From the backyard

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"Ginger"

Steven Hawking

Here in out own little corner of heaven, in the middle of the city, so center of the city it is named "Mid-City West" we have a thriving wildlife population. Raccoons, squirrels, possum, our koi pond, many little song birds and now... the hawks.
Last year we noticed one hawk. When he would fly overhead the entire yard would go eerily silent. This year, he has returned and brought with him a mate.
They are very bold, not very afraid (why should they be?) and like to bathe in the stream leading to the koi pond. I know they see our bird feeder as a tasty buffet. Lyle says it's all just a part of nature but I am no fan of witnessing the circle of life from a front row seat.

A couple of days ago, I was lying in bed reading and there was a flutter of wings as both hawks flew straight for the house, then pulled up short and landed on the sun umbrella on the back deck, leading me to scream, "Holy Shit! Holy Shit! Holy SHITTTT!" Because I was certain the flimsy screen between me and the outside world would be no match for the talons of these birds and they would soon be creating my own personal version of "The Birds" in my bedroom.

Lucky for me, they prefer smaller prey.
It's a crazy world I live in.

Everyone knows its Windy!

Yesterday we had a HUGE wind storm in Los Angeles. Gusts from 20-70 mph. I battened down the hatches, put everything away that I could find and sat inside waiting to see the Wicked Witch of the West fly by on her bike.

The above picture is our back yard the next morning filled with leaves, twigs and branched (and a squirrel). The wind blew over our patio umbrella even though it was closed and had a VERY heavy base. It also snapped off some bamboo we have in a pot on the back porch. No "damage" per se.

In the front of the house we have two palm trees. The wind cleaned them out. I went out every two hours and pulled the fronds out of the road and out of our driveway. By the end of the day I had a pile the size of a VW Bug.

Across the street, a large branch came down on top of a car. Darn it, I was too slow to get a photo of the car covered, but there is the branch.

And then just next door, a tree came down. Thankfully the owner's car wasn't home until a few hours later. 20 foot tree, buh-bye.

Squirrelly

We've surrendered to the inevitability of squirrels eating all the bird seed in the back yard. Instead of filling up the bird feeder every other day, just to watch the squirrels pull the food out with their paws, throw it to the ground, then get down and eat it... we've just put a big bowl of food out for them on the ground.

I think this squirrel looks like he is having a great spa day out on his gracious lounge.

Where The Wild Things Are

Our yard is home to a wide variety of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom species.

How many can you spot in this photo?

Yellow - small brown birds (technical term)
Red - turtle doves
Purple - squirrel
Blue - Bluebird (of happiness?)

When the Bluebird arrived in our yard I was certain it was a Bluejay and I was determined to drive it away. I would go outside, yell and throw things at it. Then Lyle's mother corrected me that it didn't have the sharp feathers on it's head and that it was a Bluebird. I confessed my trying to drive it away and she told me that perhaps that was why I was unhappy. I was driving away the Bluebird of Happiness!

Due to consistent raccoon issues we have had a wire fence around our pond. Yet the pond was quite disturbed a few days ago. "How?" Lyle asked, "How in the hell did those damn raccoons get in? The fence is perfectly fine. There's no way they could get over it without making a mess!"

Then on the weekend, the answer arrived from the sky:
So now we have green string criss-crossing the top of the fence as well.

Our wild kingdom is definitely propped up by the welfare system we have put in place to feed the birds. On purpose we got a "small bird" feeder that has small holes to discourage larger birds (the crows live in the front yard). And then there is the squirrel(s). We keep moving the feeder to make it hard to access and yet....
There he (or she) is performing some amazing yoga poses, digging in with his paw and scooping the seeds out. Pretty impressive.

Then there is the whole "circle of life" aspect you never anticipate when you begin to attract wildlife to your little corner of the world...

The obvious predator:

And the very large surprise:

GUILTY!

While some people are toiling under snowy landscapes, I have squirrels sitting on Buddah's head. And here I was complaining today that I had to wear long pants AND socks. I apologize.

Summer round up

Well, summer is almost over. It was only 98˚ yesterday and at night I have to wear shoes. Sad days indeed.
As I was clearing a camera memory card off, I came across these photos I took during the height of crazy bird days here in my back yard. (Most photos will embiggen nicely if you click on them.)

