Wednesday, December 23, 2015

winter light


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happy holidays!

Sunday, December 06, 2015

sweetness ❤ ❤ ❤

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around the house

olivetti 
PL figurine amelie gave to me years ago 
hand/paw holding cuteness

Sunday, November 29, 2015

cardboard times

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when your sweetheart is somewhat cardboard obsessed and crazy imaginative/playful, this kind of thing happensa board game that may be morphing into a puppet theater. 

the kinky stringy piece (aka louis) is by marilyn. the top pair are a bit roboty. more pieces. ++#==>>>///•••

Friday, November 20, 2015

november light

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mexican marigold gnome 
pepper bright 
pinky light

Sunday, November 08, 2015

november

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 pinky leon and sötnos honey and salve (soon to be on etsy at Sotnoshoney)

Sunday, November 01, 2015

honey harvest #2

harvest2  

that sketched plan above was cast aside when we got in the hive. there were so few bees in the hive that we removed both supers (20 frames!). this way the bees have an easier time keeping their hive warm in the winter. 

joan and i had the help of her son this time. mini beekeeper!

it looked like a beekeeper massacre on the kitchen floor. we left the scene of the honey robbery pretty quick-like as we all had angry bees buzzing by our heads. as soon as we were indoors, the suits came off in a flurry. those things are hot, especially after dealing with agitated bees.  

right now the honey is dripping through the first strainer; it'll strain through a finer mesh after that. 

dealing with 10-ish frames of honey turns out to be a lot messier than 3.5 frames.

 



 

Saturday, October 24, 2015

first beeswax salves!

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this is my first little hunk of beeswax melted from the cappings left over after the honey harvest. 

after the wax hardened, i re-melted it with olive and coconut oil. off the burner, i added cardamom essential oil for a warm wintery scent. i added beet root powder for the glosses for a little color. voila! the salves harden very quickly; it's satisfying to watch. more process photos.


Sunday, October 04, 2015

honey's first egg

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this is honey, the norwegian jeerhon. she's petite and bold. she strikes me as a no nonsense kind of chicken. she's the first of the younger chickens to approach looking for treats when i enter the chicken region of the yard. she was also the first of the young'uns to lay an egg (the little white egg); honey squawked for about three hours pre and post that first egg. loudly. i was wondering what was wrong with her that day. she was probably wondering that too.

i try to match my clothing to her speckles when possible. ;-)



Sunday, September 27, 2015

introducing sötnos honey!

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my first honey harvest went great (i think—not really sure what i'm doing).

joan helped, and it was so much easier to handle the boxes/frames together (though i'm sorry to say, some bees still got smooshed). we only collected three and a half frames (yielding 14 small jars of honey), but we'll do another round soon, and that will be it for this first year of beekeeping! the bees will need the rest of the honey in the hive to get them through the winter. i hope the bees make it through. i only have one hive, and a lot of beekeepers lost about half their hives last winter.  

we used the crush and strain method (instead of the centrifugal extractor thing) since we are just doing small batches. (thanks for the tip, jean.) there was very little crushing though. more straining. i'm hoping we didn't add too much uncapped honey. apparently the honey can ferment if one includes too much uncapped honey. (honey is deemed done when it's been capped/sealed by the bees. it has then reached the right water content.)

the honey will be called sötnos honey. sötnos is a Swedish endearment that means sweet nose. label coming soon.

 

 

Wednesday, September 16, 2015

bits

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pastel pinky 
espresso float (again) 
sea music festival at hyde st. pier

also went on a fun field trip to point reyes with lady friends last weekend when it was HOT. ate the requisite dunbar at bovine bakery, wandered around, went to limantour beach, and made it back to berkeley for an early dinner at saul's deli. unplanned, relaxing, and fun. 


Wednesday, September 02, 2015

fieldtrip: philo apple farm

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every bend, corner, path, and field at philo apple farm is like a storybook. gorgeous. i'm sure it has required plenty of blood, sweat, tears, and thoughtfulness, resources, and family to make it what it is, but as a guest it feels like one is in an easy dream.

laurel and i attended a farm dinner there, with mostly anderson valley locals, and complete with live music. we played ping pong on a cracked and lovely colored table, while lefty the dog herded the ping pong table and us at breakneck speed, to the point of his being drenched and our having to stop out of concern for him. we enjoyed the incredible view of the farm from our room above the kitchen. the next day we ate biscuits and yogurt with philo apple farm jam. then we walked among the redwoods in hendy woods state park and checked out the very—sadly—piddly navarro river, which is dried up in parts due to the drought. and we brought apples and tomatoes and jam and apple vinegar home with us. all around yum.

Saturday, August 22, 2015

fieldtrip: tidepools

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a fun day at fitzgerald marine reserve tidepooling and in pacifica eating, lying in the sand, kite flying and visiting the beautiful yonder shop. linda fahey owns the perfectly curated seaside shop, where she also sells her wavy ceramics, whale watercolors, and more.

