Dreams, Moments, Travels
Because we have more electricity (and taxpayers’ money) than we know what to do with, and businesses are so flush with cash that, just like consumers at home who leave all their lights on with the sprinklers on in the rain, we Americans do not have a clue about conservation and so find ourselves needing extra lights on during daylight. Maybe it makes us feel safer.
Disclaimer: This series of blog posts regarding our weekend to Santa Barbara was a mess of mixed-up images, followed by a longer post dated after our return that consolidated things into a single post. Here in November 2022, I’m repairing those mistakes.
Sunday starts again with flowers. While on our routine visit to the park for a morning dog trot, I wander about looking for flowers. Yesterday, the park was full of children; today, the place is almost empty. Caroline talks with Gail, who brought Augie and Chester with her.
Augie and Chester, instead of playing with Sophie, are more interested in nuzzling with my aunt and uncle, who have a soft touch for an animal’s affection. We spent a short time in the park today before going to Costco for a berry sundae and are soon back at the house.
Caroline and Aunt Anne are picking lemons for us to bring back to Phoenix and I help with putting some heavy items into storage. My Uncle’s back is not what it used to be, and he is supposed to stay away from heavy lifting. On our visits, I try to help with what I can. Near the lemon tree, Caroline found this large specimen of a spider!
By early afternoon Caroline and I are already about to end our short visit here in Santa Barbara and will soon be on the highway going east. With the car packed, we say bye with the hope that we will visit this coming Christmas. On the way out, we stopped at a farmers market we spotted earlier in the morning in the parking lot of the Costco plaza. Vendors from all over the greater Santa Barbara area are here selling their pesticide- and chemical-free fruits and veggies.
This farmers market operates every Sunday from 10:00 until 2:00 and will see us coming back again and again.
The weather and view are already a pull to leave Arizona and move to Santa Barbara; this farmers market adds another reason. Of course, the high price of living here is a stumbling block. This market is everything Caroline and I could wish for from such a small operation.
From chilies and squash to carrots, cheese, and honey, this farmer’s market has it all. The contents of the small booths seemingly wink at us to buy a little of this and a little of that. If we need convincing to buy, the local cheese seller has donned an Elvis costume and belts out the Blues tunes to sell his blue cheese; think Blue Suede Shoes, Blue Hawaii, Blue Christmas, you get the idea.
Exotic Asian veggies such as sinqua, opo, and bitter melon are all for sale, along with lemongrass, bean sprouts, and some unidentifiable greens. While we don’t need any of those, we do buy lots of tomatoes: heirlooms, chocolate, and some small beefsteaks. We add some carrots, lettuce, and beets, too.
Finally, if you are not sure of what you want to buy, you can be sure that half the vendors are going to offer you samples to tempt you into shopping for more. We ended up with grapes, a watermelon, plums, and some truly great grape juice from the Monahan Family Farm in Paso Robles, California. This juice is from Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah grapes and is unlike any grape juice I have ever had – you have got to try it.
With not much room left in the car and the air conditioning on full to keep our stash fresh, we again tried heading back to Phoenix. Soon, the ocean beckons. We heed its call. North of Seacliff, we pull over and jump over a safety wall onto the rocks piled up to the highway that leads down to the beach.
Caroline loses control under such beautiful conditions and decides she just has to make a splash. The beach is almost empty; we have it to ourselves, and in a second, Caroline is finding her way into the Pacific – with her modified swimsuit. Refreshing is how she put it; cold is how I would describe it.
On the other side of Route 101, the Amtrak Surfliner train is leisurely making its way south. The train originates in Paso Robles and passes through San Louis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Burbank, Los Angeles, Anaheim, Irvine, and San Clemente, terminating in San Diego.
Now hungry from the shopping and frolicking in the surf, it is time to stop for lunch. We chose an old haunt from my punk rock days called Oki Dog on Fairfax and Willoughby in Hollywood. Oki Dog is a joint, a tiny corner shop with a health department rating of C, but that is of no concern when dealing with such a unique experience. Home of the world-famous Oki Dog and Oki Burrito. I’ve been eating the Oki Burrito since I was a teenager when Oki Dog was on Santa Monica Blvd. With friends, we would leave the Starwood, Whisky a Go Go, or the Anti-Club and head to Oki for the two tortillas, grilled veggies, layers of pastrami, chili, mustard, and pickles all rolled into the biggest burrito you have ever seen which as of this writing was only $5.45.
By 6:30 we are in Indio, California. The sun has just dipped below the mountains, and we are still 90 minutes from the Arizona border. We will finally get home minutes before 10:00 p.m., happy with having a weekend so far removed from routine.
