Month: July 2010

Jane in cowgirl hatWhy blog? Well you might ask. There are a lot of reasons, but mostly it’s fun. I love taking pictures of the ranch, because when I take them, I have to focus and be mindful. Those are good things. It’s my way of being grateful.

For the horses in the meadow.

For the Farewell-to-Springs that are now blooming . . .

Apricots, and apricot jamsSummer’s arrived at the ranch!

We sleep under the whirl of the ceiling fan, the cool air blowing on the sheets. I’d forgotten all this long winter how much I loved listening to the purr of the fans in the middle of the night. Soon the creeks will dry up and the coyotes will visit the pond, bringing their haunting cries. But right now, evening surrounds us with the croaks of frogs and crickets. On black, moonless nights, there are a million stars . . .

Jane, house remodel, smallI’m trying to remember that first year, the one the propane guy thought I wouldn’t make it through.

I have to admit once I’d moved up here, I found myself missing the little boost of self-confidence I’d gotten from living in Berkeley—from living in the trendiest place in the most fashionable neighborhood in the coolest city in America. Berkeley. The city with the highest number of PHDs and MacArthur Genius Award recipients. The paradise of the liberals . . .

Rain byt Elvis PayneHenry James said the most beautiful words in the English language were summer afternoon. But for me, it’s the word rain. Maybe you have to live in the California foothills to really love rain. By the end of summer, we’re parched and dusty, worried about fire and desperate for any moisture at all.

Last night, maybe around four, I woke up and heard the comforting sound of rain falling on the roof. It’s March here, and . . .

The next surprise was we weren’t going to have chicken-fried this or chicken-fried that. (Sorry Pioneer Woman) Helen and Scott were vegetarians. They didn’t eat meat. I must have stood, slack-jawed, in the middle of the carrot patch when she told me that. It never occurred to me you didn’t have to eat meat. Vegetarian—another new word beside cove.

(A quick aside for all you folks wondering how on…