Friday, July 31, 2015

before / after

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front cafe in SF

Friday, July 24, 2015

old photos

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been going through old photos lately. started looking more closely at the series the above photo comes from. i noticed that my cousin malin is wearing the green dress that later became a favorite of mine. just realized it must have been a malin hand-me-down. also noticed that i am cracking up in the above photo.

i love the swedish flag in the center of the desserts tray. i love the blue and green napkins, the flowery couch, the orange lamp, and the green thermos (in another photo). i love the total mishmash of decor.

in another one in the series, everyone is singing. must be a birthday. i love mormor's outfit (floor length floral skirt!), and my aunts' outfits. so 70s. and my cousin karin's jumpsuit. must have been hot for the uncles to be going around shirtless. this is how i remember swedish childhood summers—full of family, which was so fun and different from my usual only child life. 

Saturday, July 18, 2015

chicken friends

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jessie and juanita at top
nebraska 
honey 
nebraska, honey, and penguin

Tuesday, July 14, 2015

pink and red

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had to add some color pop! for 42.

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around alameda

biked this crazy delicious peach galette home from the farmers' market today. it's from crispian bakery, opening very soon, too close to me.

teenager chickens playing with their food.

Friday, June 19, 2015

midsummer PL

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glad midsommar! | happy midsummer

Saturday, June 13, 2015

lately

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Wednesday, May 20, 2015

some of the animals

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1. jessie; 2. pinky leon; 3. chicks (so far: miss ohio, charlie brown, one i'm calling penguin, nebraska, and honey); 4. bees!

that last photo is from a video of the bees in action. you can see the pollen pants on a couple of the returning bees! you can also hear the yard.  



Sunday, May 10, 2015

county line harvest

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an outstanding in the field farm dinner, this time in petaluma, right across from straus ranch. such a gorgeous part of california. great food, great table mates (including an entertaining, opinionated, surly rancher), ridiculous views. fog rolled in during dinner and the blankets were passed out. brr.

last year, we went to capay farm

Sunday, May 03, 2015

strikeaway

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it's been so fun to see the amazing and clever entries to courtney and alicia's strikeaway show

i sorted through jars and jars of matchbooks/boxes at the alameda antique stores. found some gems (above). (couple of closeups.) unfortunately i saved working on mine until the last minute and didn't have time to execute the one i had in mind. instead it became a simple one: note to self

some of my favorites from the ones i've seen:
 
hey yonder shop's whale
lindsay anne watson's burning house
sonya philip's
ian mclellan davis' zine
vase and flowers by molly hatch
nottene's

Sunday, April 26, 2015

nyc and alameda

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back in alameda after a trip to nyc. always nice to come home. (bee homes now in place and ready for bees!)

some photos from the lovely highline park in ny below. and more.

also loved this tom fruin house along the water by the brooklyn bridge.

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Sunday, April 12, 2015

little swarm

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i went to get a beekeeping lesson from chris of bubble farm soap co. bubble farm soap co. has some of their hives at alameda point collaborative farm. the farm was so pretty yesterday—blue skies, kids doing some farm work, and the bees buzzing.

upon arriving, chris spotted a little swarm, so he went to get a box to drop them into. it was pretty magical to have my first beekeeping experience be standing in grass by a flowering tree with bees buzzing all around. at a of couple points, seeing multiple bees walking around on me, i got a bit nervous, but i knew from taking a class at bubble farm that bees are at their calmest when swarming because they're filled with honey (which they eat in preparation to swarm). they're hanging out while lady scouts look for a good home. plus i had my suit on! so i kept filming and stood still and listened to the buzzing and watched all the bees looking like little bits of light zooming around.

after that, chris checked on his hives, which were in various interesting states, and explained what he was seeing/looking for.

knowing what to look for on the frames and deciding what to do in response to what i see will definitely be a long learning process, but i feel much more comfortable now about trying beekeeping! thx chris and jean!






Saturday, April 04, 2015

getting closer

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still a few bits to paint, but bee boxes are almost ready!

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

abuzz

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i'm sure i've said it before; spring is my favorite.

at the top are prints in bubble farm soap co's window. i had to go there to get some honey-related gifts and share with jean that i ordered my first beekeeping setup! very exciting. it sounds like it's been an extra rough year for beekeepers/bees with bee die offs in the winter. many bees were most likely affected by the varroa mite, though of course colony collapse disorder and climate change could be factors too. 

looking forward to painting my bee boxes and welcoming (with a little trepidation) swarms!

Friday, March 20, 2015

spring walk

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took a walk with Marigold yesterday.

met the owner of this car; he informed me that this was the first Chevy to use fiberglass instead of wood. 

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the baby leaves are so shimmery these days.

nasturtiums ♡

this blog is becoming a catalog of walks.

