Last Thursday I flew up to see my son, Brad, and his family in Seattle. We like having an alternative Thanksgiving so that's what we did. Friday Amber, Reina and I went to the Pacific Science Center and visited the Tropical Butterfly exhibit. Reina dressed appropriately in her pink butterfly shirt. If you look closely at the milkweed in the background there are two butterflies...one orange, one black. Some of the butterflies actually landed on our bodies.....it was very cool. When we left the exhibit we were asked to turn around in front of the mirrors to see if there were any butterflies trying to escape on our clothes. Reina also liked the dinosaurs. Some of them roared at us but we just roared back. It was a really rainy four days but it is always nice to see my northwest family. Next visit to Seattle will be to welcome the newest grandaughter....due January
Monday, November 23, 2009
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
paperwhites, planting
Six months ago I packed up all of my Christmas decorations and put them on the truck to Denver. The are residing in the basement of Whitney's home along with too much of my other stuff. We all thought I would definitely be there by this time. Wrong! It looks like I will still be living in sunny California through the end of the year so I am without Christmas embellishments! Merde! Solution: I have gathered a shallow red pot from the garage and filled it with paperwhite bulbs in anticipation for a show of white and fragrance in December. I will chronicle their progress:
First day of planting 20 paperwhite (narcissus) bulbs in a pot. I placed a layer of rocks on the bottom of the container and rested the bulbs on top. Then filled water to the level of the base of the bulbs to stimulate the roots to "wake up" It's showtime in 6 weeks (That's December 29...Oh I might be too late...let's see)
Sunday, November 15, 2009
After the fall
A few days ago one of my climbing roses was full of blooms. Even though I love to see them on the bush I had to cut them and bring them inside so that I could not only see their beauty but smell their frangrance as well. Yesterday the blooms lost their petals. I scooped them into the kitchen sink and this is the spill the petals made. Paul Bocuse rose petals..... a fitting place to fall
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Mushrooms in sherry shallot broth
Another soup! A pretty fast preparation time, too. I found this recipe in Sunset Magazine October issue. The shallots mild flavor complement the mild and earth tones of the mushrooms. I used all portabellas...some little ones and 1 big one. But use any kind of mushrooms you have or can find.
1 lb mushrooms cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup chopped shallots
butter
sherry
thyme
4 cups chicken broth
Saute the shallots in butter until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add mushrooms and 1 tsp fresh thyme. Cook until mushrooms are lightly browned, 8-10 minutes. Add 1 cup sherry and bring to boil, stirring. Add chicken broth, cover and return to boil, then simmer 3-4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with a garnish of thyme and flat leaf parsley.
Bon Appetit!
Sunday, November 8, 2009
The spa at La Quinta
Early this morning I took my rescue pack (art on the go) out to squat in front of this building known as The Spa. Soon into my sketching a resort employee driving a cart offered to bring me a chair to sit in. About an hour later the Spa manager offered to let me come in to the Sanctuary to do my art there. It is interesting when you take the risk to "be an artist" in public what kind of people come by to watch. Anyway I spent a couple of hours on this and then we had to come home so I finished it this afternoon at home. It is a bit larger than this....my scanner needs to expand a bit to get it all. It is 15" x 11"...a little big for me. It was a good art weekend.
