love those silly things! This is my newest aquisition, a 1953 Singer Model 20 toy. William bought it for my birthday, which isn't until November, but he is silly and can't wait! Now if I can keep him from buying anything in November when my birthday actually is here, it'll be a miracle, but I'm going to try! This machine is only missing one little thing...the "C" clamp that holds the machine to the table, because it's so light that it will push over when you try to turn the handcrank.

These were another find!! These are attachments for a Wheeler & Wilson Model 8 or 9 sewing machine!! Keep in mind, that as tattered as the manual for them looks, it's over 100 years old! I expect to be a bit tattered by the time I'm that age too! ;)

Isn't this pretty? I found this, and four doilies for a total of $5 at a thrift store! They all need some degree of minor repair, but as a crocheter that has won more than one blue ribbon at fairs and shows, I'm pretty sure I can handle that!

Ok....I'm off to browse my favorite site, and maybe chat a bit with friends on Facebook! Happy evening to you all, and may your tomorrow, and ALL of your tomorrows be happy, healthy, and positively wonderful!!

Ok...so I'm not so good at the blogging thing!

But I DO love my sewing machines! These old girls are something else, I can't imagine ONE modern machine that exists today, sewing like these machines do at 50, 60, 100, and over 100 years old! Wonderful old machines, that actually do what I need them to do....SEW! No computer chips to get corrupted! Yippee!! NOT to say that I don't absolutely LOVE the Janome that William bought for me a couple of years ago, I do! But as old as these machines are, they're going to outlive that machine! This first pic is of a 1934 White Number 8, an electric Vibrating Shuttle machine that White made to compete with Singer's model 27. Evidently there wasn't much competition, because these machines were only made for a year or so, from what I understand. I named her "Fannie", after a woman that worked for William at the Town Pump in Montana. William was quite amused by that, and told me that it worked perfectly, because when I was showing interested guests my machines, I could show them "My White Fannie"!!! He kinda forgot the comma when he said it! LOL


This one is Annie. She's a Singer model 15-91 from 1946. I paid a customer $20.00 for her, she came with the matching stool, full of threads and goodies! Her attachments are mostly "blackside". I named her Annie, because of two things: Her "Queen Anne" cabinet and stool, and I happened to be reading a book that my sweet sis in law had given me about Anne Boelyn. I used this machine to stitch a Hawaiian shirt for William, including the buttonholes! She did a wonderful job....

My 1916 Singer Redeye that I bought in a little shop on the coast for $15.00. Pretty little thing, came with an aftermarket motor that immediately got removed when I got it home. She also had most of the attachments made for this model. This is one of Singer's "oddball" domestic machines, in that the attachments are all "back clamps"....the early model 66 machines are the only ones that have this style of attachments. They can be hard to find, and expensive when you do. She's waiting patiently for a treadle cabinet.


I've named this beautiful machine "Eleanor" after the woman that first purchased her in 1915 in England. I bought her from a couple in Sisters, Oregon, his grandmother was Eleanor Pike. Eleanor passed the machine down to her daughter, Bessie Pike Smith, who passed the machine down to David Smith, who sold the machine to me with the understanding that if anyone in the family EVER decided that they want the machine, I will sell it back. (My offer, not their demand). Eleanor (the machine) is a Singer Model 28K handcrank. The "K" after the model number simply means that the machine was made in Kilbowie, Clydebank, Scotland. I've used this machine to piece some simple quilt blocks, she's absolutely wonderful!! I'm in love with both the motions of operating a handcrank, and with the sound of a vibrating shuttle. I did pay a bit more for this one, but having the history of the machine back to her first owner, along with nearly perfect decals and case made her worth it to me!

Enough with the sewing machines for now...let's talk politics!! Who do you like for 2012, and why?
Honestly, I'm liking Herman Cain... Barry Obama fell so far short of my hopes for him. I didn't vote for him, can't stand his wife, feel sorry for his children, and he's demonstrated that Jimmy Carter is NOT the worst president in history. People made such a big deal of Sarah Palin and how "stupid" she was...but they chose to ignore that Barry thought we had 57 states???
Anyway...I'm interested in what you think!!

Obcessive Compulsive...

