Things are going haywire

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After posting photos of all the gorgeous houses on the beach, I’m sharing the house we’ve rented each summer since 2018. It’s a three-block walk downhill to the beach. Behind the yellow front door is the bedroom. Upstairs is the living room, kitchen and bathroom. I think it’s cozy and cute.

We made the drive home from Santa Barbara to Arizona in eight hours. We left in the wee hours of the morning and we’re both exhausted. Kitty Olive was so glad to see us. The cat sitter took good care of her and left notes like “Olive was lonely so I petted her for 20 minutes and turned on classical music.”

Once home, I ran into all sorts of weird snafus. The lamp on my nightstand collapsed at the neck where the light bulb is. Then I couldn’t get my Bird Buddy (AI bird feeder) to charge after bringing the camera unit inside while we were out of town. Then I tried to log into my Cox app on my phone to view the outside camera — and it logged me out — and won’t let me log back in. I tried resetting the password. Nothing worked. Not even our cable TV.

I received money via Venmo and I tried to transfer the money, only to get a message that Venmo wasn’t available in my area.

My husband snapped at me over something minor. I realized we are both tired and I gracefully accepted his apology.

Everything is going haywire. It’s like our house is upset we left it alone for three weeks. The electronics are rebelling.

I decided to focus on my reactions. I can’t control many of the issues surrounding me. But I can control how I react. I closed my eyes and pretended I was sitting on the beach listening to waves.

Here are a few more photos:

The kitchen of the house we rented. I love the shabby chic decor.

The view from the patio with barbecue and table. Perfect except for electrical lines.

The cottage we rented in Laguna Beach for at least 15 years while our kids were growing up. That’s our beloved Angus on the front porch (RIP). Can you see why I’m a beach cottage fan?

How do you react when electronics seem to be working against you? What do you do to control your reaction when things seem out of control?

My favorite beach houses

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My favorite house on the beach where we walk each morning and evening.

Part of the enjoyment of our beach walks is looking at the houses — as well as at waves, dolphins and an occasional seal. I’m sharing some of my favorite homes, from mansions to cottages. I notice workers washing windows and gardeners working in the yards — but I rarely see people who live there.

I like the house above the best because the architectural style is similar to the house I grew up in. Lots of large glass windows, angles and shake shingles — a contemporary style from the 1970s. I also love this house because it’s private and not too showy. Then there is the tree:

The tree makes the house.

This stately home must have stunning views from the multiple decks.

Another magnificent home with lush landscaping.

I love the contemporary look of this home and the expanse of windows. They scalped the lawn yesterday, which I didn’t know was a “thing” in Santa Barbara. In Palm Springs, lawns are scalped each fall to plant Winter Rye. In the heat of late Spring, the Winter Rye dies and Bermuda Grass, which is dormant in the winter, grows back.

I like the simplicity of this A frame.

Look what is and has happened around this sweet cottage below? Last year there was a cottage next to it, but now there’s a huge crane making tons of noise.

When you get near the parking lot, the homes are smaller and closer together. There are still some cottages left, that haven’t been torn down to build modern monstrosities. This is one of my favorite cottages.

I hope you enjoyed my beach home tour!

If you owned a beach house, what style would it be? Beach cottage, White House replica, contemporary or modern?

There’s no place like home

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Sunset at our favorite beach.

As our long-awaited annual beach vacation comes to a close, I’m feeling homesick. Not to be ungrateful, but I’m looking forward to being in my own home. I miss my cat. My friends, who moved from our old neighborhood in Palm Springs to a mile away in Arizona, have texted and asked when we’ll be back with “We miss you!”

All year long, I’ve looked forward to our weeks out of the heat, at the beach. I guess I didn’t feel “vacationy” with all the anxiety of health issues with our family. I spent the first two weeks in a state of constant worry.

Once relief hit us — that our future DIL will be okay — and COVID also had come and gone with our children, we finally relaxed.

But, then four days in a row, once our fear was gone, we accepted invitations with friends. We hadn’t felt like socializing until things settled down. Four days in a row was way too much for introverted me. We said no to friends yesterday and today. We spent evenings until sunset enjoying a beach walk, sitting until the sun set, and being quiet. Just what my soul needed.

If there’s no place like home, I wish I could click my heels three times and be home — without the nine-hour drive!

When you are on vacation, do you look forward to returning home — or do you want vacation to last longer?

It tastes like real food!

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Vine-ripened tomatoes from Farmer Fred’s stand at the Santa Barbara Farmers Market.

I can’t believe the difference in the flavor of food on our vacation compared to our new home in Arizona. We visit two Farmer’s Markets each week. Farmer Fred, as we call him, is friends with our Santa Barbara friends. We’ve visited his stand for years. The first night in town, we were invited to a barbecue that included Fred and his family. His wife sliced his flavorful tomatoes and made caprese with buffalo mozzarella, balsamic and basil. The next weekend after visiting the Farmers Market, I came home with a bag of Farmer Fred’s tomatoes and made caprese for appetizers and lunches — but used mint instead of basil — since that’s what I could find.

