That was the first good sign.

When my parents came to visit last month, I gave my father a tall boy bottle to bring home with him and strict instructions not to open it until after my birthday. It needed some alone time to carbonate.

Joe and I cracked open our first bottle of the home brew last weekend and poured it slowly into a glass. We exchanged looks of trepidation before drinking it. It looked and smelled good. There was a head on it.

That was the second good sign.

The result? We brewed an extra hoppy American brown ale that is not only drinkable — but actually enjoyable. Personally, I’m not a fan of sweetness and I do like a darker beer. If neither of those elements sound appealing, then the American Brown may not be the best choice for you. The American brown is the English brown’s bitter cousin. The differences between a Newcastle and a Sam Adams are astounding. Our brew has a bitterness upon drinking, but the bitterness slides away, creating a refreshing aftertaste. It is nutty and intricately flavored — something I would definitely make again.

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Joe and I are trying to decide a good summer brew to make next. We’d like something light — yet full-flavored. Something summery, but not summery-sweet.

The possibilities are endless!

Susan

There was a slight chill to the air last Sunday morning. The sky was blue, the sun was shining and I laced up my trusty New Balance sneakers for the Middlebury Maple Half-Marathon. There was no chickening out now. I had to prove to myself, Hal Higdon and the 500 other runners around me that I could actually run 13.1 miles.

The race coordinators placed the starting line conveniently at Porter Hospital in Middlebury. Because this was my first long-distance run, I was reassured by the amount of ambulances on hand. Here I am warming up before the race. Try to find me in the crowd:

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Two hours and twenty-six minutes later, I crossed the finish line. My editor — Elsie Lynn — ran that day, too. She finished about fifteen minutes before me and was at the finish line cheering. Joe was there, too. He noticed my slow pace and chased me the last tenth of  a mile to the finish.

Post-race was a blur. On the inside, I was high on endorphins, a sense of pride and gatorade. On the outside, I was so tired that the hospital stretchers looked extremely inviting.

I slept the whole drive home.

The long run almost made me forget that it was my birthday. Joe didn’t forget. He had a barbecue chicken lunch planned and surprised me at home with this:

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The barbecue chicken was delicious, but no birthday is complete without something sweet:

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Between the race, the food and wonderful wishes from friends and family — this is one birthday I will never forget!

Susan

May is our birthday month and we always shared a family birthday party. Everybody sang “Happy Birthday” to him first and then to me. I had a chocolate cake and he had vanilla. His presents were wrapped in blue and mine in some shade of purple.

This tradition continued into our teenage years — only the parties didn’t include colorful streamers or party games. During college, the family continued to lump us together with cards and presents, but we’d throw our own parties for each other. We went out to eat and grabbed drinks together, often presenting our gifts separately — away from our family.

Sometime after college, my brother and I started traveling. The synchronized birthdays ended. When I lived in Maine, he was in North Carolina. When I moved to Vermont, he moved to California. We send cards and gifts via post and there’s always a telephone call on each personal birthday, even though they are two days apart.

My brother and I have a long-distance sibling-ship and have made the best of it. During the month of May — however — I can’t help but feel nostalgic.

Happy birthday, Michael!

Love your little sister,

Susan

Joe's joint

Things are finally taking shape at Community Garden Plot J-5.

Joe and I were able get our hands dirty while preparing the plot for planting — which I found out should wait another couple of weeks, especially for the salad garden we’re planning. I was lucky enough to run into Kathy, my garden coordinator, who has three plots of her own at West Street. She sent out a super helpful e-mail blast to all community gardeners with some tips and tricks. Here’s her advice:

It’s not too early to plant some things - peas, for sure. I’ll also plan on getting radishes, spinach, leaf lettuce from seed, beets, and onion sets in the ground now. We can expect more frosts.  Last year was the only year in my memory when we didn’t have a frost in May.  THE WATER WILL NOT BE IN FOR ANOTHER 2-4 WEEKS, so if you plant now either don’t water at all, or be prepared to carry water to the garden.  Once seeds have started to germinate they will die if they don’t stay moist.

Joe is building a “primitive fence” around our plot. He wants it to look as rustic as possible as a tribute to Dick Proenneke from “Alone in the Wilderness.” Here’s his progress:

What have I done, you ask? I took a ride to Lowe’s and picked up some slabs of wood for the center of the plot. This way, the garden will be a little more organized. I plan to put different lettuce varieties here:

Next step: Time to spread the three buckets of food compost we’ve been saving in our basement. Soon our soil will be rich and smelly!

Let’s hope it gets warmer!

Susan

My mom got a great deal online — $100 for a standard room with a view at The Essex. My dad’s psyched because the pool’s open, and I’m happy to be around Bostonians again; we can all converse in our native accents together.

The trip is to celebrate the birthdays of me and my partner, Joe, whose birthday is only four days after mine.

I’m getting a new/old vaccuum that my parents are bringing up. I’m in desperate need of a vaccuum; winter (pronounced WINTAH) dustbunnies have been growing since I moved here last year. I’m a bit ashamed and intimidated by them. I’m hoping they won’t attack my mom before I can vacuum them up!

