Just a Thought Series ~ April 24, 1976

April 24, 1976

The synchronicity of my life continues to baffle and entertain. I was looking through some of my old journals this afternoon and came upon something I'd written 37 years ago today. It is as timely now as it was then.

April

Prelude to spring

Buds full to bursting

Carpets of color

Tickle fancies and feet

Minutes to hours to days

Ocean's rhythm

Seasons

A continuum

As vital as a heartbeat

Within touch or in solitude

The river runs deep

Knowing this loves exists

Beyond the everyday

Is a simple joy

Worth more than any fortune

Today the words are for my husband Rod, the delightful bear who has surrounded me with love, warmth, laughter, and good food for the last three decades. 





Shakedown Cruise ~ April 16, 2013

When was the last time you removed everything from your vehicle to see what was there? Our cars have always had a small road box with tools, an emergency kit, and changes of clothes for the primary driver. Sounds simple, but add to that the vast array of stuff accumulated over the years, deemed necessary at one time or another, and you have controlled chaos.

We had to unpack the Jeep (which is for sale) and outfit the Explorer so it seemed reasonable to unload the Honda too. Yesterday morning our entire living room floor was covered with the STUFF out of the two cars. One look and we took it as a sign we needed to THIN IT OUT.

About noon we took a break and did a lap around the vineyard next door, a nice 1.5 mile walk, then came back to fix lunch. We looked at the wasteland we ironically call the "living room" and decided it was time to run away for the afternoon. The perfect time for a shakedown cruise in the Explorer.

North of Bodega Bay, South of Jenner

We headed out to Bodega Bay and up the coast to Gualala for coffee and treats Trink's Café. A springtime weekday is the perfect time to explore the coast on Hwy 1. There were very few cars on the road and wildflowers are everywhere: poppies, lupine, paintbrush, and ceanothus to name a few.

On the return trip we decided to take a road even less traveled: a gravel road that takes off from Hwy. 1 and winds up through forests and the Kruse Rhododendron Gardens. Though it's the right time of year there were few in bloom ~ perhaps it's been too dry a winter.  

Kruse Road

Next spot we come to was at one time the town of Plantation. In the 19th century, the Plantation House, a thirteen room hotel, was built and operated on the current Plantation premises. At the turn of the 20th century, the town  boasted a post office, meeting hall, and a stop on the Wells Fargo Express route. Sadly, the hotel burned down in the 1920’s. In 1952 Abe and Eve Crittenden envisioned another way to share this magical place and transformed it into a farm summer camp for children. The link is www.plantationfarm.com.  

It's the first time we'd been on the Plantation Road in over 30 years. We met at the Ft. Ross Volunteer Fire Department Picnic in Cazadero in May 1981.

A couple of summers later we took off from Rod's place on the Navarro Ranch and headed out for an adventure. Reversing the course we were on today we got to Seaview Road and asked the age old question "shall we turn right or left?". We chose right and ended up in Mendocino for a couple of days. As you can see our travelling style dates back to when we first met. 

One of the reasons I wanted to retrace our steps coming back from Gualala to Cazadero was a sign we saw along the Kruse Road on that trip. At the time the phone lines were buried along the banked roadside.  At various places along the way there were angled wooden bulwarks to hold soil back and protect equipment. Neatly carved into one of them, in official looking lettering, were the words "ET Phone Home". We had just seen the movie laughed ourselves silly. It was no longer there, but what I would have given for a camera at the time! No iPhones in 19 ought 83.

Sheer Decadence ~ Mar 30, 2013

We watched a Bay Bridge Series game last night (Spring training games with SF Giants and Oakland A's) and when the commercial breaks came on we switched over the Food Network to catch Guy Fieri's "Diner, Drive-ins and Dives". We're  heading out on some road trips this Spring and thought we might do some homework.

He was in San Antonio, TX at the Magnolia Pancake Haus when we tuned in. They were making Bacon Waffles. Oh Baby! We looked at each other and knew we had to make some for breakfast. We had a little bacon left from when company came last weekend so no better time than now!

The photo is from the Magnolia Pancake Haus

 

Too Easy! You just cook up 5 or 6 slices of lean bacon until it's dark and crispy, crumble it into your batter and make your waffles as you always do. We covered ours with slices of fresh strawberries and a little syrup, but as you can see the options are endless. Enjoy!

As I was writing the blog, my neighbor Andrea called to chat and I told her about our discovery. She commented she best enjoy from afar: dangerous combo with questionable health consequences. We both laughed and decided once in a while might be acceptable.

So then I walk back into the house at Rod is watching a show on PBS called "Protect Your Memory". There are three main points: Skip Bad Fats, Knock out Free Radicals, and Exercise your Brain. Oh Boy, common sense rears up to slap you on the back of the head Gibbs Style. Time for a compromise.

