#they have grown on me like a beautiful mushroom colony

[ghostinthegallery]

*Stares at the Djoseras/Zultanekh AO3 tag*: I'm coming for you my dear. I promise. I promise but my brain can only write so many words plz be patient 😭

[dansnaturepictures]

16/09/2020-A hot Wednesday at Lakeside and home: Butterflies, sunset and more 

I took the first picture in this photoset before lunch time looking over the buddleia in the back garden. On my usual shortened Wednesday walk to facilitate a phone call/socially distanced visit (today the former which was more routine in strict lockdown of course) with my Dad in the evening to stay in touch in terms of reduced (to normal) photo processing then, my planned route was to do a lap of the green out the front looking for more mushrooms to the considerable amount I have seen and photographed the last week or two or so and then into the meadowy areas to the east of Lakeside. 

I was very disappointed however to go out and discover the green had been mowed extremely as well as other areas between here and Lakeside and none of the mushrooms - from the shaggy inkcaps to big brown ones - or the lovely poor man’s hour-glass flowers/plants I saw here on Friday for that matter were to be seen all presumably flattened. I was angry and upset really as I had enjoyed and do love seeing these mushrooms spring up in this (immediately locally) urban bit of land in the autumn adding intrigue and beauty to the estate. I did think of contacting either the borough council or the housing association whoever had ordered or contracted this to happen to express my disappointment and ask if they survey areas of land before ordering and carrying out such works for the presence of such fungi and flowers, but what came into my head is the saying that “we all have a job to do” its very apt but actually we don’t all have a job to do right now I am lucky I have and with the boot on the other foot I am quite easily that person who has a job to do in different circumstances. I wanted the appropriate people to hear my concerns I just didn’t want to make life difficult for people only doing their job and such bodies right now. I did type up a letter, something I do use as a technique when I am angry about things or annoyed to vent a bit so just a letter which I keep for myself which it served a great purpose on but my conscious got the better of me. I may still take similar action in future in better times perhaps, as last year I was dismayed to see a shaggy ink cap mushroom colony which I noticed in the morning commuting into work were deliberately knocked over by the time I got home after looking forward to trying to take a photo of them all day. This fungus eventually fruited again in the same area and I did get pictures. So for mushrooms anyway they grown back, but its something that means a lot to me so I may have to fight in future. 

But in the piece of writing which will always be personal to me today, I expressed how I thought these mushrooms and flowers added greatly to the nature and biodiversity in this quite urban area. That as I tweeted I was annoyed they had been mowed, and how I had noticed the shaggy ink caps and the others are mostly situated around the lovely trees on the edge of this green quite obviously when you consider what fungi does in terms of disposing of leaf litter and that and could it maybe be a good idea to not mow these edges of the green in autumn. I did also acknowledge the multi-use nature of the green and that I am in no way against especially children but anyone really using the goal and basketball hoop in the middle of the green for exercise and am of course all for that and us all keeping active. But anyway I shall watch with interest and keep a close eye.

As I got to Lakeside on my walk on another extremely hot day I took the second, third, fourth and sixth pictures in this photoset of quite unique views for me over the meadow areas. The heat once more carried on a resurgence of butterflies being about lately, both Speckled Wood and especially Small Copper are ones I’ve seen in great numbers lately at a few locations including here some newer ones emerging perhaps and I loved in the sun taking the fifth and seventh pictures in this photoset of Speckled Wood and Small Copper the two butterflies. A great walk seeing them in the sun with some autumnal sights about too. 

I took the eighth picture in this photoset of Collared Dove in the garden this afternoon out the back. As I chose which pictures to take forward before ringing my Dad the evening was set to a nice almost lazy shine of the sun which with the sun setting earlier and earlier now made me nostalgic to how it was at this time of day when I first began working from home. I wanted a picture to reflect that and with no birds in the garden or prominent flowers to use the light for with much of the garden in shade by now approaching 6pm a feature of the atmosphere I decided to once again do the awkward hang my camera out the window and take a picture the ninth in this photoset looking directly right from my room which I did one of last month just like today a Wednesday before some time off work which I have all of next week. This allowed me to capture some nice flowers near to the ground across the road. I was enthused to check the sun setting tonight if I could after reading about the dust plumes from the US wildfires coming over to create dramatic sunsets a quite sombre but in a weird way beautifully natural thought showing we are all connected and this could travel and I was delighted to see another nice one this week a beautiful end to a beautiful day which I took alongside one other I tweeted the tenth picture in this photoset of. 

Wildlife Sightings Summary: Large White, Small Copper, Speckled Wood, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Carrion Crow, Magpie, Jackdaw with some nice ones heard too, Herring Gull, Goldfinch, House Sparrow and Starling. 

[out-of-this-dimension]

Night, Leon & Krystal (platonic)

11 ALW; THORNBITE OUTPOST, KEW -- 

She was a diamond in the rough and she knew it.  This world Krystal had found herself in was barbaric and nightmarish.  She stood out from the others and the vixen could not exactly say if it was in a good or bad way.  When she walked Thornbite Outpost, she could tell that there were eyes following her.  Was it her azure fur? Was it the way she carried herself?  Was it her Star Wolf uniform, perhaps?  Did they know who she was?  … Did they know her secret?

Kew was a lawless land.  Perhaps that was why Star Wolf visited it so often for supplies and for work.  Its forests, filled with briars and flora the size of grown men, were hostile and maze-like that it was no wonder bodies were found every so often.  Usually they died of starvation.  There was no real Cornerian rule here-- not anymore, at least.  Kew’s close enough proximity to Venom had made it a haven for Lylat Wars refugees-- the refugees that hadn’t gone with Andrew and his rebellion or Wolf and his promise of a sanctuary for the downtrodden outcasts of society.  They lived in small colonies and they fought over their land.  Anarchy wasn’t quite the correct word to describe it.  But it felt close enough to it.  

Krystal walked through the outpost’s gates, not really caring to look back over her shoulder at the ramshackle town some of the Venomians had built.  Panther had gone to bed after drinking a few too many beers.  Wolf was catching up with some outlaw buddies of his.  Leon was spirits-know-where but she bet he was doing something productive.  

The forests didn’t scare her-- it never had.  There was an allure about it that drew her in that particular night.  A glittering blue fog had rolled in around the outpost, sweeping about the base of the tree trunks like a floating river.  Glowing mushrooms ate at the sides of trees, making the pitch black of night seem a little less scary.  There was something mystical about this place that reminded her of home-- of Cerinia.  Maybe that was what compelled her to go exploring in the dead of night.

She walked until the outpost behind her was obscured by the darkness of night and the thin trees both.  The isolation made her breathe easy.  She let her shoulders relax.  Krystal felt like she had to keep up appearances with the others-- maybe it was because she had been told by Peppy to spy on Star Wolf.  She had been playing the role for awhile now… so long that it sometimes felt a little too natural but not long enough to forget what this all was-- a big sham.  A big sham that she… felt guilty about.  Felt stifled by, at times.  Sometimes, she wished she could just leave her communicator with Peppy turned off forever.  Sometimes, she wished she didn’t have to report in.  

Sometimes?  She wished the sham was real.  And sometimes?  She realized she could make it real if she wanted to.  

“And where do you think you’re going?” a voice came from behind.  “Not running away to report our whereabouts to the Cornerians, are you?”

The vixen turned around.  It was very rare for anyone to sneak up on her.  She realized his thoughts had been quiet if he had been able to come this close to her without her detecting him.  For a moment, Krystal admired his ability to keep his emotions under such tight control.  But then she recognized the danger in that.  And the implications of his words.

“Still don’t trust me?” the vixen asked with a raised brow.  She told herself to play it off.  Leon was the most paranoid out of the group so this sort of interaction was within his nature.  “I’ve been on the team for a month.  If I was going to betray you, wouldn’t I have already done it?”

“That remains to be seen,” Leon answered. “But typically innocent people don’t go wandering off in the night.”

“I’m not running,” Krystal pointed out.  “I just wanted to go for a walk is all.”

Leon did not look convinced.  He folded his arms over his thin chest.  She took note of the dagger strapped to his forearm, concealed underneath the sleeve of his uniform jacket.  Had he come here armed in case they ran into trouble?  Or was there a more sinister motive?

“This planet reminds me of Cerinia,” Krystal said to him, taking her gaze off of him for a moment.  “There’s an ancient wonder here.  I’ve… missed it.”

The reptile’s expression softened ever so slightly.  He glanced up at the glow of mushrooms decorating the trees.  Their glow was so bright that even in the night, Krystal did not feel like she needed a torch or to even draw her staff to provide more light.  

“Panther does not talk often about Cerinia.  I imagine there are still… wounds,” Leon said after a pause in their conversation.  “But from what he told me, it was truly a beautiful place.  A pity what became of it.”

“I wish I could go back sometimes,” Krystal said. “Do you feel the same about Venom?  I… know it’s still there, but… surely you must miss it too?”

“I do and I do not,” Leon replied.  “Life in poverty is not glamorous.  I do care for my family, though.  Even if perhaps they are upset that I chose to leave Venom for good.”