I've determined that I'm a bit OCD. I'm not the type that has to wash my hands everytime I touch something. I'm definately no "Monk".
I've been watching my behavior over the past several years tho, and I do think I tend to obcess over the things that interest me.
For example. I used to crochet lace doilies. I bought every pattern book I could get my hands on. Produced doilies one right after another. Had every color of thread. Even bought yarn and crocheted a few afghans, but liked doilies better.
Got into romance novels. Would spend hours reading, and go through 7 or 8 books a week. The lady that owned the used book store became one of my best friends!
More recently, I became interested in scrapbooking. Oh my! How I loved it...would spend hours or sometimes days rearranging a layout until I was pleased with it. That lasted five or six years, and then we bought the camper. And along with the camper, we bought a dutch oven. Then two. Then three. I now have six of them...along with other cast iron...muffin pans...waffle irons...skillets...and trivets! Oh my...the trivets! My kitchen walls are lined with them...and I'm still trying to collect the JZH alphabet series of trivets! I find one now and again....but am not collecting the cast iron like I was...and in fact am selling some of it, everything that I don't actually use.
I decided to lose weight, and successfully shed 105 lbs. I did it by being obcessive about it. I learned everything I could about weight loss, and spent hours on www.caloriecount.about.com . I counted every calorie that went into my mouth...obcessively.
My current love? Sewing, quilting, and sewing machines! This one started when William bought me a Janome for my last birthday. Oh how I LOVE that machine! Then...I saw a 1912 Singer treadle machine in a local antique store. I fell in love! I'd always liked the look of the antique treadle machines, and I pestered William until he bought it for me.
A couple of months later, we were wandering in a thrift store, and there she was! A 1957 Kenmore in a cabinet! And oh my! They only wanted $15 for her! A friend of mine had cams so that the decorative stitch feature would work, she stitches beautifully!
Two weeks ago, we were wandering in a furniture store...they sell higher end used furniture. There we found her...a Wheeler & Wilson #8 treadle machine, made in about 1880. Absolutely BEAUTIFUL machine and cabinet! William bought her for me....had to...the price was absolutely right!
Again today...wandering once more in a thrift store, I happened along a sewing machine cabinet, $35 price tag. Butt ugly pressed wood cabinet, did not expect it to hold anything of real interest, but I opened the lid anyway. Inside was a wonderful 1951 Centenial badged Singer model 201!! I checked it out, no power cord....and there was that butt ugly cabinet! I went and got Willaim...he had stayed in the car...and had him come look at it. Told him that we should maybe make an offer on it..say $15. He did, and they said "Yes"!!! It's an electric machine, with what's known as a "potted motor"...(means the motor is intregal, and the machine is gear driven) Without the power cord, all we can do is make sure it will form a stitch using the handwheel. It does...very nicely! Now as long as the motor runs, we'll be doing good! Well...that and getting rid of that butt ugly cabinet! ;)

Just in case you think I'm slipping by not offering an opinion? I still don't have much respect for the Obama regime... I think he's going to make things pretty tough on all of us for the next two years, until we can get him voted out of office. I didn't like my other choices for the presidency either, I don't like Hillary just because I don't like the woman, and while John McCain was an alright kind of guy, Sarah Palin pretty much turned my stomach.
If only the government would consult me directly about these things...I'm pretty sure I could get this country straightened out!! ~wink and a grin~

Long Time..No Opinions???

Ah! So it's been awhile....not that I don't have opinions...I still do, I just am not very good about getting here to write about them!

I guess most of my opinions right now concern our government. I'm seriously concerned! Mr. Obama...promised change. Those of you that voted for him...how's that change working for ya? It's not done much for me except to make me poorer than I was before he was elected. Trust me, I wasn't rich then!

I've lost considerable respect for Mr. Obama. Never had any for his wife. Have always felt sympathy for their children. Don't have any feelings one way or the other for their dog.

Hopefully 2012 will be a good election year, with voters casting their votes for *real* change instead of someone's race. I honestly think that if we had "blind" polls, with only the candidate's policies and beliefs, without anyone being able to see WHO, WHAT, or anything else about the candidate, we'd have a much better government right now.

Ebay...Sheese!

