The Strawberry Shack

I went to visit a friend who had recently moved from her home in Solana Beach to Carlsbad By the Sea, and beautiful independent living  establishment in Carlsbad.  We toured the grounds, saw her lovely one bedroom apartment, then walked across the street to With Creek Winery (and coffee bar).  We sat and had a good, strong cup of coffee and a croissant and talked about her move.  While sitting there, a man came with a delivery of huge amounts of fresh strawberries.  We asked him what he was going to do with all those strawberries, and he told us he was delivering them to the Strawberry Shack, next door to where we were having coffee.

I had never heard of the Strawberry Shack before, so I had to go check it out.    88% of all strawberries grown in the U.S. come from California, many of them right in our own backyard.  We've all seen the "strawberry fields" on Cannon and stopped for delicious fresh strawberries at on of the many fruit stands in San Diego.  

The Shake Shack used to sell shakes and sundaes at Armstrong Nursery during the time the flower fields were in bloom.  About a year ago they opened The Strawberry Shack on Coast Highway in the heart of Carlsbad.  Here you can get everything strawberry:  shakes and sundaes, chocolate covered strawberry marshmallows, strawberry pudding, strawberry cannoli,  strawberry pina colada Dole whip and much, much more.  Next time you're in old Carlsbad Village, stop at the Strawberry Shack and try one of creative creations

Arizona "Audit" is Not Normal

 In normal times, a post-election audit would take place after an election.  Republican, Democratic, and Libertarian parties would get together to initiate a routine but important process to safeguard our democracy:  a post election audit.  In Arizona this is a hand count of ballots from a random sample.  In Maricopa County, the hand count was started Saturday after the election and wrapped up two days late.  No discrepancies were found.

So what's going on six months later in Maricopa County?  Cyber Ninjas, a private cybersecurity company with no experience auditing or counting votes, at the behest of the state's Republican senators, is recounting the votes again.  They have looked at ballots through UV lights, looking for secret watermarks and they have looked for traces of bamboo in the paper to determine if they were imported from Asia.

Audits are recounts are an essential part of our voting system, but what's happening in Arizona isn't.  The state senate called it an audit, but it's not an audit or a recount- it's a party inquisition.  The "audit" is being conducted by a company (Cyber Ninjas) founded by an election-fraud conspiracy theorist and Trump supporter, and funded by mostly Trump loyalists, including the "My Pillow" guy.  

The process indulges the fantasies of the most extreme political fringe while ignoring the fact that there is zero evidence of any election fraud.  The result will almost certainly not be the greater transparency Republican state senators claim they seek.  It will simply further erode trust in our elections.

Are We Falling Behind?

 Is America falling behind China and other nations in the "technology war?"  According to many analysts, we are already decades behind China in the development of AI technology,  and 5G dominance by China has left us in the dust.

How did the country of Alexander Graham Bell, the iPhone and a handful of telecom companies that rake in billions of dollars allow China to surpass us in this crucial technology?  Why wasn't the crucial R and D investments made in the last decade?  

The U.S. record in this tech rivalry with China stands at 0-2.  The U.S. lost a major battle that it didn't even realize it was fighting when China, over the past decades, established monopolies on several critical rare earth elements and a few other strategic minerals.  This will prove to be  a major strategic defeat as these elements are the building blocks of many of this century's emerging technologies.  Smartphones, and even some U.S. weapon systems, don't work without these rare earth elements.

Then there is the battle for 5G dominance.  If you thought we were leading the world in 5G technology, think again.  The U.S. is falling behind in the 5G race, while China is sprinting ahead.  

In order to catch up and gain a 5G edge, we need to invest lots of money in Rand D.  5G technology is critical in the tech war on several other battlefronts.  Aviation, space technology, biotech, quantum sciences, robotics, military technology and artificial intelligence.  Unfortunately for us, China has the market on rare earth elements.  If the United States had the will to compete, they could end China's rare earth and strategic minerals monopolies.  Until that happens, we cannot compete. 

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San Diego Women Were Voting Years Before The 19th Amendment

 I went on a very interesting tour of the Gaslamp in San Diego a few weeks ago.  It was led by Anne  , the president of the Women's Historical Museum.  Due to Covid-19 the future of the museum is in jeopardy.  They do not have a permanent space at this moment.  It would be a great loss if this museum folded.  They have had many installations showcasing the achievements of women.  Anne told us many things about the early history of the Gaslamp, from the many brothels and madams that lived and worked there, to the history of the Chinese in San Diego.

