Thanks to all of you who wrote me privately or reached out via Facebook to ask how our family is weathering the current “atmospheric river” that has borne down on Southern California. As it turns out, Ray and I are still in Texas due to the inclement weather in California but will be leaving soon….

I made this cake today. I used maple syrup and agave rather than brown sugar. I also made the honey butter to put on top. This very simple recipe made one of the best apple cakes I’ve ever eaten. Ray loved it too. The person who posted the recipe said this cake is the one…

Today, Ray and I filled our trailer with metal to take to the recycling place and also met our local junk store friends, who graciously accepted the gift of a couple of SUV loads of our don’t-need-to-store-these-anymore antiques and collectibles. We are very pleased to have relieved ourselves of all of these “extras” that have…