Blackberries v.1 (and I’m not talking phones)

There were two good reasons I went out picking blackberries the other morning; to make good on a promise to my niece, and because there’s really nothing better in the jam world than blackberry jam (OK, raspberry’s pretty good too). 

A jar of homemade blackberry jam should go into the category of “priceless”. You can’t go out and buy it, not the kind that you make from the berries that grow just about everywhere in Oregon. And they really do grow everywhere -  in the city, on the highway, in the backyard, in the woods, and all over the countryside.  

They have huge threatening thorns and little stickers, and because they are a giant invasive weed they usually have thistles and itchy poison oak growing in and around them.  Did I mention the spiders and other crawling creatures you might encounter?  So although they are delicious, abundant and “free”, there is a price to pay.

Nevertheless, since I was out at my friend’s farm tending to the garden, I thought I'd take a look at the blackberry patch down by the pond.  The berries were there - plentiful, ripe for picking and it didn’t take long to get enough for a batch of jam. 

 

And what a day it was out in the countryside - very quite and serene. It was one of those days to just sit around and watch the world go by.  That being the case, I thought if I was really quite I would slowly make my way down to the pond with my camera and possibly get a good picture of the Red-wing Blackbirds that were so abundant earlier in the summer or a good shot of the Great Blue Heron I saw lift off the pond just the other day. 

So I sat very quietly on the edge of the rock wall that serves as a dam on the edge of the pond.  I sat for 15 minutes - nothing appeared – nothing -  and I thought that being a wildlife photographer was rather boring, but I continued to wait quietly. 

What a delight when I got a visit from Betty the farm cat who needed a little company herself and so we waited together. 

As sometimes happens, it turned into a not so productive but very pleasant moment for both Betty and me. 

And I do have the blackberries.

Stay tuned for Blackberries v.2 - Jam.

Life is good - bye for now.  

Evelyn

Remember:  Buy local when you can!