She could sense emotions rising up past that callous barrier he had created.  There were bits of regret.  Bits, perhaps, that the lizard did not want to admit.  His steadfast loyalty to Wolf may have granted him wings out of a rough lifestyle… but perhaps it had taken away more than Leon wanted to say.  Krystal doubted, though, that he would have done things differently.  She knew him better than that.

“Panther… really likes you,” Leon stated, carnelian eyes narrowed to slits. “I only followed you to make sure you were not doing something that would hurt him.”

“You don’t have to worry about that,” Krystal said, the lie flowing through her like water.  Fluid.  Seamless.  She had gotten so used to lying that it felt as natural as breathing.  She was not sure that was a good thing.  “Panther… he came into my life at an odd time.  But I’m grateful to him.  He really helped me out.”

When she spoke of Panther, it made her feel guilty.  She never lied when she spoke about him.  Every soft moment they shared, she knew those moments were real… even if her reasoning for being on the team was fabricated.

“I understand that your departure from Star Fox was not… a mutual agreement,” Leon replied.  “At first, I thought you joining the team was odd to put it mildly.  Did Fox not indoctrinate you into thinking we were heartless ruffians without a shred of loyalty between us?”

The vixen felt her heart sink, remembering her last conversation with Fox.  It had been a gradual build, like a tea kettle threatening to boil over.  The vulpine’s personality had shifted after the aparoid invasion.  Their arguments had gotten more frequent.  Krystal’s longing to find more of her people had gotten stronger. Fox had wanted her to focus on the missions.  She couldn’t, though.  She couldn’t focus.  And his temper had begun to flare up to new heights.

“If Wolf had kicked you from the team… what would you have done?” Krystal asked Leon and she saw surprise cross his features.  “Sometimes, you think you’re a good person.  And then you realize that you’re angry.  And sometimes, being angry… makes you realize that you were perhaps not as good of a person as you thought you were.  At first, I joined this team because of Panther but I will admit.  I wanted to hurt Fox.  I wanted him to feel the loneliness, the shock that I had felt when he had dismissed me.”

“If he had done that… I am not sure what I would have done,” Leon admitted quietly. “Star Wolf has been my life for so long now.  Perhaps I understand your plight a little better now.”

“I appreciate that you came to check on me for Panther’s sake,” Krystal said with a small smile. “I won’t lie.  I do love him.  I want him to be happy.  He deserves that much.”  She paused, then added. “Walk with me?”

Leon looked apprehensive but nodded.  The two began to walk in the dark forest, keeping a moderate pace.  The lizard looked to her, studying her face carefully.  Their conversation turned to silence as they wandered, curving around the outskirts of the outpost and keeping to the trees.  Small glowing wisp-like spores fell from the treetops and Krystal caught one in her palm and held it up for Leon to see.  The lizard observed it carefully before giving it a nod of approval.  Krystal let the spore fly away.

They continued for some time, the quiet interrupted by occasional chatter.  She could tell he was analyzing her even without using her powers.  The more they walked and talked, the more she could feel him relax.  Krystal supposed she ought to have been happy.  But her heart panged with guilt one more time and she tried to distract herself by just keeping her eyes forward.

When the outpost gates came into view once more, Leon stopped.  He turned and looked at her carefully.  His scrutinizing gaze made her feel mildly uncomfortable.  The vixen carefully distracted herself by adjusting some of the fringe of her bangs. 

“What you said earlier was wrong,” Leon stated with such brutal honesty that Krystal flitted her ears back in surprise. “Being angry… is normal.  It doesn’t make you evil.”

“I…” the vixen began. “I suppose there’s truth to that.”

“Remember that,” Leon replied and walked towards the gates.  

Krystal stared after him, wondering if somehow he had been able to read her thoughts.  After a minute of careful consideration, she concluded he had not.  Yet there was something about him that made her feel as though she could see through him.  Maybe it was the way he looked at her.  Maybe it was his precise choice of words when he spoke to her.  Regardless, it… unnerved her.  And somehow?  It was relieving.  It felt like she had gone her whole life wearing mask after mask.  Sometimes, having someone seeing you for what you were was comforting.  

It certainly made her feel less crazy, at least.

And perhaps it was the final straw.  The final instance that made her realize she needed this.  A new start.  A new team.  She needed to turn off her communications with Peppy.  She needed that breath of fresh air.  

“Are you coming?” Leon asked.

“Yes.  Yes, I’m coming,” Krystal replied and hurried inside after him.

[desperate-entwives]

woven

memori week day eight: wedding/something blue

My dear friend,  You knew this was going to happen. You told me once, on the ring, that first time we attempted what you called a “girls’ night”. We were still waiting for Emori to arrive.  “I wonder how long it’ll take,” was how you brought it up.   And Raven nodded, folding her arms behind her bed. She was reclining on your bed; the two of us were on the floor, and you were sectioning off my hair, getting ready to braid it.  “A few years,” she replied, “but it’s gonna happen. God knows she could do better.”  “What are you talking about?” I said, trying not to flinch at your hands in my hair. Closeness between women was still new to me back then, touch a strange thing, but I wanted to try.  “Murphy and Emori,” you said, folding the sections of hair gently. “Is this pressure okay? Too much?”  “No,” I said. “It’s good.” And it was. “What about them?” “They’re gonna get married,” you said. 

“Obviously,” Raven chimed in. I hadn’t yet heard the word. “Married?” I echoed (don’t laugh, it’s not funny). “It’s a thing we do in our culture, sometimes,” Raven said. “It’s what people do when they want to swear themselves to one another for the rest of their lives.” Her hand fiddled near her chest, like she was looking for an invisible pendant, and I thought of Bellamy. We’d been seeing one another for a month, not long enough for that kind of assessment, but I thought of him still.  “What about you and Monty?” I asked, turning to look at you, and you blushed, looking away. “Maybe,” you said. “I never liked the idea of marriage, but maybe with him...” “This is sickening,” Raven announced, and then Emori came in and we all changed the subject. I wonder, sometimes, if you and Monty got married, gave yourselves a formal ceremony in space. Or maybe the self-imposed isolation was your ceremony. Maybe you didn’t need words, just knowledge and devotion and the regularity of a day-to-day calmness, a life you’d chosen for yourselves. I’ll get up the nerve to ask your son one of these days. I wish you could have been there yesterday. --- The ink is a different color because I stepped away. I’m still getting used to writing. Are the letters shaky, hard to make out?  I’m not a fool; I know you’re not here, that you’re not going to read this. But maybe part of me hopes that you are somewhere, and that you will read this. Jackson tells me that grief doesn’t have to make sense, and the grief was weighing me down throughout the ceremony yesterday, because you should have been there. You shouldn’t have left us. You should have been there, fixing Emori’s hair for her and making fun of Murphy with Raven because he couldn’t stop crying. This is how I’m coping with that anger, with that despair.  At first, Bellamy didn’t think I was expressing grief at all. Then he saw that friendship is still new to me. The feeling of someone’s hands in my hair. This is a different grief than the one I felt for my parents long ago. I’m watching things that should also be watched by someone else, someone who understands these things as intimately as I do. I am stepping away now. I’ll come back. Don’t mind the blotchiness; the ink gets like that sometimes.  --- It was a good day, yesterday. We have our own colony now, a place of our own on this moon you and Monty worked so hard to lead us to. It wasn’t a smooth transition, but the conflicts are over, for the most part. There are other people here, and we don’t talk to them much. You don’t want to know why. There are these trees here, trees with wide tops like mushrooms, and there are two suns. You know about the suns. The sky is sometimes stained pink, like blood in snow, and it’s warm and beautiful. (Deadly, too. Again, you don’t want to know why.) Raven and I helped Emori get ready, even though we all thought splitting up by gender was a little silly. Even though we did it on the ring a few times. “You don’t have to do this,” she said as I brushed her hair. It’s getting long again, you know, though not quite as long as it was when we first met her. “I think it’s tradition,” I said. “I wish I was better at braiding.” You were always the best at that, and the three of us sat quietly with that thought for a moment. “Don’t braid it,” she said suddenly, and that’s part of how she remembered you, I think. Knowing that something was missing. Kind of like how she told us she never wore earrings again after her brother died. “You gonna attach a veil to that old hat of yours?” Raven quipped, and she laughed. They’d explained veils to us a few days earlier. “I think John knows what my face looks like by now,” she said. “Maybe he should wear a veil,” Raven mused. “Do us all a favor.” Then Emori hit her with her crumpled up hand wrap, which she’d just removed for the ceremony, and they laughed, and maybe I laughed too. I have a hard time remembering it when I laugh. It creeps up on me and then fades. --- Emori looked beautiful. There was a time I would have never found someone like her beautiful; you knew this, you helped me through it. It’s hard, when you’re immersed in an idea, to internalize the wrongness of the idea. But she looked beautiful; a long dress of yellow that she probably hated, and her hair held up in a clip that John helped to carve. The ritual itself was short and, I think, mostly for show. They’ve known for a long time. He asked her a year ago, you know, and I’m almost glad you missed it, because that was a dark time. I guess Murphy looked nice too, no matter what Raven might say. He said a short vow, and Emori said one after him, and tears ran down his cheeks. Maybe I cried too. Maybe Bellamy rested his hand on my shoulder and I leaned my head against his. They danced first, something soft and slow that only belonged to the two of them, and then she danced with each of us in turn, those of us left from the years on the ring. I never knew I’d have a family like this. She told me, a few nights ago, that she never expected it either. “My family is John,” she’d said, “but it isn’t just John. It’s all of you.” We all danced, and ate the food that we’d grown, and Bellamy and I were exhausted by the time we retired to our quarters. I looked out the window, though, and I saw the two of them dancing, newly wed. There was no music playing anymore; they were dancing to silence. 

