Barn Cat

We've had Passage, our barn cat, since our early days at Aspen Meadows.

She made the move up here with us and quickly settled into the new barn.

I don't have many photos of her because she is always in motion.

When we first got her, she was quite aloof.  Her mother had been a feral cat (dad most likely too), and she wasn't much interested in human company.  But, after we moved up here she became very affectionate.

She follows me into the garden when I'm working there and complains until I take a break from pruning and hold her.  She will let just about anyone hold her now.

She even sits in Brett's lap.  He swears he hates cats, and she hated people -- go figure.  They adore each other now.

A Dog's Christmas

Kersey had a great Christmas.

Photo by Camille

The house was full of people; and she loves people.  Love, love, LOVES people.

Even better, those people included Camille (above)...

and Kyle.

Aren't these photos awesome?  Ana (Kyle's girlfriend) has portrait setting on her new phone.  So, I had to order one -- look for better photos in the future in this space.

Lobster Feed Weekend

This weekend Kyle and Camille came up to visit with their significant others.  The occasion?  Our first annual lobster feed.  Yes, it was such a success that we decided to make it an annual event.

Kyle & Ana picked up Camille & Cody Friday night on their way over from San Francisco.  They arrived just before the pizza place closed.  Saturday, we headed over to Renwood for lunch and wine tasting.

Kyle, Ana, Camille, Cody

Afterward, the kids continued down the wine trail while Brett and I headed to the market to pick up the seafood for dinner.  Brett set up the burner and pot in the garden -- it was far too large to fit on the BBQ.

I layered in artichokes and potatoes, with water, wine and aromatics (lemon, celery, garlic, thyme).

I added in sausages, lobster tails, prawns, mussels and corn.  We had a table set up in the garden (covered with butcher paper), tunes playing, SF sourdough brought over by Kyle and Ana, and wine on ice.

When the mussels had opened, Brett poured it all down the center of the table.

We had no plates, no utensils -- just bibs and fingers and lots of melted butter.  It was amazing.  

Sunday, we headed up into the Sierras with the kayaks.

After a quick dinner of BBQ burgers and watermelon, the kids piled into Kyle's car and headed home.

Shaver Lake 2017

The annual Shaver Lake vacation with my extended family occurred last week and into the weekend.  We have been vacationing there since since Camille was an infant -- so, 23 years.  She was three weeks old the first time we went.  I remember racing down the steps from the deck to the waters edge while she napped under the watchful eye of my mother.  On that same trip, Kyle fell down the stairs and split his chin.  He was an early walker and an active child, but never a cautious one.

Originally, the group included my parents, my sister and her family (three kids) and me and my family.  Over the years, the composition has stayed pretty constant, and we stayed at a small cabin within walking distance (if you don't mind a long steep road) to the lake.  We were only at that first, lakeside cabin, for one year.  Eventually, my younger brother and his daughter started joining us.

Taylor (my brother's daughter), Nick (my sister's oldest), Camille, Justin (my sister's middle child), and Kyle.

I lost my mom to a progressive lung disease (with a name a mile long and no cure), and, as it became more difficult for her to breathe, we switched to lower elevation locations.  But, we never stopped going.  The kids never stopped sleeping outside on the deck; all their sleeping bags lined up in a row; talking late into the night about the stars and satellites.

The candid version: Taylor is smiling sweetly; Nick is checking out Camille's belly button ring; Justin is standing like a stud; and Kyle has been told to get rid of his stick for the picture (probably by Camille).

The kids are now adults, with the exception of my youngest niece who is 14.  The rest of the"kids" range from Camille (23) to Nick (29).  My sister had kids first, closely followed by me, and much later by my brother.  Kyle's girlfriend, Ana, has joined us the last two years.

Kyle and Ana

It was warmer than usual this year but the lake was full and we liked the cabin (the one we used to use wasn't available this year).  We ate too much food and drank wine in the evening on the deck.  We played games.  We went for long walks, swatting the mosquitoes that buzzed around our heads and feasted on our arms and legs.

It was a good trip.  And it is very good to be back home.  Brett took care of the ranch and even installed some more sprinklers in my garden while I was gone.  I love my family but I can only take so much happy, crowded chaos.  I am an introvert, after all.  So it was good to walk through my garden and admire the sprinklers, to stand quietly with Tex, and to drink in the quiet of the night.

Recovering From the Weekend

My good friend, Nancy, has been feverishly working on a quilt for the bed in Camille's room.  She knew that the kids were coming to visit this weekend and she wanted to have it done before Camille arrived.  Many months ago, she came over and looked at the valances over the windows in Camille's room.  Then she poured over quilting patterns, showing me "potentials," and then went shopping for fabric.  Nancy has an amazing eye for color and she loves incorporating applique into her quilts, stitching in highlights and detail.  She made the portrait quilts for us of Flash and Kersey.  She finished up the binding last week and I went up to her place (they are neighbors) and picked it up Thursday after work, chores and dinner.  Then I put it on Camille's bed and took some pictures.  It's gorgeous.  She even made matching shams.