How hard can it be? You take a few pictures, you post them on a website with the lowest price you're willing to accept for the item, you choose a few variables, you click "upload" and you're off and running as an ebay seller. Someone bids, wins, pays you, you package, ship, and wait for feedback.
Easy as pie! Right?

Wrong! In my opinion, while it's not hard, physical labor, selling on ebay is HARD! Or, maybe that's just the case for a worry wart like me.

The pictures are easy. Time consuming sometimes, but easy. Take the item outside, take a picture. No brainer. Upload said photos to computer, only to find out that some are not as clear as they should be. Take the item back outside and try again. Ok....that works.

Pull up "Auctiva". Start a new listing. Import the photo(s). Remember what you paid for the item, mentally add ebay fees and Paypal fees. Figure out the shipping weight. Decide between parcel post and priority. Choose between flat rate or not. USPS, UPS, or FedEx. Write a glowing description, being chipper and cheery, and/or try to inject a bit of humor.

Have you decided on your return rules? Shipping rules? Do you want a fancy background to showcase the item? Don't forget to add the fees for that to the minimum price! How long is the auction to run? 3 days? 5 days? 10 days? (10 days is more money...add that to the cost)

Upload it to Ebay. Sit back and wait. Is anyone going to even see it? Are they EVER going to bid? Get used to tapping your fingers on the desk.

Wait! Someone bid. Get out calculator and figure out again what it's going to cost you. Did you remember to include the cost of gas to get to the post office? Forget about your time. All of the sudden, it's cost you $1.63 to send off this lovely item to it's new owner. Yes. That's right. You've lost money on this auction. Not only that, but then you have to wait to see if you get good feedback or not....

Is it worth it? I dunno. I just can't decide. I've made some fairly good money on a few things, but have lost money on others....

Guess as long as I don't end up having to declare bankruptcy because of my ebay sales, I'll call it "entertainment"...

Mr. President

I can't stand it anymore.

I didn't vote for him. Had absolutely nothing to do with the color of his skin or his gender. Had everything to do with his platform and promises. One man does not change the country. One man who has, as his primary "feature" dark skin, was elected to the presidency of the United States. Regardless, he WAS elected, and in my book, that makes him nothing less than "Mr. President" with full honors. I will support him in his endeavors to make this country a better place to live.

I'm sorry if what I have to say is offensive to some. It's not intended to be, but I fully believe that President Obama was elected because of the color of his skin. (That, and the Republicans couldn't come up with a better canidate)
I can't believe we elected a man, who had as his main topic of his campaign and acceptance speech, "I'm black". Have we forgotten that the man is half WHITE? When has THAT come up as a positive in his bid for election and subsequent press coverage?
Point I am trying to make is this. It shouldn't matter that Barack Obama is black. It shouldn't matter that he's half white. This country elected a man, and unless that man was elected because he was black, it simply shouldn't be an issue. Who CARES what color his skin is? I don't. I care about what he's going to be able to do to save this country from itself. I think that as long as there's the distraction of his skin color, there is not going to be anyone watching what's actually happening in Washington. I think that he's got a wife that is not going to be anymore happy in the White House than she has been all of her life. What idiot let her start a speech at the Democratic Convention with, "For the first time in my life, I am proud of my country!"

Lest you think that I'm against the man for the color of his skin, or because he's not female, please note that I'd be in seventh heaven if Condoleezza Rice would run for the presidency! I really wish she would have....she'd have kicked both Obama's and Clinton's butts in a fair election! ;)

It worries me. It really does. I'll sit back and watch. We'll see if Obama and his followers can put their prejudice behind them. Tell me that they're not prejudiced. His whole acceptance speech was based on the "First BLACK President", and look how far blacks have come. I've heard nothing about how the white side of him made it to the presidency. I've heard nothing about the HALF black man that was elected.

I guess what I'm trying to say is this. Cut the "Black" President thing. Whodahell cares? I don't. And if one is truly not prejudiced, they don't either. All we care about is someone who can run the country effectively. Someone who can do a good job. I honestly believe that as President, Obama MIGHT be able to do just that, but he's going to have to set the color of his skin aside and get busy. There's more to running the country than being black. I've never done it myself, but I'm pretty sure that's the case.

So...all of that aside, I have this to say to Barack Obama.

