Collinsia heterophylla, or innocence, is another one of my favorite flowers. Every May, it pops out in towers of purple flowers that sometimes cover entire hillsides. They are native to California and here they grow best in the shady oak and buckeye…
I got my wish. It rained today. :) So I spent the morning out listening to the black-headed grosbeaks. They show up around this time every year and stay for a few months. Their distinctive song is so beautiful. It relaxes and calms me so I thought …
It was warm and sunny here this week, so Bodhi and I took a few good long hikes and found a patch of canyon larkspur, a beautiful native flower. Orange is one of my favorite colors, and I really love it when these start to pop up every April. Whe…
This week, Joe and Ninja took a walk up the hill by one of the western redbud trees. It's been warm, so Ninja took a minute to cool off in the shade and Joe grabbed a photo of him and the redbud. It's such a great shot, and it's not easy to get a go…
Pacific Hound's Tongue is blooming everywhere on the mountain this week. It's beautiful blue and purple flowers are on a stem that's about a foot tall. It's the only species in the genus Adelinia, and the roots were used to make a Native American r…
The Pacific Madrones are flowering. They're in the same family as manzanita, but much larger. This one is covered in flowers right now. I think it may be blooming with some extra vigor because it has a fungal infection in its leaves, which is why so…
Red-bellied newts are one of my favorite critters up here on the mountain, and they are only found here in Northern California. In the summer, you'll see them down in the creek, which is where they lay their eggs. In the winter, they are frequently…
Manzanita is such a beautiful plant and it grows everywhere here on the mountain. It's got a smooth, bark-less maroon trunk and grows as both a bush and as a tree. It's also got some medicinal uses and the Native Americans in these parts made a cide…
The California buckeye trees are the first to leaf out in the spring and the first to drop their leaves in late summer. Every part of this tree is beautiful. In a couple months, I'll show you a picture of the flowers. :) They have another kind of …
We had a cold front come in from the north this week. It dumped some more snow on the ridges and some rain down here in Rainbow Valley. Joe, Bodhi and I took a walk yesterday afternoon to go and fetch the eggs from the chickens and as we were walkin…
About a year ago, I decided that I was going to grow my hair out. At first, I felt like it needed a reason, like "I'm growing it until I can get a vaccine." Then, somewhere along the way, I just started saying that I wanted to be a wizard. These da…
March marks one year that we've been mostly hunkered down here at the cabin. While it's been difficult not to see friends and family, it's also been an opportunity to connect more deeply with this land and the plants and animals who live here. The …
In today's Wall Street Journal, they published a story about 'chosen families,' a term that originated in the gay community in the 70s & 80s. The writer got in touch with me via Twitter after I tweeted something about how important both my chose…
This week wasn't all sunshine and rainbows for me. It was hard, for no particular reason and ALL of the reasons. I felt like I hit a wall of depression when I marked one year without seeing my parents. One year without any work in San Francisco. One…
We had a welcome surprise this week. :) Our 'mediterranean climate' doesn't often yield snow, but sometimes a burst of cold comes down from the north and turns everything white for a day or so and this week we had one of those. I grew up in New En…
I hope you're all well and that the new year is all you hope for. It's a cold, grey Sunday here in Northern California, but there's a fire in the wood stove, and I've got the cabin to myself while Joe and Bodhi are off for a walk. I'm taking this …
Yesterday afternoon the sun came out and the temps were in the high 60s, so Joe and I took a walk up to the top of the hill to enjoy the weather and get some much-needed vitamin D. We talked about ways to make life and work better, our triggers for …
Yesterday morning, Bodhi came back from his morning rounds bleeding a little with a small flap of skin hanging off of his front leg. It looked like something the vet should have a look at, so we got an emergency appointment and piled into the car fo…
I know I talk a lot about it on the podcast, but the rain is so important here at the cabin. When it's in short supply, we have to ration our household water and irrigation. When it's flowing, it's more like living on the grid. Today, it's pouring …
Making Listen To Sleep was one of my greatest joys in 2020. I met so many of you virtually via email and chatting on the patreon. I got to read some great (and maybe sometimes a little too sad) stories, and it was the beginning of the guest ar…