The DisFort's Chit Chat Cafe

[4077]

Currently (10:15 AM Eastern Time) a little over 1 hour lest from landing in Fairbanks, Alaska after 8 hour flight from Shanghai. Stop for fuel and US customs and then on to Chicago. Here is sunrise starting over Alaska from 39,000 feet.

 

[team bradfield]

AWESOME, thanks for sharing

 

[bama_ed]

Today was a wonderful day at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, AL.

Weather is going to be iffy for the next few days so DW and we got a 1-day bike rental at the camp store and pedaled all over today. After bike riding around the camp, DW was tuckered out but I needed a few items from Wal-Mart so I pedaled ~3.7 miles on the bike paths to the WM super store (the last crossing at a traffic light was the only one with traffic). The rental includes a bike lock and helmet if needed. It's a simple cruiser 1-speed and we got bikes with baskets on the front.

I took a different route back for new scenery and pedaled down in front of the SP office and over towards Lake Selby (where the dog/pet lake area is over by the Gulf Front Hotel Lodge. There is a boardwalk to the blue SP water tank area and back to the campsite made 5 miles on the return trip. Not hard, not hot, just an easy pedal at about 8 mph.

After a little lunch I broke out my puzzle for this trip. It's one I did last at Jetty Park. It's a map and being a map nerd, I look forward to completing it.



I made it this far after sorting pieces in about 2 hours.



A pretty day like I said with our rented chariots.



After puzzle time, we biked down to the camper beach across the beach highway.



It was 75F, not crowded, and the lovely snow white sands were as pretty as usual.





This last picture shows the Gulf SP Fishing Pier which was being expanded/improved when the last hurricane blew through and popped several boards out to isolate that end piece. The near part is still open (hope to visit it).





Weather is supposed to get wet after lunch tomorrow and through Sunday morning off-and-on so I might griddle the main meal for Lunch tomorrow. I want to try some new things on this trip.

I did start off with some blackened red snapper with Uncle Ben's (microwave) rice and a side salad for dinner.





Bama Ed

 

[Sjm9911]

So Ed, this is G scale. It's a copy of the piece that saved Lionel during the depression? That's a question, not a comment. I'm not really familiar with G. Is that what size the "garden" trains are? Larger than O, correct?

Ed explanied the scale corectly. Yes all the micky and minnie handcars are roughly copies of the 1930s lionel one. That was a wind-up one on 2 rails, but it was 0 scale I believe. The older lionel stuff was standerd guage that was between G scale and O scale. Lol. I think they bought out a wind up toy line, but I dont remember the name.

 

[Sjm9911]

Ed explanied the scale corectly. Yes all the micky and minnie handcars are roughly copies of the 1930s lionel one. That was a wind-up one on 2 rails, but it was 0 scale I believe. The older lionel stuff was standerd guage that was between G scale and O scale. Lol. I think they bought out a wind up toy line, but I dont remember the name.

Ok, so had to look it up. Lol, as I do own some older wind up trains, my memory is getting bad. Lionel bought Ives in the 1930s and came out with winner toy lines. This used , if I remember corectly , Ives wind up designs. Then they came up with the minni and Mickey wind up train during the depression.

 

[bama_ed]

Ok, so had to look it up. Lol, as I do own some older wind up trains, my memory is getting bad. Lionel bought Ives in the 1930s and came out with winner toy lines. This used , if I remember corectly , Ives wind up designs. Then they came up with the minni and Mickey wind up train during the depression.

Cool. So mine is a G-scale 1990s "reproduction" maybe of that 1930s design but now with DC track power. I'm going to go look at pics of the wind-ups.

Thanks for the history lesson. Very interesting, Spencer.

Ed

 

[bama_ed]

We're in a Rain Delay during our vacation right now so let me use this chance to update the webz:

So wRe wuz I?

This campsite, while great in many respects, has one hold back. When the state refurbed the Comfort Stations (which there is one immediately across from us) they installed NEON LED floodlights all around it. So there is a LOT of ambient light through the windows (even with shades closed).



It's easy to fool a camera with the amount of light shown but it's more than I would like. Guess I just should fall asleep, huh?

I lucked out this morning and rolled out of bed and the camper to find another beautiful sunrise.





One in true light:



During the early morning/low wind times, I kept plugging away on the puzzle.



We went on a final morning bike ride before we had to turn in our 24-hr rentals and rode past a baby gator on a drain pipe along the main road of the campground. Lots of folks and us stopped to take pics.



Before lunch we made a run to the Blalocks seafood store for shrimp for today and scallops for tomorrow. And Wal-Mart for vegetables to go with these. I'm glad to find that there are pasta options that DON'T require a big pot of boiling water. Rain was forecasted for this afternoon/evening so I wanted to cook for our lunch in order to sandwich our way through dinner.



There are these and other shapes but no spaghetti or linguine or such long pasta. But I can work with this.

I experimented yesterday with using a small saucepan on the griddle to get hot enough to boil water or such. It worked so today I made a Shrimp Scampi on the griddle with a pot for olive oil, butter, and spices next to shrimp (cleaned and deveined) with the pasta packet on the Blackstone.



