Sunset at Rio Del Mar Beach

 

                                                                                

    This is just one of many spectacular sunsets at Rio Del Mar Beach in Aptos, California. You might be more familiar with Santa Cruz, which is 10 minutes from Aptos. I took this photo a few years ago. If you get to the beach at sunset, you will meet up with many others who are there to witness this beautiful sight. The different phases of a sunset amaze me. One mustn't take their eyes off the sun setting for a moment. It is a beautiful progression. No one sunset is ever the same.

                                                                 

Rosie

 

                                                                            

                                                                                  

 This is my dog Rosie all bundled up in the back seat of our truck. We're heading to our condo in Lake Tahoe. She doesn't like being cold and is well prepared for the change in temperature as we approach the mountains. Maybe some of you have heard about the massive amounts of snow Lake Tahoe received this year.

     

    Along with the snow came unbelievably cold temperatures. We arrived at our condo on the North Shore and decided she needed some warmer clothing for her outdoor outings. We found a cozy pet store in InclineVillage. She had her Christmas sweater on that I brought from home. We bought her a hat and shoes to keep her extra warm. She has never had shoes before and was not thrilled about wearing them.

    Rosie is a purebred Boston Terrier. She is sixteen years old and in good health. You can't see her physique, but she still has a muscular body and very active. Her little gray face and cataracts show proof of her age. We love her so.

    Here is a picture looking outside the window of our condo. We have never seen so much snow in Lake Tahoe in all the years we have been coming here (40 years). Lake Tahoe hasn't seen this much snow since 1951-1952. Tahoe has received 812 inches of snow this year. That's over 60 feet!

    This final picture is taken from inside the truck, going down our street toward town. The snow plows hadn't gotten to this road yet. How absolutely beautiful right? A true winter wonderland. The Palisades (formerly known as Squaw Valley) will be open for skiing through 4th of July this year. That's how much snow there is. We're headed back this week for a few days. Of course, Rosie is coming with.

I can't recall where I put Rosie's little snow shoes...I hope I find them, they weren't cheap!

Quiche

 

                                        

    This cookbook is a wedding gift I received from my brother and his wife thirty-six years ago. Terri knew that I was very much concerned about my lack of cooking skills and practice, so this book was very much appreciated! There is a recipe in this book that stands out in my mind. It is Quiche Lorraine on page 166. Very early in our marriage, I had a small group of women over and I made this recipe. I forget what the occasion was, but Terri was at my gathering and she raved about the Quiche Lorraine I made. She went on to make this quiche for the ladies at her church and continues to make it to this day.

    I pull this book out at every holiday. I use it now and then throughout the year too. I made my first Au Gratin potato casserole from this book. It goes so well with a really good steak! I'm planning on passing this cookbook down to my only daughter. I found a handwritten recipe from my mom in between the pages the other day. If you're looking for a dish to go with your Sunday brunch, I highly recommend this recipe:

                                                                   Quiche Lorraine

Ingredients:

Pastry for 9 inch one crust pie

12 slices bacon, crisply cooked and crumbled

1 cup shredded natural Swiss cheese (4 ounces)

1/3 cup finely chopped onion

4 eggs

2 cups whipping cream

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

Directions:

Heat oven to 425*.  Prepare pastry (I use ready made Pillsbury Pie dough). Sprinkle bacon, cheese and onion in pastry-lined plate. Beat eggs slightly;  beat in remaining ingredients. Pour into pie plate. Bake uncovered 15 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 300*. Bake until knife inserted in center comes out clean, about 30 minutes longer. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting. 

6 servings; 625 calories per serving.

A simple, yet elegant dish. 

                                                         

Poppies

                                                                   "Seven Wild Poppies"

                                                                

                                                                    Seven wild poppies,

                                                                    No others in sight,

                                                                    They catch the eyes 

                                                                    Of all who pass by.

                                                                    Like those who choose

                                                                    To be their own smaller crowd,

                                                                    Being true to themselves,

                                                                    A reason to be proud.

                              (photo I took from the sidewalk, on my way home from a hike 4/23)

Ocean

                                                                               Haiku

 

                                                                     To the sea she walked

                                                            Crashing waves, there to greet her

                                                                   It's Kona's playground.