The most interesting fact I learned was that women in San Diego were voting YEARS before the 19th Amendment was passed.  In 1911 San Diegans voted to give women the right to vote.  I never knew this, never read about it.  

San Diego wasn't the first city (or state) to give women the vote.  There were about 15 other states in which women were voting long before the 19th Amendment.  Fascinating.  

(After learning about this important fact in our history, I wonder how much else was left out of the history books, good and bad.  We know that most people never heard about the Tulsa Massacre until a few months ago.  How much else has been omitted?)

More Handy Household Tips

 Toothpaste is a household staple that is great for all sorts of jobs beside cleaning your pearly whites.  Here are just a few of the many uses of toothpaste.

1.  A dirty or rusty iron will look brand new if you just dab it with toothpaste and wipe it clean.

2.  Take dirty tennis shoes and clean the white rubber sides with toothpaste and a toothbrush.  Shoes will look like new.

3.  When you remove nail polish, you will often find that there is remaining polish around the fingers of the nail and the nail itself.  Take some toothpaste and a little finger brush and scrub around your nails.  Sparkling clean.

4.  Erase coffee stains from a table using toothpaste and a soft cloth.

5.  Whiten the keyboard of your piano with a cloth and a little toothpaste.

6.  Use toothpaste to clean your bathroom sink.

7.  Remove permanent marker from walls using toothpaste.

8.  Soothe stinging burns by spreading a little toothpaste on the burn.

When you think about it, all the expensive cleansers that we buy to clean furniture, tile, silver and just about everything else, can be cleaned with less expensive items, like toothpaste, that you have around the house.  

Fuzzy Thinking Under Stress

 My mom has some friends that live at Belmont Senior Living in Los Angeles.  They may be old, but they still love an outing, especially one that involves eating.  Recently their program director organized a lunch at The Ivy in Beverly Hills for those interested residents.  My mom's friend Millie was one of the first to sign up.  During her younger years, Millie used to eat lunch out, usually alone, almost everyday.  So when an opportunity to have lunch at The Ivy came up, Millie was ready to go.  She, and other residents at Belmont, need some additional help getting around.  Some use walkers, others wheel chairs, and some just an additional pair of hands, ready to help when needed.  So, getting everyone (9 of them) in and out of the restaurant and in and out of the van, is a bit of a challenge.

All was going well.  The group had enjoyed a wonderful lunch at The Ivy, one of the premier spots to lunch in L.A.  The restaurant has a few steps leading up to the restaurant, with a little birdcage type elevator on the side of the steps to help those that can't walk well.  Millie was one of those that needed to use the elevator.  She got in, closed the door, and  the elevator didn't move.  She was stuck in the elevator.  Security was called and they couldn't open the elevator.  The elevator company was called and they said they would be there in three hours!  A 97 year old woman who can't walk well being stuck in an elevator for three hours?  Unacceptable.  Someone fooled around with the elevator lock for a while, and finally, after about 45 minutes, got the door opened.

All these people trying to get Millie out of the elevator, dozens of people, never thought to call the fire department.  It just goes to show that under stress people somehow don't think of the easiest, most logical solution.

It was a harrowing experience for Millie.  Although she knew her life was not in danger, it really shook her up.  The Ivy felt terrible about the situation, and comped their whole party and sent them all home with cookies!  It was a happy ending, but it just goes to show that when you're under duress you sometimes don't think of the obvious solution.

In A Baking Mood

1/2 tsp baking powder

 Some Sunday mornings are quiet for me, and one particular Sunday recently I felt like baking.  I decided to make fruit hand pies.  You know, the kind Hostess sells near the checkout stand at the market.  I had blueberries, apples and lemon curd in the house, and decided to make some of each.  Oh, were they good, especially the crust.  Here's the basic recipe.

                                                Fruit Hand Pies

Crust:

2 cups flour

3/4 tsp salt

16 Tablespoons cold butter

1/2 cup cold sour cream

Mix dry ingredients, then add cold butter and mix in mixer until butter is the size of large peas.  It's alright to have bigger pieces of butter in there too.  Add sour cream, and mix until dough comes together.  Turn on to a floured board, knead a few times, then shape the dough in a large log.  You can refrigerate at this point, or divide the dough and just use half and freeze the rest for another time.

