Unusual Food in the Neighborhood

More current posts are on the way (although they may no longer be current by the time they are posted).  I have been meaning to share these for a while.

We live near the town's central park.

At the base of one tree was a familiar, but out-of-place plant.

It even has little green tomatoes on it!

Thanksgiving

I keep a few oldies-but-goodies and bring them out each year.  These are both from 2007.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Solvang

On the way home from Mission San Miguel we made our first post-sabbatical visit to Solvang, the Danish Capital of America (history can be found here).  We had fun poking around and I promised not to bore my friend with comments about what I deemed to be authentic or not.

We did find a store with food so tempting we bought some.

not tempting enough to buy

I convinced my friend to buy a souvenir, even though it is Swedish.

This is the kind we have, but I think she hers has birds.

We found a Danish restaurant that also had American food.  I thought I had ordered some vegetarian open-faced sandwiches (Smørrebrød) but I should have known better since there is no such thing.

Good thing we were able to order aebleskiver!

For me the best part of the restaurant was running into some young Danish tourists who were happy to chat with A.  I spoke to the best of my ability, but they were more impressed by how fluently Arlo could speak.

Now it is back home and onto the next adventure.

Homework

A long-standing tradition has been for fourth graders (or fifth or sixth, if you are in a mixed-grade classroom) in California to study state history, including missions, which significantly impacted the state.  I don't know what other classes do (models out of sugar cubes?), but A.'s teacher offered several options.

I thought it would be great to start a week-long vacation with a trip to the mission so we recruited friends to travel with us to Mission San Miguel Arcangel.

We arrived in time to go to Spanish Mass in the same church that had been rebuilt in the early 1800's.  I could follow along but could not understand more than a few words here or there.  I liked the shaking hands part the best.

In the morning I had fun looking around while A. and his friend took video clips to turn into a video diary.

I am not naturally attracted to missions, but my friend helped me to notice interesting architectural details, like the 200-year-old frescos in the church, and the gardens.

Having learned a bit (enough?) we took a quick walking tour of Rios-Caledonia Adobe, built with native labor and used as headquarters for a cattle rancher and later a hotel.

We had great weather on the trip and even though I miss the eastern US colors, I grew to love the trees I saw on this trip.

The Carnegie Library in the park now houses the historical society and is  across from the new library.

When we weren't learning something we swam (four times for the kids, once for me), hung out at the library (of course!), visited a couple thrift stores, and found good Thai food.

Now it is time to edit, thanks to R.'s amazing tech skills.

Demolition

Maybe you remember that beautiful picture of Millikan last July?  Things have changed on the corner of Sixth and College.

November 10 (from inside the building next door)

November 18

November 19

November 19

November 21

November 21

November 22

November 22

And then the local paper's photographer showed up to document the demolition.  No one was hurt, but it was unfortunate that he was there just as the excavator accidentally broke through the foundation.

from the Claremont-Courier

Food in the Neighborhood Continues

Mmm!

Our neighbors let me pick Hachiya persimmons.  These are the ones that must be soft or when you eat them your mouth will pucker up for hours.  I have some muffin and cookie recipes, but I usually eat them plain or mixed into oatmeal.

 I can never see the pineapple guava in the trees, but I was told when they fall you know they are ripe.  I had picked some earlier in the season and they were awful and I couldn't remember why I even liked them.  These guava restored my faith in the fruit.

Plenty for everyone.

Remodel

At some point there may be a grand re-opening of the children's room, but there was a soft opening last Friday.

Here are some of the changes.

Where the display case had been there is now an interactive display.

Many things to look at, things to touch, dials to turn,

and advice for caregivers.

The play area is larger with plenty of seating.

There are lots of toys and puzzles (cute baby not included).

It seems like there are more tables for homework

and an added seating area next to the children's magazines.

I miss the variety of posters , but if that is my biggest complaint I am doing well.  Mostly I am concerned about the book collection, and that seems the same.

I hope many people visit and enjoy changes.

Special Meeting

Claremont Unified School District held a special workshop today at the Claremont University Consortium Administrative Campus Center.

LTL Architects

This is a relatively new building, but the old building is honored with a traditional piece by Dawn Grimes.

The inside is modern and if I apologize for not including pictures of the beautiful bathroom.  I can't tell you about the men's room, but the women's room is definitely worth a visit!

LTL Architeccture

I took a break and enjoyed eating my lunch outside.

The meeting itself was fascinating, if you are interested in educational policy.  The board discussed the goals they set almost three years ago.

GOAL #1
Our students will increase their academic achievement in English Language Arts and Mathematics by one performance level annually until they are on grade level (proficient) or above (advanced). The achievement gap of the lowest performing sub-groups will narrow.

GOAL #2
Our schools will provide unique opportunities that develop the whole child by promoting involvement in extracurricular and co-curricular activities and encouraging positive student behaviors.

GOAL #3
Our district will attract, support and retain high performing, highly qualified staff. 

GOAL #4
Our district will remain fiscally sound by maintaining a balanced budget, demonstrating long term financial stability and distributing resources equitably, based on student need.

GOAL #5:
100% of our facilities will be safe, clean, and appropriate to support student learning.

GOAL #6
All schools will engage their families and community to increase student success. 

Also discussed were the new standards and criteria that will be in place for LCFF (Local Control Funding Formula and LCAP (Local Control and Accountability Plan).  This will happen in California in addition to the implementation of Common Core State Standards.  Exciting times, but I have tremendous confidence in the school board members and administrative staff.

Bread

Almost eight years ago Cook's Illustrated had an easy bread recipe that used Bob's Red Mill 7-Grain Hot Cereal along with regular flours.  I loved how few ingredients the recipe had and it tasted great.

before

Our local health food store had the cereal on sale so I bought a pack and was inspired to bake today.

after

Sorry I can't post the great baking-bread scent.

Celebration

What would you say if your neighbor, the baker, asked if you wanted a cake?  I said yes!  I was sure I could come up with company and reason to celebrate.

eight-spice ganache with buttercream frosting

Here's to David and a great year as department chair!

Too Much Information

How to say this?  You might not want to read this if you don't enjoy reading about a woman's menstrual cycle.  Is that too much information already?

My son collects license plates and when we go to meets there are often people wearing shirts with a license plate theme.

one example

In my experience at about a dozen meets, these people are never women.  There are almost no women at the meets and they wear regular clothing.  When I attend these meets I feel like I am the only one in need of feminine hygiene products, which includes reusable pads (like cloth diapers for women).  So why do you think someone would make a cloth pad with license plates?

This item can be ordered here.

It is such a masculine theme (in my experience) in an exclusively feminine product.  On the other hand, it is good to break from stereotypes and go beyond expectations.  I wish the seller much luck.