And this still life is life still! The least Monday feeling Monday I’ve ever had. Got dressed up to walk with KP to Walgreens to buy wipes yesterday. That was my weekend. Date night at Walgreens. I am sick of being fish bowled by Zoom. Anyone? Bueller? I am realizing what it may have felt […]
Fourth of July this year has been a scorcher. Who better to roast with than friends and family? Thankfully, we anticipated the relentless burn of global warming on New Orleans and this year acquired, just in time, a commercial daiquiri machine, into which, all liquids must now go. One of our barbecue attendees exclaimed that […]
My hens bring me joy. Sometimes I lounge in the yard with a plan to read a book, and then spend the hour watching chickens dodder by, top-heavy, clueless, burbling like a slow stream. They bring me laughter and peace, and every day, warm and smooth round gifts. We love to give our ladies oats […]
A delicious Good Friday morning. Squash blossoms yawning open with the sunrise. Hot coffee and fat buttermilk gouda pancakes with a side of crackling bacon. The nest thick three chickens deep; a solo clarinet issuing “Just a Closer Walk with Thee” from a radio hitched to the coop (I believe the ladies are urged along […]
Went to a bounce dance class with some girlfriends recently, in the name of exercise. In the mirror, if I’m being charitable to myself, I looked like a marionette in the hands of an unskilled, perhaps drunk, puppeteer. Even when it isn’t pretty, adrenaline and a good bath in your own endorphins is the best […]
My parents celebrated 41 years of marriage on Monday, and on that bright day in 1976, they served champagne cake to their guests in Portland, OR, my mother’s favorite. Mom recently came to New Orleans for a visit, and in addition to entertaining the chickens, restructuring my patio and filling raised beds made chicken-proof by […]
Now that day has exhausted me I give myself over, a tired child to the night, and to my old friends the stars — my watchful guardians, quiet and mild. -Hermann Hesse I read this verse last night while enjoying several idle hours on night float call. Usually I have the happy curse of running […]
Glorious Springtime Weekend. Planting seeds by day, House of Cards by night. There is a new chicken at the Hammer ranch, Juicy. She’s a beauty. And a new flower post fashioned from a PVC pipe, hole punched and spray-painted and stacked with petunias and other bloomers. Pretty sure this is un-waterable…. didn’t think about that […]
Happy Mardi Gras! A time when an entire city wanders amongst themselves seeming to hum “What a Wonderful World” in raucous harmony. We are so delighted to be back in New Orleans to enjoy firsthand the magical experience. Because we are Midcity-ites, we had a huge party to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Endymion. So […]
Friday night call. It’s chicken soup for the soul time. Chicken and Wild Rice Soup Adapted from Food and Wine 4 tablespoons unsalted butter 3 celery ribs, cut into 1/2-inch pieces 2 carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces 1 medium onion, chopped 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped thyme Salt Pepper 1/4 cup […]