-4 tide in Appletree Cove

I just wanted to send a couple of peaks at the lowest tide of this summer in Kingston. There seems to be a good healthy crop of eel grass and lots of moon snail casings. We even found a couple of real live moon guys but hid them under the grass so the heron didn't find for dinner. The eel grass is a great sign for the health of the cove. It not only provides hiding places but nutrients for all variety of marine life. There were a smattering of clams (all eaten by moon snails, as was evidenced by the tiny hole on the top of their shell).

The beach went out for what seems like miles. We almost walked up to the ferry and did walk until we were directly down from Seatter Road, straight out into the bay. I only got sucked down to my knees once. I had to pull out my little crocks by hand because they wanted to become home to the clams. The eagle sat on the beach wondering where dinner had gone and the heron where out with all their friends, making a long parade at the edge of the water. We spied a couple of jelly fish and many crab but only one live guy. To celebrate the sunny afternoon and the beginning of summer we ate lunch on the porch while watching the cove stretch out before us.

Wish you were here!

Love,
Mama Llama

Strawberries and Peonies

Happy Monday everyone. It is the first week of summer and I can just barely spy some blue sky out there in the far northwest corner. Although this last week has seen the traditional cool, gray weather of the Pacific Northwest, we did have an extraordinary 3 weeks of summer weather. The result is great crop of strawberries on Tulin Road. I never have more than a handful to eat from the garden but this year they have been more than abundant. I froze a cookie sheet for enjoying in the winter months, made a batch of frozen jam and have enjoyed eating strawberries with yogurt each morning and noon. What a wonderful treat and a reminder that gardeners in California should have no pride - how hard is it to grow food if you actually have warmth and sunshine!

The second wonderful gift from the unseasonably warm weather has been a beautiful array of peonies. Without the wet and cold to cause blight, the peonies have been outrageous. Their delicate full blooms are such a luxury since they have only a short season to show themselves. I have enjoyed peony bouquets all over the house!

The rest of the garden is doing well. The snap peas are giving little gifts each day and I found 3 small zucchini ready for harvest. The greens, arugula- kale- lettuce -broccoli rab, are in abundance; far more than we can consume, already. I am now spraying for deer regularly after they ate the first rose blooms for dinner one night. The slugs, small worms and insects are eating away to their stomachs satisfaction as I can't seem to think of a way to stop them. Sharing is the rule of gardening, I guess.



As you can see, there is not much excitement in Kingston right now but I did have a 4 day excursion to Twin Lakes to start the summer season. Anita and I cleaned the carpet and made a few other preparations for July but the weather was so gorgeous we also read on the dock in our swim suits. We took the first cocktail cruise to make sure the boat was working well and I made time for some kayak trips down the lake as well as a short bike ride to the end of the upper lake. It was a great reminder that summer is a time to play. With good luck, we will continue to play on the Fourth of July in some nice hot summer weather.

I am now on to projects and chores this Monday morning but send you all a hug and a smile. Have a great week and I will talk again soon.

Love,
Mama Llama

Gems

Well - too long a break. While the ducks paraded through mom's yard, out in the east, Susan "Duckie" Ellsworth had a parade of her own - a birthday parade. So first to that...
Here's our recipe of the day that turned out great: Grand Marnyay Crepe Cake
Recipe: Mix up a grip of crepes and a bowl of whip cream (flavored, if you desire, by liquor). Layer. Chill.

Warning: the cake may leak in your fridge, so put a towl or something down. Warning: if you ruin your first batch of whipcream because you're not paying attention and it turns to butter, don't try to save it, go to the corner store.


It was a perfect cake for a Sunday Champagne Brunch birthday. Great with fruit salad, mimosas, mini-quiches, cheese biscuits, fresh bread, and other delights that may be on-hand. We followed brunch up with an anarchist take-over of the nearby tennis courts. My serve still sucks, but tennis was great, and fortunately we played doubles, then jumped in the pool next door. Unbelievable.

Moving back in time: Bermuda. Yes they do wear those shorts and yes the Uigars from Guantanamo are the luckiest refugees ever (except for being in Guantanamo for years and years) and yes the uigars will be required to wear khaki shorts with knee high socks and blazers. But... they'll get to go swimming here:
So they got that going for them. (and sisters, I know you're jealous of my form on this dive).
Bermuda was like stepping into a postcard. Perfect weather, amazing hosts, tempered only by crazy narrow roads. The wedding of Minta, Susan's cousin, was beautiful, and her family was, as always, very welcoming, very fun. More on all later. Really just getting some pictures up to make everyone jealous. One of the trips many highlights was "Glass Beach." (Following this winter's trip to "Round Rock Beach," all my childhood treasures are becoming swiftly less valuable.) This was an amazing afternoon - our last of the trip. We follow-up on an off-hand comment from somebody and asked our host, Kathy Wadson about this place. Turns out the place was one of her favorites - though most other locals we asked didn't even know about it. These places amaze me - crazy and magical (because of the obvious appeals, but also because of the funky stuff that always goes along with - in this case, an old maritime slave graveyard on the hill above (if i'm remembering right), and syringes, etc. at the high tide mark. Just enough to keep it off the cruise ship itinerary), strangely peaceful, with a history (of people more than politics) that you can feel, and always turning up by a combination of luck and openness to adventure. The small beach on this small cove was probably no more than 200 yards long (split by an old concrete pier), but covered in sea glass. All the cobalt glass has long been scavenged, but years of dumping from a nearby, and now shuttered, glass factory left many gems, including chips of old porcelain (from plates to conductors), twisted and rusty pieces of factory pipe, and enough bottle ends and half-melted bits to keep a curious child occupied for hours.
For now, will leave with a few pictures, and return later to tell about the Bike Show, the Memorial Day Ride to Gibson Hollow, and the trail of tears that accompanied both events (for varied and random reasons - physical, environmental, mental, and /or emotional).
Discoveries discoveries always to be made.

