Decades ago three of us attended the same two room elementary school, Clay Center, located at the corner of the intersection of two gravel, country roads, surrounded by rolling farmland in Northwest Missouri.
On Wednesday morning, we strolled though part of The Huntington Gardens and one of the art galleries there.
Ramona, the youngest one of us, is visiting her brother, Craig, who lives in Palm Springs. She loves succulents so we headed to that part of the gardens first.
Ramona and my daughter strolling along one of the wider pathways.
I have been here at least six times in the last six months. I see something new and fascinating every time.After the succulent and cactus area, we headed to one of the art galleries. When I was here before Blue Boy was on loan. Yes, this is the genuine Blue Boy. Craig was so excited to see him and loved this gallery, all of it.Ramona wanted to see the Chinese Gardens so we passed by this portion of the Japanese Gardens on the way.A little water fall.A tiny bit of the Chinese Garden.The lake in the Chinese Garden was full of water lillies in bloom. Most were flat on the water but not these.The three of us together for the first time in decades.
1/2 medium sized sweet yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1 jalapeño pepper, deseeded, cut in half lengthwise and cut in 1/2 inch pieces
2-3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1/4 large, red, bell pepper, deseeded and coarsely chopped
3 cups lacinato kale–see directions below
1 cup cannelloni beans
Olive oil
Spices–for this recipe I used World Market Mediterranean Greek
Before measuring the kale, cut out the central stem, discard, and finely chop the remainder of the leaves. Sauté the onion and garlic in enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan or skillet until the onion is translucent. Add jalapeño and red bell pepper. Cook until tender but the color is still bright. Sprinkle spices over this mixture and stir–amount of spices to suit your taste. Add kale. Stir and cook until the kale it totally wilted. Add cannoli beans and serve over rice.
Note: Other spices I use include basil, thyme, and fennel essential oils. Be careful when using essential oils to cook. A little goes a long way.
Monday evening I attended a private reception at The Getty for photographs taken by teens to reflect their reactions to the pandemic and the shut downs. This first photo explains the exhibit.
I was able to attend because Faith Mowoe invited me. She is my daughter’s cousin and teaches English at a high school here in California. Usually The Getty is closed on Monday. We arrived early hoping to be able to walk around a bit, but they did not allow anyone to enter until 5:30 so we strolled around the gardens near the parking lot. You cannot drive up to The Getty. You have to park in the parking area which costs 20 dollars and take a shuttle to The Getty which is otherwise free. This and the next few photos were taken at the gardens near the parking lot.The Getty sets on a hill overlooking portions of LA in all directions. The red on top of the mushroom like pillars in the this photo is bougainvillea. The amount of stone in the buildings is huge. The Getty comprises several different buildings including several filled with art, others for research, and a theatre.This photos shows one of the teen photographers. This one is from Ohio. The following photos illustrate the teens who were chosen out of the more than 1600 entries.We briefly met the young lady in this photo. Many of the students who took the photos were present and honored by the sponsors of the exhibit.After eating–the reception provided all sorts of delicious treats, wine, beer, water, and various others drinks–we strolled into the gardens.
Posters have been made from the teen photographs and will be available for purchase.
The Getty is astonishing. I was able to see only a tiny portion of it. Definitely a place to see if you come to Los Angeles.
Life brought me to the San Gabriel Valley in Southern California late last summer. A few months later, my childhood friend from elementary school in the farmlands of Northwestern Missouri moved back to Palm Springs. Today I drove out to the desert to see him, Craig Prater. I arrived a little early so drove around, took a walk downtown, and took some photos. We were so intent on catching up and visiting, I forgot to take a photo of Craig and me together. Here are photos I took as I walked and drove around.
Palm Springs shopping area.
Desert mountains surround Palm Springs. It is hot compared to where I live. When I returned to my car after lunch, the thermometer said 121. It really was not quite that hot, only 103. 1.25 hours later when I arrived back home, it was 87 at my house.
I took this to include parts of the palo verde tree and the mountains. Palm trees are everywhere as you can see from the photos.
This is one of the largest palo verde trees I have ever seen. I want one for my backyard. You see them everywhere in the desert. Now that LA County has water restrictions, it would seem to be a good choice.
Palm Springs is Mid-Century Modern architecture country. This photo and the following photos are some examples of the types of houses I saw as I drove around.
While some houses still have grass, the trend is desert landscaping to save water.There is a house behind all this desert vegetation.
Every year Laguna Beach has a Garden Tour. We decided to take a look and celebrate Mother’s Day one day early–my daughter, grandson, his girlfriend, and I. To be honest the tour was a bit disappointing but Laguna Beach itself definitely was not. We enjoyed ourselves immensely and will return.
We decided to do the cardio tour–yes, that is what they called it. The shuttle drops everyone off at Garden 1, you follow a map, and walk the rest of the tour. The option is to take the shuttle just about everywhere. We did not do that. Here are a few photos I took along the way.
The rest of my family in front of me walking one of the cardio sections.
A door I loved in an alley along the way.
Laguna Beach is very hilly. Many houses are not only like those above but perched at the top of the hills.Some interesting flowers along the way.
The final street of the tour was the street closet to the ocean.
Looking through the gate at the side of one the elegant houses along the sea. Some people apparently prefer more privacy.I found this undulating grass quite fascinating.This and the following photo are of Shaw’s Cove, a rather hidden public beach with waves crashing against rocks and only a few locals. There is a series of steps that lead down to the Cove.
April is National Poetry Month. While emptying one of the boxes still stacked in the garage after the move, I found the book in which Missouri high school student’s poems were published. The following includes a photo of the book and my first published poem included in it.
Unlike The Huntington where you can find plants from all over the world, this garden focuses on plants native to California.
Near the entrance.
Not sure you can see here, but the mountain top has a tiny bit of snow left even though in the 80s in the garden.
Many of the plants are labeled. This one was not.
This is the sycamore mentioned in the previous photo.These large trees are everywhere. I did not see a label.Channel Islands Bush Poppies. I have not made it to Channel Islands National Park yet.In this photo the snow on the mountain is evident. Much of this garden is forested and cool.California IrisPoppies and Firecracker Penstemon. Wild Iris blooming everywhere.A small Coastal Redwood forest. Redwood trees grow better if more than one so they can join roots and communicate. I have one in my yard and no space to plant another to keep it company.One of the mountains often referred to as sisters.At my house all the squirrels are brown. Here I saw both grey and brown.California Buckeye. The flowers emit an intense heavenly perfume.The flowers. If I had space in my yard, I would plant one. Wild strawberries.The edge of a sculpture garden with some interesting sculptures.Poppies and Iris.More Iris .Many flowers, many colors growing together.
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