travel, friends, family, art, more family, more art, moe friends, more travel

Way back when, I was about to leave for La Jolla for the weekend. I went (travel), stopped at the Cathedral to visit sister Vicky (family) ~ she's doing splendidly and looks bright and shiny up there on the wall in that cool, quiet place. While I was there the organist was practicing; I know that makes her happy, all that music and stained glass light. I saw friends (friends), ate great food, and had an all around fine time. Every morning we took her two rambunctious Golden Retrievers for long walks through the lovely streets of her neighborhood ~ the Wind 'n Sea area ~ and down to the beach. Nice brisk workout for women and dogs, while gazing on the zillion dollar "cottages" hugging the shores. The weather was perfect, the jacarandas were in bloom; it's easy to see why folks want to sell everything in Oklahoma and move there.

I think the highlight was a trip to a day care center for orchids. I kid you not! My hostess has orchid plants all through her house ~ probably 20 of them. When their blossoms fade and they look a bit peakéd, she bundles them off to this place for a rejuvenation session.


Saturday morning we set off to Leucadia, a little seaside town about 20 miles north of La Jolla. The place, Cal Pacific Orchid Farm takes in your faltering plants, feeds and pampers them until they are about ready to bloom again, then rings you up to tell you your plants are ready to return home. There are three giant greenhouses filled with thousands of recuperating orchids of every description. This is definitely a problem of affluence, I suspect.

I flew home on Sunday, exhausted by all that socializing. Tuesday I took my driving test. The instructor was dubious about folding his considerable bulk into the front seat of Dorothy but, once he did so, was amazed at how comfortable a ride she gave us. Passed, of course. Now I'm legal for another two years. Because of the eye business I can't get a license that's good for any longer. Pain.

Wednesday I went down to San Jose on the train to go to the Wayne Thiebaud Retrospective (art) at the quite beautiful San Jose Museum of Art. Seventy years of work by this remarkable painter who, at one time, was a professor here at UCD. Here's a short part of the interview that's part of the show. I am a big fan of Thiebaud's work and was delighted have a chance to see it. This is a new part of the SJMA and, since I arrived early I was almost alone in the place. The perfect way to see and linger.

Back home to prep for granddaughter Emily's arrival on Friday (more family). What a treat it was to have her here. She's one of those responsive, talkative teenagers, easy to be with, easy to engage. Not a sullen cell in her body. Good job, Alex! Our dance card was full of great things; beauty treatment (her), out to lunch, full day of shopping in Sacramento, then movie on Sunday. We went to see "Toy Story 3." The "franchise" holds up nicely, and the thought that this would be the last adventure for Woody, Buzz, the Potato Heads, Rex et al. made it a three tissue movie instead of only two. Monday morning she flew home to begin volleyball camp at UCLA plus all the other things 16-year olds do in the summer. I've forgotten what those are . . .

Then last week was spent reading and getting caught up on my Flix® holdings. Watched "Winged Migration" which I missed when it was around on the big screen but even so it is quite a remarkable film.

Thursday I was off to (more art) the Birth of Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Musée d'Orsay show at the de Young Museum in San Francisco. Eye popping! The d'Orsay in Paris is currently undergoing renovation and San Francisco is the only place these works are being shown. If you think the exhibit is coming to your town, and SF is NOT your town, forget it. If there is any way you can get there I encourage you to do so. You have until September 6th. After that part closes, there's a second show, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cézanne and Beyond from September 26 - January 18. After doing the de Young ~ pretty crowded ~ I went over to the Palace of the Legion of Honor ~ hardly crowded at all ~ for a second helping, Impressionist Paris: City of Light. Posters, etchings, drawings and photographs with a few paintings. Such riches, right down the road.

It's heating up here in the valley. Last weekend it hit 100º and will come close to it this weekend. The heat makes for a fine yield at this morning's Farmers' Market; beautiful squash, eggplant, apricots and nectarines. Still no really good tomatoes but perhaps if the heat continues they will show up next weekend. I finally made it into the pool; 84º and absolutely perfect. We will have a quiet 4th, puttering in the garden and trying to keep things alive through the heat. We are expecting a short visit from friends (more friends) who are year-around-ers in Cuyutlán. They trek up to el Norte annually to visit family and take care of business. We'll dine together on Friday night. Then we pack up and head off to Bozeman (more travel, more family) for a week's visit with Cait and Mike and the twin granddogs, Huck and Zeke.


DVD FIND: In Treatment, an HBO series with Gabriel Byrne about a psychiatrist and his various patients. His own therapist is played by Diane Wiest. As he sees each patient you learn about them and come to "know" them and him. Every now and then you can see where Paul (the therapist) is headed and you want to jump up and yell, "No! Don't go there!" I'm still in Season 1 and loving it.