Who's There?

Song - Step Inside This House by Lyle Lovett



 Still knocking......

This is a pair of beautiful gate grill ornaments from Paris, France

And a fire breathing door latch on Josephine Bakers home in the Dordogne.

 An elegant door knocker from Umbria, Italy on a beautiful wooden door.



"Personality can open doors,
 but only character can keep them open."

--Elmer G. Letterman

Sixty and Counting

Video - The Squirrel, the Physicist and the Bird Feeder by Claude Lyneis

Zipper the squirrel just chillin'

So Friday is day number 60 of shelter in place!

And I am wondering how you and your families are doing?

If you are anything like me, there are good days and not so good days.

Some days I get a lot done around the house and in the garden.

Other days I want to sit and read.

Some days I find an interesting recipe, order the ingredients and cook to my hearts delight while listening to fun music.

Other days nothing sounds appealing....

But I do think I am adjusting and each day gets better and better.  I also feel like the warmer weather has helped. And seeing my garden bloom!

Hang in there and chill.....like Zipper!



**I hope you watch the video at the top of my post. A woman I have painted with for many years - Joanne Taeuffer has a neighbor in Berkeley and he is the one who filmed this hilarious video! Just see who has the last laugh Shirley the squirrel or Claude the physicist?

"Take life one SIP at a time"

-- Jeanette

I Hear Bells

Song -  Mission Bell by Donnie Brooks

In 2017 Mr. B and I traveled to England and while there we visited Wells Cathedral and The Bishops Palace.  I was looking forward to seeing the amazing clock in the cathedral and the ringing swans in the garden at the palace.  The swans have been trained since 1850 to ring a bell on the gatehouse when they want to be fed.  Unfortunately for us the the couple who had been working there for the last 25 years had just returned to the United States so the swans were not ringing........

In 2018 the male swan died and the female left with her cygnets so that left the pond empty.  But not for long as the trust received two breeding swans from a rescue in 2019 and they are ringing again!

You can now view Grace & Gabriel on their "swan-cam"

Blackbirds

Song - Blackbird by Paul McCartney

Blackbirds social distancing 

in 

 Bodega, California (where else?)

where they filmed "The Birds" by Alfred Hitchcock



"Mrs. Bundy: I hardly think a few birds 
are going to bring about the end of the world. 

Melanie Daniels: These weren't a few birds."

-- The Birds 

How Old???

Song - The Memory Of The Trees by Enya

The Old Olive Tree - Pont du Gard, France

A plaque has been set in the ground near this tree and it reads: 

“I was born in 908 AD in Spain and was planted by the Pont du Gard in 1988 – 1080 years later.”

How would you like to be the gardener responsible for replanting this tree???

Pont du Gard - A Roman Aquaduct

Built 1st Century AD

"Learn character from trees, 

values from roots and change from leaves."

-- Tasneem Hameed

A Bee and Her Basket

Song - Queen Bee by Freakwater

Two bees and their pollen baskets

Enjoying my Camellias earlier this spring



"The hum of the bees is the voice of the garden."

-- Elizabeth Lawrence

Happy Mother's Day!

Song - Mother and Child Reunion by Paul Simon

Above is a photo of my mother Betty Jane Malacarne at about 4 years of age.  

And she is still going strong at 91 !

I love you mom....thank you for setting such a loving

example of how a life is to be lived.

To all of you mother's, grandmother's & great-grandmother's out there

Wishing you a relaxing day to celebrate you!

I hope you can spend time with your family whether it's in person, via phone call 

or FaceTime or just going through some family photos.

You are indeed a blessing!

"God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made mothers"
 - Jewish proverb

Knock, knock, knock

Song - Keep a Knockin' by Little Richard

Love this door knocker from Pisa, Italy. 

Imagine being a little kid and having to touch this knocker?

It certainly would of given me nightmares!

 These were on the same door and look like orators possibly?

From a door in Venice, Italy

A lion head knocker or pull from Sarlat, France on a beautiful blue door.

Beach Days

Song - Surf City by Jan & Dean

Talk about two right feet?

Right???

I can not wait to take a nice long walk on the beach again!

"Every time I have some moment on a seashore, 

or in the mountains,

 or sometimes in a quiet forest, 

I think this is why the environment 

has to be preserved."

 – Bill Bradley

Top Notch

Song - Stressed Out by Twenty One Pilots cover by Sierra Eagleson

Hello little fellow.......

A quails top notch is actually not a "top notch" but a crest or plume and is designed to impress a potential mate. 

