corner view~spring

Spring is upon us.  Even here there are subtle seasons.  How rapidly the plants I put in the ground in October are starting to bloom and produce fruits!  It's hot here now, 80 degrees F every day -- time to rejoin the air conditioned gym so I can exercise comfortably.   :)  

Yesterday I was shopping for some veggie starts and I came across this sweet Meyer lemon tree.  I walked by it a couple of times, the only one of its kind in the nursery.  I hemmed and hawed, like I always do when making a decision about what to purchase -- should I buy this?  I picked out several veggies.  But I kept looking back at the tree.  It was so adorable.  I almost felt it call out to me, "Pick me, take me home!"

I realized this tree would be the perfect thing for an empty spot in my tulsi garden.  We just removed an overgrown Eureka palm in the corner of this garden, we just repaired a broken water pipe under the ground, and the space has been sitting empty for a couple of months.

I had considered putting in a mulberry bush instead, but hadn't seen one -- no, a lemon tree would be perfect I decided.  

So I put it on my shopping cart.  Several people commented on it as I did the rest of my shopping, like they would about a really cute baby.  I bought the tree.  I put it in my passenger seat, and leaned it back, it looked like it was taking a rest.  It had loads of blossoms on it.  The smell was so captivating, it put me in a wonderful mood on the drive home.  I really felt like I had a loved one with me.

When I got home, I put her in my back yard (by now it felt like a her).  I introduced her to the rest of the plants.  I gave the delicate flowers a kiss.  Annabel came outside to see who I was talking to -- she couldn't believe I was talking to a small tree.  I told her I wanted the tree to feel welcome.  I can feel my plants respond to love. 

I moved my tree to a spot to shoot some photos and after a minute a honeybee came to get nectar from her blossoms.  I snapped a few photos, marveling at the patience and persistence of this tiny hardworking creature, and thought about relationships and interdependence in nature.  The bee stayed for what felt like several minutes, and I thought, "This tree is going to make so many bees happy."  I was so glad I bought her.

I have to think of a name for her.  Something sweet.  This is the sweetest tree you have ever seen.  Can you tell I am in love?  

Hmm, maybe Lily...or Rosie...or Lucy...  Any ideas?  

Anyhow, she is gonna love all the tulsi.  

 

Happy spring everyone.  To see what spring is like at other corners on the globe, go to Jane's blog

I am excited to see what you all have to say about spring. 

howcast videos

The girls have been learning a lot about acting, filming, story boarding, and editing this year with their home school teacher.  Not only is she a great teacher, but she is also a documentary filmmaker.

They have worked out a deal with her that as they get their work done, they are able to help create these Howcast videos with her.  Howcast is an internet company that has thousands of free online "how to" videos.

The girls are paid a little money so they are thrilled to have a job.

Since they both have aspirations to be in movies (Not theater Mom, theater's too stressful.  What if you forget your lines?  In movies you can always do it over), this has been especially fun and important to them.

So far this school year they have done twelve of these brief videos.

Here and here are the funniest ones.

i'm a farmer

Last month I had a ton of extra basil in my little surburban neighborhood garden, I am proud to say.  The basil was at least three feet tall and a couple of feet wide. It was taking over the tomatoes and other plants.  At the same time it just so happened that our neighborhood health food store was low on organic Italian basil.  Exactly what I had, I told them.  So I picked two huge bags full.  I also brought them some Thai basil and of course, those of you who know me well...ta da!

Holy basil.

Holy basil is right.  I made twenty three whopping bucks.  It was so fun.  I even wore overalls that day to pick and deliver the goods. 

This whole experience gave me so much joy.  Aren't the plants beautiful?  Look at those leaves!

Have a great weekend. 

P.S.  The girls' Saving the Planet Starts at Home video made it to the final round of the EPA Youtube contest.  Feel free to give it a good rating if you like it.  :)

corner view~typical architecture

Old style architecture

Brand new home

Beautiful oceanfront property that I just love, in a secluded beach town, surrounded by open space.  This is about ten minutes from where I live.  I am in a more populated beach town.

close up of the same property

When I thought about our typical architecture I realized since we have no big city here - there are no large buildings, other than a few modern office buildings.  We also have no freeways, can you imagine that?

This is unlike many big cities I have been to around the world with rich historic buildings -- Washington DC, Paris, Venice, Mexico, Toronto, even my home town of Rochester, New York.  