---

I forgot to tell you this part. But you were there, in a way. There’s a tradition the sky people have, you know, that you need four things for a wedding: something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue. Raven brought it up right before the ceremony, perhaps as a joke. “That doesn’t make any sense,” Emori said. “Yeah, but it’s tradition,” Raven said, grinning, and then I remembered something. “That bracelet you stole from Harper,” I said. “All those years ago.” Emori considered this, face thoughtful, and disappeared into her quarters. She emerged with the bracelet. You know the one. She and John stole it as a prank, and you told her to keep it, but she never wore it. It’s beautiful, made of faded blue cloth woven and knotted. “You’ve never worn it,” I said. “So it’s new. And the color is right.” “It’s also old,” she said. “And… and borrowed.” Raven reached out and touched it, eyes closed. The short silence was a heavy thing, and we’ll have to keep carrying it. But maybe it was heavy like a presence. Maybe grief doesn’t make sense, and maybe the four of us are still woven together, and always will be. “Thank you,” Emori said quietly. Thank you. For now, I have nothing more to say. -Echo

[chillykitty]

OC tober #2 Dance

(I now have a FiMfiction story up for this so you can have it in order here.

This is the second day of the OC tober prompts from @oc-growth-and-development )

Barter Moon sat still in front of her mirror, she was wearing a lovely, simple dress. It was light blue with black accents and silvery embroidery of stars. It had openings in the back for her wings to comfortably fit through and it was ultimately quite soft, it seemed like it’d be good to dance in.

She tapped her hoof on the ground, staring at herself, like she was waiting for something to change. Rather she was waiting for herself to make up her mind.

She had crafted a plan days ago, as her family and colony prepared for a bittersweet celebration of the Moon Solstice. It was a celebration of the night princess, much like the diurnal holiday of the Sun Solstice was a celebration of the day princess. The day holiday made Barter curious, she’d heard rumors of the outside that diurnals had started calling it the Summer Sun Celebration, celebrating it as the anniversary of Nightmare Moon’s defeat.

All rumors of the outside made Barter curious, oh how she longed to go out there and meet the diurnals, I bet they have so many things to trade. Barter had traded with just about every pony in her colony, the only trades that excited her anymore were the ones from the few travelers who knew of their location. Trusted family friends and such who had usually worked as the day guards while the bat ponies had worked as the night. Sure, Barter had countless pieces of jewelry, countless nik naks, and countless toys. She’d worn countless dresses and ate countless dishes. All of which she had traded for one way or another, but there was nothing left to trade for in her colony that she hadn’t had before.

In her boredom her plan had grown. Her first plan was to just sneak out during the great feast of the Moon Solstice, she wished to see the sunrise again. She had seen it once, the night of Nightmare Moon’s defeat. Her mother had been startled out of her wits when the night lasted too long, only to be cut off by a beacon of light to the moon that left craters shaped like a mare in its wake. Her father had returned from his duties as a night guard a few days later, which was a few days earlier than expected, and he’d brought all of his things with him. He had explained that all of the bat ponies had quit, refusing to work under a creature of the sun.

But that sunrise was beautiful, as she was sure all sunrises would be, it would definitely be worth being scolded on the off chance that she did get caught. Though a small voice in the back of her mind had wondered, what if she didn’t come back to the caves after sunrise? What if she ran off to the great unknown? Living a life of trades and barters with new ponies everyday? That voice had grown louder and louder until it was undeniable that it was what she had to do.

She’d miss Hearth’s Warming, which would be a bummer, but perhaps the diurnals would celebrate it as well. It was a day holiday after all, bat ponies simply adopted it when they’d started their employment under Princess Luna.

With a sigh, she turned to grab a sash, she tied it around her waist, and with that, all of her preparation was complete. For now she would go and dance, when the feast began she would grab her things and rush off into the night, seeing the sunrise for the first time in years.

“Barter!” A voice chirped, struggling to fly up to Barter’s cave. It was the voice of Barter’s younger sister, she recognized it immediately.

“Star.” she called back, jokingly mocking her sister.

Star Swap eventually landed on the ledge, “The dancing’s about to start! Aren’t you coming?”

Barter smiled, she’d miss Star and her brothers, Lightmoon and Brightmoon. “Of course. How do I look?”

“Wonderful!” Star praised, “What’d you trade for it?”

“A number of things, an old watch for the thread, mushrooms for the fabric, an apple for the sash. I sewed it myself but I had Old Mare Knitstitch do the embroidery, in exchange I have to dance with her son tonight." She rolled her eyes, causing Star to giggle.

"Well, it was worth it, it’s lovely.” Star said.

“Thank you.” Barter stepped towards her sister, “We shouldn’t keep Nitwit waiting now, should we?”

Star giggled, “I’m sure Knitwish has the patience to wait, but perhaps we could race to make it quicker?”

“You’re on!” Barter said, taking flight and race down to the cave floor, her sister struggling to keep up just behind her.

…

“Discovery? Discovery Dusk..?”

“Hmm ah- yesh?” Discovery turned quickly the charcoal stick still in his mouth.

“Whatcha drawing?” Sun Flower stepped closer, her mane was braided into a delicate bun that matched the graceful style of the dress she wore. It looked thin and light and almost exactly like every other dress the other mares wore for the holiday.

"Mm." Discovery quickly drew the last few lines before setting down the stick, "This ladybug, I've never been able to get one to stay still this long." He said, and with almost perfect timing, the ladybug spread it's wings and flew off.

Sun Flower giggled, "Well, now that you're done, would you like to dance?"

"You? Want to dance? With me?" He asked jokingly, standing to move his art supplies to a safe rock, it was better than leaving it on the grass.

"In my defense," Sun smiled as they trotted towards the music, "You are the third pony I asked."

"Really?" He gasped, "I guess I'm just third best."

"You're not." She clarified, "I just figured you'd want to finish your drawing first."

"You know me so well." He grinned.

The warm summer air grew warmer as the two trotted up to the field that held the dancers, performers, and of course, a fire. Discovery turned in front of her, reaching out a hoof. He saw her eyes looking somewhere else.

He glanced at what had caught Sun's attention. It was a mare and stallion in full swing, dancing their hearts out with joyous smiles on their muzzles. Their names were Scarlet Love and Smoky Arrow and were some of Sun and Discovery's classmates. It didn't take longer than a second to realize that Smoky Arrow was likely one of the stallions she had asked to dance.

"May I have this dance?" Discovery asked, making Sun look at him again.

A sad smile showed on her face as she set her hoof in his, "I don't have a chance, do I? Those two are hopeless."

Discovery didn't say anything, he just pulled her into a dance, causing her to giggle. He knew she was right, she didn't stand a chance with Smoky, but he didn't want her to think about it right now. He just wanted her to be happy, if only for one dance.

[labgrownsteaks]

Chapter 3

My initial reaction was to sell it. If I could fetch 320 grand that would significantly change my life. On the other hand, considering I could print anything I wanted, I could make far more than 320k. I had to focus on the road because I was so excited. Erin was screaming and dancing and saying something, but I could barely hear any of it. I could print anything in the world. 

“How could you not know you had a CZ101?!” Erin exclaimed. 

“I don’t know. I used it last night to make a lab grown steak and then this morning Siri asked me if I wanted anything for the picnic”

“Wait, why did Siri ask you if you wanted anything? Since when does Siri give advice?!”

I was a bit baffled by this question. Siri always gave me advice. I literally thought that was what Siri did

I hesitated, and then asked. “Doesn’t Siri always do that?”

“lawl no! Siri’s not Hal! She basically just googles questions and figures out the best answer”

“Erin. Does your Siri ever joke around?”

Erin laughed. “What do you mean? Joke around? I’m sure if you ask her to tell a joke she’ll tell one”

“Does your Siri ever change her accent?”

“What are you talking about? No. You can change it manually in settings though.”

“Ha! Gotcha!”

“You bitch!” Erin shrieked while smiling. 

She hit me a few times in the arm, right before our turn to Burnt Dock boat landing. It’s where we’d have to park the car. The idea that my Siri was different kind of bugged me, but my mom was always buying me the knockoff versions of things. Who knows if I even had a real Siri. I remember Christmas in 1989 when I was super excited to get a pair of Reebok Pumps but they turned out to be Reeback Pomps. I took a sharpie and blacked out the center of the  “a” so it looked more like an O, and then used White Out to finish the job. 

I pulled the Mustang onto a gravel road. Erin had taken the beautiful mushroom out of my backpack and unwrapped it on her lap. 