Take a 6 inch cookie cutter and cut round of dough that have been rolled to pie crust thickness.  Fill with your choice of fruit.  Do not overfill the pies, as the liquid will run out.  Fill with fruit, then fold pastry over, and crimp edges well.  Top with egg wash, and cook for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees, or until pastry is golden brown.  After they have cooled, sprinkle with powdered sugar.  Enjoy.

Filling

If you're lazy, you can buy a can of pie filling, any fruit you like, and use that.  If you want to make your own, peel and core and apple, sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon, a little cornstarch and lemon juice, and cook until partially done.  Use that as a filling.  Another great filling is lemon curd, right out of the jar.  

These pies can be frozen, but be sure to wrap tightly.  They're right in the freezer whenever you want a sweet treat.

Long Los Van Gogh Masterpiece "Discovered."

 I recently bought tickets to the Van Gogh Exhibit that is traveling the world right now.  I will see it in October, in Los Angeles.  When a recent New York Times article about a newly discovered Van Gogh masterpiece described it, I got very interested.

  Apparently, the well know art collector and luminary who founded the New York Academy of Art with Andy Warhol in 1979, Stuart Pivar, says he has rediscovered a long lost van Gogh masterpiece at an obscure country auction.  The painting, "Auvers, 1890," is in its original condition and signed on the back by "Vincent."  This was one of the paintings that van Gogh painted in the last two months of his life, when he painted obsessively, painting more than 70 works, in Auvers, outside of Paris.

The painting will be sent to the van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam for authentication.  If authenticated, it will be considered the find of the century.  It's an amazing painting that has never been touched, still on the original stretcher.  It is a 36 inch square painting, the largest painting ever done by van Gogh, and his only square painting.

Stuart Pivar said, "Although I am used to gaining possession of colossal things, when I uncrated this, I was lost for words, in absolute shock, to the point I felt electrical waves passing up and down my body."  I hope it is real.

We're Pulling For You, Norman

 I got a call one day from my son Phil, telling me that their 18 month old dog, Norman, was critically ill.  They found in lying in wet grass one afternoon, barely breathing.  They rushed him to the local vet, where he stayed for several days while they tried to diagnose him.  After seeing a specialist, the likely diagnosis is Chagas Disease,  a deadly illness.  They are awaiting results of a blood test that will confirm their suspicions.  It's a wait and see situation, and if he is diagnosed with Chagas Disease, his future looks grim.

I had never heard of Chagas Disease before.  It's a very serious deadly and increasingly common disease in dogs in Texas.  (Norman was born in Texas and brought to Colorado as a young puppy).  Chagas is caused by an infection by the parasite Typanosoma cruzi.  The infection is transmitted in dogs, people and other mammals by the kissing bug.  (I never heard of that bug before either).  Kissing bugs are nocturnal, blood-feeding insects.  Dogs usually catch Chagas disease by eating the kissing bug or by being bitten by the kissing bug.  Chagas disease causes serious heart disease and death in dogs.

Symptoms of Chagas disease include fever, weakness and lethargy, increased abnormal heart rhythm, congestive heart failure, bloated belly (fluid in belly), coughing , seizures, sudden death.  You get the picture.  Normal had fluid around his heart, which is a major reason they suspect Chagas disease.  

At this time there is no treatment for Chagas disease.  We'll have to wait and see what the definitive diagnosis is, and from there just hope for the best.  Norman could possibly live up to 5 years, or he could die of sudden death tomorrow.  I know what Phil and his family are going through.  They have a wonderful young dog, well trained, that they have all bonded with.  He goes camping with them and runs every morning with Phil.  He is a wonderful dog, and I'm hoping that whatever the diagnosis is, Norman will be around for many years.

Since I originally wrote this, I have good news.  Norman tested negative for Chagas.  It turns out to be a bacterial infection that attacked the heart.  He is doing well and should live a normal life.  

Missouri State Legislature Does The Right Thing

Finally, after decades of reported abuse inside some of Missouri's Christian boarding schools, the abused are being heard.  Often cast aside and dismissed as lying, troubled teens, they have finally been heard.  By a vote of 147-1, the Child Residential Home Notification Act was passed.  The measure aimed at stopping abuse and neglect at Missouri's unregulated Christian boarding schools.  If the governor sign it, it will mark the first time in at least four decades that the state will have some oversight over unlicensed, faith-based facilities.  

The bill's passage is due to the stories former boarding school students shared with lawmakers.   They are all adults now, and stepped forward and shared their personal lives.