Now we are just at the point of regular bird days.

How many birds can you find in the fig tree?

Don't cheat.

Keep counting.

And that's just the ones that fit nicely in the camera viewfinder...

Let's not forget the squirrels. We chased one out from under the bird feeder this morning... okay, Cooper chased it. I didn't even see it until Cooper made it move (quickly) up that tree.

(sigh) I haven't seen a hummingbird in weeks.

A jarring experience

My neighbor has a fig tree. Right over the back fence. Which means that I have a fig tree spilling over my back fence. And I mean that, SPILLING. I'm not complaining, but as the figs ripen, they drop and make a nasty gooey mess all over the yard that attracts insects and is a mess.

So I decided to do something with them. The first year the tree didn't do much and I picked all 20 and made some jam. THE second year the tree did a lot more and I made more jam and some desserts.

This year it seems out of control! I still have jam left over from last year in the freezer. I don't have much more room in my freezer for more jam. What will i do!?!

I decided to do some home canning.

First things first I had to visit four stores. To find jars. This is Los Angeles not Mayberry R.F.D. but I found them. And in a fit of over-reaching, bought two boxes of small jars for a grand total of 24 jars.

Here is the full recipe from Epicurious.com

1/2 lemon (unpeeled), thickly sliced, seeded
1 1/2 pounds fresh ripe figs, halved (about 4 cups)
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 3-inch cinnamon stick
2 1/4 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Preparation:
Finely chop lemon in processor. Add figs. Using on/off turns, process until figs are coarsely pureed. Transfer mixture to heavy large saucepan. Add 2 1/4 cups sugar, cinnamon stick, 2 1/4 teaspoons minced ginger and 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves. Simmer until mixture thickens to jam consistency and candy thermometer registers 200°F, stirring often, about 20 minutes. Discard cinnamon stick. Divide hot preserves among hot clean jars. Cover tightly and refrigerate up to 2 months.

And then where I went with it...

I am not a big fan of ginger, so I dropped that from all the batches. I didn't have fresh ground cloves, so I substituted a splash of "pumpkin pie spices" which had cloves and cinnamon already in it. I still did the cinnamon stick however.

In the first batch I took out the half lemon and put in a whole orange (seeded) peel and all. It is tasty in the winter with pork chops, very fall flavorful.

Mixed Berry Batch on stove

Second batch I had some strawberries about to turn bad. I cleaned them up and since I was adding so much more fruit, I did a whole lemon (seeded) peel and all, then added about 2 pints of strawberries.

Third time at the pot I had blackberries. I've been craving blackberries for a whole month so I had them right here on hand. Again I did a whole lemon since I was adding so much more fruit. I only had a pint of fresh blackberries, so I added a bag of frozen. "MORE! MORE!" was my rallying cry.

(two days later I did a fourth batch of the figs left int eh fridge and any fruit left in the fridge which were blueberries, blackberries and raspberries. I call it my medley.

Hot fruit in pot, I placed my recently sterilized in the dishwasher jars in a cake pan and poured boiling water around them for a hot water bath. I placed a funnel in the top and began my ladling. Jars full, I placed the lids on the clean jars and used my heavy leather barbecue gloves to pick up the jars and give them the tightening of their lives. I repeated this process until I was out of jars.

Hot water bath with funnel

The jars were placed on a cooling rack and we spent the next 2 hours listening to the delightful "pop" of each lid being sucked down to a perfect tight seal.

Orange, Strawberry, Blackberry

Since I put all of this in JARS why is it called CANNING?

Watering Hole

The fountain in the front yard serves many purposes. During the day it's used by crows to wash their food. In the early evening we get this little drinker. All day, hours of entertainment.

Yummy

First item. Set a lovely table. In this photo I am using a new tablecloth I received from my friend Christine V. She thought the large blue florals with green would go amazingly in my orange dining room. I humored her and said, "uh, yeah. I can see that..." all the while thinking it would go nice on my outdoor table with the carved tiki god lights. I was wrong. It is PERFECT in the dining room and I should never have doubted her impeccable taste.

In the background a view of Paris.

