Jammin' in Lynden





Every year about this time, the Raspberry Festival is celebrated in my hometown, Lynden. It's with good reason they we celebrate raspberries. Our little county supplies two-thirds of all of the raspberries in the United States! That's a lot of berries. One of the main events in the festival is the annual 3-on-3 hoop jam. Main Street is closed and basketball hoops line the town for several blocks. Teams come from all over to compete in the 3-on-3 competition.

 There are categories for all ages. And the competition is fierce. I'm especially proud to report that there were several girls teams entered...and they rocked!  Take the shot girlie...you're wide open!

Where's your help, buddy? Your team-mates need to give some assistance over there!  OK, I admit it; I spent years sitting on the bench watching my kids play hoops. I remember one time, when the coach was sick, getting exasperated at a practice with the lack of offensive skills. So I came down off the bleachers and showed the boys how to set a decent screen. Sometimes a mom's gotta do what a mom's gotta do!

Just so you're warned...don't come to Lynden unless you've got game, girls. Our Dutch girls are tall, athletic, and agressive. The same advice goes for the boys. I'm just sayin...

Not all the jammin' was done beneath the hoops. Bellingham High sent their Jazz Band to do some jammin' of their own.

Doesn't every self respecting festival have booths with tie-dyed shirts? Of course there was kettle corn, artwork,  jewelry,  cotton-candy, hot-dogs, and of course...raspberry sundaes! Did I mention the 5-k Fun Run through the streets of our fair town?

Antique cars galore at the Razz N Shine Car Show. Hmmm, so that's an antique. Mom and Dad drove a very similar car when I was a girl. So if that's an antique; that means I'm...well, let's just say I'm aging nicely.

Lovin the woody with the surf-board on top. But where's the beach...where's the sun???

I did some jamming of my own this week. Note the Sure-Jell pectin. I am very irritated with the Ball pectin people. They're now marketing classic and quick pectins in jars and little packages; not the old 'gelatin-size' boxes. I went ahead and bought a jar of Ball's classic pectin-only to find that there are NO directions for making freezer jam on it. Apparently, they want me to buy the quick pectin for freezer jam. But there is NO quick Ball pectin to be had in all of Lynden.  After trying repeatedly to call the Ball people to see if I could indeed use my classic pectin in freezer jam, and being subjected to their hokey phone system, I threw in the towel. Went down to the local Safeway, opened a box of Sure-Jell, and read the directions. Glory be! Directions for BOTH canned and freezer jam! Thank-you, Sure-Jell, for keeping it simple. I bought several boxes, just in case I get into a 'jam' again. And Ball Company, I'm shaking my wooden spoon at you for your shameless attempt to scam more money out of us!    Rant over.

Mmmmm! When it's all cold and wintery outside, my raspberry jam will taste wonderful on some baking powder biscuits or some home-made scones. By the way, did you notice the plate in my last photo? It's my favorite. I fantasize about living there, in a farmhouse by the sea. Reminds me of the beaches on the Oregon Coast--somewhere near Tillamook. 

Well, our next big event in Lynden is the Northwest Washington Fair. (Locals call it the Lynden Fair but I suppose we can share it with the rest of Northwestern Washington.) They say that we have 5 seasons in Lynden; fall, winter, spring, summer, and fair week. Maybe I'll enter my home-made jam this year- or some of my blog photos. I know for sure that some of you, my, talented blogger friends should enter your photos!