After vacuuming we’re going to take my pup, Mason for a walk around the site where Essex’s new dog park (DOG PAHK) will be. It is now leveled and looks to be shaping up nicely.

We’re then going to go to my garden plot (GAHDEN PLOT) where my mom is going to help me put my garden in. She put her garden in last weekend; she’s planting tomatoes, carrots and is transplanting her lavender because it was taking over. Hopefully, her green thumb was passed to me, because I am looking forward to some fresh vegetables this summer.

Needless to say, I’m excited to show them around and collect the presents they’re bringing!

Mom’s bringing Joe a Black Dog t-shirt. The Black Dog is the symbol of Martha’s Vineyard; it is the profile of a black labrador. It’s also a famous tavern. Joe had spent many a childhood summer ferrying to the island and he believes wearing the shirt will transport his mind back to this simpler time.

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As for my present, we’re going to dinner at Trattoria Delia.

I said, “Mom, get ya credit cahd ready because this is going to be an expensive dinnah.”

She said, “Birthdays come but once a yeah!”

I was encouraged and intrigued by that.

Most recipes for beer cater to a 5-gallon carboy. I did not know this until I christened my 6.5-gallon setup with my first homebrew.

What resulted was a watery mess of what was supposed to be standard pale ale. I bottled two cases, two growlers and two tall boys of the stuff and now I can’t even give it away it’s so bad.

I vowed then and there that all future brews would be delicious.

Last weekend I visited the Homebrew Supply in Winooski for advice and a decent, modified recipe for a 6.5-gallon carboy. I left with ingredients for extra hoppy American Brown Ale and high hopes.

Here is my ale fermenting wildly:

Can’t wait to bottle it!

Susan

FOR SALE: One case of extra watery pale ale, home-brewed. Contact: susan@essexreporter.com

All of this should happen. Instead, I will be waking up around 6 a.m. to stretch and eat a light breakfast — probably yogurt — before heading to the starting line of the Middlebury Maple “Sweetest Half” Road Race.

With one month until The Big Day, I finally purchased a new pair of sneakers and made a 3-hour long I-pod playlist.

Here is the guide I’m using to train for my first ever half-marathon, brought to you by the genius that is Hal Higdon:

I’ve never been so tired — and strangely fueled by endorphins — in my life!

Susan

In the back of my mind, I knew the beautiful weather was too good to be true, but for some reason I dismissed the chance that it was only temporary. Blame it on wishful thinking.

Here are my top five pet peeves about this flip-flop season:

1. I packed away all my winter clothes already.

I couldn’t help it. It reached eighty degrees and I was sweating. On Day 3 of Nice Weather, I bit the bullet and did the Great Seasonal Clothing Switch. Lately I’ve been digging into my winter storage bins for sweaters to layer over my summery tee-shirts.

2. I started my zinnias, marigolds, beets and carrots and now they’ve sprouted with nowhere to go.

I saw the Essex Junction Parks and Recreation workers tilling the Community Gardens. Seeds were being sold everywhere I looked. Too tempting to resist, I bought a bunch and spent a glorious day in the sun with my potting soil and starter pots. Now my little sprouts have been Vitamin-D deprived for five days now. Will they survive?

3. I caught a cold and it lasted for five days

Whenever there is a change of seasons, my immune system shuts down. Between the springtime allergies and the drastic temperature change, my body couldn’t keep up.

4. My yard sale was cancelled.

After packing away my winter clothes, I went the extra mile and did some spring-cleaning. I planned a yard sale for the following weekend — weather permitting. Now I have a pile of junk in my basement waiting to be sold.

5. I unpacked my summer sandals.

Now I’m just staring at them.

Maybe this will cheer me up:

* Sigh *

Susan

I’m really excited and strangely nervous about J-5; it was the very last plot available in the “old” community garden section. I thought for sure that since I was not a returning gardener, I’d secure one of the forty new plots that were being offered this year.

I have let my imagination run wild this past week. Suddenly, the  “old” section is filled with gardeners as adept with a hoe as a samurai to his sword. They are filled with anecdotes from past seasons and can tell when it will rain just from smelling the air. These people wear wide brimmed straw hats and have compost piles for backyards. I started thinking about my future plot neighbors. J-2, 3, and 4: who are you? What will you grow? And most importantly — what advice will you have for a newbie?

I’ll have to keep this number at the top of my Contact List:

UVM Extension Master Gardener Helpline: 1-800-639-2230

Here is my 2012 garden plan for Plot J-5

Let the planting begin!

Susan

Since moving to Vermont, I receive a green card with shamrocks and leprechauns each March from my mom to remind me of the “little bit o’ Irish” she has passed on to me. I wear green. I boil my own corned beef and cabbage. Even though I do not enjoy boiled carrots, I make those, too — just because.

Is it because of tradition that I keep doing these things? Is it to hold onto my memories of home?

I pay homage to my (mostly) Polish roots 364 days of the year. One day for the Irish in me can’t hurt.

I will wear lots of green and eat lots of corned beef. And decorate the office of The Essex Reporter and Colchester Sun. Check out my Irish Inspiration:

Mom would be proud.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Susan

For more limerick fun, check out The English Dictionary in Limerick form:

http://www.oedilf.com/db/Lim.php