Isabella Takes a Chance

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Life is short: take a chance, dance with abandon, jump for joy, follow your passions and decide it's okay to have something decadent like bacon waffles once in a great while.

Rainy Days ~ March 28, 2013

When it rains incessantly for most of a week, like it did in late November, we got to spend time inside with no promises to keep: making soup, reading, playing cribbage, and day dreaming. The sky rumbling through poetic changes of dark and light.

The deluges periodically gave way to mist or light showers and out we'd go in full combat rain gear. Children in adult suits: playing in puddles and getting dirty, channeling small rivers and directing runoff from the neighboring vineyard.

A couple of weeks ago I was over at my neighbor's helping her organize her new pantry. In the back of a cupboard we found a collection of wildflower seeds in small net bags that had been favors at her wedding up here in July 2005. Andrea doesn't believe in expiration dates so we cut open all the little bags and split the bounty. I brought about 4 cups home with no game plan.

The last couple of days we've had intermittent showers: perfect for settling road dust, treating the orchids to a rainwater shower and maybe sowing some seeds.

The weather held yesterday so Tractor Boy decided he was going to dig out all the papyrus grass (invasive species) and smooth out the slope off the driveway so we could see the gardens from the living room. I'm thinking perfect place to scatter wildflower seeds.

This morning, in a misting rain we raked this patch smooth, sprinkled seeds about and covered the area with compost. Time will tell, but in 4-6 weeks we should see some results.

Our Bartlett pear on the driveway just burst into bloom this morning, amazing what a little moisture and sunshine will bring.

Great Basin Spring ~ May 23-24, 2012

We head east over the Santiam Pass (a must see in the fall) on Hwy 20 to Burns then turn south onto Hwy 205, another of Oregon's Scenic Byways.

Our destination is the Narrows at Malheur and Harney Lakes in the northwestern corner of the Great Basin. Malheur Lake is freshwater, while Harney Lake is saline-alkaline. Both cycle between open water in wetter years and marshes in drier years. It is a wetlands oasis providing a habitat for many migratory bird species each year.

We stayed at The Narrows RV Park for two nights, the perfect base camp for exploring Harney County and the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. In the morning we went out to Visitors Center to get the scoop on the best places for birding. We got so much good information from staff and visiting birders we have to save some areas of exploration for our next trip. 

We took along a "sightings checklist" and head down Pilot Road (gravel)towards the town of French Glen with binoculars and camera at the ready. Spring in the high desert (about 4,100') does not disappoint: the colors, shadows and wildlife provide surprises at every turn. The road is virtually empty so we frequently just pull over, get out and walk. The weather is perfect, warm and partly cloudy.

American Avocets

Pheasant

White Faced Ibis

Buena Vista Overlook

After a full day of exploring we have an excellent dinner at the little cafe at the park. A storm rolls through after midnight and I wake up to the sound of dripping water. I just got up and threw a towel under it for the night. It turns out that one of the small ventilation skylights was cracked and the wind was forcing the rain in. No worries, Mr. Duct Tape to the rescue at sunrise.  

We just add it to the NWTF list with a smile. My mom and dad were on the road in their motorhome for a decade. They loved every minute of it, but Daddy did warn me "Honey, they are money pits". I now get that. We look at it as all part of the journey and we become a little more self sufficient and savvy as we go. After breakfast at the Cafe we head north to Burns, fill up and are on our way to Boise for a few days.

The Great Bear Hunt ~ 2012

Rod and I were sitting on the front porch last Thursday enjoying the late afternoon ambiance when we heard bicycle tires on the gravel. We see two of our hilltop kidlets peddling like they were in lead of the Tour de California.

Now it's a given, as a kid, you are going to crash and burn at least once on a bicycle ~ the dreaded learning curve bites hard, especially on a gravel road. We watch helplessly as Maya goes down, hands outstretched to stop her fall. The tears and screams are swift and within 10 seconds three moms, a dad, Rod and I and four playmates are sprinting towards the commotion. Nothing serious, a little gravel burn, hurt pride and probably a few bruises. She recovers quickly and is off to home for a bandaid.

The four boys (Nolan, Evan, Alexander and Atticus) decide it's time to go on a bear hunt. Rod cuts walking sticks (for protection of course) to size for each of the team and off they go down into the pasture and the great unknown. A teenage neighbor has built a tree house near the property line and left the ladders there. One of the boys wants to climb but they discuss the fact it's not their tree house and they shouldn't climb the ladder. A black cat dashes out of nowhere into the brush and someone shouts "Panther". One of the boys was a little scared and said he'd feel better if Maya was along (she's the oldest). Maya, now recovered, sprints down to the outpost and joins the hunt.