“Oh I don’t want to break you. I know you are so beautiful” she said to it, speaking as if it were a baby kitten. 

“Hey, keep it down. God knows these fishermen aren’t too keen on a couple hippies eating shrooms and wandering around the banks”

I turned the car, and in the next moment I looked over to see Erin stuffing a substantial chunk into her mouth. 

“Damn, slow down! That’s like 6 grams there!

Mouth full, she said  “probbubly 6 gwams et”

“What?”

She completed chewing and swallowed. 

“Probably 6 grams wet. It isn’t dried, so you have to eat more than you normally would”

With that she snapped the stem and handed me a piece. I grabbed it and ate it like a normal human. The distinct taste of burnt popcorn and pumpkin seeds filled my mouth. I washed it down with some blue Powerade. I was picking some bits out of my mouth when Erin lifted up a chunk of the orange cap and said “Let’s make a toast” I took a bit into my hand as well, smiling and looking her in the eyes. “To.......” we both sat and stared at each other for a bit. “To....Biodiversity” I responded ‘lawl ok, to Biodiversity” and we clinked our mushroom caps together and then scarfed them down. The sun was shining beautifully through the leaves, and they were already like water ripples at dawn. Erin hopped out of the car as I through all the food and stuff into my backpack. I pushed my alarm button and a voice stated “Viper Armed” . Erin laughed “VIPER ARMED! “ making fun of my totally badass car alarm. She was kind of skipping towards a trail that lead into a thick grove of Cottonwood trees. I had to jog a bit to catch up with her. There wasn’t a lot of really foresty areas in Chisuwick, so when we finally entered the grove it felt like we were in a different world. The sound was immediately just quieter. There were some red winged black birds fluttering about and squawking. We both walked in relative silence just looking and waiting for the mushroom to kick in. It was always good to trip with someone else because you’d come up at the same time generally. Erin walked up to a cliff which looked out at the river. “Look, a beaver!” she yelled. “Ummm, that’s a duck” I replied. Seeing the mallard duck’s distinctive green head even from a distance. “Maybe it’s a beaver in a duck costume!” Erin said as she began to giggle. “What benefit would a beaver have for dressing up like a duck?” I stated, trying to bring some much needed logic into the conversation. Erin looked at me seriously, then started laughing. And then I started laughing too, and every time we looked at each other the other would start giggling again. The duck was up by the shore now, probably thought we had some food or something. “I love you duck!” Erin yelled. The duck was unmoved, staring at us. I just sat for a bit “God, I fucking love nature! Nature must be a woman because she looks sooooo good!” she continued on. Erin was always a bit more extroverted when she tripped, I was the opposite. I got caught up in all my thoughts. I thought about the beaver in a duck costume and smiled a bit and Erin kept on babbling about something. I was staring at the reflections on the water and could tell that I was definitely feeling the effects at this point. Visually everything was turning into large blobs which were intersecting with one another and making up these blobby impressionist paintings. Erin was picking flowers and putting them into her hair. They weren’t arranged neatly. Her head looked more like a flowerpot than her wearing a crown of flowers. I looked back at the blobs of light on the water slowly vibrating and intersecting with one another. Then back at Erin, now the flowers were in a perfect crown on her head, and they were getting more and more vibrant. I couldn’t help the words coming out of my mouth, and I blurted out. 

“Jesus, you’re fucking beautiful”

Erin looked back and smiled and stated “You’re in the spirit world” a nod to the scene on Young Guns where they all take peyote and Lou Diamond Phillips says the same to Emilio Estevez. It was unironically our favorite film and we had watched it together countless times. Somehow the area where we were sitting felt more like a clearing now. It was opened up, and more expansive.

“How’d we get here?” I stated, kind of freaked out that I had lost time or something. 

“We walked” Erin said plainly. 

I could feel my breathing get a little strained, and I took a couple deep breaths and recentered myself. 

“Doesn’t it feel more open?”

“Hmmm, yes. it does..” Erin stated, sitting on a tree trunk which had fallen down. I unzipped my bag and grabbed the blue Powerade and took a swig before handing it to Erin. 

We spent the next few hours investigating the forest. We found a bunch of cicada cases on the ground which made no sense to us and seemed totally alien, and then sun was coming down pretty intensely. I looked at my Casio watch (gold metal band) and it was already 2 o clock! We had been in the forest for almost four hours now! I could feel the effects beginning to wane, and Erin was the same. We wandered back to the car, still giggling occasionally or stopping to see an ant colony. 

[wendyimmiller]

It’s Our Big Rock. So What If It’s Not the Biggest Rock in the World?

  Big Rock Tai Chi Club, May 2020

I have spent nearly 20 years at the Big Rock corner of Louisville’s Cherokee Park. I meet here regularly with my Big Rock Tai Chi Club to practice Yang Family-Style Tai Chi. Big Rock is not our exclusive Shangri-La, as it is open to families, picnickers, plein air painters, guitar pickers, skulking teenagers, nature lovers and us.

The Big Rockers (my tai chi group) has grown smaller in the last few years, but our energy (chi) is undiminished. Nine or fewer of us meet now with Yong You, our friend and teacher.

Big Rock Tai Chi Club on the April 2010 celebration of World Tai Chi Day. Group arranged by Dan Wibbels; photo by Terry Meiners.

Here at Big Rock, I have made close friends, improved my health and found a deep sense of belonging.

Lloyd Kelly, a member of our group, demonstrates the 16-posture Tai Chi form, next to a twisting white mulberry, along the banks of Beargrass Creek.

  People who truly inhabit a place are culturally adapted to that particular region or ecosystem. They know the plants, animals, weather, waters, soils—and draw their identity, lifeways and material culture—individual and collective—from that place.

–Gary Snyder

  Big Rock, along the middle fork of Beargrass Creek, at the eastern fringe of the Olmsted-designed Cherokee Park, connects Louisvilleans to nature and to one another.

Our group sways in a choreography of slow, elegant moves with magical names like Brush Knee Push, Part the Wild Horse’s Mane and Repulse the Monkey. Bicyclists, joggers, parks employees, moms, dads and little kids stare at us curiously. Big Rock is full of eye-openers.

The geologic underpinnings of Big Rock began in the Silurian period. Thick slabs of Louisville limestone and Waldron shale were laid down 400 million years ago. John James Audubon admired Beargrass Creek; Shawnees depended on it.

Frederick Law Olmsted was hired to design and build a series of parks and parkways in Louisville, including Cherokee Park and Big Rock in the late 19th century. ”I never saw a park in my life which has as many natural advantages as the property just purchased,” Olmsted wrote in 1891.

Forsythia suspensa, late March

Walk the well-traveled trail, adjacent to the pavilion, and you’ll find the Big Rock that was dislodged from the steep cliff long before anyone was taking notes. It is nowhere close in size to massive boulders, two-stories high, on Yunnan’s Jinsha River near Tiger Leaping Gorge, but this is our little Beargrass Big Rock.

Beargrass, wild hyacinth (Camassia scilloides) in May

Botanist Julian Campbell unraveled the origins of the name beargrass in a fascinating story called Beargrass in the Bluegrass: Rediscovery of Ecological Meaning for Wild Hyacinth (Camassia scilloides):

“Until now, the origin of the name of Beargrass Creek in has been mysterious. The first written record was as ‘Rotten Cr. Or Bear Grass C.’ on Lewis Evans map of 1755. There is no evidence that ‘beargrass’ was a corruption of the French ‘La Barre Grosse Crique’ for ‘The Big Bar Creek,’ which has been suggested since the creek’s mouth is just above the Falls of the Ohio River. Instead, Otto Rothert theorized in1927 that the name was based on the plant Yucca filamentosa, often known as beargrass, which he stated was plentiful in the Virginia colonies. However, there is no botanical evidence that Yucca is native to Kentucky…During the 18th century, ‘beargrass’ throughout the central Ohio Valley was probably Camassia scilloides, eaten by bears and humans alike. “

Yucca filamentosa and the southern Appalachian Xerophyllum asphodeloides (beartongue) were less edible or even toxic, according to Campbell.

Water willow (Justicia americana) in June

The botanist Pat Haragan, who is a collaborator with Julian Campbell, met me near Big Rock a few weeks ago. Pat is the author of The Olmsted Parks of Louisville: A Botanical Field Guide and Weeds of Kentucky and Adjacent States. She has a sharp eye and notices plants I easily overlook. I can spot cigar trees, elderberries, common milkweed and even an occasional devil’s-dipstick mushroom, but she sees so much more on a short walk that I have either ignored or not seen.

Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) in June

Devil’s dipstick, elegant stinkhorn (Mutinus elegans in September

Pat tells me about the herbaceous water willows (Justicia americana) and points to bottle brush grass (Elymus hystrix), and the diminutive and indestructible path rush (Juncus tenuis). She knows where there is a Cherokee Park hillside, nearby, carpeted with spring-flowering beargrass (Camassia scilloides).

Note to Allen: Keep your eyes peeled next spring.

There have been mornings when my conscience nags at me to tend the garden instead of practicing tai chi at Big Rock. The garden needs perpetual care, but I have habitually slowed down, in order to be with friends and enjoy the natural beauty at Big Rock for a little while. I quiet my mind, move slowly and try to avert sideways glances to see what other park visitors are doing.

