Quintessential

The other day, when it was my turn to cook, I made the (almost) quintessential JV meal, if I do say so myself. On the menu was:

* Marinated elk steak (gifted from an elderly couple who has befriended the JVs for years)

* Carrots (from the farmer's market)

* Biscuits (made from scratch by yours truly)

* Rice sides (One of those put in a pot and ready in 10 minutes, everything included)

So gifted, local, homemade, and cheap. The only thing that might have made it more JV is if we had also included something thrifted, ie from the food bank or donated to the Pov or YWCA.

In another "quintessential" Montana experience, I saw my first bitterroot flower, the state flower of Montana, yesterday. The unfortunate thing about having Mondays and Tuesdays off is that it leaves me with a lot of time alone. So on Tuesday, when the sun had finally came out and blessed us with some warmth, I biked up to Waterworks Hill. Waterworks Hill is also known as the "Peace Sign" hill. It got its name from a peace sign a few people had placed on the hill years and years ago. Turns out, not quite legal to place a sign on public land without permission, and it was removed. A peace sign out of rocks remains on the hill and is visible from downtown Missoula.

I hadn't done this hike yet as I had assumed it was just a trek up a barren hill, and therefore boring. I was wrong. The wildflowers were gorgeous. Sunflowers and tiny yellow flowers, bluebells and and a white flower that reminded me of the Queen Anne's Lace we see back east. And of course, bitterroots. In my opinion, they are quite deserving of the title of state flower. It was like an exclusively pink Easter egg hunt, spotting one behind a rock, one under another flower, one just off the path.

The views were some of the best in Missoula. Not only could you see the whole valley, but the Rattlesnake Valley as well. I hiked back down through Cherry Gulch, which did not offer the same views, but was very peaceful, with all that grass rustling in the wind and what not.

Ah, Montana.