So typical architecture for us is really limited to home structures.  In snapping photos, I noticed that much of the building where I live incorporates rock walls, as there is a surplus of this material.  That being said, there are some architectural influences from the mixed cultures that came to inhabit our home region many years ago.

By the way, ladies and gentlemen, I have a question for you.  It pertains to a giveaway I am going to do soon, but I need your help deciding where to start.  Can you help me choose:
A.) Gary's first record, more resembles jazz (here's a song from that), or B.) his most recent record - rock (a song from that).
Thanks.  Have a great week.

For more corner views of architecture go to the sidebar here.

  

a night out

There has been a lot of spontaneity lately in my life.  Music.  Art.  Surprises.  Being a planner, and an organized, methodical person, I have to say, I like the change of pace.

The above photo was taken with my cell phone.  A month ago my husband and I went out for dinner in our small town.  That particular night we decided to go to the new Indian restaurant, right on the ocean.  We love Indian food, and there are actually two good Indian restaurants in our town, which is amazing, considering how small the place is.

But there are almost no Indian people where we live.  I think I have seen seven total here. 

I don't know why but when I am around Indian people I feel this connection.  I am intrigued and feel really comfortable.  I like to listen to them talk and watch them interact.  I also feel this way with Jewish people.  And I feel this way with my relatives and people from my home region of upstate New York.  I think the latter happens because I live in a culture so different from the one I was raised in, and I miss it.  I miss the accent, the friendliness, the down-to-earth quality of people from my hometown.  But the Indians and the Jewish people?  I don't know why.  I just love them as a people.

So when we walked into this Indian restaurant there was a wedding reception happening -- an Indian wedding, with a huge roomful of Indian people.  They were all beautifully dressed, in colorful silk clothing, for the happy occasion.  The hostess said we could have a table.  At first I felt concern, like maybe I was crashing the wedding reception, but there were several other people eating dinner that were obviously not part of the wedding.  So I relaxed and sat down.

Immediately a belly dancer began to perfrom.  There were these two older Indian couples, I assumed the parents of the bride and groom.  Their faces were full of joy, radiant, watching the dancer.  She was beautiful, and everyone in that room was watching her.

And I watched too.  She danced three dances.  When she was finished she bowed to the elderly parents, and they bowed back, eyes brimming with tears.  And I thought about how important it is to have a culture, and customs, and something that is sacred, especially when you are not in your native land.  And somehow I felt like I was given such a huge gift to have shared in the joy of this family that I didn't know.

I left that restaurant after having eaten a wonderful meal, fed not just by the food, but by the reminder that we are all connected, and that joy is joy, and it is infectious.

I thought about my parents.  I felt how lucky I am to have such loving parents.  I miss them.  We are 6000 miles apart.  We see them (and my sister and her family) every summer, and have done so each year since we moved here ten years ago.  How blessed we are to have the summers together.

This summer we are staying in a house that has a piano, guitars, drums, a pool, and a swing set.  Spending time with my family will be here before we know it.  Hip hip hooray.       

auntie and uncle take to the beach

Awesome Aunt Eileen

The whale (in the background) says hello.

There's nothing like having a fun aunt and uncle to come visit, play baseball in the front yard, tell funny stories about Mom when she was little, take you swimming, feed you as many granola bars as you want right before dinner, take you out for ice cream and tell you that you can have whatever size you want!!!  That same uncle is the brother that helped me for hours with my computer.  Like I said, there's nothing like family.

corner view~front door

In one of my most favorite books, A Pattern Language, the authors talk about how, in a home, when the front door is placed in an obvious spot, this makes a home inviting to newcomers.  Have you ever been to a house where you weren't quite sure where the front door was?  I have, and I do recall it being a tad disconcerting.
 
Well, my daughter, Little Miss Comedic Annabel, has told you all about our very exciting front door.  So I couldn't write about that now could I?

Thus, I decided to take a trip down memory lane, and show you some photos of front doors from our first family trip to Europe, last summer before I knew most of you!

Sophisticated front doors of Paris:

  Front doors of Sarlat -- ancient ones, castles and all...

My favorite front door -- the house we rented in Sarlat.  It was always open when we were home, no screens.  No need for screens there.  After our cute, tiny Paris apartment, this place was a mansion.

Also we went to Venezia...

It was such a magical trip for us, and especially a dream come true for my husband.  We found the French and Italian people warm and welcoming, like the front doors of their hearts were wide open.  

I didn't focus on photographing doors when I was there.  For some reason I was obsessed with European windows, and even did a post dedicated entirely to them.  

