Today feels like an exciting day. Maybe it's just the sunshine, maybe it is just awesome simply because it's another day and there's nothing that can tell me that that's not a reason to be excited. I pulled out the first radishes the other day. Just babies, but I had to pull some out to allow others to come to maturity. Babies they might have been, but delicious none the less. Their small size meant that they were packed full of flavour that might spread out as they got bigger. Which was great, I had only a few but they packed a real punch. Wonderfully sweet with a real nice peppery kick to them. I stole some dill from the patch as well, Fried up some chick peas (Sorry those came from a can, I know they could have been dried and local but they weren't.) tossed the dill and radishes and chowed down. Really easy salad to make, really filling, and goes really well with a fragrant rice. If you want to know: One cup Chick peas, sauteed with vegetable oil, toss in about four to five radishes finely sliced and a small bunch of dill. Add some fresh pepper and sea salt.

As you remember from my last post. I have some pickled eggs just waiting, I've been anxious. I cracked them open today. They smell wonderful, maybe not to a lot of people. I took one out to try, It's been only a few days, but boy are they coming along well. My brine made a fine egg that's for sure. They're mild at this point, but still I can taste some of the subtle flavours. They're sweet, deliciously sweet. Not a fruity sweet that I think I would have had, had I used a cider vinegar, but a more bold clean chili type sweet that I think suits the eggs perfectly. The dill is also just the right amount, you can taste it, but by no means would I call them dill-pickle. I'm extremely happy with how they've turned out. I've got some small cucumbers here that I'm going to try out next.

Months back I was cruising on the old internet auction house. And ran into a few records that I just couldn't say no too. In all I found four, Dock Boggs, Roscoe Holcomb, Jack White, and Frank Fairfield. Of which two arrived at my doorstep this afternoon. Jack White's new album Blunderbuss, and Frank Fairfields; Open West. Jack White I hold to be one of the most gifted of young musicians of our time. He has technical ability that could match any ones, but he also understands where music comes from and respects the simplicity of roots music. I think combining those two has created a refined, and incredibly powerful sound. It's easy to tell where he gets his influence from, it always has been. Leadbelly, Son house, and so on. He resembles them, much like Bob Dylan resembled his. This new album is a mixture of the roots he loves, and the new that he represents.
There are a lot of great names adding to the album, Pokey LaFarge adds Mandolin to one song, just to name one.

Frank Fairfields album is similar in two ways to Blunderbuss, in that many of the instruments are the same, Fiddle, Parlour style guitars, and such. And the base of the sound, being Old-Timey American. While Jack White's album shows us a modern view of an old time parlour jazz band, Frank Fairfield gives us a good look into real american folk music. By that I mean really what the it says, music of the folks. It's a great album that could be played along with others from another time, Roscoe Holcomb, Texas Gladden, Dave Macon, or anything from Allan Lomax's collection and it would fit right in. I love it for just that reason. I'd say check out both albums. Here's a couple youtube links for those of you who are too lazy to look it up yourself.