Sunset life

Although i admit to being a long time Sunset magazine subscriber and i generally really enjoy flipping through it each month, i have been bemused to find how much this magazine is stalking my life for the past few months.  Since they actually have to research their stories before publishing i guess the real truth is that they got there first.  i am completely unclear if this makes me really hip and cool, or merely trendy-

Examples you say?  Let me reel off a few from this month alone. 

• i lay abed for hours a few weeks ago ordering seeds from a giant seed catalog (seed savers in case you're interested) http://www.seedsavers.org/ and Sunset features a quick blurb on local seed companies (even featuring three of the varieties that i actually looked at out of hundreds)
• chris and i wander off to visit veggielution (http://www.veggielution.org/) to see their community farm and new farm stand, and there they are featured as one of the urban farms on page 24
•  i want a living space /cabin/canvas housetent in my backyard- a dream i have had since i bought this oversized and underutilized lot- and they do a feature on supercool small places to sleep (any of them would work just fine on my back forty), and another on small house designs
• i 'm fascinated by novelist and farmer Novella Carpenter's book set in oakland, and there's Novella, her goats and her urban farm featured in the "20 best towns of the future" article.  See more here http://fora.tv/2009/06/18/Farm_City_Novella_Carpenter_with_Michael_Pollan
• Don't even get me started on the gardening and succulents articles. 

Holy crap-my life has been reduced to a magazine.

In any case, even if you're not a gardener or raising chickens in your backyard, and even if Sunset magazine is not following you around (or dictating your interests) spring is upon us and San Jose has any number of things to do.

• Take it upon yourself to go visit veggielution (or any local farm-there are at least 4 within the Palo Alto,Sunnyvale San Jose area)-do a little work and get some free veggies straight from the garden.  See what the youth today are up to in their fantastic space at Prusch Farms in San Jose.
• Take some gardening classes with the master gardeners or just get tips off their awesome website www.mastergardeners.org/scc.html -and don't forget their seedling sale on April 10th.
• Get your summer gardens going-i am currently taking out sections of my front yard to include more gardening space.  My friend Sami converted her entire front yard to beds for local families to grow in through a project called La Mesa Verde-read more here http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/17/us/17backyard.html
• Go outside and play-ride your bike,go to the park, take a walk, look at all the plants.  It is truly green and beautiful out there.
• Go to the farmer's market-the San Jose area has tons of them (if you can't raise chickens you can buy organic eggs) and it gives you lots of opportunity to eat better
• Build a chicken coop and get some chickens-you can have 6 in San Jose (no roosters) without a permit and up to 20 with a permit and enough space.  Chickens are super easy to care for, and while they aren't quite as engaging as a pet dog, they are pretty amusing and make you very popular with the neighborhood kids.

peace

When 42 comes to call

My birthday always marks the end the holiday season for me, and the end is highly anticipated.  In general i can't say that our family ever did really well with the whole holiday season.  There were the obvious things like trying to figure out whether we were/are jewish or christian, growing up thousands of miles from extended family and then just the usual weird family holiday stress that families around the globe experience.  Needless to say, childhood set the tone and by the time i hit my 20's i was regularly leaving the country for christmas, and avoiding family thanksgivings (to the complete annoyance of my oldest sister). Getting through my birthday meant all the "celebrations" were done, and the world was headed toward spring after months of cold weather and excessive spending meant to make us all feel good.

After years of fleeing from my childhood i then decided to cave in and just wade through these months and hope for the best.  Over the past 10 years i have had any number of really good individual holidays-a good new year celebration here, a perfect turkey there, christmas presents i needed, but still, the overall 3 month period felt hard and running away, or out of the country still wasn't working.  i'm sure you think i'm building up to one of those hollywood movie endings where i state that this year that all changed, but i'm not, well not quite..

However, while this year was filled with many of the same things that each year is filled with- large periods of stress, family fighting, too much work, not enough time....  it also miraculously included several of the best holiday celebrations i have ever experienced, and it culminated in a near perfect birthday-actually maybe perfect when you count the long anticipated blue egg laid on my birthday by my crankiest, most high strung, most likely candidate-for-the-soup-pot-chicken, Byrd.  This act went a long way toward redeeming her in my eyes.