Friday, March 13, 2015

today's walk

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marigold (pretty lady)

bang ponytailed dog

Saturday, March 07, 2015

spring colors?

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Monday, March 02, 2015

alameda streets

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Wednesday, February 25, 2015

at home

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i think cards are the only things i regularly collect, but then i'm always giving them away too. some are hard to part with though. above is but a fraction from my breadbox stuffed with cards. seems like i see cards regularly for many people close to me: horses for mom, cats (everywhere!) and quilts for my aunt on my dad's side, marine life and mermaids for liz. birds and dogs for dad, oddball/funny drawn animal-creatures for laur. quail and bicycles for heather, bees and plants for elissa. the list goes on.

pinky sniffing

 

Friday, February 20, 2015

alameda sights

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nother view of this fun thrifted vase

think i'm going to get some bees! excited.
 

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

more

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from the glorious weather weekend

morning sun with PL, fika with a friend, and a walk in the afternoon down magnolia- and jasmine-scented streets. pretty great.

i survived my first no-phone distraction day today. wasn't that hard, really. though i did find myself bargaining with myself at one point. "no dice," i had to tell myself, and kept reading. and, maybe more importantly, i had a conversation with an old acquaintance and introduced myself to the stranger i've been sitting next to at work for over a month. (crazy, really. though in my defense, he hadn't introduced himself either.) 

Sunday, February 15, 2015

mm

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delicious colors.

perfect jelly heart is from crispian bakery, opening soon right next to feel good bakery in alameda. they're going to give feel good some serious competition.

sweet marigold, my new neighbor dog.

and the weekend of gorgeous weather continued.



Saturday, February 14, 2015

happy valentines day ❤

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it's been a ridiculously beautiful few days here in the bay area. 72 degrees and everything blooming. too early for spring, but it sure feels good.

i did some mindless heart drawing and stamping for valentines. been a long time since i got lost in a project. i miss that.

everyone talks about how our brains are changing with our addictions to our phones/constantly checking them. i feel it (in numerous ways). i am considering taking a year off from FB and IG. or maybe i'll IG only on the weekends.

my plan is to each day try start at least one conversation with a stranger or acquaintance or have a longer conversation with a friend. this will be a HUGE challenge for me as i'm quite introverted, and i enjoy, for example, listening to music or reading and not talking with anyone on my daily bus commutes. but, i also would like more in-person interaction with people, and i may need to make this kind of commitment in order to make it happen. funnily enough, the day i came up with this idea—a couple of days ago—i had more conversations with strangers and acquaintances than i normally have in a week.

going to try this for a month to start, starting tuesday. we'll see how it goes/if i sense that my brain is acting any differently/if i can handle not checking my phone all the time.

❤ ❤ ❤

Friday, February 06, 2015

rainy reds

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and minty specs

our love


Monday, February 02, 2015

sun light / moon light

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been so enjoying daylight arriving earlier and staying later. i like this half of the year leading up to the summer solstice better than the other half, for sure.

one of my favorite things about where i work now is that the university gym's outdoor pool is on top of a building. it revolutionizes my days to be able to leave the sea of cubes, to walk in the cold air from the locker room shower up to the roof (nothing like a little cold shock), to watch the sky above as i swim. today's back strokes were cloud filled. just blue and cottony white stretching in all directions. those cloud blanket days are always so comforting/calming. all of us wrapped in the soft stuff. the best. i do the back stroke a lot more now that i swim outdoors.



Monday, January 19, 2015

MLK

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my day today:
1. fought my way out from under cat purring on chest. took a video, but purring not captured.
2. dressed and listened to a pretty good forum on how to talk with kids about race (lessons to be applied to adults too).
3. took a long walk in alameda in the sun. snapped some old cars.
4. sat on my favorite bench and took a selfie. 
5. saw MLK likeness in a window (actually in all windows of this house).

(not pictured, among other things: the ebelskiver i made for breakfast! i also got stuck under the cat at breakfast. kale salad and more ebelskiver i ate for lunch, uneventful dinner leftovers, the erasing of the hard drive on my old computer. sharon van etten singing serpents)







Friday, January 16, 2015

lots of PL

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paper doll pinky leon (bday suit; debonaire; super PL!; cowboy; strummin;) i forgot to photograph frenchie PL with his beret)

paper doll PL created for my 2014 holiday card (from the annual PL holiday card series).

PL year in review (video)

Saturday, January 10, 2015

spotty

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glowing spotted bearded mitsy was workin' it on pacific ave.

bigger

Thursday, January 01, 2015

hello 2015!

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my word for this year is new, which will mean boldness and risk-taking! things i'm not great at, but that are necessary for living! for a new therapist, new website (first new computer, as this one is on its last leg), new girlfriend, new direction creatively (and maybe job-wise?), new commitment to community building/volunteering in alameda, new arrangement in my living room to make it more conducive to making), new adventures, new hikes, new activities, new quilt sewing, new dance moves