Central New York

Every fall I get hungry for apples, apple pie, apple dumplings, cider. You get the idea.

  Last week I made this apple pie. It tasted wonderful and went fast, so another is probably going to be made soon. I can never seem to make the edging look nice. Help, Margie, what's the secret to making a nice even neat edge on my pies?

 

 It's not surprising that I have this yen for apples because I grew up with them in the fall.

 I'm from New York State. When people who haven't spent time in New York State hear that I'm from there, they picture blocks of skyscrapers, traffic, crowds and noise. That's New York City.

 I'm from Central New York and it couldn't be more different.

Central New York is dairy farms and apple orchards.

Central New York is woods and sunsets on the lake.

I was born in Syracuse and lived and worked there when I met Rob. Syracuse is a nice size for a city. It's small enough to get around easily, but big enough to always have something interesting going on.

Syracuse is the home of the Everson Museum of Art,

 The Erie Canal Museum,

The Rosamond Gifford Zoo,

The New York State Fair,

And of course, Syracuse University.

In summer I spent many evenings watching the Chiefs play baseball.

In winter I was a season ticket holder at the hockey rink.

Until I was six years old we lived in a village about 31 miles north of Syracuse called Mexico, New York. From age six to ten we lived in Syracuse, then moved back to Mexico. I graduated from high school there.

Our high school was a former military academy and the campus is beautiful.

 

 A small creek runs thru the campus and there used to be a couple of wooden covered bridges crossing it.   We were always fishing balls out of the water during gym class.

In the summer there are fruit stands. I miss those a lot. There 's fishing and walks in the woods.

This is the church my family attended.

In the winter in Mexico, you shovel snow.

So, this time of year when I get my huge desire for apples, Central New York is on my mind. If you ever get the chance to visit, go. It's a lovely area.