With another side salad (using up the stuff in the fridge we have on hand), turned out pretty good.



After lunch about 3pm, rain passed over us and should let up about 6pm.



Got a pound of small scallops for tomorrow. And a recipe to try out.

Bama Ed

 

[bama_ed]

PS - I think there is enough meat in that gator tail for 1-2 po boys ....

 

[FtW Mike]

PS - I think there is enough meat in that gator tail for 1-2 po boys ....

I suspected you showed off your Gator Wrestling skills. Be nice to give Ole Tiggerdad a shout out for the personal lessons he done gived you.

 

[bama_ed]

I appreciated Michael's lessons, @FtW Mike, but did not rassel the gator. That reptile looked big enough to take off a finger (or two).

 

[bama_ed]

Went to church this morning after rain passed through here and then the entire day was beautiful in the 70s.

I was like:

Getting down into 50s tonight. Beautiful in the 70s Monday and Tuesday. So wonderfully boring.

Ed

 

[bama_ed]

Crisp clear morning, sunny and high-def clear. Here is the forecast for the next couple days (subject to change, of course):



Sitting outside this morning watching the Spacex Starship Testflight with Starship 24 and Booster 7. And a diet Coke and box of Vanilla Wafers.

Yesterday I made biscuits and omlettes on the Blackstone. It was the 2nd try to do biscuits and these turned out much better. The difference this time was to use about 50% heat to brown both sides and then turn up the heat when on the wire rack to bake the insides and leave them there longer than you think it needs. Plus I had brought eggs from home and a big bag of the last of the sliced Easter ham so it was all there.

DW wasn't hungry last night after the omlette (which was actually brunch after church) so the scallops will wait till tonight. That leaves me two more nights of fish recipes I want to try and one night to eat out which is as far as I've planned.

Camp store has kites for $ale cheap.

Ed

 

[bama_ed]

Catching up on some pictures.

The biscuits and omlette from Sunday brunch.



Sunday sunset with nice colors. Got outside a few minutes late to catch it at its most vibrant.



Puzzle is coming along.



Monday is a Chamber-of-Commerce day.



Maybe tomorrow .....



Ed

 

[Sjm9911]

Sorry the launch got scrubbed. Hope you're thier when it launches.

 

[Sjm9911]

https://people.com/human-interest/a...rida-rv-park-later-spotted-foot-in-its-mouth/
And be careful in florida! If anyone is there.

 

[Part-Time Paradise]

Crisp clear morning, sunny and high-def clear. Here is the forecast for the next couple days (subject to change, of course):

View attachment 753967

Sitting outside this morning watching the Spacex Starship Testflight with Starship 24 and Booster 7. And a diet Coke and box of Vanilla Wafers.

Yesterday I made biscuits and omlettes on the Blackstone. It was the 2nd try to do biscuits and these turned out much better. The difference this time was to use about 50% heat to brown both sides and then turn up the heat when on the wire rack to bake the insides and leave them there longer than you think it needs. Plus I had brought eggs from home and a big bag of the last of the sliced Easter ham so it was all there.

DW wasn't hungry last night after the omlette (which was actually brunch after church) so the scallops will wait till tonight. That leaves me two more nights of fish recipes I want to try and one night to eat out which is as far as I've planned.

Camp store has kites for $ale cheap.

Ed

I remember your original biscuit post, but it's a bit fuzzy. Do you use canned biscuits? I'm going to be grubmaster for the next Scout campout for the leaders. Blackstone biscuits might be nice.

 

[jbrostek]

@Part-Time Paradise Belive it is canned. After his first post I bookemarked this one. I have yet to try it though. https://grillonadime.com/canned-biscuits-on-blackstone/


@bama_ed never though about a pot on the blackstone, but that would be perfect for some of the meals I could make without having to run in and out.

Finally recovered from the race weekend. NASA Racing always runs full bore full days, they rent the track from 8-5:30 and run cars from 8:15 to 5:25 each day. I was one tired puppy when I was done. For once I left the RV there so I could just get home. I will be back this weekend after I attend my nephews 1st birthday.

Spring has sprung here and due to conflicts had to cancel our plans to go down towards Charlottesville for the last weekend of April. That is OK, I could use that weekend to get some yard work done here. I need to order the mulch delivery this week and DW has already been at it with the spring weeding. So between that and getting my truck shocks swapped, I think I have enough to do till the end of the month LOL.

 

[bama_ed]

I remember your original biscuit post, but it's a bit fuzzy. Do you use canned biscuits? I'm going to be grubmaster for the next Scout campout for the leaders. Blackstone biscuits might be nice.

I do use canned biscuits. This is what I used this week.



The idea is to brown both sides of the biscuits in melted butter (1-2 minutes each side is all it takes) and then get them on a rack to bake the insides. Low/medium heat for the browning and then a high heat to bake. I didn't time it but it takes longer than it looks since the outside already looks delicious. I have a lid for my griddle so I just close that down to hold in some heat. I bump up the heat when they go on the rack.

