Family vacation makes new memories
As I write my column this month, I am in very comfortable quarters at Angel Fire, New Mexico, enjoying a week's vacation with my "kids," adults all. That's Skip and Lois from Pratt and Marcia and Glenn from Florida.
The elevation here is 8500 feet. The day temperatures have been in the 50's and '60s, and the evenings have been much cooler. We've had many rain showers, some accompanied by lightning, thunder and even a deck covering of "soft" hail.
I wasn't very active the first few days because any extra exertion at this altitude resulted in dizziness and lightheadedness. Each day gets easier.
Side trips to Eagle Nest and Red River have added spice, and before we leave, we'll probably include a visit to Taos.
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From here the Kansas threesome (Skip, Lois and I) will say goodbye to the Floridian twosome with plans to journey south to my long-ago former home, Clovis, for an overnight stay with cousin-sister Ruth and her husband Harold. They are two very precious people in my life. Then, we'll head for Kansas and home with a whole bunch of new memories.
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Speaking of home, the revival of Hillsboro's Main and Grand streets is stunning. The concrete and brick treatment of widened sidewalks and the addition of those handsome street lamps makes my favorite town look evermore like an "up and coming," progressive place to live.
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As age keeps moving ahead, it becomes easier to become more sedentary and that's bad. Every good health roster stresses "walk, walk, walk!" How come it's so easy to find excuses not to??
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With the beginning of fall and cooler weather, my choice of food preparation turns to soups. This chicken tortilla soup recipe is one of Marcia's that I plan to try very soon — in fact, as soon as I get the ingredients together.
It calls for: 6 cups chicken broth, 3 16-oz cans undrained black beans, 32 oz. Rotel, 4 cups cooked, chopped chicken, 1/4 tsp. garlic powder, 2 cans drained whole-kernel corn, 2/3 cup salsa, 4 tsp. taco seasoning, and 3/4 to 1 lb. Velveeta cheese.
Combine all ingredients and cook until heated through. An option, when serving, is to add cut squares of either flour or corn tortillas and shredded cheddar cheese. This goes together in a hurry and makes a big batch, so call in a few folks to share.