In retrospect i think what was so great about so many of the celebrations this year was this theme that has been running through my brain (even if i am not consistently able to make it run through my life).  Live simply, eat good food and celebrate with friends.  Thanksgiving, chirstmas, and my birthday all included these things.  Homemade food, good company and really nice people who all got along.  It included very little excessive spending, and a great deal of love.

Will i look forward to next years holiday season in anticipation-probably not, but i certainly know that a really good thanksgiving makes up for alot of lost time.

Here (in my book) is the simple answer to a good holiday season-surround yourself only with people who you love and who treat you well.  You can do this in any city.

10 hours

Although this is a blog meant to be about things to do (mostly) in San Jose, sometimes a girl has just gotta get out of town. While most people take off over the holidays i decided to wait until i had wobbled through Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and two weeks of work before throwing myself, 42 hours of NPR podcasts, my sewing machine and a computer into my car for for a 10 hour drive to-you guessed it...beautiful Langlois, Oregon.  If you are unclear where this is, you join most of America-google it-this picture shows pretty much the whole town

Let's first discuss the 10 hour  (each way) drive.  A 10 hour drive is daunting.  A 10 hour drive is a full work day-and then some.  If i was in a plane i would be most of the way to London in 10 hours. If i was on a bike i could ride 100 miles in this amount of time (yes even me, the slowest rider in the land).  But i was in a car, and let me tell you-this is a lot of NPR and a LOT of  time to think.  Especially at the end of a long couple of months.  Happily it turns out that this is just what this girl needed to reset herself, wave good bye to the holidays and prepares to enter her 43rd year of life. (Be clear though-this is what a girl needs every now and then-to do this too much when you are a person who already spends toooooo much time thinking, mulling and contemplating could be a disaster. Continue reading at your own risk.)

During the drive i spent at least 3 hours contemplating  this story i heard on This American Life.  A woman had gone to multiple psychics over the years and they had ALL told her that she would be a success, something monumentally special, amazing and talented. They followed her out of their shops (prediction palaces? businesses?) to let her know that they really meant it-her kind only came around every now and again-she was rare. And a few of them also told her that all these amazing things would happen before she turned 45-they were guaranteed, blah, blah, blah and on and on; and i just started to wonder....  if you heard things like this enough, would it influence you?  Would you be more likely to believe this to be true and feel somewhat blessed and invincible? Can predictions like this make you feel more sure of yourself, more able? Make failure seem impossible?

i  listened to this story and i couldn't help but wonder if she just felt better about herself than the average joe because so many people told her that she should.  Nothing particularly amazing seemed to have happened to her.  She wasn't overly successful, wealthy or outstanding at anything (her words, not mine), but she said that life always felt pretty good to her. She was nearing 45, most of these predictions hadn't happened, and yet she still felt that all those things could or would happen, and if they didn't? oh well, she was fine.  i think i spent so much time pondering this because most of us know that the reverse is true.  if you spend even a little bit of time telling people bad things about themselves they are very likely to believe it.  As a matter of fact there is some ridiculously large statistic attached to the fact that people are more likely to hear and believe the bad things they hear about themselves rather than the good.  Unbelievably unfair that brains work this way.

These thoughts eventually moved over so i could spend some of time thinking about this year, my overall life and the people i know and love, and those who love me back.  Thankfully in this area i felt pretty blessed.  i have really been lucky to have found and been found by so many spectacular people throughout the years, many of whom i  still count as close friends.  Because, while i really enjoy my alone time and frequently joke that i don't like people, i really like my people. i like the variety of people that i know and relate to and the different things that each of them bring.  i like it best when all these variables mix together   Between these two thoughts and long hours of driving i started to wonder if the real purpose in this life is just to pass on to those we love the knowledge that we do love them, day in day out-something like this quote (a favorite from mother teresa)
“Do not think that love in order to be genuine has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired. Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.”

Enough of that. did i mention it was a 10 hour drive? That's a long time to sit alone!

Landing in Langlois Oregon brings good and simple things.  First and foremost is Jack who reminds you why hanging out with children-especially magical ones- will renew your belief in anything.  Here's Jack.