I'm sitting on the retaining wall with two residents moms and a dad and the mom of two of Nolan's playmates, watching the adventure unfold and listening to them talk about Rod's connection to kids and the lessons they always learn. This time it's leadership, being brave, and making good decisions. It's all too cute and the mom's are sighing with delight that they have a few unbridled minutes of not having to be on point. Rent a Grandpa!

The group returns from the hunt and Nolan shouts "magic cart ride" and the boys head for the Garden Way cart and the compost pile. Rod stands it on end and they all hop in, stacked like cord wood, for the short ride to the "fort" at the base of our redwoods. Trouble on wheels!

The Neighborhood ~ April 6, 2012

Daylight savings and a change of season often bring minor league chaos for a week or two. The weather's been cold and wet and we've all been inside for far too long ~ cabin fever is afoot.

Cabin Fever

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Not ones to squander time we got creative while awaiting the warm. We read and scheduled playdays that weren't weather dependent. I volunteered time at a local non profit and learned how to do collage. Rod got his shop cleaned up and gear organized for bass fishing. But be that as it may we were still chomping at the bit to get outside, get our hands dirty garden and open up the house to some fresh air.

We live near the end of a lane that's far enough in the country to be quiet, but close enough to town we can walk the mile or so to the theater, a park or a restaurant. We've lived on this little piece of paradise for 24 years, but the real magic is that we have the best neighbors in the world.

We watch out for each other, take turns feeding critters or watering when one is out of town. Over the proverbial back fence or on the driveway we often share home grown produce, conversation and goodies from fresh fish to cut flowers, from homemade pies to soup. We've known the resident kidlets since they were born. We share friends and laughter at BBQ's, birthday parties and spur of the moment gatherings.

Dahlia

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Our four families hadn't seen each other for almost a week but today was the quintessential day to exhale winter and breathe in the spring. At the first hint of warmth the bears emerged from their lairs. We got the barn organized and talked dahlias over the back fence. We toured the garden with the moms and kids to harvest fresh greens and got caught up standing in the sun on the driveway. I suspect that all of us, at one time or another during the day, stretched out like lizards on a rock to soak up some warm. We are so lucky to live where we do and to share this bond of friendship.

Planet Shared

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Do you know your neighbors? Have you ever spoken to them? Maybe it's time to go next door and say hello with some fresh baked cookies? Get to know the kindred spirits that share your little corner of the world. You might be surprised.

A Break in the Weather

I just returned from a four day adventure that took me 225 miles north of home to Humboldt County. When I was last up at Christmas I promised my friend that whenever she was ready I would help her liberate her sewing room so she could again have a haven to create. My mission, in her words, was to be brutal, to help her tackle a long term accumulation of material, yarn, and notions and help her organize what was to remain. It took us a couple of 10 hour days but it was great fun. No box was left unopened, all baskets were cleared of their holdings, all shelves were emptied of materials. We spent hours talking and laughing while we went about the task at hand. 

Sunday afternoon her husband ordered us out of the house for a break and we took the dogs and went for a walk near the ocean. I'm glad he did because it was a gorgeous day and I was able to take a few pictures. Northern California has been dry for far too long and the rains that have continued since the middle of January have revitalized the North Coast. Flowering trees and shrubs in bright yellow, pink, white and lavender are scattered in meadows of electric green all the way up Hwy 101. The redwoods and rivers are refreshed, and there are acres of brilliant yellow wild mustard in the vineyards and along the roadsides.

As it turned out she would not be the only one to benefit from our labors. We have a local store here in Sebastopol called the Legacy Shop that is a wonderland of donated crafting, sewing and knitting supplies. It is much loved by local crafters because the prices are so low and all sales support our Senior Center. Knowing that all of her treasures could be donated made it easier to let go and we managed to fill every square inch of my Jeep for the trip home.

Just before I left on Monday morning, we walked back to her sewing room and marveled at what we had accomplished. The look on her face was priceless. I'll head back up in the Spring and we'll tackle a few more spaces.

They Call It a False Spring

Cherry Plum in our Garden

We don't have winters here like the folks on the other coast put up with, but we have had five long weeks of cold and rain. I couldn't play outside so I was happy as a clam to spend the time in my studio creating.

The last two days the temperatures have reached 70 degrees. My outside orchid, that is usually blooming in December, has finally started to open. We've been pruning, pulling weeds, playing in the dirt and just enjoying the sun on our backs. 

This is what we call a false spring and it happens most every February. You're lured into the garden on false pretenses, start planning the beds and maybe even putting in some starts. Now sometimes you get lucky and you have a jump start on the growing season. Sometimes, however, winter shows up again for another 4 to 6 weeks and you end up start all over again in April. Ah, but what does it matter as long as you squeeze everything you can out of the day?