Friday afternoon, Camille flew into Sacramento and we hit the grocery store on the way home from the airport.  I bought all kinds of shellfish to make a clam bake that night, and food for the remainder of the weekend as well.  Once we were home, the groceries unloaded, and the chores done, we got to work with Brett -- securing three kayaks in the bed of his pick up.  We have a rack on top of the Subaru that Brett and I use when we go out, but it only holds two kayaks.  Brett has fit four kayaks in the truck bed before, all stacked neatly on their sides.  But three was an awkward number.  We had to make sure they didn't slide out the back (the tailgate was down, with the backs of the kayaks resting on a bar that was hooked into the hitch (you see construction trucks hauling lumber around with them sometimes).  We lashed, and lashed, and lashed some more.  We'd get one secure and another would slide.  After an hour, Camille looked at us and said "I think we need beer."   We finally got it done and I started dinner.  I think we ate at 9:30 pm which is late -- even for us.

Saturday morning, we fed and mucked and emptied the rat trap (woohoo!) and headed towards Tahoe.  We took Camille to our favorite place to kayak, Wright's Lake.  It's very small, shallow and full of boulders so you can't take a motorized boat out.  It is very popular with kayakers.  At the far end of the lake, we paddled up the stream that feeds the lake.  Camille loved it.

After eating our picnic lunch while drifting in a small pond, off the stream, surrounded by reeds, we paddled back to the small launch area.

Brett brought the truck over and we got ready to load the kayaks.  Except that the tailgate wouldn't release.  We ended up lashing the kayaks on top; balancing the fronts on top of his toolbox and the backs on top of the tailgate.  Again, we lashed and lashed and lashed.  Brett didn't speak the whole way home (an hour and a half) -- worried about getting that tailgate fixed.  He worried about the expense but mostly about the possibility having the truck in the shop for more than a day.  During fire season we do not like the truck to be gone at all.  Of course, without the tailgate down, Brett couldn't hitch the horse trailer to the truck anyway (it is a gooseneck) so today he is out getting that fixed.

Kyle and Ana arrived Saturday afternoon, shortly before we got back home.  We had just enough time to unload the kayaks, do the evening chores, and change before going to a cowboy concert and dinner.  We love the venue, long tables under towering oaks; a wooden stage; bbq tri-tip, chicken and beans with pie at intermission.  And Dave Stamey, the cowboy singer, writes songs which are hugely entertaining and get your feet tapping.  Brett and I even danced.  (a very rare occurrence).

The house was hot and stuffy when we got home and, despite opening all the windows wide, none of us slept very well.  Sunday, we took the kids up to Jenkinson Lake where they kayaked some more.  Brett and I ran errands and I worked a bit in the garden, until it got too hot.  We had an early dinner before Kyle and Ana left, taking Camille to the airport on their way back to Berkeley.

I went to bed at 8:30.  I was wiped.

Lobster Feed

Kyle and his girlfriend, Ana, came up Saturday.  We did a little wine tasting that afternoon and then went to a lobster feed at the neighboring winery in the evening.

It was like a clam bake; we sat at long tables while big pots full of shrimp, sausage, artichokes, potatoes, corn and lobster bubbled away.  Then we were directed to stand back and the contents of the pots were dumped down the middle of the table.

We dove in and got busy peeling shrimp, cracking lobster claws and chomping on the corn.  I lost track of how many ears of corn Kyle ate.  Kyle and Ana, who had not been to this event before, got right into the spirit of things.

We cleaned up everything.

This is my favorite winery event of the year.  Great food, fun, live music and a view of the sun setting over the vineyards.

This morning we took the kayaks up to Jenkinson Lake and paddled around for a few hours; ate a picnic lunch on the shore, then paddled around some more.

Maybe summer isn't so bad after all.

Mothers Day at the Ranch

The kids were here for the weekend.  Camille flew up on Friday.  Kyle and Ana arrived Saturday morning.

When they were small, the kids used to make brunch on Mothers Day for me.  I would sit in a chair, near the kitchen, with a mug of coffee and answer questions as they worked their way through the recipes they had picked.  They continued the tradition this morning.  I am so spoiled; so blessed.

Kyle, Ana and Camille

In the afternoon, we went up to Jenkinson Lake and hiked to the falls.

Alisal 2016

Last Wednesday morning as Brett and I made the six hour drive to Alisal, we talked about how green it was going to be there; we wondered if the lake would be back to normal levels and how much water would be in the stream that winds its way through the ranch.  Afterall, we've had a pretty wet winter.  The snow pack was at 130% in January and rainfall is at normal levels.  Sure, February was warm and dry but our rainfall stands at just over 30 inches since last October.

Alisal is located in Southern California, inland from Santa Barbara and about two hours north of Los Angeles.  When we arrived, the ranch was quiet -- which is exactly why we chose mid-week in February to go.  It was also very warm, about 84F, and dry.  The stream was dry.  The lake level had dropped even further.  They are afraid it might dry up completely.  Rainfall on the ranch is only 6 inches.  El Nino has been a bust for Southern California.

All photos in this post are from Ana.