But beyond Jack is just the quiet of a small town that is off the grid.  The opportunity to sit still, to be productive, rather than busy.  To live simply.  And it is just what is needed to remind me that even in a bigger city where opportunities for everything abound, it is the quiet and the simple that renew you and prompt you to look inside for what you need.  And i am amazed that i always forget this.  This knowledge that everything i need is already here, and i laugh that i must run away and sit quietly away from the myriad distractions that rule my life in order to remember that i actually rule my life.  happy new year

Catch up

things not to do-a short story by Janel Astor

Several months ago while trooping through oregon, washington and california-sometimes by bike and sometimes by car-i had ALOT of time to contemplate my life and the simple fact that i wasn't going to be able to move to portland anytime soon. With this in mind i decided that the time had come (23 years later) to finally embrace san jose and make it my home, rather than just the place i live.

I came home with piles of ideas and promptly (in true Janel fashion) started work on accomplishing everything in one day. i joined my local neighborhood association and got active in my primarily spanish speaking neighborhood-i speak 17 words of spanish, many of them animal sounds. i applied to the bike and pedestrian advisory committee for the city of san jose (and got accepted), i already had a full-time job and a part-time job and a really part-time job, so when offered the opportunity to teach a class i thought, "what the hell, i need the money", and i took that job. i also had 6 new baby chickens,one older arthritic dog, an old house in constant need of repair, a small urban garden/farm and a desire to continuing riding my bike 3-4 times per week. Did i mention that my full-time job involves work for a non-profit serving very young children in programs that our governor decimated this year? Not the best year at the office with everyone wondering if they would have a job and me being the one responsible for these types of things. did i mention that i have some troubles with my back and kaiser is my health care provider? oy

Somewhere around october i began to realize that i was really screwed. That not only was i no longer able to work 4 jobs, but i had over committed and i was over employed, and baby chickens, dogs and friends require care and feeding. Holy shit was i screwed. Of course by then there was little to do except see it through. i absolutely freaked out, but put my head down and plowed through. And here i am emerging from the prison of my own creation and ready to roll, or stumble, back out into san jose and my little life experiment. hope you'll join (again), and i hope that anyone who's interested will come along on my weird jaunts to find worthwhile stuff in san jose

Around here, the chicken came first

This is just a quick note.

When you get chickens and raise them from tiny babies in your house on the dining room table, and then talk about them all the time and stop eating chicken, people tend to ask all the time about the eggs. How many eggs do you get each week, how do they taste, blah, blah, blah, yadda, yadda, yadda.
So far, no eggs.

i feed the girls well, i care for them, i pamper them, but the bottom line is you just have to wait until it's time.
And then-it's time.

Your chicken(s) starts clucking and making a general ruckus and acting weird and then it does what chickens have been doing for millions(?) of years. With no help from me, it climbs into the prepared box and lays an egg. If you're lucky (and i was) your silly chicken redeems your dumb christmas eve by choosing this day to lay it's first egg. How ridiculously cool is that? There has to be some sort of christmas spirit lesson in there, even if you're not looking (and i was).

i will not post a picture of the first egg as it was kinda like a practice egg and not particularly pretty. However, the second egg, while small, was perfect. Light brown with dark brown speckles. Merry Christmas

A cup of Jo(se)

Coffee. My hand feels uncomfortable without a cup in it. My desk feels naked when no cup sits on it or near it. My brain feels fuzzy without the comforting buzz-i am no longer clear exactly what would happen in a day without coffee to fuel me. Ah, the mournful call of the addicted.

i go through phases-regular coffee with a little milk/soy/cream-whatever-, lattes, cappuchinos, americanos-and always about a pound of sugar per cup. Friends and strangers shy away as i fill my cup with sugar and add a splash of coffee as a compliment (truly, this is only a slight exaggeration).

So, if you love your coffee you must search out your city's offerings. Once you get through the pot of coffee at the house in the morning, there still has to be a good working knowledge of where to get your subsequent cup(s) throughout the day. Since San Jose is still a fledgling city (it doesn't quite know how to be a city- it is stuck between an orchard and a mini mall and can't qutie grow up) searching out coffee that is drinkable is important. Decent coffee shops do not abound.

Follow me on this girl's tour of coffee (mostly) in downtown San Jose. i'm not actually endorsing any of them-i tend to be an equal opportunity sipper, but each has a distinct style that appeals to the varied coffee drinkers who reside inside me, and i'm guessing in you too.