Nosy Neighbor

 

                  

    I'm pretty sure we all have one...a nosy neighbor. My nosy neighbor is at our second home in a neighboring city. I consider it my sanctuary. It is a small cottage directly across from the beach - a humble abode with a million dollar view.  It has a nice front yard with lawn, roses, various plants and a few trees that frame our yard. It's a joy to garden there in spring and summer. All is pretty much perfect at my little Shangri-La, except for my neighbor to the left of us...

    There are no tall fences between our two properties. I have a white picket garden fence and a very narrow street between us. Facing my home is her kitchen window; which when she is not outside talking as loud as humanly possible to every passerby there is, she is at the kitchen window - watching every move me or anybody makes. She has a vegetable garden on her side yard that faces me. She tends to it a lot. I can hardly go outside without her bellowing out, "Hey Linda, haven't seen you for a while!" Her voice is SO loud too. Sometimes, I wait to go outside until she goes back into her house.

    Last year, this woman walked onto my property when I was not there and cut down my rose bush by two or three feet. She claims it was blocking her ocean view while she cooks. Are you kidding me! Of course, I complained to the HOA and she was told to not touch anything on my property again. I was so mad. I mean, who does she think she is? I jokingly said to my husband that she thinks she is the mayor of that little corner of our community. She put a sign in the street (with an underlying threatening tone) during Covid that everyone needs to have a mask on when walking down the street that divides our homes. (Almost done venting...) She would even yell at people from her front porch, who were out for their daily beach walk, that weren't wearing masks, "Hey, put a mask on!" 

   

    For the most part, I think she is harmless. She is just terribly, terribly annoying and has no boundaries. I'm a little concerned though...a tree that lines the left side of my property line, that blossoms beautiful purple flowers has suddenly died (?). A healthy tree for six years, has shriveled up and died. This is a tree she asked us to trim three years ago, and like good neighbors - we trimmed the top down, so she could have an ocean view while she is at her kitchen window. From her front porch, she has a 180 degree view of the ocean. 

    We've been doing some renovations to the house the past few months, so she'll be seeing a lot of me. And for the record, we are planting a bigger tree where my dead once purple blossoming tree is now.  When we bought the place, a quiet lovely couple lived there. Sadly, they moved and we got a new neighbor. 

    Thank you all for reading my rant of a blog. I wish her no harm, but I do wish she would keep her voice down and only use her gardening sheers on her property. As for my dead tree, with once beautiful purple blossoms...we are installing Ring cameras. 

Maui

     These are the shores of Kihei, at the southwest end of Maui. We spent a week in Kihei - summer of 2022. It was our first time renting a condo for our vacation. In the past, we stayed at the Fairmont in Wailea. We decided to try something different. I went online and searched for ocean front condos. I found Kihei Condos and liked what I saw. Two things attracted me: the condos were on the beach and I liked the price!

I couldn’t help but think of all the money we would be saving on food and drinks. It also sounded private and relaxing. Before arriving, we stopped at the grocery store, stocked the fridge, bought some snacks and drinks; we were set for the week. The picture above shows the endless shores on the beach. This made for miles of walking and reflecting. 

    We were told by some locals that we had to experience Sugar Beach bakery. We brewed some coffee and set out on foot for some sweet treats. It was an interesting and colorful place. There was a line out the door. They were only letting one customer in at a time. I’m guessing because of Covid. They didn’t accept cash, but lucky for us and our iPhone  - Apple Pay! The locals were right, the cookies were rich and delicious. There were several beautiful roosters walking about the tables in front of the shop. This was one handsome fella!

    This is our view from inside our condo. We were on the second floor. Now that is what I call a deck with a view. I’m pretty sure I took this picture in the late afternoon…palm trees, stunning ocean, ever changing hues in the sky, and always a warm gentle breeze. I love the weather in Hawaii. For that one week, I never had to worry about feeling cold. I don’t like being cold! I live on the coast in Aptos, California (Santa Cruz County). It is a beautiful place to live and I feel blessed to live here, but it does get a little chilly at times.

            How about this for a walk on a warm evening with your loved one, a friend or by yourself.  

    If you could zoom in on this picture, you would be able to see the many stars! I was in bed sleeping and woke up during the night, opened my eyes and this is what I saw. I immediately grabbed my phone. You can see the white dots, but in real time, the bright stars were dancing in the jet black sky. 

     See you in May Maui! 🌴