Then you want something light. Like a salad. This one has lettuce (I promise, it's under there), cucumbers (from the backyard garden), cherry tomatoes, feta cheese, pink Hawaiian sea salt (its a little sweet yet still salty) and then homemade pan fried croutons.
I promise it is only topped with a healthy olive oil and vinegar dressing.

Then Lyle begins his cooking shenanigans. He is taking a cooking course and has recently learned all about sauces. Tonight's sauce will be Bearnaise. He explains that it is basically a Hollandaise with herbs added. I loves me some Hollandaise.

We start with a pound of butter, melting in a saucepan.

Saute herbs and shallots.

The butter gets clarified (which means all the foam needs to come off the top and none of the white sediment on the bottom gets used).
Bearnaise Sauce:

1-1/2 Tbsp shallots minced
6 black peppercorns cracked
1-1/2 Tbsp dried tarragon (or 1/2 bunch fresh tarragon)
3 oz tarragon vinegar
1 oz white wine
2 oz water
5 egg yolks at room temperature
1 lb melted butter (clarified) warm
2 tsp chervil or parsley, chopped
Lemon juice
Salt
White pepper

Combine the shallots, peppercorns, tarragon, 1 Tbsp chervil, vinegar and wine, in a saucepan and reduce. Set aside.

In a bowl or the top of a double boiler, lightly beat the egg yolks until they form ribbons.

Remove from heat and gradually whisk in the clarified butter, a few drops at a time, and then in a thin stream as in making Hollandaise Sauce. Thin with lemon juice or cold water as needed.

Add reduction to the Hollandaise along with chervil (or parsley). Season to taste with the salt and white pepper. Garnish with chopped tarragon.

Note: Do not allow the sauce to become more than warm, or it is likely to separate. If that happens, add a couple of drops of cold water and whisk to bring it back together.


I know, I know, it all sounds so simple. But it took him some time to get it all going and a lot of pots and pans to create the stuff, not to mention (but obviously I will) more than just his own two hands. It makes a bit more than a pint of sauce. Then Lyle tells us, "It won't hold so eat as much as you can." And we smother our steaks with the artery clogging goodness.

Steak smothered in Bearnaise.
A light healthy salad contrasts.
Ignore the butter laden bread.

A few nights later I am in charge of the meal and I just wanted something a little lighter. Of course that means risotto. Asparagus risotto to be exact. Asparagus risotto topped with Parmesan cheese and lemon zest, a light salad of lettuce, cucumber, and cherry tomatoes, then a grilled chicken breast with just a dollop of homemade mayonnaise with chives and capers. (yes, Lyle made mayonnaise as well - it keeps in the fridge for exactly one week.)

It's been so hot so we choose to eat outside.

On the left you can see the carved tiki god light. In the center, on the power line, you can see a rat. Ah, the joys of city living.

Fortress of solitude

I'm not getting much sleep lately. Just as I drift off, Cooper bolts from under the covers taking them all with him and body slams into the sliding screen door effectively knocking it off the tracks. RACCOON!

Two nights ago the raccoon cleverly circumvented Lyle's previous effort at keeping a raccoon free pond and was able to climb over the 2 foot fence and muck about in the middle of the pond making a huge mess.

When the lights went on and the hounds were released the raccoon bolted down the driveway leaving wet foot prints all the way out to the front of the house. The pond made some strange gurgling noises and by the morning the stream had dried up.

When Lyle came home yesterday he put on his "barn boots" and waded into the pond. Cleaning and resetting everything the raccoon had upset. Once everything was back to working order he decided he needed something bigger, better and stronger to outwit the raccoon.

Luckily that was about the same time as architect Frank Gehry stopped by and he was able to give Lyle some tips on building a more interesting structure.

Gehry designed the Experience Music Project in Seattle.

This is a side view of our pond.

The Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain by Gehry.

View of our Pond from the West.

The stunning Disney Concert Hall in downtown Los Angeles.

An overview of our stunning pond this week.

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

Before I go to bed each night I let the dogs out to potty. For the last two weeks Cooper has had a job to do beside poop. He is in charge of clearing out the yard of the midnight bandit. The Raccoon.