The plume isn't just one feather but six and the bushier it is, the more attractive he is.....Rogaine anyone?

A group of quail are known as a coveys.

This one I captured on a garden fence in Carmel.

"What if I fall? 

Oh but my darling, what if you fly?"

--Erin Hanson

Hump Day

Song - Camel Ride by Booker T and the MG's

A Two Hump Day!

Several years ago I was taking a weekly painting class in Tomales, California

It's about an hour drive from my home and

I got to pass this guy twice a day.

No idea what he was doing on a farm in Marin but it was a sight to see!


"Life is like a camel: 
you can make it do anything except back up."

--Marcelene Cox

Bread Bridge

Song - Bread and Butter by the Newbeats

This is the little village of Estaing in Southern France

The bridge over the Lot River is a UNESCO World Heritage Sight

And she is quite a sight!

Later in the day I saw the village men coming across the bridge after work
bringing home the bacon bread!



 “The smell of good bread baking, 
like the sound of lightly flowing water, 
is indescribable in its evocation of innocence and delight.”

 —M.F.K. Fisher

Time for Exercise

Song - Smile by Madeleine Peyroux

Zipper doing his morning stretches!

Anything for a nibble

**Note: if you were looking for the surprise in yesterdays post, for some reason the video did not land in your inbox.  It was at the very bottom of the post.  If you want to see it - Click on the title to open it!

Someone is at My Door - Surprise

Song - I Hear You Knocking by Wynonna Judd

A decorative piece on a door in Provence

I love the patina of the various colors its been painted

 Our hotel door in Avignon including a letter slot and talking grill

Hotel Garlande

This ornate knocker was locate in St.-Cirq-Lapopie

which is a commune in the Lot district in Southern France.

It is a member of the Les Plus Beaux Villages de France association

My grandson Henry has learned to push open doors because
sometimes there is a surprise on the other side!

I Hear You Knocking

Song - Knock on Wood by Eddie Floyd

I'm still knocking.....knock, knock, knock......come in

A striking knocker from a door in Umbria, Italy

A worn bedroom window lock inside the Saint Paul Asylum

in Saint-Remy-de-Provence, France

where Vincent Van Gogh spent some time 1889-1890

And modern door pulls from Paris, France

Watch for a delightful surprise in tomorrow's post!

Yum!

Song - Green Onions by Booker T & the MG's

On Wednesday I decided that I was getting bored with our usual cooking - meat, veggie, carb, so I found a recipe that would kick it up a notch or two. A woman I follow on Instagram named Lindsay from Pinch of Yum came up with a spectacular idea - Spring Roll Bowls.  She uses all of the ingredients that you would find in a Spring Roll but she had made it into a bowl.

I made a recipe list and Whole Foods delivered all of the ingredients within a couple hours. I did make a couple of small changes - I didn't have a ripe avocado so I blanched some broccoli florets and I added sliced green onions. I think with this recipe anything goes! The Serrano peppers were a little too hot for us so next time I will use Jalapeño peppers. 

It was a huge hit and satisfied something deep.  The mint, cilantro and basil combo were incredible as well as the sweet, salty, tangy flavor in the sauce.

One word of advice that Lindsay says over and over again - Do NOT smell the fish sauce!  Mr. B didn't see that and he did smell it stating that "You will ruin this recipe if you use this!"  I am not a seafood person but I have cooked with Fish Sauce before.  It just adds a deeper layer to the flavors.

Thanks to Lindsay for the great recipe and I am excited to say we will be having leftovers for dinner tonight! Make it.....you will be glad you did!

Great and Blue and Magical

Song -Morning Has Broken by Cat Stevens

Over the last few sunny days my son Tyler and I have spotted this Great Blue Heron 

in our trees and down the creek.

Magical...especially to see him soaring....

Horsing Around

Song - In Spite of Ourselves - John Prine & Iris DeMent

Now for a little comic relief....

Correct Social Distancing from Horses

My youngest son Tyler dressed in a horse mask in Boonville, California.

I guess he wanted to make friends with some horses?

Tick Tock

Song - Orvieto Clock Tower Bells

Torre del Moro in Orvieto, Italy - 2005

What a charming and whimsical clock tower

Puppies!

Song - Dog Days Are Over - Florence & The Machine

During this SIP order I have to admit that my mind has wandered around and into the possibility of getting a dog.  But then reality hits and I know it wouldn't be fair to get a dog right now.  We hope to travel again and until we are no longer able to do big extended trips....no puppies for now.  

Above are our last two much loved West Highland White Terriers - Mika and Max