The Big Rock

Tai chi works wonders. On the drive home, with my body and soul soothed, and cocktail hour in the offing, I am startled when I look into the rear-view mirror and find four cars stacked up behind me. I am going 15 mph. I hit the gas and zoom on.

                  It’s Our Big Rock. So What If It’s Not the Biggest Rock in the World? originally appeared on GardenRant on July 8, 2020.

The post It’s Our Big Rock. So What If It’s Not the Biggest Rock in the World? appeared first on GardenRant.

from Gardening https://www.gardenrant.com/2020/07/its-our-big-rock-so-what-if-its-not-the-biggest-rock-in-the-world.html via http://www.rssmix.com/

[turfandlawncare]

It’s Our Big Rock. So What If It’s Not the Biggest Rock in the World?

  Big Rock Tai Chi Club, May 2020

I have spent nearly 20 years at the Big Rock corner of Louisville’s Cherokee Park. I meet here regularly with my Big Rock Tai Chi Club to practice Yang Family-Style Tai Chi. Big Rock is not our exclusive Shangri-La, as it is open to families, picnickers, plein air painters, guitar pickers, skulking teenagers, nature lovers and us.

The Big Rockers (my tai chi group) has grown smaller in the last few years, but our energy (chi) is undiminished. Nine or fewer of us meet now with Yong You, our friend and teacher.

Big Rock Tai Chi Club on the April 2010 celebration of World Tai Chi Day. Group arranged by Dan Wibbels; photo by Terry Meiners.

Here at Big Rock, I have made close friends, improved my health and found a deep sense of belonging.

Lloyd Kelly, a member of our group, demonstrates the 16-posture Tai Chi form, next to a twisting white mulberry, along the banks of Beargrass Creek.

  People who truly inhabit a place are culturally adapted to that particular region or ecosystem. They know the plants, animals, weather, waters, soils—and draw their identity, lifeways and material culture—individual and collective—from that place.

–Gary Snyder

  Big Rock, along the middle fork of Beargrass Creek, at the eastern fringe of the Olmsted-designed Cherokee Park, connects Louisvilleans to nature and to one another.

Our group sways in a choreography of slow, elegant moves with magical names like Brush Knee Push, Part the Wild Horse’s Mane and Repulse the Monkey. Bicyclists, joggers, parks employees, moms, dads and little kids stare at us curiously. Big Rock is full of eye-openers.

The geologic underpinnings of Big Rock began in the Silurian period. Thick slabs of Louisville limestone and Waldron shale were laid down 400 million years ago. John James Audubon admired Beargrass Creek; Shawnees depended on it.

Frederick Law Olmsted was hired to design and build a series of parks and parkways in Louisville, including Cherokee Park and Big Rock in the late 19th century. ”I never saw a park in my life which has as many natural advantages as the property just purchased,” Olmsted wrote in 1891.

Forsythia suspensa, late March

Walk the well-traveled trail, adjacent to the pavilion, and you’ll find the Big Rock that was dislodged from the steep cliff long before anyone was taking notes. It is nowhere close in size to massive boulders, two-stories high, on Yunnan’s Jinsha River near Tiger Leaping Gorge, but this is our little Beargrass Big Rock.

Beargrass, wild hyacinth (Camassia scilloides) in May

Botanist Julian Campbell unraveled the origins of the name beargrass in a fascinating story called Beargrass in the Bluegrass: Rediscovery of Ecological Meaning for Wild Hyacinth (Camassia scilloides):

“Until now, the origin of the name of Beargrass Creek in has been mysterious. The first written record was as ‘Rotten Cr. Or Bear Grass C.’ on Lewis Evans map of 1755. There is no evidence that ‘beargrass’ was a corruption of the French ‘La Barre Grosse Crique’ for ‘The Big Bar Creek,’ which has been suggested since the creek’s mouth is just above the Falls of the Ohio River. Instead, Otto Rothert theorized in1927 that the name was based on the plant Yucca filamentosa, often known as beargrass, which he stated was plentiful in the Virginia colonies. However, there is no botanical evidence that Yucca is native to Kentucky…During the 18th century, ‘beargrass’ throughout the central Ohio Valley was probably Camassia scilloides, eaten by bears and humans alike. “

Yucca filamentosa and the southern Appalachian Xerophyllum asphodeloides (beartongue) were less edible or even toxic, according to Campbell.

Water willow (Justicia americana) in June

The botanist Pat Haragan, who is a collaborator with Julian Campbell, met me near Big Rock a few weeks ago. Pat is the author of The Olmsted Parks of Louisville: A Botanical Field Guide and Weeds of Kentucky and Adjacent States. She has a sharp eye and notices plants I easily overlook. I can spot cigar trees, elderberries, common milkweed and even an occasional devil’s-dipstick mushroom, but she sees so much more on a short walk that I have either ignored or not seen.

Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) in June

Devil’s dipstick, elegant stinkhorn (Mutinus elegans in September

Pat tells me about the herbaceous water willows (Justicia americana) and points to bottle brush grass (Elymus hystrix), and the diminutive and indestructible path rush (Juncus tenuis). She knows where there is a Cherokee Park hillside, nearby, carpeted with spring-flowering beargrass (Camassia scilloides).

Note to Allen: Keep your eyes peeled next spring.

There have been mornings when my conscience nags at me to tend the garden instead of practicing tai chi at Big Rock. The garden needs perpetual care, but I have habitually slowed down, in order to be with friends and enjoy the natural beauty at Big Rock for a little while. I quiet my mind, move slowly and try to avert sideways glances to see what other park visitors are doing.

The Big Rock

Tai chi works wonders. On the drive home, with my body and soul soothed, and cocktail hour in the offing, I am startled when I look into the rear-view mirror and find four cars stacked up behind me. I am going 15 mph. I hit the gas and zoom on.

                  It’s Our Big Rock. So What If It’s Not the Biggest Rock in the World? originally appeared on GardenRant on July 8, 2020.

The post It’s Our Big Rock. So What If It’s Not the Biggest Rock in the World? appeared first on GardenRant.

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[courtneytincher]

Hotel Hit Squad: In times of chaos and uncertainty, The Newt provides a calming country escape

In the teeth of the chaos and uncertainty swirling about us, a new hotel has just opened. It’s on the edge of Bruton, that hotbed of trendy urban escapism, and, with its pleasure grounds, it feels like balm. Whether you decide that The Newt is an earthly horticultural paradise or Disneyland for gardeners, it delights both eye and palate. While our country continues to be buffeted by Brexit, it made me want to hunker down: I would be very happy there.   Incorporating Palladian-fronted Hadspen House, first built in 1687, and its surrounding working estate, The Newt offers many unusual elements, all revealed only when its new gardens opened to the public last May. The centrepiece is Hadspen’s egg-shaped Parabola walled garden, now planted with a comprehensive collection of 460 trained British apple trees, of 267 varieties, arranged in a baroque-style maze. And then there’s the cyder press, bottling plant and bar, mushroom house, History of Gardening Museum, farm shop, treetop walk, thatched ice-cream parlour and wild swimming ponds, not forgetting the newts (we’ll come to them), all of which make the hotel and its estate feel like a lively, cultured, kindly and well-orchestrated haven – much as our country should be.  The centrepiece is of the hotel is a Parabola walled garden, arranged in the form of a maze • Grantley Hall may look like an oligarch’s plaything, but it’s a Yorkshire grande dame at heart Reading the torrid headlines as I swung languidly in one of several hanging 'nest' chairs, I was reminded of Lorenzetti’s great 1338 fresco The Allegory of Good and Bad Government in Siena. The scenes in Good Government portray contented, leisurely workers going about their bucolic tasks in a neat landscape of ploughed farmland, villas and castles, while Bad Government reveals a city of demolished houses and non-existent businesses, and two opposing forces squaring up to one another menacingly. Here, I told myself as I surveyed the scene from my nest, is Good Government. As with other recently opened hotels such as Heckfield Place and Grantley Hall, immensely wealthy individuals have stepped in to restore a beautiful English country house and give it new life. South African Koos Bekker and his wife Karen Roos, who together also created Babylonstoren – hotel, winery and spectacular gardens – in the Cape Winelands, are long-standing anglophiles, and six years ago, leafing through Country Life, spotted Hadspen House, home for two centuries of the Hobhouse family, for sale. They were captivated and chose it as their home, but somehow could not resist repeating their work at Babylonstoren. As there, Koos concentrated on the garden with designer Patrice Taravella, while Karen, former editor of Elle Decoration South Africa, turned her attention to the interiors. The Newt's décor is refreshingly simple, and feels almost Scandinavian • There's star-quality cooking to be found at the Stargazy Inn in Port Isaac – but you won't want to gaze at the bedrooms There is plenty to admire in the resulting hotel, especially the simplicity: no curtains at the lovely sash windows, nor pointless cushions on the blissful beds; the rough-hewn walls of the natural, unadorned spa; the unfussy, almost Scandinavian style of the 23 bedrooms and bathrooms; the juxtaposition of modern and old. But there are odd choices too among the contemporary furniture, lighting and art. I longed for slouchy sofas in the drawing room, and the entrance hall/reception feels awkward with its Marmite statement faux-classical painting and vast double-sided sofa. But there are many pleasures. Walking towards the lovely unadorned house of ravishing, burnished red-gold limestone, past a charming agglomeration of buildings – Clock House, Stable Yard, granary, kitchen garden, greenhouse and discreet spa and gym – feels like encountering a secret hamlet where time has stood still. Lunching brilliantly yet inexpensively on home-grown produce at the elevated, animated, all-glass Garden Café, with the gardens spread out below, was another highlight, as was the superb food for both dinner and breakfast in the hotel’s delightful inside-outside Botanical Rooms restaurant, whose dazzling yet homely open kitchen is its centrepiece. For their quality, menus and wines are reasonably priced, as are the rooms, which include breakfast, afternoon tea, complimentary mini larder, garden tour, cyder tour (they make their own on site) and use of the spa. The all-glass Garden Café, with the gardens spread out below, is a highlight of the hotel • Inside The Talbot, a deliciously stylish bolthole in the 'Food Capital of Yorkshire' Talk about Good Government. No power-crazed politicians here. As for the staff, they are simply superlative and give me hope for the future of British hospitality: bright, professional-yet-delightful and palpably excited about the future of the benign realm in which they find themselves. Part of their remit is to protect the 2,000-strong colony of smooth, palmate, and most importantly, great crested newts that live here and gave their name to the hotel. Doubles from £255 per night, including breakfast. Wheelchair access possible. Read the full hotel review: The Newt

