Oyster Fest II

We ordered another five dozen oysters from Washington for last weekend. This time, we got a sampler, which ended up being two dozen Gold Creek, one dozen Kumamoto, one dozen Kushi, and one dozen Penn Cove Select. They were all delicious and distinct, but the winner was the Kushi's. They were so good! I looked them up on the web, and apparently, they are just a pacific oyster, but there is one particular farmer that raises them and it's the way they are raised that makes them unique. They are grown in trays in the open ocean and allowed to "tumble," so the flaky layers of outer shell get worn off and the remaining shell develops a deep, cup shape. The meat inside is firm and sweet, really tasty. Jeff was actually home for this round, and he was a good sport about it. We were good sports too, and nobody asked him if he wanted one ;-) We ate them in rounds - one of each per round, so we could compare & contrast. I'll say one thing - compared to the Snow Creek we had last time, these were all harder to shuck....

Baaaa

This picture in no way conveys how cute these baby sheep are. I've driven by them the past few mornings on campus and I had to stop and take a picture today. They literally gambol around, and exude so much cuteness it's almost too much! I could just stand by the fence and watch them all morning....sounds better than working, doesn't it?

New patio furniture

We got our new patio furniture and I love it. It's made from recycled milk jugs & assembled with stainless steel fasteners, so theoretically, it should last forever. The color goes all the way through the plastic, so they won't need to be painted or finished ever, which is great.

The chairs have nice wide arms on them - perfect for holding a tasty beverage :) We *think* the material is too hard for a dog to chew on, but lets just say, if you see a future post showing a chewed up chair...neither of us will be surprised ;-) Notice Decker in the background enjoying the sun ?

If you are interested, the chairs came from Loll Designs and are made in Minneapolis.

Alas poor streetlight, I knew you well...

We should have a better view of the stars tonight :) The streetlight is coming down! All the neighbors (except one) let the county know we didn't want it, and CalTrans determined it wasn't needed for road safety, so down it comes. A plan is brewing to appease the one neighbor who wanted it....we'll see what happens the next time she's in town.

Getting some yard work done

Well, Jeff started a big project on Friday and we finished it today. Remember the giant Flax that was right in front of the house? It's been "conquered and divided." It was getting too imposing, so with the help of some neighbors (and a truck & chain) they pulled it out and split it up. The Hopseed bushes on the side of the house are starting to die off, so we needed some replacements for them anyway. The Flax was split up and the two biggest chunks have already been planted, and there are six more in pots waiting in the wings.

To take the place of the Flax, we planted two new Australian plants that are related to Proteas. One is an Leucospermum Patersonii (Orange Pincushion), and the other - I don't remember the name (something like red cone bush?) The Orange Pincushion will have very showy flowers - the other plant will have beautiful foliage. While they can grow big, both are slow growing & will be easy to maintain. I really like how the front of the house has been opened up now!