Playing With Our Food

It was Doug & Shellie's turn to pick the location for our once-a-month dinner date and Doug followed through on a longtime threat. "Ever been to Lindley's in Seeley Lake?" We had heard that line several times but we would hear it no more because that's where we were headed. Seeley Lake is a small town of about 1,600 between the Mission Mountains and Bob Marshall Wilderness Area about 70 miles from home in western Montana. It's a winter haven for snowmobilers, cross country skiers and other lovers of wintertime fun. In the summer, it's about hiking, camping, fishing, canoeing, paddleboarding and other recreational fun. I'd visited Seeley several times and eaten there too but only at burger and ice cream joints after camping in the Mission Mountains.  But on this evening it was about friendship, a beautiful drive along the Blackfoot River corridor and a stop at a lakeside restaurant with one, yes one choice on the menu - a very large menu. Say hello...

It was the trip of a lifetime ! Lori and I met up with Ron Smith, my favorite missionary companion from my time in the Italy Catania Mission in the early 1980s, and his wife, April, for 16 wonderful days in Italy. That was in the spring of 2023. Ever since our return home, I missed Italy. I longed for it - the land, the food, the people and the culture. And it was oh so great to rekindle a friendship with Ron and April that skipped several decades.  That is why it was just wonderful to hear the Smiths planned a family trip to Montana a mere five months after our time in Italy together. Lori and I were really happy to host Ron and April during the Memorial Day weekend. Yes, there was reminiscing, game playing and, of course, eating! We had a two-pronged approach in the kitchen. April and Lori oversaw the creation of caccio e pepe (Italian translation: cheese & pepper), the provincial pasta of the Rome region, while Ron and I made panzarotti (recipe here ), basically a deep-fried...

One of my favorite things to do on a hot Montana summer day is to go fly fishing. Now, fishing is fun and it's even better when you leave the waders at home and just wear a t-shirt and shorts. And especially because when it's hot, really hot, most anglers stay off the water so you rarely seen anyone else on the water. Plus, if you're hot, all you need to do is wade into deep hole, buckle your knees and go all the way under to cool off.  This outing was one that I planned for several weeks with my grandson Kyler. I needed another fly rod for him to use so I asked my team at work and they delivered. We had fished several times when he was younger but I thought it would be easier for him to fish with a bobber or with live bait or even with a lure. Don't know why I waited until he was 11 to take him fly fishing because he really, really enjoyed it. And he was good at it, too. He said: Our drive took us to the Mission Valley, about 30 minutes from our home where we found a ...