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines

In the teeth of the chaos and uncertainty swirling about us, a new hotel has just opened. It’s on the edge of Bruton, that hotbed of trendy urban escapism, and, with its pleasure grounds, it feels like balm. Whether you decide that The Newt is an earthly horticultural paradise or Disneyland for gardeners, it delights both eye and palate. While our country continues to be buffeted by Brexit, it made me want to hunker down: I would be very happy there.   Incorporating Palladian-fronted Hadspen House, first built in 1687, and its surrounding working estate, The Newt offers many unusual elements, all revealed only when its new gardens opened to the public last May. The centrepiece is Hadspen’s egg-shaped Parabola walled garden, now planted with a comprehensive collection of 460 trained British apple trees, of 267 varieties, arranged in a baroque-style maze. And then there’s the cyder press, bottling plant and bar, mushroom house, History of Gardening Museum, farm shop, treetop walk, thatched ice-cream parlour and wild swimming ponds, not forgetting the newts (we’ll come to them), all of which make the hotel and its estate feel like a lively, cultured, kindly and well-orchestrated haven – much as our country should be.  The centrepiece is of the hotel is a Parabola walled garden, arranged in the form of a maze • Grantley Hall may look like an oligarch’s plaything, but it’s a Yorkshire grande dame at heart Reading the torrid headlines as I swung languidly in one of several hanging 'nest' chairs, I was reminded of Lorenzetti’s great 1338 fresco The Allegory of Good and Bad Government in Siena. The scenes in Good Government portray contented, leisurely workers going about their bucolic tasks in a neat landscape of ploughed farmland, villas and castles, while Bad Government reveals a city of demolished houses and non-existent businesses, and two opposing forces squaring up to one another menacingly. Here, I told myself as I surveyed the scene from my nest, is Good Government. As with other recently opened hotels such as Heckfield Place and Grantley Hall, immensely wealthy individuals have stepped in to restore a beautiful English country house and give it new life. South African Koos Bekker and his wife Karen Roos, who together also created Babylonstoren – hotel, winery and spectacular gardens – in the Cape Winelands, are long-standing anglophiles, and six years ago, leafing through Country Life, spotted Hadspen House, home for two centuries of the Hobhouse family, for sale. They were captivated and chose it as their home, but somehow could not resist repeating their work at Babylonstoren. As there, Koos concentrated on the garden with designer Patrice Taravella, while Karen, former editor of Elle Decoration South Africa, turned her attention to the interiors. The Newt's décor is refreshingly simple, and feels almost Scandinavian • There's star-quality cooking to be found at the Stargazy Inn in Port Isaac – but you won't want to gaze at the bedrooms There is plenty to admire in the resulting hotel, especially the simplicity: no curtains at the lovely sash windows, nor pointless cushions on the blissful beds; the rough-hewn walls of the natural, unadorned spa; the unfussy, almost Scandinavian style of the 23 bedrooms and bathrooms; the juxtaposition of modern and old. But there are odd choices too among the contemporary furniture, lighting and art. I longed for slouchy sofas in the drawing room, and the entrance hall/reception feels awkward with its Marmite statement faux-classical painting and vast double-sided sofa. But there are many pleasures. Walking towards the lovely unadorned house of ravishing, burnished red-gold limestone, past a charming agglomeration of buildings – Clock House, Stable Yard, granary, kitchen garden, greenhouse and discreet spa and gym – feels like encountering a secret hamlet where time has stood still. Lunching brilliantly yet inexpensively on home-grown produce at the elevated, animated, all-glass Garden Café, with the gardens spread out below, was another highlight, as was the superb food for both dinner and breakfast in the hotel’s delightful inside-outside Botanical Rooms restaurant, whose dazzling yet homely open kitchen is its centrepiece. For their quality, menus and wines are reasonably priced, as are the rooms, which include breakfast, afternoon tea, complimentary mini larder, garden tour, cyder tour (they make their own on site) and use of the spa. The all-glass Garden Café, with the gardens spread out below, is a highlight of the hotel • Inside The Talbot, a deliciously stylish bolthole in the 'Food Capital of Yorkshire' Talk about Good Government. No power-crazed politicians here. As for the staff, they are simply superlative and give me hope for the future of British hospitality: bright, professional-yet-delightful and palpably excited about the future of the benign realm in which they find themselves. Part of their remit is to protect the 2,000-strong colony of smooth, palmate, and most importantly, great crested newts that live here and gave their name to the hotel. Doubles from £255 per night, including breakfast. Wheelchair access possible. Read the full hotel review: The Newt

September 23, 2019 at 01:52PM via IFTTT

[biofunmy]

Turning a Condo Into an Experience

Trey and Kelsey Garza have been looking to buy a two- to three-bedroom condo in Brooklyn since last fall. Currently renting in TriBeCa, they are taking their time, monitoring new listings, visiting different neighborhoods, comparing amenities from building to building.

And, in one instance, sitting down to a six-course meal in a pricey new condo’s dining space.

On a March evening, the Garzas ate their way through a relaxed dinner in the first finished unit of a Morris Adjmi-designed building in Williamsburg. There was no sales pitch at this table for 12. Instead, guests heard descriptions of each course from the professional chef, Matt Cruz, who whirled around the open kitchen’s quartzite-topped island.

Attending a private supper club in a new luxury property was a first for the Garzas. “It made sense in all aspects,” said Mr. Garza, 34, who works in finance. He and his wife, 29, a textile importer and wholesaler, were able to get an early peek at the North 10th Street building (which goes on the market in May) immerse themselves in the space, and enjoy a gourmet meal on the developer’s dime.

“We both loved the event,” Ms. Garza said. “Particularly the intimacy of having the chef personally serve each course, explaining the nuances and inspiration behind each dish. It felt like a dinner party with close friends.”

Welcome to the new era of luxury real estate marketing. With the high-end housing market in and around New York tilting decidedly in buyers’ favor, real estate brokerages and developers are experimenting with all sorts of experiential events to draw attention to their listings. Marketing teams are trying to build brands for new buildings by aligning them with cool start-ups, fashion legends, and arts and cultural groups carefully selected for the demographic they might attract.

It’s all about buzz.

“We are in Manhattan’s most challenging market in the last decade,” said Nikki Field, a senior global real estate adviser at Sotheby’s International who has worked on several co-branded events in a $58 million penthouse for sale at the top of 212 Fifth Avenue. “People are looking at everything and everywhere. They are no longer focused on certain neighborhoods — a complete pivot from the old Manhattan-centric buyer — because the city has grown in luxury options in all directions. They have a lot of choices.”

It’s not new for brokerages to host party-style events in their high-end listings, often as a cross promotion for a new jewelry line, art gallery or wellness guru. But with so many events now cluttering the market, some firms are getting more creative, offering more than a free glass of wine and proximity to celebrity.

“There’s too much inventory — everyone gets lost in the shuffle,” said Vickey Barron, an associate broker with Compass who last year brought in world-renowned ballroom dancers to wow a wealthy audience in the penthouse at 100 Barclay Street, in TriBeCa. “Everyone is fighting for that buyer.”

In their rollout of the North 10th Street project, Halstead Property Development Marketing persuaded the building’s developer, Industrie Capital Partners, to team up with Resident, a supper club start-up. Brian Mommsen, a hedge-fund manager who started the club, said his goal was to provide a platform for young “overworked and underpaid” chefs to “experiment, expand their repertoire and grow their networks. And we want to create an awesome experience for guests through that prism.”

The relationship is symbiotic, of course. Halstead gets an interesting event that will bring in foot traffic, Mr. Mommsen gets the space, and together they hope to generate a stir on social media.

