Gardiner, Montana - Yellowstone Day 1

We arrived in Montana about 10:30. It was a beautiful sunny morning in Bozeman. We drove from Bozeman to Gardiner and arrived about 2:00. We stopped at a few fly shops along the way though so it took a little longer than it might have otherwise but we were not in hurry. Our room wasn't ready so we decided to go on it to the park. We were expecting that there would still be a lot of snow but there wasn't. We spent the afternoon at Mammoth Hot Springs. It has been about 9 years since we' ve been to Yellowstone. From my memory it seems that much of the Mammoth Hot Springs are no longer active. I don't know if it is a seasonal thing or they are just dying. We got some good photos though. Then we drove around and bit and say buffalo, elk, deer and antelope. Since we have all four of these in Colorado the sitings were not as dramatic as they were the first trip. But it was still fun. We rode along side a Buffalo for a small stretch of the road. John was afraid that he was going to turn and butt the car but he never did. I couldn't get a good picture of him because he was on John's side of the car.

Than and Then

I have a pet peeve about the proper use of some words in the English language. For the last few years it seems that I see more and more improper use of the word then. I have seen it from all sorts of people - people with Master's degrees and people with less education than that. We landed in Bozeman, MT today and went to the Avis rent a car location. Posted on the front door of their office was a note stating, "Less then $50 cash on premises". It curls the hair on the back of my neck. I don't know why. I know it is a trivial matter but still it drives me crazy. "Than" is supposed to be used when comparing - less than, more than, I would rather go here than there. Then is supposed to be used in reference to time. For example, then we went to the store or then I left. While I haven't gone to the dictionary to give the actual definitions I think you get the point. So why do so many people use the word then the wrong way.

Coming Down with a Cold

It seems like every time I get ready to go on vacation I end up getting sick. Why do you suppose that happens. I have been fighting this off for several weeks with various aids - vitamins, herbs, supplements, rest and doing a pretty good job of it. Then "bam" the day before my vacation I come down with a full blown cold. It stinks.

Butterfly Chops

I just finished grilling some delicious chops. Usually when I make chops they are too dry and don't taste very good. I decided to modify a recipe I found in an old Martha Stewart Living magazine. I made a rub of about 5 minced or finely chopped garlic cloves, 3 tsp. Kosher salt, 3/4 tsp. of medium grind pepper, 2 tsp. finely chopped fresh oregano, about 4 leaves of Thai basil - finely chopped and about a tsp or so of finely chopped fresh thyme. I mixed those ingredients up and then poured about 2-3 Tablespoons of olive oil in and stirred it up. I rubbed this mixture on the chops and let them sit for about 5 minutes. Then I grilled them and was careful not to leave them on too long - my usual mistake.

Anyway, they were so juicy and the flavor was outstanding- the combination of the herbs, garlic and salt were really good. I surprised myself with my made up combination. The Martha Stewart recipe called for Sage - instead of the mixture of herbs I used. Anyway, you might want to try it on some butterfly chops or a pork tenderloin.