Chinese Hot Pot

Sidney – Hamilton, New York

The last few years I’ve been tapping trees, boiling sap, and making maple syrup. Not this year, of course. But for the past few years now. 

Pretty fun. And very gratifying. 

I think I tap about twenty-five trees. And net maybe three gallons of syrup (they are not very big trees).

At first I used a turkey frier to boil the sap. That didn’t work too well. The dumb things have a built-in safety mechanism, so they turn themselves off randomly every twenty or thirty minutes. Also, propane is not a great fuel, as it’s pretty darn expensive; kind of sad to spend $25 in fuel in order to make $20 worth of syrup . . .

Eventually I switched to a crude wood-fired back yard boiler made of concrete blocks – with a concrete block chimney. Better all around. You can load it up with wood and then leave and it won’t shut itself off. And we have plenty of wood around – left over from clearing the land for our little orchard of fruit trees a few years ago. 

So it was fun to come across the first maple syrup operation that we’ve seen on our whole trip today: Cook’s Maple Syrup. We stopped to buy some syrup and candy as a house warming gift for our hosts tonight (Diana’s cousin, Carolyn, and her husband, Chris). 

The Cooks have a self-service kiosk. All their syrup and candy on shelves with prices – along with a box with a slot to put the money in. I think Jon’s New York City sensibilities were a little shocked by this system. I mean, he wanted to lock the bikes up outside of the kiosk . . . It just doesn’t occur to people in places like New York that there are parts of the world where there is no need for security. 

Just as we were leaving, the owner, Chris Cook – of Cook’s Maple Syrup fame – appeared. Chris’ father started the operation some fifty-eight years ago. He related that for the first few years they were “playing” with some kind of concrete boiler – but they quickly gave that up because “it just wasn’t a serious system.”

Today, they tap some 8,000 trees; they tapped 12,000 at their peak. They use a reverse osmosis system to start (I write that like I know what that is – but in reality I have no idea . . .), and then finish by boiling the resulting already-far-along sap into their final product – burning fuel oil to supply the heat. 

I guess my operation – being of the concrete block variety – is pretty pathetic, really. Still, I’m looking forward to tapping trees and boiling sap again next spring. 

Provided we make it back by then . . .

Okay, so we arrived in Hamilton – the home of Colgate University,

and more importantly, the home of Diana’s cousin, Carolyn, and her husband, Chris. Which brings me to the latest installment of As the Chueh Clan Turns. (Diana’s Mom – Popo – was the oldest of six Chueh siblings – all of whom came to the United States, achieved advanced academic degrees, married, and had children. All told, there were, I think, fifteen cousins.)

This particular episode takes place in 1999 or so . . . 

We’re at a wedding of one of the cousins. I don’t remember which one – and it doesn’t matter. We’re in a big fancy room and people are making toasts and being merry. After a while, Carolyn’s husband, Chris, signals that he has something to say by clinking his wine glass for a moment. 

He stands up.

”I have an announcement about my wife.”

This gets people’s attention. 

There is a pregnant pause.

Everyone is excited. So far, there are zero grandchildren. There is an electricity in the air among Diana’s Mom’s (Popo’s) generation. They look at each other hopefully . . .

Finally, one of the various married couples is breaking the drought.

“I am so proud to announce that Carolyn . . .”

Everyone is listening. It’s like EF Hutton is talking . . .

 “ . . . has just completed her PhD.,” he says.

What?!? 

There is a collective sigh . . .

In this room, it’s like announcing that you have just purchased a used Ford Focus. All six of the Popo generation – and their spouses – have PhDs or medical degrees. The younger generation is pretty much the same. There are a few of us – mostly the white guys who married into the family – who only have MBAs or law degrees – but getting a PhD could not be more of a yawner. 

I mean, people clapped a little to be polite – but there was no feeling in it . . .

I’ve always loved that story. It is so telling of Diana’s family. They have all discovered some secret to success – both financially and, more important, happiness-wise.

There aren’t even any black sheep in the family. Well, I guess there’s Carolyn’s brother, Wes, who, after getting his master’s degree, moved to Thailand and married a Thai woman. Moving to Thailand without a job was kind of a scandal at the time. But now he is a successful businessman, and they have two genius children who are busy choosing between American Ivy League schools for college. 

It’s a little intimidating, really. 

Fortunately, in addition to their academic and economic successes, they are a family full of laughter and kindness and love. 

Which describes our evening with Carolyn and Chris last night. Carolyn made Chinese hot pot (wonderful) for us, and we chatted about kids (Chris and Carolyn eventually had a wonderful daughter, Lin (who is now busy finishing her own advanced degree at Princeton)), family and friends. 

We were also able to do laundry, and I raided Chris’ work room for some zip ties and other supplies. After a year on the road I forgot how nice it is to be in a well-equipped house, if only for a day . . .

Oh, the riding yesterday? Still hilly, but really scenic and fun. We must be leaving the Catskills because the fall colors have become much more muted – even though we’re going north . . .

Next we push on toward Syracuse, and then, tomorrow, we arrive in Fair Haven on Lake Ontario, where we’ll stay with Diana’s high school friend, Katrina, and her husband. 

The bad news is that it is supposed to rain most of the day today. Fortunately, it looks like it will be fairly warm – and, I think, the Catskills are behind us now. Should be pretty flat from here to Niagara Falls . . .