A 1982 law in Missouri allows faith-based reform schools to claim an exemption from licensing requirement.  Because of this law, Missouri has become a safe harbor for unlicensed facilities.  They often settle in rural and secluded parts of the state where they can fly under the radar.

The new legislation would require all faith-based boarding schools to register with the state and mandate federal criminal background checks for all employees and volunteers.  Sexual abuse, withholding food as a punishment, and physical and psychological verbal abuse were just some of the claims made by former students.  Several of these schools, including the Circle of Hope Girls' Ranch, with 102 criminal charges of abuse and neglect, and Agape Boarding Schools, are under investigation by the Missouri attorney general's office.  Hooray!!

It Feels Like Another LockDown

 I'm having rotator cuff surgery in a few days.  I will be home, but in a sling for 6 weeks!  After 15 months of limited activity during the pandemic, six weeks will just be like a short lockdown.  At least I know I can entertain myself in the house until I'm feeling better.

I've asked many people about rotator repair surgery, and have gotten a variety of answers, from "Oh, it was nothing," to "OMG it was terrible pain."  I'm hoping for the former.  My dog Pepper has gone on vacation to LA.  He is staying with my mom until I'm able to safely walk him.  I miss him already, but I know it's the best solution, as he has to be walked several times a day.  And my friends!  I can't say enough about them.  They have organized a schedule to help me out one or two times a day with whatever I need.  I also have Dan, the wonderful man who has helped me so much since I have lived at Ocean Hills, first as a dogwalker for Pepper, then as a caregiver for Ron.  He is a life saver.

So I will get through this, and be back on the golf course and pickleball court by the end of the year.  Once I'm at full strength, pickleball players watch out!

A New Roller Coaster Thrill in Big Bear

 I hate roller coasters.  Ever since I threw up after riding the one when I was a teenager, I've avoided them.  I did ride the Matterhorn at Disneyland, but that hardly counts.  I was watching the news the other night and heard about a new thrill ride in Big Bear, California, that will definitely get your heart pumping.  It's called Mineshaft Coaster, and is surely for you if you love a thrill.

Mineshaft Coaster opened last year, just as the pandemic hit us.  They closed down within weeks, and have finally reopened.  The ride is in Big Bear, California, just east of Los Angeles.  If you want to try it, you can make a wonderful day trip out of it, or better yet, stay the weekend.  Big Bear is beautiful any time of year.

The speed of the roller coaster is controlled by the rider.  It goes up to 30mph, but if you want a slower ride, you can control the speed.  I wish I enjoyed that sinking feeling of going up and down, twisting around, and speeding through dark tunnels.  It's not for me, but many people just love it, so this is an excursion for those of you that love it.  The Mineshaft Coaster may bring lots of tourists to Big Bear, something good for their economy, but I'm not sure it's what the locals want.  I think they like their sleepy little mountain town, but that may now change.  

Japanese Hot Pot: Tabu Shabu

 I'm always looking for something new in dining, and I found it at Tabu Shabu.  It's a Japanese hot pot restaurant, using only the freshest ingredients to create a delicious bowl of soup/ramen/meat or seafood, and veggies.  The restaurant was started by several friends in Orange County about a decade ago.  They wanted to recreate the Japanese hot pot experience here in America, and make it affordable.

They have done just that.  Most meals are around $20, and you will have food to take home.  I ordered the ribeye beef dinner.  4ounces of thinly sliced meat, a platter of several vegetables, including mushrooms, cabbage, carrots, bok choy and spinach neatly arranged, udon noodles, rice and lots of sauces complete the meal.  There were so many little bowls of sauces, like garlic, soy and peanut, and utensils like chop sticks, tongs and strainers, to get the food out of the delicious soup that was cooking them.  Sounds like alot.  It was.  

The food is healthy and filling, and really fun to cook.  One of my friends said that for $20, at least she wanted someone else to do the cooking.  Of course that was a joke.  Part of the fun of Tabu Shabu is cooking your own food and experimenting with sauces and flavors.  Don't wear your best clothes, because you are bound to dribble on the table and your shirt.  It is quite messy, but all in all, fun.

We ordered sesame ice cream for dessert.  It was an interesting flavor, but not my favorite.  I prefer something a little sweeter.  

Next time you want something different, try Tabu Shabu.  They have several locations in San Diego.  We ate at the Bressi Ranch location.  It was great to enjoy a healthy meal of meat and veggies, and have fun preparing it yourself.