Disclaimer: This series of blog posts regarding our weekend to Santa Barbara was a mess of mixed-up images, followed by a longer post dated after our return that consolidated things into a single post. Here in November 2022, I’m repairing those mistakes.
Saturday morning, we are up early to accompany my Aunt Ann and Uncle Woody on some chores, and while they take care of their business, I wander about, taking in the scenery. We stop for breakfast at Cody’s Café off the 101 freeway at Patterson. Well-fed, it is time to walk the dog, and a local park with some nice flowers is just the place to do it.
The nearby park is full of five to nine-year-olds who are playing soccer. Relegated to a small corner with a bench is the dog congregation. Sophie, my Uncle’s German Shepherd, joins the party, and for the next half hour, dogs run everywhere fetching tennis balls until they get bored, and Caroline ends up chasing after one too many.
Later in the day, Caroline and I take off for some sightseeing. As we have been to Santa Barbara a couple of dozen times, a lot of the places we visit now are repeat stops. Today, I am looking for flowers, which take us on back streets through the hills. The Santa Barbara Mission comes into view, and for the first time, I recognize that across the street is a flower garden in the park.
This is a large, well-manicured rose garden. Hundreds of plants are in bloom with just as many varieties. A few people are sitting nearby having a picnic, facing the roses. Others are playing with their dogs or rolling around with their kids. It is a beautiful, clear day here in Santa Barbara.
Red fringe fading to orange with a yellow center is the first rose that grabs us, followed by a rose that is more orange-bordered with a hint of pink. A caretaker is kneeling nearby with her dog in tow who watches over her while she manicures a corner of the garden.
The classic red rose sways nearby in the late afternoon sun. A faultless specimen with a blood-red allure draws me in for a closer look at these crimson petals aglow. It is a shame that after so many visits, this should be the first time we stumble upon this flower patch.
A backlit pink rose almost fully open offers its sweet aroma to all who will bend to witness its scent. Caroline is partaking in the scent of dozens of blooms, I expect that she will become dizzy and fall over from all the deep inhaling of the wafting aromas. Instead, she asks for the camera to capture a few of her favorite roses.
We continue walking through the rose beds while the sun hangs heavy in the late afternoon sky. In the distance, we can see the ocean; a couple of sailboats are meandering along the coast. Next to us, a white rose with a small red outline offers a glimpse into its many layers of petals.
While buds and more mature blooming flowers are what gather most people’s attention, the roses that are fully mature and are wide open, laying bare the stamen, are also of extraordinary beauty. With petals still fresh and not yet wilting, this pink rose looks as though this would be the ideal view of such a breathtaking flower.
A pink and red speckled rose with its stamen collecting the sunset is fully open and about to wither. Even though its life is near its end, this rose doesn’t fail to amaze these eyes that are more accustomed to differentiating gradations of desert brown.
We end the daylight hours with a drive to the beach and a turn north, taking us to Hope Ranch. Next to Montecito, the hilly community of Hope Ranch is one of the most desirable places on earth to live. Perched over the Pacific Ocean with idyllic year-round weather, this equestrian-friendly community is postcard-perfect, as is our sunset.
Disclaimer: This series of blog posts regarding our weekend to Santa Barbara was a mess of mixed-up images, followed by a longer post dated after our return that consolidated things into a single post. Here in November 2022, I’m repairing those mistakes.
Caroline and I got a late start on a short road trip to Southern California. After delays getting ready and missing the pick-up time for Caroline, we first had to stop at Starbucks as we were both tired, and then I needed a bite to eat, so In & Out Burger on the edge of Phoenix was our next stop. Finally underway, it is already 5:00 p.m., and we have almost 500 miles still ahead of us. It takes an hour and forty-five minutes to make our way across the desert to reach the California border. The 10 Freeway West offers little opportunity to stop for a photo. The scenery on the way out west is a vast landscape stretching flatly towards distant mountains. This time of year, you see a lot of browns.
From the former border control checkpoint, it takes another three and a half hours to reach Downtown Los Angeles. We exit at Alameda Avenue, which is also the Union Station exit, and turn left to enter the city center. Los Angeles at night nearly always offers a gorgeous view. Legs stretched, and road hypnosis shook free, we are again on our way to our final destination for the weekend, Santa Barbara.
The new Walt Disney Concert Hall is part of the Los Angeles Music Center.