Dear Mr. President,

Please know that you have my full support, even though you did not have my vote. Please know that my prayers are with you as you start this journey of Presidency, and that my prayers are also with your children, as they give up their father for the next four years.
I will not always agree with your ideas or your actions. I don't believe that bringing the troops home at this time is a good idea. I believe that if we do that, then all of the men and women that have died in the war on terrorism will have died for nothing, and that thought is too much to bear. We need to finish what we've started.
I believe that my right to bear arms needs to be protected. I don't, however, see a need to own an AK47 or any other kind of assult weapon. Gangs need to be treated like the terrorists that they are. Don't consider them to be terrorists? Wanna walk down the street in LA at night? Alone, without the Secret Service? That's what most Americans have to do to go anywhere at night, even if it's just to get to their car.

Please Mr. President. Put the color of your skin behind you and take the Presidency of the United States as simply a man, not as a "black man". Remove the label that someone's slapped on your back. It's unbecoming for a non-racist President.
Sincerely,
Charlee Turner

Are You Tired of Pots Yet?

**ETA** I found out, thanks to Fant, Roger, and DC that these two pots are made by Lodge. Still dunno how old they are, but they tell me that "we" know that they're Lodge because of the "L" shape of the bail handle thingies! ;)

Well...here are the two little pots that I bought the other day. There are no markings, and really didn't excite me at first, but they're good, sound little pots, and I'm happy to have rescued them from that shed where there were most certainly doomed!

The bottom of the "10". The marks are from setting on a rack of some kind and not in the metal itself. The markings are:

10

C0

D

The lid...the "10" is the only mark of any kind. There are no markings or anything substantial inside either of the pots.

Side view of the 10. Doesn't really look any different than the 8, shown below.

The "8". Just above the 8 is a lightly engraved "7".

The bottom of the 8...again the marks are from a rack of some kind. Under the "8" is "C0"

Side view of the 8. Both pots are poorly seasoned....I don't think there's rust on them. Could be wrong, of course, it could be that they oiled rusty pots. We'll find out when I clean them. I don't think either pot has ever been used....

Explaining the Previous Posts of Photos!

You've read my previous post about my new obsession, Dutch oven cooking. A few days ago, a friend told us about a camp oven that was for sale on Craig's list. I went looking...the pot was listed....with a photo showing the original sticker in the bottom of the inside of the pot. I was pretty jazzed when I called the guy and he told me that he did have 3 pots. He was going to leave to go fishing though, and told me to call him the next morning, (yesterday) at about 7. I waited until about 7:20....and called. Answering machine! I left my polite message. I hung up and gritted my teeth, trying to be patient and not imagine the worst.
I called at 8. Answering machine. Didn't leave a message.
I called at 9. Answering machine. Didn't leave a message.
Called at 10. Answering machine. Didn't leave a message...but my panic was starting to mount. What if he'd sold the pots? He'd said they were going to be first come, first serve. For the price he was asking, it was entirely possible. What if he recognised my number and didn't want to deal with a weepy woman sobbing out an "Ok...well thank you then...."
I didn't call again. I remained hopeful, but that was starting to wane...and then it happened. At 12:30, he called. He was back from fishing...had caught a fish...had a couple of bites...yes, he still had all the pots. I put William on the phone to get directions. WHEW! We made arrangements for an hour off work and left to go get MY pots!

It was quite a ways out in the boonies, but we finally pulled into his yard. We did the introductions and hand shaking, and all the while I wanted to scream at him, "You've made me wait long enough, dammit! Where are the pots?"

He stepped away, into an open, lean-to type shed, and started handing out pots. There were four with legs. There was one without. There was a skillet that was Wagner Ware, aluminum maybe? Silver colored exterior, black inside, not heavy at all. I bought the four pots with legs. He threw in a Wagner griddle.

I came home in seventh heaven. Now I have new friends from all over helping me to decide what to do with these pots. I kind of want to keep them, but I want pots I can cook in, and taking the sticker out of the one pot will take away some of the value. I hate to ruin the pot for a true collector, so I won't be using that one.

The other pots that I will clean and season. I'm not at all sure about the two little pots. Have no idea of how old they are or who made them. I'm betting that I have new friends that will help me to find out! :) My most sincere thanks to them!