The flavor of these tomatoes brought back childhood memories when fresh vegetables from gardens were a staple in Snohomish, Wash. — and probably still are. The grocery store veggies I normally buy are tasteless.

A few of our delicious tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella with mint and balsamic.

Then there’s the fruit. The fruit stand next to Farmer Fred’s is unbelievable. Our favorite pluot is called Dapper Dandy. The ladies who own the stand call out “Dapper Dandy, tastes like candy!” It is the last week for Dapper Dandies so we’ve stocked up — and yes, eating them like candy.

A yellow peach (amazingly delicious) with Dapper Dandies.

Clam chowder and a fish taco at the Santa Barbara Harbor.

Our daughter called us on our drive back from the harbor where we had lunch of fish tacos and chowder at On the Alley. We said we wished Brophy Bros, the signature restaurant in the harbor, that owns On the Alley — to open one in Arizona.

“It won’t work,” our daughter insisted. “First is the fish, fresh off the boat in the harbor.”

Unfortunately, she’s right. I won’t get that taste of freshly caught cod topped with locally grown avocado, pickled onions, queso fresco & salsa blanca in Arizona. It logistically isn’t possible. So I’m enjoying it while I’m here.

Lastly, we were so disappointed to discover that our breakfast burrito place in Beach LIquors had been “poofed.”

Look what happened to our breakfast burrito spot!

We tried several Mexican restaurants and found one that fit our tastebuds perfectly inside a liquor store called Kim’s. It’s close to the house we’re renting — and the food is delicious.

Al Pastor tacos at our new “spot” called Kim’s Liquor Store. In the back of the store is a kitchen with Beto the chef cooking burritos, tacos, platos and daily specials.

I can’t figure out why we don’t have any decent Mexican food by us in Arizona. I think it’s the area where we live and if we drove 45 minutes to an hour south we could find some, but I’m not willing. I’d rather drive to Mexico if I’m headed down that way!

What a difference fresh produce and fish makes for flavor and enjoyment of meals. I wonder if I can start a garden in my backyard? I haven’t gotten the hang of gardening after years of trying in the desert. Western Washington was ideal for growing everything — and we had fresh seafood, too.

What are your favorite fresh fruits and vegetables where you live? Are you able to grow them yourself? Or do you have farmers markets nearby? What about fresh seafood?

Good news!!!

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Painting of my future daughter-in-law Buff by a college friend and art major Jamie Stoneman.

Good news! Buff’s surgery is over and ended up best case scenario of the doctor’s three outcomes. We are so relieved and feel so comforted by all the prayers, good thoughts and vibes for our son and Buff.

This means no radiation or chemo PRIOR to surgery, no colostomy bag and all the surgery was done in one long day.

If you missed the original post this morning, it’s called Today is the Day.

💕

Today is the day

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A painting of our son’s girlfriend Catherine (Buff) by Jamie Stoneman, her friend and art major.

Our future daughter-in-law Buff is having surgery today. I’m asking for prayers for a successful surgery for stage three colon cancer, without complications.

Buff is an amazing person and a beautiful poet who has been published in numerous literary and poetry publications. We love her like our own daughter.

Here’s one of her poems:


Coal Oil Point
Tonight the sky with its plummy texture
Is especially dear to me, and the small purple
Flowers shuddering in the sand.
Tonight the wind curls soft and salty against
My bare arms with that strange lively mourning.
You let me look at you and understand that
Nobody has ever had eyes like yours, fringed with
Red-gold lashes, and nobody will again.
I look up at the stars and pity them:
The more they burn the faster they die.
How I burn makes me live beyond myself.
Catherine Simpson is a cellist who lives in Berkeley. She has been previously published in Big River Poetry Review, Right Hand Pointing, Spectrum, Step Away Magazine, Into the Teeth of the Wind, Poydras Review, and Splash of Red.
This work is Copyright © 2013, and owned by Catherine Simpson and may not be distributed or reprinted in any form whatsoever without written permission from the author.

Thank you for your positive thoughts, prayers and love sent to Buff, our son and family.

UPDATE: Surgery was a success! Buff is recovering. She didn’t lose any other organs and it was the best case scenario. Now on to healing.

Views from the beach

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Our favorite beach in the Santa Barbara area.

I love how each walk at the beach can have such different views.

I’m not sure if this is a hawk or not, but it’s gorgeous. I stopped to watch it glide on the breeze.

Ashton Kutcher’s house with a small cottage in front.

Afternoon beach walk.

Keven Costner’s property has the white deck and house on the point, valued at $145 million.

The same bird from the other photo. There’s an interesting complex of homes at the opposite end of the beach.

I loved watching this Vizsla dog and puppy chase a frisbee. I missed the shots where the dog leaped into the air to catch the frisbee with the puppy trailing.
I looked up the prices of homes on this beach. The ones I found start at $20 million up to $100 million.

Where is your favorite beach?