The Cake - Saturday 8/16/2008

The finished cake.

Toasted chopped almonds topping homemade chocolate butter cream frosting were a more worthwhile touch. [KittyW...see the dusting of powdered sugar and cocoa under the nuts?]

Prep Time - Friday 8/15/2008

Some of Hydra's family is coming for lunch tomorrow. There are not enough tomatoes on my plant to share, so I stopped at Sanchez's produce stand on the way home. I've been eying this sign for about a week. Ooh!

When I talked to the woman behind the counter, she said, "Every day, I'm waiting for you!" She knew I'd want to do this, since I was so thrilled to pick my own artichoke here last spring.

They didn't seem terribly ripe and some had spots, but when I got them home, they were terrific. The heirloom tomatoes were the same price, $1.2o a pound.



A view through the tomato plants.


Other signs at the Sanchez.


Back at home, it was time to make salsa and a cucumber/onion/tomato/fresh basil salad. Waited to make the guacamole the next day, to serve with chicken quesadilla's.

Oh, yeah, and a cake for Cuz-V's birthday. I spread brandy-soaked Morello cherries in the center. It actually wasn't very satisfying. Needed more sweet and more goo.

Alma 'Mater - Thursday 8/14/2008

I stayed home with the tomatoes today.

Worked from home. Work has been way way too much this week. I've been telecommuting one day a week anyway, but I really needed the extra couple of hours of sleep I had today.

My homegrown tomatoes are so sweet. They're almost too sweet to use in pasta, but great for eating like a peach.

Photo that Got Away

Saturday afternoon under a spreading live oak tree.

Just outside a circle of guitar players and singers at a campsite, a white poodle rests inside a guitar case lined with emerald green. Her chin rests on the edge of the case.

She sighs happily

Blame it on d'Beans - Wednesday 8/13/2008

He's a great photographer. Recently, he confessed to being a "composition snob." Knowing that he's actually no kind of snob, I love that phrase.

So when I came out of Kaiser Permanente in Valencia the other day, I had to stop and take a couple of shots.



Thanks, d'Beans!

Superhero Waitstaff - Tuesday 8/12/2008

P poses with the lascivious looking plastic chef. That's her artwork and lettering. She loves changing the special boards and she's good at it.

I haven't been getting to Andrew's in the mornings very much lately because I've been going in to work early. Working 9 to 11 hour days. It's just all hitting at once...aaah.

This means no writing in the mornings, and then I'm too beat at night. It'll come back. But it's frustrating right now.

I went in this morning with new scripts from three different shows that I had to read and do reports on by this afternoon. This is a huge amount of work. I vowed I'd power through the reading and breaking down part while I was at the diner because I am so sick of my desk at work.

"We're gonna get you through this," P said as she poured my fourth cup of coffee.

Whew! I made it.

Rabbit Ears - Monday 8/11/2008

What can I say? I'm back at work. The Olympics are on in the background.

Soon these rabbit ears will be replaced with an analog converter box.

I'm ready.

Savoring Sunday - Sunday 8/10/2008

It's the beginning of the end of a lovely weekend. Hydra went into town to enjoy Starbucks. I opted to haul the birds out to the front yard of the camper and read So Brave, Young and Handsome, by Leif Enger. Every time I lay down to read during the past few days, I fell asleep.

So armed with strong black tea, I finished the novel this morning. What a great read. It's been a while since I've read a writer I'd like to emulate, but Enger is one. I need to read his first book Peace Like a River. (Both titles are lyrics from songs. Know which ones?)

My breakfast reminded me of OneL's eccentric uncle. He had an alphabet wheel that he'd spin every day to see what he could eat. Only foods beginning with the letter the arrow stopped on. You'd have to hope you could find a quince every so often!

For me: blueberries, banana and bacon. Finishing up things we had with us.



How sweet! How...bittersweet? The camp manager--we'll call her Upright--brought us this pair of cacti in celebration of our 21st anniversary. She took them from her own garden.

I love working with her. I organize the reservations for our group (about 20-35 campsites each time we go) and then co-ordinate with her about who actually showed up and whether or not they need to pay for hook-ups (electrical and water...not the modern kind!), extra vehicles and pets.

She's very straightforward and easygoing, but she has great boundaries and is able to stand her ground when she needs to. She's from Ohio originally. Buckeyes and Hoosiers. Not so different in some ways...well, anyway, she's been managing and improving the campground for more than 20 years and I admire her.



Looks like a movie set to me! That's a tunnel over a railroad track that's supposed to look like the entrance to a mountain. OneL speculates that it's for the Escape to Witch Mountain re-make that she's been working on.