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?
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?
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.
One of our highlights of visiting the beach in the summer is the Farmer’s Market. I discovered this year there are two –Thursdays in Caprinteria and Saturdays in Santa Barbara. That makes buying fruit and veggies more manageable. I don’t have to stock up only to have fruit get over ripe. I can buy just enough.
There is one stand with all sorts of peppers and tomatoes that we stop at. Farmer Fred is the owner. He’s friends with several of our Santa Barbara friends who gather at his stand to chat each weekend. It’s fun to join in and feel like a local.
By our house in Arizona, we have a tiny Farmer’s market. I call it a Farmer market because there is one veggie stand. There is local honey, jewelry, baked goods, chips and dip and trinkets.
It’s a joy to have an abundance of fresh fruit and veggies. We’re especially enjoying Flavor King plums, sweet corn and shishito peppers.
I bought white peaches and yellow nectarines here. They are so delicious, they are beyond words.Gorgeous tomatoes.The colors of peppers and eggplants are worth painting.An abundance of avocados. I took them for granted in California. They are not so available in Arizona. My dear friend from Singapore introduced me to dragonfruit. I’ve never seen it in a market before.
The didgeridoo is a sacred Australian Aborigine instrument. Our friends say this woman has been playing at the Santa Barbara Farmer’s Market for years.
Do you have a farmer’s market near you? What are your favorite things about Farmer’s Markets? What do you like to buy?
We had only been in the Vrbo for two hours when we lost one key. Fortunately, we started with two keys in the lockbox.
The key got lost during unpacking. I had placed the key on top of the dresser. My husband complained about things I was stacking on the dresser while finding a home for them. I was sure he had knocked the key off onto the floor or behind the dresser while he moved some of my stuff.
I was so upset. We were supposed to go to our friends’ house for dinner and we were thirty minutes late — before we realized the key was missing.
We looked in the drawers, under the dresser, under the bed, in the kitchen and bathroom. I texted my son that we had lost one key already. There was one in the lockbox and to please keep the one remaining key there when he arrived later that night. I didn’t want to lose both.
After a delicious dinner of chicken mole with our friends in their backyard, I came home and continued the search.
I finally found the key! My husband had knocked the key off the dresser just as I suspected. He managed to land the key in my dresser drawer — into my white shorts back pocket! Husbands!
What has your wife, husband or friend done that truly amazed you — good or bad?
One of the structures I see during my beach walks.
Somebody is definitely having fun at the beach located down the street from our vacation VRBO. I’ve seen these structures made from driftwood for years, but this year they are more elaborate than ever. The largest oceanfront “condo” has many carved signs and figurines that weren’t there last summer.
One of the residents guarding the entrance to his beachfront condo.This is the most elaborate of the beach condos complete with flags and signs.
Yesterday, my husband and I walked on Carpinteria State Beach for a morning walk. We noticed a for sale sign and open house at a condo complex on the sand. We went in and the place was gorgeous, but it faced the street. It had a peek-a-boo ocean view from the master bedroom. The price tag was $4 million with an HOA of $1,000 per month for the concrete sidewalks and steps.
View from the $4 million condo.View from the driftwood condos.
I think I’ll take the views from the artistic, fun driftwood condos instead. How about you? Of course, there are lots more creature comfort amenities in the civilized condo. But still…
Update: I received a text this morning from my friends and the threat from the fire is finally over. She did say it smelled like a “giant wet campfire outside.” I’m relieved they are safe. Here’s the photo she sent me from last night from their neighborhood:
Photo I saw on Twitter from Sunday night.
The Thomas fire is now on record as the fifth largest fire in recent California history. It’s still raging on and I’m still worried about my friends.
I wish they would have left because they’re under voluntary evacuation notice. I wrote about the fire and our wonderful friends and memories on Dec. 7. Since then, our friends have been existing day to day, ready to leave in a moment’s notice—breathing fire, ash and smoke. You would think it would begin to wear on you.
Every morning and evening, I text to see if they’re okay and ask if they’re staying in their house.
They thought last night the threat had passed and they were over the worst of it. Then this morning the firemen made the local high school–which is literally a stone’s throw from their backyard–the fire staging area. She said maybe they were feeling relief too soon.
I’m praying for my friends and everyone affected by the fires in Southern California. It makes you appreciate a simple thing like fresh air, being outside, and our homes.
Here’s a view from our friends’ backyard this morning.
Do you know anyone suffering from the fires in So Cal?
