Musings

Tonight’s bison meatloaf fresh out of the too-hot oven. I’m still tweaking the recipe, although you can check it out here.

Cold snap last night, and windy/cold today. What does it mean that I spotted a rare-in-ATL Alaska license plate early this afternoon? Additionally, does it mean anything that it was on a 4-door Audi? For extra credit, does it mean anything that this is AutoWeek* in Detroit?

* Okay, technically, it’s the North American International Auto Show….

Posted at 10:22 PM | 3 Comments »

Succulents are drought tolerant.

Rainishness all day, and the levels of Lake Lanier are rising, and have been since mid-December. Great news, since we’re in the “rainy season,” and Lanier provides ATL’s water…. The current level, at about 11 feet below normal full pool, is still wa-a-y too low. Last 24 hrs: up 0.7 feet—terrif!

Darned autocorrect—I almost didn’t catch that it turned “terrif” into “terrify.” And just did it again!

Posted at 8:18 PM | 1 Comment »

If it’s not global warming, there’s certainly plantal confusion (or whatever the term should be).

This is our new brave and lovely quince*, and I’m betting that fruit trees, even wee ornamental ones, “should” not be blooming now…in January. Even in ATL.

* LQ = lovely quince

Posted at 7:33 PM | 1 Comment »

This year has been one for the books. With our losses have come some lovely gains. D&F gave us this quince to honor M&D (thank you!). I was worried that our low rainfall had taken the ultimate goal on this new shrub, and I am so happy to report that it’s put on buds. I just hope that it isn’t too soon….

Our city water comes from Lake Lanier, which now is 14.65 feet below normal—that is WAY WAY low. Our rainfall has been about half of normal this year. Thankfully, some rain is expected tomorrow. Mild rain. Still, better than nothing.

Posted at 6:25 PM | 2 Comments »

I don’t remember the redbud leaves hanging on later rather than dropping sooner, so I’m a tad surprised to see them still on the branches. This one is progeny from the neighbors’ tree.

Appalling news out of CT. How terrible.

Posted at 6:34 PM | Comments Off on Transition leaf

Macro. Imagine the peaks off in the distance that are obscured by airborne snow (e.g., Killington, Washington). View from fire tower (above tree-tops).

Oh, it’s not surprising that I collapse the macro and the micro—I know that I’m being honest when I say that I do cross between these two poles in perspectives as I go through daily life.

For better or worse.

Soooo many micro-moments I could pick from today…I’ll stick with an outdoor example—fern and moss. (Notice that the white stuff goes unmentioned.)

Posted at 7:49 PM | Comments Off on Macro and micro

The ABG is once again proving that it’s about…the bottom line, not plants. Plants are just the theme for…ah, well, it’s a lovely place to roam in the sunshine, and I’m so very glad we have it within walking distance. A good walk, so…today, we punted and drove over—to give ourselves more time to wander the grounds as winter (northern hemisphere variety) and the time change shorten the afternoon….

Posted at 7:16 PM | Comments Off on Progress, seasonal (ABG)

I was going to use a fuchsia-colored azalea bloom photo (yes, in bloom now, silly plant), but it would have been a repeat and sloppy on my part. Even though the color would have been brighter. Instead, here’s a shrub, prepared for winter slow-down followed by spring burgeoning. Forget the name. Still, a lesson here….

In the midst of the afternoon grey, I decided to make my old favorite, green tea, which has been off the menu for months (lazy? summer heat? whatevah).

Now, I’m about ready for a stronger remedy, maybe Seccola frizz ante (back at TJs! after a hiatus)…or a Côtes du Rhône red…. SOMEthing.

Posted at 4:48 PM | Comments Off on Compensating

The road dominated our sight-seeing today, in a good way. We had rain most of the day, never hard, but always greying the skies. Indoors, viewing the world through windows, whether stationary or in motion, fitted our temperaments and the weather this day.

Our main tourist-goal was to check out the old harbor at Marseille. We found it wet, bleak, and grim. There’s a massive street-modification project underway, which channeled traffic in odd ways, and added immensely to the lack of appeal. From signs and evidence, we estimate that they’re planning to move vehicles elsewhere (underground? for travel and parking both?) and open the margins of the boat basin to pedestrians. When finished, this will considerably upgrade the area. However, we suspect the looming old hotels will still face the water, shutters akimbo, resembling dowagers who can’t afford to upgrade their appearance.

We did Marseille in a drive-by, and didn’t feel bad about it. The Guru even found a parking place—a legal one—just down the block from Sbux, and happily returned to the car with his large coffee, black.

If the road in Marseille was incommodious, we also found a long, inviting east-west stretch east of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence that was lined with sycamores, and just stunning.

We also visited the end of the road, on the east side of the mouth of the Rhône, down below Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône.

Had we an umbrella (not parasol in this weather!), we may well have ventured out, as these folks did.

Regarding food pictures, I’ll do something with them…later. For now, I’ll run down our evening meal and you’ll have to use your imagination based only on words. Same garbanzo-bean appetizer (very garlicy); a pumpkin cream soup with a phenomenally complex back-beat attained from multiple vegetables perhaps simmered in the cream—not sure how this is achieved (our chef is fearless with cream); roasted vegetables with braised (not sure) fowl pieces (some kind of chicken? other fowl? not sure) laced together with one of those reduced beef broths that take days of roasting of bones, etc. to create; Tarte Tatin dense with the loveliest apples over a tender crust. Yes, yum.

Posted at 10:22 PM | Comments Off on The road, variants

We saw the light today. The grey light. The between-light. The bright light.

Grey skies blanketed the land, with rain and wind in Paris (and, we discovered later, across a wide area) as the Metro & RER took us back to CDG to corral our new steed, Clio Renault—a silver beastie, Euro-scale.

As we motored south, (after a stop at a huge upscale mall, Bay 3, to extend our data plan for the iPad so we can do our not-patented blue-dot navigation), the spitting rain lifted, and we drove into partly cloudy, then bright sun. The brilliance lit up the valley we were in so remarkably, it was like we had paid extra for the perfect timing.

Much of our post-Paris-metro route was through small towns. One had a plaque we got enough of a glance to read that Jeanne d’Arc had been there in 1426 (if I remember correctly). It might have been this one, but I don’t think so.

Ponder this: we drove through Champagne (and did not get wet), and we dined in Dole (and ate no bananas).

One thing I have to mention because it so…surprised me, was for the first part of our post-Paris route, the rolling hills were so gently sloped, just shockingly gently. Then, as we got into Champagne, the hills were steeper, with the soil clogged with limestone chunks. They’re picking grapes now, but I think much of the crop there still has to ripen. Just terribly special to come through there at harvest-time….

Posted at 4:21 PM | Comments Off on Lightness of being