For more interpretations of front doors go to the sidebar at Jane's blog.

hike on the top of the world

this flower is huge, grows on a vine, and smells like vanilla

a little quality real estate

my brother Tim, and his wife Eileen

They really liked it up here.  Coming from Chicago, it was another world.  This hike was actually on a paved road with a few residences.  Most were far from the road, located on several acres.

I loved what this little girl created with her mom -- treasures from nature.

my garden 2 weeks ago

How happy my edible garden makes me.  I hope I always remember that, no matter where I live, no matter how old I am, how important it is for me to have an edible garden -- to water, prune, and love my plants.  I especially like to walk through my garden after watering in the morning and sample all of my herbs, and my arugula.  I planted arugula by seed and have tons of it.  We are just starting to get tomatoes now.  I am hoping for a bumper crop.  I thought maybe I planted too early, (October).  I was getting impatient, for the plants were huge and green and healthy looking for 2 months, but no fruit.

Even though the weather is warm year round here, "the plants still know it's winter," as a wise gardener friend pointed out to me once.  He was telling me how he was growing a tropical herb (tulsi), from seed, in Michigan, putting the tiny plants under lights indoors in his basement for the coldest part of winter.  Giving them two hours of TLC a day.  Now that's dedication.

Explanation of my photos:

#2 is thriving tulsi.  Tulsi is holy basil.  I talk about it a lot.  It is my favorite plant.  I am kind of obsessed with it.  I have about 20 tulsi plants in the ground, and another 20 I have started from seed in pots.  

It cracks me up when the kids are looking for me, and I overhear them say, "Where's Mom?  Oh, she's in her tulsi garden as usual." 

Hint: I noticed a month ago that the tulsi had an infestation of scale.  :(  I pruned the plants, painstakingly removed the remaining bugs, sprayed the plants with neem oil mixed with olive oil, and 90% of them are back and thriving, and bug free!  So worth my time.  Neem is great for bugs because it actually stops them from reproducing.  But you have to dilute it with 80 - 90% olive oil.

#4 is my first broccoli.  Can you believe how huge the broccoli plants are?

Organic home grown food is the best!  So good for us, our kids, the earth.  If you are considering starting a garden or wanting to begin composting, let me know and I will help you.  I have lived in many other climates, so I know a fair amount and can steer you in the right direction.  Plus, farming is in my blood.  All I can say is, it's so much fun, and great for the kids.  Have a great weekend.  I have something kind of fun to share with you all soon.  Suffice to say I have a new job that I love.

corner view~miniature worlds

 

I loved miniatures as a kid.  My grandfather built my sister and me a dollhouse, complete with two floors and stairs, and real lights.  My grandmother crocheted tiny rugs and sewed pillows, bed linens, and curtains.  When I was about twelve I began to make mini food -- cherry pie, spaghetti on a button plate, a box of assorted doughnuts.  My mother and I brought a bunch of my best items into a store that sold only miniatures.  I was hoping to land a job.  The lady looked at them and told me they were really good, but not quite professional enough to sell.  I'm glad now, because I still have many of them.

Now the miniature world I get a glimpse into is different.  I have a tiny mirror that sits on my bookshelf next to a ceramic medal, I gaze whimsically at my daughter's ceramic and bronze bunny rabbits, barely taking time to hold them in my hand, lest play with them.  I did just start a tiny bird collection, with the newest thrift find pictured above in our new tangerine tree.  Even the tree has tiny green tangerines on it, all different sizes, growing bit by bit until we will pick them, hopefully right before we leave for our summer trip in June.

And there are my dream collages, all neatly glued in a brand new sketch book.  I take this book out every once in awhile to remind myself of a new world I might someday inhabit.  For now, it is a miniature world, a happy idea.

How many things start as miniature before they take full form?  The seed gives lettuce, the acorn, the tree.  A little girl decorates her dollhouse.  Little does she know it is practice for one day when she will decorate a real house.  Most ideas begin small.  But an idea?  Well, that can lead to anything.

I have been having some exciting new ideas lately.  They started small, years ago.  I have begun to breathe life into them. We shall see what they will lead to.   

All is divine harmony.

In February I mentioned mosaics.  Click here to see a post about my first mosaics.  I am still digging up the photo of the thirty foot wall.  But hopefully this will suffice for now.

For more corner views about miniature worlds, with many other interpretations, go to the sidebar at Jane's blog.