Oh! And the reason that I posted the previous two posts with just pictures of the pots? Some of the folks trying to help me identify and value these pots couldn't see the photos that I posted in the forums...so I gave them a link to my blog! Thanks so much everyone! :)

Wagner Pot #2

This is the second Wagner, obviously used!

Same message as before...I'll be back later to fill you in!

The Sticker Pot

For those of you that have no idea what this post is about, I'll be back later to fill you in! :)

We Went Scouting Today....

Nope! Nothing to do with Boy or Girl Scouts, altho both are highly admirable organizations! (My oldest son was a Life Scout, and my youngest an Eagle)
We went looking for new campgrounds to try out. Had a great time just hanging out with William and seeing the sights that to be seen when you're in the Newberry Crater area of Oregon. Fasinating place!

William and Jake at the Obsidian flow.

The hillside at the Obsidian flow...hard to see, but there's a LOT of black glass on that hillside!

My goofy, adorable, ever-so-sweet husband, behind a large Obsidian boulder.

William at Paulina Lake.

Jake loved biting at the weeds that were washing up to shore at Paulina Lake! It was hilarious....until we went to get in the car! Dogs have absolutely NO sense of political correctness when they're wet and drippy! NONE!

We went to the top of Paulina Peak, at the rim of the cauldron...What fantastic views!
~happy lil sigh~ Ain't he handsome? :)

Don't panic! It's just a fat girl with a poodle! This is Jake and I at the Deschutes River.

A view of both Paulina Lake and East Lake from Paulina Peak. We'll be camping down there next week! (Note to self: Bring long johns!)

This is the oldest tree in the state of Oregon! They estimate it's age a about 500 years, it's height at 165 feet, it's diameter at 8.6 feet, and board feet at over 25,000! It's got a lot of character, this tree....wish you could see it in real life!

So here's the skinny! We're going camping/fishing at Paulina lake next Tues-Weds. Anyone want to join us? I'll be cooking in the dutch ovens...and hopefully we'll catch a fish or two! The state record for a brown trout came from Paulina Lake...a 28 1/2 pounder caught in 2002...it's time to break that record, I'm thinking! (I'm also thinking that if *I* can be the one to break that record, that William won't let me go fishing anymore with him! NOT necessarily a bad thing!! ~grin~)

Let Me Introduce You to Walton Lake!

Just a few images of the beautiful lake that is nestled in the mountains of Central Oregon. I enjoyed our camping trip here last week. Well...to be more honest about things...I enjoyed cooking in my Dutch ovens during this trip last week....wouldn't you know it? I forgot to take photos of the FOOD AGAIN!!

That dot you see in the lake? That's my sweet hubby doing his fishing thing! He caught a few too!

All of these photos were taken by me standing just outside of our camper in the campground at Walton Lake...absolutely beautiful country!

My New Obsession!

Cast iron! In particular, DUTCH OVENS!



I've cooked with cast iron for years. I learned to cook in cast iron. I love my cast iron! I admit, I allowed myself to be lured away from it for a time....teflon was attractive to me! That whole "no stick, easy wipe LIGHTWEIGHT" allure... Then I discovered that while my cast iron sat unloved in the cabinet, I was spending lotsa dollars on that teflon crap! Had to replace it every year or so... and to top it off, I find out that it's not only not good for you health-wise (did you know that Americans have high levels of teflon in their blood? And it doesn't break down?) our landfills are FULL of the stuff! Microscopic particles of teflon floating around in your home will kill your pet birds if you have them. I have cast iron that is generations old. Would you want to cook in a teflon pan that is from the early 1900's? I wouldn't. And yet, some of the cast iron being used out there today is from the 1800's!

So I went back to my cast iron. I have a skillet that is so well seasoned that I think I could cook an egg in it with no oil...and it wouldn't stick! All of my skillets are now cast iron. No more teflon. Ever. Period. Wouldn't even consider arguing about it.

