Here are my pictures from our trip on Tuesday to the LA Arboretum and Botanical Gardens in Arcadia.  This is a very pleasant place to visit, and would be a perfect spot to go for a picnic on a beautiful spring day.  There is also a great gift shop with lots of goodies for not…

I am sitting with Jonah. We are doing our quick write. It is a bright sunny March day with a slight breeze that is causing the Nandina bushes outside my living room window to jostle to and fro. Cordelia is currently licking the wooden floor, which has recently been mopped with Murphy’s Soap. I may…

Thank you, Ray, for teaching me a few things about life over these past 30+ years. You have opened my eyes to art, architecture, antiques and design; the whole realm of the visual. You have also pushed me to express my feelings. I count chasing you around the back yard with a crowbar early in…

I made Ray a maple sugar sweetened Hummingbird Cake for his birthday party on Sunday (actual birthday tomorrow) and I must say it was quite a hit. I have included the traditional recipe I used from Food Network with my modifications in parentheses. This will be a regular on my special events menus from now…

Ray and I went with our friends, Chanel and Jeff, and their three friends visiting from Vancouver to the Getty Art Museum today. This was part of an early birthday celebration for Ray, who will turn 56 on Tuesday. We saw several exhibits, but the most notable was entitled, “A Royal Passion: Queen Victoria and…

We went tonight to see the Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel and I would highly recommend it. It is fun, tells a grand tale and has a host of compelling performances, the greatest of which is Ralph Fiennes. He simply shines on the screen, perfectly suited for this part as a devoted concierge and…

I am baking this orange cake tonight as a welcome home goodie for Ray who is returning from Texas tomorrow. This looked so easy, I couldn’t resist. This is from Elton Brown, who is generally reliable. I am looking forward to getting a taste of this pound cake since the orange zest comes from our…

How my parents ever got together, I can never figure out. My mother is tall, my dad isn’t exactly short, but he’s a good two inches shorter than Mama. He has dark curly hair; she has blonde straight hair. He’s a Republican; she’s a Democrat. He’s a teetotaler; she loves wine and overindulges regularly. He sings…

I am pleased to report that my flash fiction piece, “A Brother’s Gift” has been accepted for publication at the Provo Canyon Review, a print literary journal. I am especially pleased about this because I rather impulsively submitted it when I saw the Provo Canyon Review’s Call for Submissions. This is a very short piece,…

I started my day a little discombobulated. What to do and how to get it done? Then I thought about the basic tenets of Morita Therapy, a Japanese psychotherapy that draws heavily from Zen Buddhism: Accept your feelings. Know your purpose. Do what needs to be done. I then proceeded to perform a myriad of…