Zest & Aplomb

Travel

Oakland Just May Surprise You

California is a large, diverse state with so much to see. From coastlines, forests, deserts, urban cities and agricultural towns I know I’ll never see all of it. But I can share the little bit that I do see along the way.

I’m only an hour from my daughter’s home in Oakland but our neighborhoods are wildly different. I live in a buttoned-up suburban town at the base of mountains leading to Santa Cruz beaches. Oakland is an urban city originating at the San Francisco Bay waters. These waters are host to the fifth busiest seaport in the US. It then winds along Lake Merritt, through downtown and spreads across neighborhoods and parks culminating in the steep Oakland Hills. The vistas from these hills offer spectacular views of the San Francisco skyline and Bay Bride all the way to the Pacific Ocean. The average temperature range is 44 to 75 degrees. It is a short BART ride, part of which runs under the bay, to the center of downtown San Francisco.

July 18, 2021 by Cheryl Ryan

Wellness

What Happens During A Bone Density Test?

By Gwen Dawkins

Have you had a DEXA or bone density test? Women’s health professionals advise getting one at approximately age 65 (men at age 70) and older to track bone strength/density over time. But, of course, if you’ve had broken bones or a family history of osteoporosis, sooner is better. Because I already know that I have osteoarthritis in my knees and have lost at least one and a half inches in height, I got mine at age 58. And guess what? I already have mild bone loss.

I had a DEXA Scan a few weeks ago. It’s just another one of those things I hadn’t gotten around to doing. But it was quick, easy and painless.

The X-ray machine arm hovers over your lower spine and hips, beaming low level radiation to measure bone density in the center of your skeleton. Other bones such as knees, legs and arms may be scanned as well.

July 15, 2021 by Gwen Dawkins

Create

Summer Time And the Livin Is Yummy…

By Cheryl Ryan

My first summer harvests are coming in hot! Last year, the squirrels got every single peach and I was ready to go Caddyshack on them. But for some unknown reason, they don’t care this year. It’s Squirrels zero and me with all the peaches.

So now I’ve got to figure out what the heck to do with them. Because of my obsession with homesteaders, especially @ruthannzimm, I’ll be trying my hand at canning. Then I can whip up a peach pie whenever I want all winter long. But before that, I’ll be making all the good fresh peach stuff, like this roasted corn and peach salad, this peach bruschetta and maybe even this peach cobbler.

July 8, 2021 by Cheryl Ryan

Lifestyle

Cake, facials and some 4th Of July fun

By Cheryl Ryan

Prepping To Hike Mt. Whitney –– Hope, Grit, & Dark Chocolate will get me there!

By Gwen Dawkins

Hiking Mt. Whitney has been on my bucket list for a while — for 20 years to be exact — but I just haven’t gotten around to it. Either I couldn’t find people to commit to it, or didn’t win a permit in the lottery, or missed the narrow permit window entirely, blah, blah, blah. My friend Deb and I share the Mt. Whitney goal, and this year, we are determined to make it happen! In our quest to try new things, do big things and celebrate our girl power we decided to make it a girls’ trip. We put the opening day for the permit lottery on our calendars and asked a few friends whom we thought could and would want to do it. We applied and won permits for the first week of August. And now seven of us are committed and excited! And nervous. Be careful what you ask for.

Mt. Whitney is the highest mountain peak in the continental United States. At 14,505’, Mt. Whitney takes the top spot among close competitors Mt. Ranier, Washington (14,411’) and Pikes Peak, Colorado (14,115’). Of course, Alaska’s Denali takes the cake in the U.S. at 20,310’ — but, you know, that’s in Alaska.

June 24, 2021 by Gwen Dawkins

Create

There’s More To Making Beautiful Art Than Just Putting In Your 10,000 Hours

By Cheryl Ryan

I used to think that artistic greatness could only be achieved through 10,000 hours of exhaustive, self-sacrificing practice. Hard work is certainly part of the equation. But these dedicated artists prove that you can continue to grow in your art while laughing, encouraging and sharing knowledge with each other along the way.

Thank you to artists Nancy Takaichi and Liz Fennell for sharing their thoughts on creativity, Plein Air painting and why they do it.

What is your art background?

Nancy:

I loved drawing as a kid. I took art lessons and every high school art class I could get, then majored in art at DePauw University, Indiana. Once I started painting in oils I was hooked on the medium. It allows for changing one’s mind and trying new things, which is what I did with my life too. The plan was to move to California and get my MFA but first I had to afford to live here. So I found work in Silicon Valley and a short-term job became a 30-year career. I’m finally doing the work that I went to school for: making art!

Liz:

I didn’t have any art experience until I started painting with Stefan Baumann more than 15 years ago. That’s when I met some terrific like-minded people. Occasionally, Stefan would take the class on Plein Air adventures. That’s what hooked me. I knew that I would keep painting after that. I loved painting outdoors! It took a few years before I actually started going out on my own.

June 17, 2021 by zestandplomb

Relationships

If Change Is Inevitable — Why Does It Sneak Up On Us?

By Cheryl Ryan

Many of the Covid postponed weddings are back on and ours is no exception. So it’s shopping time for this Mother of the Bride. As I’ve made clear before, fashion doesn’t come easy to me. My preferred attire is basic, boring and comfortable. Yet, there is something about these wedding events that make me want to step up my game.

The whole Mother of the Bride or Groom thing has proven fraught and I’m not entirely sure why. I think it’s kind of like when our kids were young and in critical sports games or recitals. We want everything to go well for them but in the end, it’s not really up to us. Weddings are something like that. I find myself nervous in wanting the event to be a successful, happy experience for my kids but so much of it is out of my control.

June 13, 2021 by zestandplomb

Lifestyle

The Beautiful Bowls Of Summer

By Cheryl Ryan

Lately, every cooking show, blog and website is featuring a bowl arranged like a piece of art. The idea is in the simplicity of doing a lot of the prep ahead of time. Once prepared, you can use the ingredients throughout the week then add a little something unique to make it different. This keeps the nightly cook time to 15 or 30 minutes, all while producing a gorgeous fresh meal.

Who’s not in for that? My family is fully aware of my desire for healthy, simple food and equally aware of my laziness when it comes to spending hours in the kitchen cooking and cleaning each night. During the winter I make a lot of stews or hearty soups by just throwing everything into a pot. I make enough so that I can heat leftovers for lunch or dinner the next night. But because none of us want to eat hot food or spend hours chopping for salads, bowls are a perfect summer solution. I actually prefer cooking in the morning while I have energy rather than at night when I’m tired which also adds to the allure of preparing ahead.

June 6, 2021 by Cheryl Ryan

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