Glass

Fennel covering the seaside hill.

More Jumping (i would send you pictures from the beach, but just look up "bermuda amazing beach" or something and photoshop us in.

Flora

Signs of Summer

Summer is visiting Kingston. I can tell by all the old friends I have seen this week. The ducks are visiting regularly and becoming so bold as to walk through the rose garden in search for bugs. Even Duffy has no effect on their parade. I sit on the porch early in the morning having coffee and reading, without a coat and scarf. The noise of the birds is constant all day long but the frogs have mostly gone quiet at night. This morning I spied a bright yellow goldfinch on the front wire and the other day a busy hummingbird. The wood pecker is looking for treats everywhere, the electrical box and eucalyptus tree but not yet the house. And the weeds are growing faster than I can possibly keep up but I haven't yet given up- that comes in another month.

On an early morning walk I surprised a mother rose-rat (read here DEER) quietly browsing the side grass of a neighbors road. It is a good thing he didn't meet the coyote that surprised us both when he leaped over a berm of blackberries onto the road. His backward movement was almost a cartoon when he saw me standing in front of him. I suspect I was the more scared! I hear the coyotes calling one another occasionally but haven't seen one WALKING before.

It may last only for a week but the excitement of summer has definitely arrived. I am reminded of the excitement the arrives with Christmas and suddenly realize the similarities. Both seasons hold emotional memories of magic and play, set in our childhoods when play was the only focus of life and the structure of magic and fun was set by our parents. This often leads us to disappointment when the summers and Christmases of our adult life do not meet our childhood expectations.

But we can return to those seasons of magical fun again when we take on the responsibility of building a magical structure for ourselves and for others around us. The energy of building and planning does not take away from the loose, fancy free idea of summer. Rather it returns the commitment to play and to making time for fun in our days. Make this summer memorable by constantly giving effort to play. Take small moments to have ice cream with friends and larger moments for kite flying or a walk through the park. Lay in the sun with a glass of iced tea and read (it only takes a few moments if that is all you have). The summer is yours for the making. Enjoy it!

Lilacs Everywhere

With the beautiful weather this weekend gave the Northwest, the fragrance of lilacs filled Tulin Road. There is nothing that says Springtime more than the smell lilacs. They are everywhere in the house now- bedroom, living room and kitchen in big bunches. Even with the cold gray rain today, I stay happy with the reminder that warm weather and sunshine do return from time to time.

This leads me to my thought for today . My ferry ride to Seattle gave me time to finish a book by John Straley. I recommend this author. He has a nice poetic voice in his story telling and IS the poet lauriet of Sarah Palen's state, you know! His little story of the 1930's in Seattle and Alaska reminded me that all life is movement forward , backward, then forward again. Sometimes the backwards times seem to be all we feel - they go on and on. All we can do is keep swimming against the current to keep ourselves from sinking. Sometimes the current of life seems to help us along a little but then we are tossed back into the storm to struggle beyond what we believe is our limit. Eventually we learn to follow the current, hoping it will carry us to our destination or at least keep us wishing. Then one day we notice that the sun is out and we are happy. We have a life that holds our dreams when we didn't even realize it was happening.
In the midst of uncertainty and change, breath deep and try to float a little. Let the current of life do some of the hard work and know that you will get to the place you long to be. If you enjoy the trip then it is even better so splash around a little.

Happy Springtime to you!

Happy BIrthday to Erin

Today is Erin's birthday. I am thinking about this day, 28 years ago. It was very early in the morning the day before Mother's Day when we left Kyrsa and Colin with Cheryl Narod before heading to Bremerton. After Erin was born the hospital let me rest an extra day because Kyrsa and Colin were waiting anxiously and energetically at home in Hansville. When we came home from the hospital, we went to Papa Joe's for cinnamon rolls and the ladies gave me a corsage left over from Mother's Day. Anita was there with us the first week and had fun bathing Erin in the kitchen sink at the Hansville cabin.

Unbelievably, that was 28 years ago. So many memories and adventures have happened since. There is nothing in my life that is as wonderful as being a mother to 3 wonderful children. They are people I enjoy and I am proud to have them in my life. Each part of their growing and my growing has been filled with exciting changes and challenges. I wouldn't have guessed the adventures and joy that was ahead of me at the start but I thank God for the gift.

Today is the beginning of another year of adventures and challenges for Erin. I know there will be joys and laughter as well. I thank all of my children for sharing their adventures and their growing with me, even now. It makes my heart smile as I imagine your smiles.

I wish I could give you a day at the beach

I wish I could give you a day at
the beach
The sound of the water running
fast and slow
The feel of the gentle breeze and
the gentle sun
The taste of hope and a smile

The last poem for April but not the LAST

Dossier's editorial page brought back an old friend from the 70's .

"There are those who love to get dirty and fix things.
They drink coffee at dawn, beer after work.
And those who stay clean, just appreciate things.
At breakfast they have milk and juice at night.
There are those who do both, they drink tea."

- Gary Snyder

Guess I just get dirty and appreciate!

Day After Easter

(not about anyone in particular - just rhyming!)

Basho and ME

Old Pond
frogs jumping in
water sounds

- by BASHO




one rribbitt
croaking thunderously
now silence

- by mama llama