Cercedilla Field Notes: Corta de Troncos

So one of the catalyst in our getting a small cabin in the sierras was the series (maybe soap opera is more appropriate name) Virgin River: watching the beautiful opening and then all the amazing backdrops really generated interest in connect more with nature. So it could not be more ironic that the first year we partook in the local Cercedilla September patron-saint fiestas one of the first activities was a log chopping competition, just like the Lumberjack games in the “Jack and Jill” episode. Well, it was not just like it, as you can see from the animated gif above they do things differently in Cercedilla than Virgin River!

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PhotoTagger

Yesterday I had a digital itch: I wanted to easily add tags to my pictures from the Windows Explorer.

Thanks to Claude, I scratched that itch and now have PhotoTagger, a tailor made software just for me.

Read on for how easy this was!

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Summer Moment of Zen 2026

This summer’s moment of Zen was a bit different: instead of watching a cycle of tides, we went in search of cloudless skys to watch a total eclipse and that lead us to a “castro” (an Iron Age fortified hilltop settlement).

Disclaimer: there are no amazing images or videos of the eclipse as I was busy being in the moment for the 1 minute 29 seconds of totality and did not want to be fighting with technology. This was a good idea because the one picture I took is above and it in no way captures how crazy amazing and mind blowing totality is.

read on for more!

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Book Report: Godspeed

Another book that we read in my work book club, and as I have read so many C.J. Box books, I was right at home in Wyoming. At first I did not like it too much, then I resisted finishing because it was making me nervous, but in the end I finished it just in time for our final discussion and found it a good read.

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Recipe: Cercedilla Kirschtorte

Last year for my wife’s birthday I made Black Velvet cake and I was telling my german boss, Martin, about it and he mentioned that it kinda reminded him of the Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte (commonly know as Black Forest Cake). Later I asked ChatGPT about it:

A Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, commonly known as Black Forest Cake, is a classic German dessert that consists of layers of chocolate sponge cake, cherries, and whipped cream. It is traditionally flavored with Kirschwasser, a clear cherry brandy, which gives the cake its distinctive taste. The cake is typically decorated with chocolate shavings and more cherries.

So I then asked it for a recipe and saved it in my recipe archive and this year I made it for my wife’s birthday. But as I was in Cercedilla sourcing some of the key ingredients (sour cherries and Kirschwasser) was complicated so I had to reroute a bit (spanish picota cherries and spanish brandy) so I have rebaptized what I made as as Cercedilla Kirschtorte!

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