Hope you're not afraid of heights..

This was from my plane ride last fall - see the Courthouse in the center?

From my Sunday night walk a few weeks back.

The County will be starting a construction project up here in a few weeks. The cement in the ceiling here is starting to fall apart. :S When the crews are up here taking care of that, they'll also tuck-point the entire belltower, inside and out.
Once this project is complete, they will have renovated every area of the building. VERY cool!

The E. Howard Clock Co.
Boston - New York - Chicago
1905

Excuse the bird netting - this area was full of 100 years worth of crap prior to this :)
I'm in that open "arch" area just under the clock, facing north.
Our Post Office (brick building, gray roof, white door - just left of the center of the image) has some historical significance, too. In the lobby, there's a massive mural painted by the WPA during the Depression.

Northeast.

Southeast. You can see the 3M and Hormel plants in the upper left, here.
The white building with blue across the top was the home of my house-family's business for nearly 100 years. Under the metal siding, there are several really pretty brick buildings downtown.

South. The black and pale green building right in the center of the block is our 1922 movie theater/opera house that will be undergoing a HUGE restoration soon. I hope to write about that, too!
Grand Theater
Behind the theater is our Carnegie Library (clay tile roof, yellow/orange brick) and the Dixie Gebhardt House (red tin roof). Dixie was the designer of the Iowa Flag. Both of those properties are undergoing some renovation as well!

Southwest - you can actually see my house in this picture :)

West.

Northwest, toward the Knoxville Raceway and VA Hospital in the distance.
Knoxville Raceway

And back to north, again!

After climbing another loooong ladder, I ended up in the very tippy top of the Courthouse..

...next to these. VERY cool! :)

An article from the Knoxville Journal in 1905, talking about the purchase and installation of the clock and bell..several years after the Courthouse was originally constructed.

Sunday Night Walk

I see our courthouse all lit up every night out my kitchen window - I finally decided I'd go get a picture of it..before it started snowing again!

Pasta Party

So, I’ve written a good bit about all the tomatoes I’ve been given, grown, or otherwise acquired. Today’s post is another “what-the-hell-are-you-doing-with-all-of-these-tomatoes” post.

A bread knife makes cutting tomatoes easier...and cleaner - no tomato squirt.

I saw a variation of this that was simpler, tried it, liked it, and tweaked it to become this recipe. It’s super fast, really satisfying, and tweakable to no end, so feel free to play around with it.

It starts with tomatoes – I cut my garden Roma tomatoes into halves or quarters depending on their size and set them I aside.

I then prepped the rest of what I thought I’d try in this batch: Onion, garlic, chard, kale, pesto, Parmesan cheese, and a good olive oil. I say good olive oil because it’s the sauce for the pasta, so it should be something you like the flavor of. Although butter would probably work well enough, too.

Tomato, onion, garlic, kale, chard, and spaghetti. Nom.

Anyway, sauté the onion in your olive oil for a bit adding a pinch of pepper. I didn’t add salt to the sauce because the cheese is salty enough and I knew I would want a lot of cheese J

After the onions have started turning clear, add the chopped tomatoes and a spoonful of pesto – mine came from a batch I made a while back and stored in the freezer. (Basil, oregano, garlic, salt, pepper, sun dried tomato, toasted cashews/walnuts/pine nuts, Parmesan, olive oil) I also added some chopped Swiss chard and kale – this was the new addition to the recipe this time..just because I had some in the fridge that needed used.

After a couple minutes when the tomatoes have started to soften and lose their skins, add the garlic and cook the mixture for another minute or so. If the tomatoes are tender enough for you, pull the skillet off the heat and add a handful of Parmesan. You could also deglaze the bottom of the pan with some white wine before taking it off the heat and adding the cheese..that’s really good, too.

Drain your pasta (I used spaghetti because I had it on hand..Fettuccine would also work well) saving some of the salted pasta water to loosen the sauce. Pour your pasta into the sauce pan and cook together until everything is coated and cooked through. If you’re like me, you’ll probably want more cheese J

Kale and chard are both super nutritious..and the fresh tomatoes are packed with all kinds of goodness, too.

Like I said, this can be added to and subtracted from to no end. It’s a really good, quick lunch or dinner and is a great way to use up your garden tomatoes.

Oh…one other quick note.. The President was in town this morning J  

The Man has quite the entourage. DOZENS of cars..lots of Secret Service.

A couple local kids, President Obama, his tank/bus, and the Marion County Courthouse.