Attendees may be invited by brokers, or they can book a reservation with Resident privately (for $150 a person). The developer pays for the Halstead-sponsored dinners, which on the night the Garzas attended included such fare as scallops with Meyer lemon, turnip and chive, and Wagyu beef with sunchoke and black truffle, each with its own wine pairing. Guests were free to roam around the apartment, which was also hung with works by local street artists. But there was no hard sell. In fact, the only pitch that night was Mr. Mommsen’s introduction of the chef.

“Because it’s a very intimate building, with just nine units, we felt that the marketing approach should be as such,” said Jacob Hamway, a partner in Industrie. “Let people get together with good food in a social setting to really get a firsthand experience of the product. It’s a really strategic approach — it’s new, it’s edgy and I love it.”

Just a few weeks before, a different type of experience unfolded in a new townhouse for sale on Degraw Street, in Carroll Gardens. For two days, the townhouse’s four floors played host to a “fleeting retail” event put together by Big Lives, a company that stages shopping events featuring rising designers. An invitation-only Friday night event drew a packed house, while the Saturday open house was sparsely attended.

Guests could try on jumpsuits created by Brooklyn-based Combine De Filles and “size-free” jackets by House Dress. The spacious master bath was given over to Loli organic beauty products. Several designers were there to chat with visitors, while Big Lives founder Sam Alston played hostess.

Paige Goodings, 23, was among the Saturday shoppers, sporting a white, button-up shirt created by Grammar, another designer brand in attendance. A special-events coordinator at Karla Otto, Ms. Goodings said that while she wasn’t currently in the market for a seven-figure townhouse, she was a fan of Big Lives, and had been to several events in other locations.

“It’s somewhere new every time,” she said. “I like being able to explore a new neighborhood in the city, and step out of what I’m used to.”

The listing agent, Rotem Lindenberg, with Compass, said it was the first time she’d linked a property with fashion. This townhouse, with its minimalist design vibe, a finished basement area suitable for use as a studio, and “a great backyard for inspiration,” seemed particularly well suited to an event aimed at a creative-minded audience, she said.

“Even if those visitors weren’t buyers, they have friends, families, parents — it puts the word out there,” Ms. Lindenberg said. “Two years ago, you just put a property on the website and it would sell by itself. Today, you have to be more creative about cooperating with other industries to make things happen.”

Ms. Field, with Sotheby’s, has aligned 212 Fifth Avenue with a number of luxury-brand partners for events targeting a select group of potential buyers for the building’s 10,000-square-foot penthouse. (The building, which has 47 units in all, is 90 percent sold, she said.) Among the events they’ve hosted since the penthouse went on the market in January 2018 (then for more than $70 million) are a chamber orchestra performance to raise money for music education and an exclusive preview of Fendi’s upcoming fur collection.

“I know that my penthouse buyer is going to come from the exposure through one of these events,” Ms. Field said. “In a challenging market, you need to send the right message to the right people through the right events.”

Outside the city, the same trend is beginning to play out in suburban markets, though to a less ambitious degree. In Stamford, Conn., for example, Trinity Financial has used a series of experiential events to help build a brand around its 209-unit luxury rental complex, Vela on the Park, which is now almost fully leased at rents from $1,900 to $6,800 a month, said Abby Goldenfarb, a vice president in the Boston office of the developer. In February, they invited Sh*t That I Knit, a Boston company that sells merino wool knitwear (mainly hats) handmade by women in Lima, Peru.

“This is a creative, sophisticated company that is getting a lot of attention, and it helped us create a buzz on social media,” Ms. Goldenfarb said. “The two-hour event brought in people who may not lease, but now they know who we are. And it helps get the word out.”

In Wilton, Conn., Michele Ferguson Nichols, an agent with Douglas Elliman, recently attempted to draw attention to her listing on Pipers Hill Road by hosting an art-show open house and organic cooking demonstration there. The five-bedroom colonial, currently listed for $1.099 million, has been on and off the market for the past two years, and local agents “weren’t paying a lot of attention to it anymore,” Ms. Nichols said.

The owner, Cabell Molina, is a multimedia artist and gallery owner, so she hung various works throughout the house. Ms. Nichols also spruced up the décor with creations by other local female entrepreneurs, including decorative sofa pillows and floral arrangements. She promoted a Thursday evening event for agents and a public open house.

Only three agents showed up for the broker night — initially a disappointment, but one later returned to show the house to a client. Turnout for the open house, where Chef Via Melissa prepared and served her versions of stuffed mushrooms and asparagus quesadillas, was a little more encouraging, with around 40 people. “I was hoping for more, but I’ll take it!” Ms. Nichols said.

If the event didn’t yield any offers, it did result in five showings. “It was a good learning experience for me,” Ms. Nichols said, “which will help me make the next event more successful.”

Because, in this housing market, there’s always another event.

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Sahred From Source link Real Estate

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[travelingtheusa]

IOWA

20 May 2018 (Sun) – We drove a half hour west today to see the Amana Colonies.  It is a colony composed of seven villages founded by 18th century immigrants from Germany.  Because it was early Sunday, most of the buildings were closed. We walked into the visitor’s center but no one was at the desk.  We could hear voices coming from the back of the building.  When I peeked through the doorway, I could see a group of people sitting in chairs and someone talking to them.  There was a large bus parked outside so I guess it was a tour group getting a special presentation.

     We then walked over to a shop advertising cheese, jellies, and wine. We did a small wine tasting and sampled some delicious cheeses.  That led to our buying three bottles of wine and a couple of packages of cheese.  

      Next was a stop at the Texas Roadhouse for lunch.  After that, we drove to Cedar Rapids and toured the National Czech and Slovak Museum.  We learned that Czechoslovakia was born out of the first World War.  It fell under communist rule for 41 years before the citizens won their independence.  Because of the brutal regime, thousands of Czechoslovakians immigrated to the United States, some for good and others intending to return home after making their fortune.  When the country gained its independence in 1993, it was divided into two countries: the Czech Republic and Slovakia.  The museum had lots of memorabilia displaying the culture, art, and history of Czechs and Slovaks.  There were costumes, musical instruments, and other items on display.  The museum was also celebrating Houby Days in Czech Village. Basically, they were celebrating the mushroom (houby means mushroom in Czech).  As someone who sees mushrooms as fungus, I think this is just wrong.

 19 May 2018 (Sat) – We packed up and left Des Moines at 8:45 a.m. It was a straight two and a half hour drive down I-80 to Iowa City.  We are camped at an Army Corps of Engineers campground on Coralville Lake.  We thought we would have full hookups but we found only a 30-amp electrical connection when we arrived.  We had to drive over to the fee station to find out where the fill station was so we could fill our onboard tank with water.  

      After set up, we drove over to the visitor’s center.  It was small but they had an introductory video about the lake. It turned out that a dam was built for flood control in 1958. In 1993 there was a flood that spilled over the emergency spillway and flowed for 28 days. It removed 17’ of soil and rock exposing bedrock from a prehistoric era and thousands of fossils in a seabed.  The area was renamed the Devonian Fossil Gorge.  Iowa continues to amaze me.

     We then drove over to the gorge and walked among the rocks, trying to pick out fossils.  You need a trained eye for that stuff.  I found two or three things that looked like they could have been fossils but I wasn’t sure. Passing a bunch of rocks piled up along the bank, Paul spotted some pica (or other rodents) crawling in and out of the area.  It was a pleasant hike.

 18 May 2018 (Fri) – It was a kind of hang-out day.  We had seen what we wanted in Des Moines.  I thought we were going to move today and we had packed up a good bit of the rig getting ready to go.  When I sat down to note the address, I discovered our reservation at the next place wasn’t until tomorrow.  We had apparently planned to stay here three nights, not two.  

     After working around the RV all morning, we went into town and had lunch at the Royal Mile, an English style pub.  I tried a Cornish pasty, which was a mix of hamburger and pork rolled in dough and deep fried.  It was a tasty pasty.  ;) 

     When we were done, we took a walk through Sculpture Park in downtown Des Moines.  There were several pieces of metal and plastic items scattered around the park. Most of them were unrecognizable as any kind of “art.”  A few pieces were familiar – a horse, two heads, the back of a black and a white snowman, a thinking rabbit, then a bunch of twisted metal pieces.  

     Paul remembered that there was a basilica in the area.  I looked it up on Trip Advisor and we took a ride over there.  It was rather plain looking outside but gorgeous inside.  The main church doors were locked but we were able to get in through a back door.  The ceiling was very high and there was stained glass all around the walls. The church was designated a minor basilica by Pope Paul II in the early 70s.

     On the way back to the campground, we stopped at a Hy-Vee.  It is a grocery store chain throughout Iowa.  It reminded me of those stores we shopped at in Oregon and Washington.  It was large and seemed to have everything. There was a section with prepared food you could buy and eat right in the store.  There was a large deli section with lots of meat selections.  At the end of the counter, they had sliced lunch meats in bins.  We saw that in two other stores.  I guess they pre-slice lunch meats here.  It seems like the meats would dry out

17 May 2018 (Thu) – We drove a half hour west to Winterset to the birthplace of John Wayne.  There was a small museum with memorabilia.  Behind that was the house where Marion Robert/Mitchell Morrison was born in 1907.  The house was very small with just four rooms.  His family moved several times in his early life before finally settling in California.  He lost his scholarship at college because of a broken collarbone and wound up working as a prop boy for the film studio.  And the rest, as they say, is history.  