Caroline took this shot of me with a shutter open for 20 seconds while we drove down the road. We turned the cabin light on for the hand wave, and then she turned the camera to the side window. Don’t worry, fellow drivers, the street was nearly empty.
Preparing meals in a home where someone is a vegetarian while the other one is not, can put a monkey wrench into any hope for simplicity when it comes to eating a meal. A meal plan is essential for me to see what I will be cooking in the coming days, as spontaneity is not always easy when trying to keep veggies exciting. To avoid a bland diet and eating out all the time to satisfy my need for diversity and lots of flavors, I try to work with a meal plan to see where our diet is headed and to see that there are exciting meals coming up. Keep in mind that at home, I eat a vegetarian diet along with Caroline.
Thank GOD for the internet; the cookbooks get expensive and rarely have a diversity of items that I’m looking for. The other problem with cookbooks is that they focus too much on bread, cakes, cookies, breakfasts, sauces, dips, dressings, appetizers, snacks, and desserts; I need real ‘meal’ type recipes.
Breakfast doesn’t need a meal plan. Most of us eat a vegetarian breakfast most of the time anyway. We start the day with a smoothie. Our smoothies are not only for breakfast but are also used to try to stay in compliance with the new food pyramid. My typical recipe looks like this:
½ cup Walnuts
2 tbsp Flax Seed
2 tbsp Wheat Germ
½ cup of Soy Yogurt
2 tbsp Flax Seed Oil
2 Cups Frozen Fruit (Blueberries, Strawberries, Banana, Mango, Peach, whatever)
2/3 cup Carrot Juice
2/3 cup Orange Juice
For Caroline’s glass, I added a heaping teaspoon of protein powder.
From this, we get part of our nuts, seeds, grain, protein, omega 3’s, fruit, orange veggies, and a good dose of vitamin C along with a bunch of other nutrients.
Some days, we also have oatmeal with a smoothie. Our preparation of oatmeal typically has some raisins or dried cranberries, a banana or a grated apple or strawberries, blueberries, or a peach.
Lunch is a play-it-by-ear meal. Often, Caroline takes leftovers to work, but at times will go out with coworkers and have a salad, baked potato, or veggie burger. I forage about town.
Dinner is a difficult meal for me; I was raised to have meat at dinner, and it adds the savory substantial item that veggie dinners are often missing for me. Here, I need a meal plan.
From spending more time in the kitchen, I have a good sense that a recipe is going to have the oomph I want for it to be satisfying or interesting enough to warrant trying it. Complex flavors are the key I’m looking for, not boiled celery with tossed pine nuts over tofu.
Here is my meal plan for the next week and a half:
Saturday – Homemade Gnocchi with Tomato Cream Sauce (Italian)
Sunday – Eat Out
Monday – Chick Pea and Potato Curry (Indian)
Tuesday – Homemade Green Corn Tamales and Refried Beans (Mexican)
Wednesday – Foul Mudammas & Pita Bread (Middle East Recipe)
Thursday – Gobi Manchurian (Indian/Chinese Cauliflower Recipe)
Friday – Arroz Verde (Mexican Green Rice Recipe)
Saturday – Fire Roasted Corn and poblano Chili Tacos (Mexican)
Sunday – Eating Out – Meat Fix!
Monday – Tacos of Calabacitas (Mexican Zucchini & Corn Recipe)
Tuesday – Lathera (Greek Baked Veggie Dish)
Wednesday – Beet Curry (Indian)
As long as time allows, nothing in our kitchen is prepared in some far-off factory as a ready-made meal. I use dried beans as often as I can (yes, we have a pressure cooker to speed up the cooking of dried beans). I will make the gnocchi by grinding cooked potatoes, mixing them with flour, and shaping them myself. The tomato sauce is made using ripe Roma tomatoes, garlic, ginger, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, fresh basil, oregano, onion, and cream. For the other dishes, I will use fresh corn, green chilies, cauliflower, zucchini, spinach, cilantro, beets, potatoes, tomatoes, and various other ingredients.
For the longest time, I resisted the idea of a vegetarian diet, but since I tried cooking more and more dishes that both Caroline and I could enjoy, it has become a habit to use the freshest food items and to make a serious effort to try new things. My thought has been that if I am going to try making this or that, I should make the best effort to create something truly healthy. which has led me to avoid prepackaged convenience.
Shopping frequently, about 3 to 4 times a week, I am constantly looking at what the store has and what might inspire me. This is especially true when visiting ethnic groceries. If I find an item that looks interesting, but I am at a loss to know what to do with it, I will either ask anyone standing near me or note it for later when I can look up on the internet what it is and what it is used in.