Roy's in japantown is quickly turning into a favorite for a few reasons. The people who works there are all really nice (if annoyingly good looking). The coffe and tea selections are yummy. They also have food and treats and I suspect they are fresh each day, and not your totally typical run of the mill coffee shop stuff. It's also relatively new and hip, without being tragically hip-which is nice. Best of all is the large outdoor seating area-something most coffee places and restaurants in San Jose don't get to have, which is ridiculous considering our amazing weather (this city has some of the most ridiculous limitations). It pours rain in Portland Oregon 3 days out of 4 and you can sit outside at most places in there.

Peet's (any Peet's really) enjoys the distinction of being pretty consistent no matter where you find it. I have favorites at Peet's and also find that they know how to make soy milk foamy in a way that many places don't. Of course every Peet's looks the same and you have to love your classical music, but familiarity is sometimes comforting in it's predictability.

Trieste serves good coffee and feels kinda hip. The color scheme is a little country for my taste, but I am happy as a clam with the new outdoor area and the genral funkiness of the 1st street "residents" who wander about. It almost makes me feel like I live in a real city! They also serve beer and food and keep adding to their menu. They post local events and change their music regularly which is lovely

Philz should grow on me, but the jury is still out. It' s on the slowly developing little paseo de san antonio, and it is definitely the hangout of fixie riders and hip hipsters. That being said, it isn't quite cutting edge enough in it's decor to match it's super cool clientele, the lights are usually too bright and the music a bit loud. The staff however, are amazingly friendly and helpful


Cafe do Canto in little Portugal is just so European, right down to the smell. Walking in reminded me of every small Spanish cafe i have ever been in (i've spent tons of time in spain rather than portugal, so that's my reference) and i felt instantly happy. This place is right in my general neighborhood and most of the clientele are Portuguese men speaking Portuguese. i almost always feel that i am not in California anymore when i hang here. Something to be said for that.

Of course there is always Starbucks and Tully's-two places i see alot but rarely go to. i unhitched myself from Starbucks when there started to be more than one per mile, and Tully's never really grew on me.

Please add to this blog-i am forever on the search for coffee, and appreciate ideas.

Life without chicken (but everything else)

It would appear that the quickest way to rid your diet of chicken is to begin raising chickens. Ridiculously i find myself pretty unable to eat chicken since i have gotten the girls (mother clucker, kentucky, jesus christ, byrd,(pictured in the header) henny penny and della-also referred to as tweedle dee and tweedle dumb), but i remain completely happy to eat beef, lamb, pork, fish, etc.

i should clarify. Chicken was already on the dietary outs before i adopted my small brood. After reading animal, vegetable, miracle for the umpteenth time (amidst a bunch of other sustainable, slow food, organic gardening books) i had finally decided that there was no true reason for me to become a vegetarian IF I made some other changes to my life. These included growing a lot of food and eating meat and food that was raised well and locally - thus reducing my carbon foot print and not supporting grossly unhealthy agricultural and farming practices that wipe out so much while producing such unhealthy food (what a smug ass i am, right!).

Since i have enough land i thought i might as well start work on that small farm, grow organic food, swear off pesticides, build compost, start shopping almost completely at the farmers market, support local food, forsake safeway, build a shrine to Michael Pollan etc., etc., blah, blah, blah. This led to buying organic farm-raised meat, which is a bit pricey, which means less meat. Sooooo why waste a bit of my meat budget on chicken-the absoutely least exciting meat you could really ever cook with. All of the sudden i have reason(s)to experiment with lamb and eat more fish, so that's what i do, AND i can hang with my girls without feeling that i might be eating their cousin. Somewhat twisted logic, but my logic never the less. Most of my friends are still insisting that it is fine to eat chicken since it's not MY chickens-that's a slippery slope for sure. Now i have a slight inkling how all my vegetarian friends feel when people question their choices (not really, but....)

Now don't get me wrong. i'm new to this. i make mistakes all the time. i make exceptions and i compromise. i eat food (and meat) at restraurants that aren't supporting local or sustainable. i baulk at the price of organic lettuce, my "farm" is a TOTAL work in progress with tons of work involved, fast food is easier and i am addicted to white sugar (seriously). i also freak out when i accidently kill snails by stepping on them and i thank heavens that i don't have to kill my own meat because then the "decision" about whether to be a meat eater or a vegetarian would likely last about six seconds. BUT i also recognize that one way or the other things are dying to feed me, and that any step i take to improve my impact on the world is a step worth taking.

peace