     After the museum, we drove back to Des Moines.  We stopped for lunch then toured the Iowa History Museum.  The layout was a little confusing and there was a lot of wasted space in the building.  The most interesting thing I learned was that every year Iowa hosts a RAGBRAI.  It is a bicycle ride that crosses the state for eight days.  It started in 1973 and has grown to the largest bike-touring event in the world.  Along the route, there are vendors and entertainment and the riders wear special team jerseys.  Each night, the bike riders set up tents and sleep along the route.  The state holds a lottery and selects 8,500 participants. There are also another 1,500 passes issued on a first-come, first-serve basis.  Unregistered riders have also crashed the venue, swelling the numbers even further.  Can you imagine 10,000 bicyclists going down the road at one time?  Participants start by dipping their rear wheel in the Missouri River.  When they reach the end, they dip their front tire in the Mississippi River.

 16 May 2018 (Wed) – We left Omaha, NE, at 9:15 a.m.  It was an easy 3-hour drive to Des Moines.  We are staying in the back of an Elks Lodge. They have electrical hook-ups for eight campers but not the room.  Weird. We checked in on arrival.  Three guys were working on some cabinets for the bar. They were very friendly.

     After set up, we drove into town to see the State Capitol Building. It has five domes (the only one in the U.S.) and the main dome is covered with gold leaf.  We explored three floors of granite, sweeping staircases, murals, and glass tile mosaics. The law library was beautiful with circle stairs and thousands of books.

    One of the odd things I noticed are how many Mexican eateries are around town – Taco Johns, Mi Tacos, the Latin King Restaurant, Tasty Tacos, Big Burritos, etc.  Iowa seems very far from the southern border.  

     When we got back, we went to dinner in the lodge.  They were serving Maidrites and Mac & Cheese. Maidrites is nothing more than browned hamburger meat – no sauce, spices, or anything.  They put a spoonful on a hamburger bun and many of the folks put mustard and ketchup on it.  I tried that. It wasn’t very good.  The Mac & Cheese seemed to be lacking cheese.  It was an interesting meal.

[thehungrykat1]

History in Style at Rizal Park Hotel’s Cafe Rizal

Manila has seen its fair share of history, from the Spanish period up to the American colonization and its brief Japanese occupation. While we can’t really say that the present is much better, sometimes, it’s nice to look back at old photographs and think about those golden years of Manila with its old-world charm and sophistication. There are few remnants left of those colonial years, but one historical building has recently made its way back to life, and is now a stunning reminder of Manila’s elegant history. 

The Rizal Park Hotel is the new reincarnation of the former Army Navy Club, the country’s first exclusive social club which was originally built in 1911 and designed by renowned architect William Parsons. This five-star boutique hotel has been carefully restored and promises to be one of the most iconic and picturesque hotels in the country. It is located on T.M. Kalaw Extension in Malate, Manila, just a few steps away from the Quirino Grandstand and Rizal Park. I have passed by this area numerous times before, so I was really surprised when I finally saw the restored building in all its previous glory.

I visited Rizal Park Hotel a few weeks ago to try their dinner buffet which was highly recommended by one of my titas. I had only heard about the Army Navy Club in magazines and historical articles, so I was really amazed when I saw its beautiful and enchanting facade and interiors. The brightly-lit central octagonal lobby is truly an amazing feature, together with its black and white flooring plus the grand staircase which were all meticulously restored by hotel owner Simon Lee Paz, even if would have cost less to just put up an entirely new section. This is probably the most Instagram-worthy area in the city.

Rizal Park Hotel was officially opened on July 26, 2017, with President Rodrigo Duterte and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts recognizing the hotel for its efforts in the "preservation, protection and promotion" of Filipino heritage. It currently has 76 rooms but Phase 2 will be opening soon with an additional 34 rooms plus a grand ballroom that can fit 1,200 guests. It will also house a new casino plus a Chinese fine dining restaurant, together with a gym, spa and a roofdeck infinity pool looking across Manila Bay. Rizal Park Hotel is the manifestation of what life and elegance the Army and Navy Club had more than a hundred years ago. It is definitely a trip down memory lane for those who still remember how life used to be.

In charge of making sure guests experience the magic of Rizal Park Hotel is General Manager Juan Paolo Sumera, who envisions a personal and intimate encounter for everyone who visits this gorgeous boutique hotel. After taking a few photos around the colorful lobby, it was time to try the dinner buffet at Café Rizal, their all-day dining restaurant on the ground floor.

I can’t believe that this same area used to be a soldier’s lounge during the American era, but it has now been transformed into a very elegant and classy dining restaurant. Cafe Rizal offers a lineup featuring international cuisine with a fusion of classic and modern flair. Western, Chinese, Japanese, and local selections are partnered with a special ala carte menu.

Just outside Cafe Rizal is the beautiful Courtyard, an al fresco cafe suitable for quick lunch or coffee breaks. The Courtyard has its own ala carte menu and promos for those who want a more chill and relaxed vibe.

But I was here for the dinner buffet so it’s time to head over to the buffet stations. Cafe Rizal has an open-theatre show kitchen right in the middle where you can see some of your a la minute requests being prepared.

Diners can start at the Bread Station offering assorted breads that you can also request to be toasted.

The Cheese Station looks very appealing with a variety of cheeses that you can pair with fruits, cookies and biscuits.

They also have a selection of hors d'oeuvres and appetizers including Shrimp Cocktail, Egg Sandwich, Chicken Fingers, and Deviled Eggs. I just took one small glass of shrimp cocktail because I wanted to reserve my appetite for the heavier and more delicious main courses.

The Japanese station has some delectable sushi as well as tuna and salmon sashimi. I think I had two plates of salmon sashimi for myself.

Tempura is always a favorite so I also made sure to get a few pieces of their plump shrimp tempura. Some more items at the Japanese station include Chicken Teriyaki and chawanmushi.

Diners can find many other dishes scattered all around the buffet area. For those who prefer local Filipino favorites, they can indulge in Kalderetang Baka, Seafood Sinigang, and Kare Kare.

The main attraction at Cafe Rizal’s buffet would probably be the Carving Station with its endless servings of meaty delights.

The Bagnet is a deep fried crispy pork belly that Filipinos simply love eating. This savory pork dish is always so tempting, especially with its crunchy pork skin that crackles with every bite.

But my attention was more focused on the big slab of Rib Eye Steak that was just waiting for me. I asked the server to cut a slice and to have it seared just a bit to release those juicy flavors.

I can honestly say that this is one of the better buffet steaks I have tasted, served with vegetables and your choice of mushroom or red wine gravy. The beef was so flavorful and grilled nicely, with a small portion of fat that you can eat without feeling guilty.

They also have a Grill Station where you can have your orders of shrimp, squid, tuna, chicken satay, pork barbecue, and others items cooked fresh from the grill.

One of the surprising areas at the Cafe Rizal buffet is their Chinese Station. This turned out to be my favorite area because of the amazing dishes I found all over.

Start with their dimsum offerings which include hakaw, pork siomai, Japanese siomai, dumplings, spareribs, and chicken feet. I always go for the shrimp dumplings first and I have to admit that I ate 10 pieces of their yummy hakaw that evening.

You can also ask for a bowl of noodles which you can customize according to your liking.

It was the main dishes at the Chinese station that really impressed me, most especially their Garlic Prawns. These huge prawns are deep fried into a golden crisp and I really enjoyed eating the entire prawns from head to tail. 

The Homemade Tofu Fungus is also an interesting and colorful dish. The silky tofu combines with the soft fungus for a healthier alternative.

Another classic Chinese dish that we have grown to love as our own is the Patatim. This meaty pork knuckle is braised in a sweet thick sauce and it is so melt-in-your-mouth tender. 

Other dishes displayed include the Steamed Lapu Lapu and the Soyed Duck which are also quite delicious and noteworthy.

For desserts, Cafe Rizal also has a comforting lineup of sweets and pastries to choose from. Three types of cake were on display including Raspberry, Vanilla and Chocolate cakes. Assorted brownies, cupcakes, and parfaits are also available including eight different flavors of ice cream plus a halo halo station. That should ensure that everyone will leave with a big smile of their face.

Cafe Rizal is offering its buffet this month at a promotional price of P1200 nett per person for weekday lunch and P1500 nett for weekday dinners. Rates for weekend lunch and dinners are also at P1500 nett. It’s a great time to explore the Old Manila charm at Rizal Park Hotel and enjoy the bountiful buffet at Cafe Rizal. Hopefully, I’ll get to see and experience more of this enchanting hotel once the new phase opens this year. I’m sure it will be just as lovely.

Cafe Rizal

Rizal Park Hotel, South Road Drive, T.M. Kalaw Ext., Ermita, Manila

804-8700 

www.rizalparkhotel.com.ph

www.facebook.com/RizalParkHotel