Where have I been not to know about Wilt-Pruf? Did all y’all know about it and not tell me? When I picked up the greenery for the ranch last week at Rolling HIlls Garden Center in Solvang, owner Rocky Marshall said I might want to spray them with Wilt. Well […]
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Decking the Halls
RANCHO LA ZACA, Calif.–To my old-fashioned self it seems a little early to decorate the house for Christmas and put the tree up and all–mainly because by Christmas all the greenery will have to be replaced at least once. But I left the ranch yesterday until the 27th, and it […]
A Barrel of Inspiration: Felipe Hernandez
Hey, want to start your Saturday off with a barrel of inspiration? Okay may I brag? Wine is beauty, harmony and joy, right? So it has a place in this blog, if only once in a while, and this is one of those whiles. A stupendous fellow named Felipe Hernandez manages the vineyard–and many other things–here at the ranch in Los Olivos where I am lucky to live part time. He also manages vineyards of some of our Santa Ynez Valley neighbors, including the well-known Koehler vineyard and winery just down the road.
One Little Thing–A Room With a Bloom
Brrr it’s turned chilly here at Rancho La Zaca, and windy too. As the days shorten and the weather turns, we can create a bright spot anywhere with the One Little Thing of fresh flowers or greenery. If I’ve been away the first thing I do when I return is […]
An Al Fresco Autumn Dinner and Thanks to Jackie
RANCHO LA ZACA-Calif. I’m on a gratitude kick lately. Decorating tips to follow, I promise, but bear with me: In last Thursday’s post, One Little Thing, I talked about the big benefit of doing the one little thing of a gratitude journal. The idea came from author and motivational speaker […]
An Easy Sunday Supper – With Thanksgiving Leftovers
RANCHO LA ZACA , California – Everything about Sunday night supper should be easy. I had a girls’ night (not a Sunday) at my NYC pad a few weeks ago, and you’ve never heard so much cackling. There was a bit of eating and, ahem, drinking, too, but the point […]
Thanks for the Wineries…
SANTA YNEZ VALLEY, California-While we’re in the mode of giving thanks, and heaven knows eating and drinking, let us give thanks for the harvest and for the folks who make wine from it! The beautiful Santa Ynez Valley, Santa Barbara County, where I am lucky to live part of the […]
One Little Thing – Gratitude!
We all know how One Little Thing can change our lives, but making it happen means practicing it. Daily, every day. “Did I mention daily? Or so asked a fellow named Jerry Posner, whom I heard speak a few days ago at Canyon Ranch in the Berkshires. Boy am I […]
An Easy, Elegant Seating Plan You Can Make in an Hour
Seating plans, like most forms of etiquette, have their origins in thoughtfulness and practicality. If it is a large seated affair it’s terrible for a guest to be lurching around the room in desperate search of his place card. If it is a smaller party – even for 8 or […]
The Perils and Pleasures of Thanksgiving Decorating
Doing something for the first time can be daunting, even if it’s something you know how to do. This is as true in decorating and entertaining as in anything. I will never forget the feeling near terror as I faced decorating the great room at Rancho La Zaca last year […]
(Last) Postcard From Havana-Part 4: Sketchbook
Here is one last look at Cuba, in my simple, scribbled drawings. If you said your 5-year-old could do this, you’d be correct. It doesn’t worry this “artist” (liberal use of the term) in the least. For years I have kept little sketchbooks of my travels and I find they […]
Postcard From Havana-Part 3: Vicente Wolf and Hemingway’s House
One of the most memorable meals of my life was with a small group of friends years ago at the restaurant Georges, atop the Beaubourg (Centre Pompidou) in Paris. It lasted from 2 until 7 – or was it 1 until 8? – and went through I don’t know how […]