This is my rack made for ovens (thus not a "cooling" rack but a "cooking" rack).



My problem last October when I did it the first time was that my griddle to start with was too hot and I cooked an 8-pack so by the time I laid the 8th biscuit down on the griddle, the 1st one was already overcooked on that first side. And then I didn't let the insides cook thoroughly so they were slightly gummy inside and crispy/nearly black on the outside. But obviously your equipment will dictate the process.

@bama_ed never though about a pot on the blackstone, but that would be perfect for some of the meals I could make without having to run in and out.

James, the pot was just an idea I tried out. Hadn't seen it in a video (hadn't looked either). It did take a while but it works. Before I cooked the red snapper on our first full day here, I experimented with 1.5 cups of water in that saucepan and both sides of the griddle on high heat and lid closed it took 10 minutes to start boiling. Not a perfect solution but acceptable as long as you know that it will require a longer lead-up time to get the contents hot (which it eventually does). A recipe I printed and brought from home for shrimp was in a lemon-cream sauce because I get a little tired of everything "fried". Between microwaveable pasta/mashed spuds/rice and now a pan option, I can get more versatility from this cooktop for meal planning. Plus I love the challenge of learning to cook on it and converting recipes from home for enjoyment while camping.

Yesterday was a pretty day. We have a heron who works the edge of the lake behind our campsite among the reeds. Every day we've been here he goes past us first in a left-to-right direction and then later comes back in a right-to-left direction.



The puzzle is coming along. Setting it aside when I get frustrated and then pulling it out and looking at it with fresh eyes worked for me yesterday.



Read a book outside next to the water in the PM then we took a walk around the Gator Rd loop (which is a big loop here). Mostly a full campground - lots of those newer Class B's, Airstreams of all sizes, and 6-sided screen rooms that have full length covers on each side. I saw one other Aliner and also a Rockwood (Forest River brand) A-frame so far.

Dinner was one of those home recipes and trying to convert it to the griddle. It was scallops in a wine-cream sauce with diced green onions and mushrooms with seasonings. It was supposed to be rolled into crepes and baked in an oven but I served it over microwave pasta. Took a little more prep/work to get onto the table than I thought but it got done.

<Posting on hold while @rocketmom and DH came by for a visit. Good to see them both again.>

Here was my setup.



Cooking is under way.



And the final product on the table.



BTW the scallops come in two "sizes" at Blalocks, small and large just like shrimp come in "sizes". This is only about the 4th time ever eating scallops but they were good.

At night the condo tower across the lake from us on the beach in the next town, Orange Beach, casts a pretty reflection on the lake with its lights.



And another gorgeous day here. Morning temps were in the 50s but should get to the mid 70s again. It's gonna be beautiful here like this for the rest of our stay.



My view toward the GSP Beach Pavilion while I computer and later this morning pull out the puzzle. Listening to the birds and enjoying the shade of the trees.

Bama Ed

PS - gonna pick up some fish at Blalocks this afternoon. Have a panko bread crumb recipe to try.

 

[jbrostek]

@bama_ed Good to know on the pot. I was thinking reheating or keep warm more then full boil. You have me craving some blackend shrimp or mahi now.....

 

[bama_ed]

A little excitement today after lunch. A big gathering of GSP employees (and Alabama Forestry) came to the empty campsite next to us and stood at the water's edge. All kinds of trucks parked along the road. No telling how much that 2 hours cost my State.




I went over there being the "nosy neighbor" knowing that my peeps would demand to know what was happening.

Turns out this was an on-site planning meeting for a planned Fire Burn for August 2023. The burn would take place in the marsh out past the board walk on the far edge of the campground area (see the yellow arrow area in the pic below). The meeting near us was that this would be an intake location to pull water from the lake (blue line near us) and pump it across the campground

to soak the boardwalk and trees/woods adjacent to the campground to keep them from catching fire. They said August is a low attendance time at the campground (NO-KIDDING). Like camping at the Fort in August but with hardly any shade.

I finished the puzzle this afternoon but am missing 3 pieces which must have blown away when I wasn't looking. I can get a replacement puzzle for $11 so that will be my plan since I like this map and this puzzle.



Went to Blalock's to get some trigger fish for the recipe on the Blackstone tonight. Here are their current prices.



Plan was fish in a panko bread crumb coating, microwaved cheddar and broccoli rice, and sliced tomato. Here was my work setup.



That's 1 pound of filets on the griddle.



They smelled really good as they cooked (panko crumbs, flour, salt, pepper, parmesan cheese) on the flattop with some oil hot.



DW proclaimed it her best meal here yet! I'll take that compliment!

While I was cooking a canoe paddled by.



Again, it's a clear cool night which will get down into the low 50s. Tomorrow should be mid 70s again but lows in the 60s. Mars was up over the Aliner again.



That light at the lower right was a small plane headed for the Gulf Shores Airport.

Tik tok. Our time is starting to run out.

Bama Ed