A grownup is a child with layers on. ~ Woody Harrelson To make a full-blooded puff pastry, you need time, you need patience, and you need precision. It's all about the lamination: it's all about building up the layers of butter, dough, butter, dough; as the butter melts, it creates steam, and that brings up … Continue reading What Layers Mean to Me
3 x You = 22
Q: Campfire Tales, you talk so much about trees, I'm inspired to make a difference, but I don't know where to start. Can you please help? A. My pleasure! Below are three comprehensive links to get you started. This contest, put on by Save the Redwoods, is a genius way for parents and kids to … Continue reading 3 x You = 22
Tale of a 4th Grade Nightmare
It's one thing to have a nightmare, like the one I suffered for years of that woman on roller skates who skates menacingly towards me until she's just about to reach me, then is suddenly transported to the far end of the rink and starts coming at me again, over and over... ugh. I'd rather … Continue reading Tale of a 4th Grade Nightmare
Thank You for Your Cypress
Over the weekend, Cindy and I enjoyed our first hike together since... well, we don't need to revisit that, right? (If you missed it, you can catch up at this post.) We hiked the bluffs over a Marine Reserve near Moss Beach: Quick quiz. Can you identify everything the sign forbids? (Better hurry, because here … Continue reading Thank You for Your Cypress
Spring Check-In
My memories of Easter Sundays include two "traditions": Attending church. Not at the usual house of worship, however. Due to the spike in attendance, Easter service required being held somewhere with larger capacity: our local Seventh Day Adventist church. They didn't use their sanctuary on Sunday; we needed the upgrade. Win/win. Bad weather. Even though … Continue reading Spring Check-In
Roadside Art: Beautiful Thoughts Fence
On every fencepost of a house near my gym, an older man (the crow in photo 1) and his wife (the cute chick) turned the front of their home into a declaration of... well, of everything. Who they are. Who they love. Why they love. They are definitely in support of grandparents. Teenagers? Not so … Continue reading Roadside Art: Beautiful Thoughts Fence
Doctor Tree
“But some of the beneficial effects of trees and vegetation on humans may also arise from simply being around trees, since even the experience of seeing trees through a window seems to have a positive effect on health.” “E.O. Wilson coined the term biophilia hypothesis to propose that humans have an instinctual and deep emotional … Continue reading Doctor Tree
A Bit o’ Green
These photos, taken near a racetrack, a bank, a school, and a hospital, represent the corners of a four-leaf clover. You know what they say, right? With Luck Comes Wealth With Wisdom Comes Health ~ Famous Irish saying OK, some of that isn’t true. But what’s today without a little blarney, right? Happy St. Patrick's … Continue reading A Bit o’ Green
Book Review: The Man Who Planted Trees
Full Title = The Man Who Planted Trees, A Story of Lost Groves, The Science of Trees, and a Plan to Save the Planet, by Jim Robbins. This is NOT the allegorical tale of the same name by the French author, Jean Giono. This is the modern-day, non-fiction account of David Milarch, who survived a … Continue reading Book Review: The Man Who Planted Trees
Nature Takes a Stand
We've already established that I'm not a great wildlife photographer (okay, okay, not a great photographer period), but today with Daylight Savings Time reminding me how time waits for no one, I thought I'd revisit an occasion or two where nature decided to help me out by standing still. Here's my favorite. Not only did … Continue reading Nature Takes a Stand