Then we bought...."The Man Cave". That's what we call the camper trailer. Gonna paint that on the side of it even. Along with "Remember the GUY CODE" on the back of it. But I digress. (And THE GUY CODE is a subject for another post)



Anyway....we bought the man cave. That meant camping. That meant that I was going to have to go out and experience nature. Nature Girl, I'm not. Don't like it. Bugs bug me. Cold is something I don't deal with in a likeable and cheerful manner. So we compromised. I would go camping if we could eat something other than hotdogs and hamburgers. We had a Dutch oven. Let's put it to use!



So out it comes from the back of the cabinet. Into the sink for a good scrubbing, onto the stovetop for a "flame-dry", and then a good coat of Crisco before making it's way to the outside grill for a high temp (500 degree) "bake". (Also known as "seasoning") Let the pot bake for an hour and then cool down again. Another coat of Crisco and back on the grill for another bake!



By the end of the second bake, the pot was black and shiny. It was also non-stick. We went camping and took the precious 12D pot with us. Looked for a recipe prior to going and found Byron's website ( http://papadutch.home.comcast.net/~papadutch/ ). From that website I found an easy recipe for Orange Peach Cobbler. It was YUMMY!!!! We stayed home the next week, but the week after that we were off and running again. This time, we went with not only the ever precious 12D....we also had a new 10 inch pot. Along with taking along the regular kitchen black pots....a legless 10 inch DO, a legless chicken fryer, and a skillet.



Oh my, did we have plans! We invited 3 couples to join us, and one of them brought 3 teenagers! In the afternoon, I started a large pork roast. Took two sets of coals to cook it til it shredded easily. It smelled sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo good! After it cooled a bit, we shredded it, rolled it with some cheese in flour tortillas, and then smothered it in the green chili and more cheese...baked again for about 45 minutes. LOVED IT! Also baked a berry cobbler in one of the other ovens for desert...along with homemade vanilla icecream. YUM!

Last week, it was a Tex/Mex casserole with a Pina Colada cobbler for desert. Again...it was yummy!

I'm loving this Dutch oven stuff. There are tons of Dutch Oven websites out there...I have a few links...check them out, or Google "Dutch oven cooking". You don't have to camp to use `em! We've even cooked in the backyard with the black pots. Good stuff!

OMG! WHAT WAS I THINKING?

Allow me to lay a bit of groundwork first. We used to go camping when I was a kid. Tomboy....dirt....I was ok with it then.
My ex was an outdoor kinda guy. Hunting, fishing, camping. EVERY weekend. Our freaking honeymoon was a weeklong backpacking trip!
Tents all the way too. As in sleep on the ground, in a tent, rain or shine. As I began to dislike him, I started to resist. I'm not an outside kinda girl. I don't like bugs. I don't like being cold. campfires are ok, BUT I hate the smoke.
Pretty safe to say that I do NOT like camping! Full fledged "don'wanna!" Completely "EWWWWWWWWWW! May I go get a mamography instead?"
Then...yesterday. Ah...yesterday. We went and looked. He liked it. I even thought it was acceptable. It's coming home with us on Saturday. We'll be doing a lot of camping to justify it. I'm thrilled about that aspect, let me tell ya....so excited I could just pee my pants. Except that I don't have to....this has a potty! Let me show you our new aquisition.... she's not new, but she's clean and like new.











Now call me silly, but I'd say that the aquisition of this delightful jewel of campers is a pretty good sign that I love my husband, since he likes me to go with him. And he loves camping and stuff.

I'm nervous about it, as I am anytime I purchase something on time. In another lifetime, I had a few bills that I couldn't pay right away, and that bothers me beyond bothered. I fret about it. I worry about it. I panic if it looks like I'm going to be the slightest bit late with a payment. But there I was, signing my name on that line. It's ours now. And for what it's costing us, WE'RE GOING TO USE IT AND HAVE FUN DAMMIT! ~GRIN~ (Ok...so I'm a LITTLE BIT excited!)

I'm going to make some kind of slipcover for the couches. They're not terrible, but they're that nubby kind of material. Our little dog, Jake, has this tendancy to try to "fluff" his bed before he lays on it. His little nails catch in the fabric and tear it up. I'm going to make new curtains for it too. The ones in it already are ugly. We'll need to purchase a few things for it...but for the most part I already have everything we'll need to put in it.

So there you have it. Our little home away from home. Our retreat. My concession to go camping with the man that I love more than life itself.... Gonna be a good summer... :)