We had a wonderful time, of course.  The grass was short but it was green.  The cattle, young steers, were adorable and everywhere we rode.  They dotted the hills and blocked the trails and tried to join our rides.  We ate too much food -- even though we rode every morning and every afternoon, we gained weight.

Kyle, Camille and Ana arrived on Friday and stayed through the weekend.

Camille rode with Brett and I on the advanced rides.  We do a mix of loping, trotting and walking on the advanced rides, cutting across pastures, climbing the hills and going as far as we can.  I rode four different horses, all new to the ranch, while we were there.  When horses arrive, they are assigned to a wrangler who spends three months to a year (depending on the horse) getting them used to cattle, and gates, and riding in line, and all the wildlife.  The first horse I rode was looking for a reason to be naughty and buck.  I doubt he will be there when we return next year.  The other three horses were compact, fun rides.  Brett spent his time on one horse, a 17h grey, who was also new to the ranch.  He was a bit impatient but Brett got along with him fine.  I think he has a 50/50 chance of staying.  The big horses are purchased for big riders; often men who have little to no riding experience.

Ana and Camille

Kyle and Ana went on the intermediate rides.  Ana has ridden before but not in quite a few years and she wasn't ready to go loping through herds of cattle.  Smart girl.  Confidence is everything.  She did ride, every ride, and fit right into our Alisal routine (which is all about food and riding).

Ana and Kyle

We got back home late Sunday night.  The weather was dry in our absence. They keep promising us a wet March.  Fingers crossed.

Chez Panisse

Kyle lives in Berkeley now.  He lives verrrrry close to Chez Panisse, Alice Waters' famous restaurant.  Being a hard-core foodie, the restaurant has been on my bucket list for a number of years.  Kyle got the foodie gene (and Camille is developing a taste for fine dining as well).  I was able to get reservations for dinner so Brett and I took Kyle and Ana there for dinner.  It was Kyle's birthday gift and birthday dinner all rolled into one (an exceptionally nice one this year).

There are two seatings for dinner.  The menu is set and posted as the week begins.  No substitutions, no changes to the menu, no allowances.  You come and eat what is served.  End of story.  We were all okay with that, and waited for the menu to post.

When we picked up Kyle and Ana, she confessed that she was nervous about the fish course.  Ana isn't a fish fan but she was game to try it -- and Kyle volunteered to finish that course for her if she didn't like it.

The restaurant is in a narrow house with handful of tables downstairs in the restaurant.  A more casual cafe is located upstairs.  The lighting is warm, the service superb, and food exquisite.

We started with an aperitif - Perseco infused with rosemary; and goose on a canapé.

The salad was one of my favorite courses -- chicory and mint salad with crispy beets, creme fraiche, and steelhead roe.

The fish course was striped bass with fennel purée, coriander and olio nuovo.  Poor Kyle, Ana ate all of her fish, including the crispy skin.

The main course was squab cooked over the open fire, with sage and tangerine sauce, parsnip purée, kabobha squash fritters and watercress.  It was to.die.for.

Dessert was tarte tatin with Calvados ice cream.

The food and the restaurant lived up to its reputation.  Kyle said he didn't want the meal to end, he savored every bite.  Brett couldn't stop talking about the parsnip purée -- and Ana couldn't believe how wonderful the fish tasted.  Fish!  Who would have thought it could be so tasty.

We Had a White Christmas

It was perfect.  My dad and the kids all arrived before the snow started to fall.  Christmas Eve day we had snow on-and-off all day.  Each time it stopped snowing, it would warm up a few degrees.  Then it would begin to rain, then sleet, then snow. I'd look out the window and sigh.  I don't know why I love snow so much.  I just do.  Despite it snowing all day, the rain washed away most of it, so we ended up with patchy snow.

Finessa, Camille and Tuffy

Christmas Eve we feasted on roast beef, roasted potatoes and Caesar salad.  Champagne.  Wine.  More wine.  Then bed.  Holidays in our family are all about the food.

Christmas Day was spent opening gifts, feasting on turkey and watching the snow melt.  In the evening the kids wanted to play Cards Against Humanity.  It is politically incorrect and a bit crass -- not something you would play with your mother and grandfather but that is exactly what the kids proposed.  Brett was buried in a football game and declined joining us.  My father is a retired university professor, quiet, serious, and about as far from silly as you can imagine.  I'm very much like him in that way.  But that evening, we were all laughing so hard that we couldn't breathe.  It was wonderful.  The best Christmas gift of all.

My father left Saturday for home.  Sunday night we had more snow; close to two inches fell over night and we woke to a winter wonderland.

The horses weren't impressed with the snow.  They watched me taking pictures from their pastures and wondered why I wasn't bringing them their breakfast.  Humans and their priorities.  Sheesh.

Lucy, Pistol and Jackson

Flash

Tex

The kids packed a sled and drove up the road to the lake where they found a good steep hill to slide down.  Camille took pictures -- I love this one of the lake.

This morning, I headed into the office (I was able to telecommute yesterday) and the kids headed to Kyle's apartment in Berkeley.  It was a magical Christmas.