The raccoon wants out fish. The raccoon has already emptied out pond once. We have had to start over with all new goldfish and Koi. This time Lyle has built much better hiding places in the pond.

We have also tried an electric fence that only comes on at night. It looked very ugly by day.

Currently we have a chicken wire fence around the pond. It's not so pretty either.

I understand the animals were here first. I wish the raccoon no harm. I just don't want to buy it dinner either.

Where does it go?

Where did my weekend go?

Late Sunday night as Lyle and I were both laying with the dogs at the back of the house, exhausted and trying to get up the energy to go have a cupcake I innocently asked, "Why are we so tired? What did we do all weekend?" And for the next 20 minutes we tried to remember. Tried.

Let's see, Friday night:

• We went to the hardware store to get supplies for weekend projects.
• Lyle spread grass seed and dirt around the small patch of lawn we have in the backyard.
• I pulled out every single picture frame we have in the house in storage bins or cupboards in an effort to use them or loose them. It covered the dining room table.
• Stained out a bunch of bamboo for a decor project on back deck

Uh, Saturday morning:

• Lyle went rollerblading and took the dogs with him. I made breakfast.
• Went to hardware store for supplies for new batch of projects.
• Lyle planted things in the backyard. I watched him.
• Moved yard decor around.
• Applied clear gloss varnish to bamboo.
• Places bamboo in pot on deck, filled in with sand.
• Watered pots in driveway and watered front yard.
• Went to mall to shop. Bought nothing.
• Bought new glasses.
• Went to dinner.

Hmmm, Sunday:

• Lyle went rollerblading with the dogs again. I tidied house and found somewhere to go to breakfast (I can't cook every day!)
• Bought a table and three chairs at a garage sale.
• Went to breakfast at new(ish) hotel/restaurant The Palihouse in West Hollywood. I'd read about it online in Early March and like to try new things. I can recommend it quite nicely.

• Went to the dry cleaners, dropped stuff off, got stuff hemmed.
• Bought a table and three chairs at a garage sale.
• Picked up table and chairs, took them to friend's house who was storing a different table of mine.
• Switched out tables (third floor, walk up) and brought our table home.
• Dropped some people off for a writing class.
• Went to hardware store. Are we that unorganized?
• Went to Ross Dress For Less where we had seen some topiary cages that might work for new tomato pots but had seen them last year - strangely they still had a couple - worse,they were still the SAME PRICE from over a year ago. It's called a markdown people, clear out your old stuff!
• Tomatoes in pots.
• Obelisks for pots were wrong color, sprayed the out into brown.
• Pots rearranged.
• Yard watered.
• Dinner had.
• Dogs walked.
• Fall onto bed and wonder what the hell we did all weekend.

I'm sure I've left out loads of stuff (like how much time I spent laying on the lounge chairs watching Lyle clean the pond on Saturday - I don't work in the pond, or the hour I spent trying to organize photo frames and distribute them around the house - thought that project isn't done because photos need to be switched out and nails need to go into walls - but I do know where I want them to land at least, the music playlist I put together to keep us moving without having to keep returning to the ipod...

And now it's Monday.

Here's Lyle and the dogs from December:

Birdie num num

I found some bird seed in an old costume bin. It was wrapped up in an old pair of pantyhose and into a fair sized ball. For the life of me, I can't remember what that would be for... But I knew I didn't want to keep it around to attract rodents. I took it outside and made an offering on the Buddah. Feed the birds, tuppence a boob.

In no time at all I had my first customer. Many, many customers all of them camera shy. But I liked the little twitter sounds they made all over the yard and I decided I wanted a bird feeder. Or as Lyle called it, "an old lady bird feeder."

So I took him to the store and let him pick out the least "old lady" styled bird feeder he could find. I didn't care what it looked like. But I did want to make sure it was for smaller birds as we have very large crows that eat Burger King garbage in our front yard. I didn't want to attract any of that to my back sanctuary.

We also got one that featured a slick roof that moves slightly to prevent any squirrels from climbing down the chain and feasting on the seeds.

I guess we need to hang it somewhere different.

Here's our orchid plants in full bloom in the back of the yard. They are stunning and the only secret I can tell you for growing them is to live in Southern California, place them in fairly shady location, water infrequently and completely forget about them. It's working for us.