Daily Notes- April 16th

Another drawn on a junk mail envelope while a beautiful 800 year old building blazed in the night.

I have been to Paris (more than once).  But I hadn't gone to see this wonder of the world.  I sat yesterday thinking--I shall never see what others saw.  Why hadn't I walked there or taken a taxi from the hotel?  It was very early in my Life on the Road-the 80's.  I know I walked the streets of Paris.  Loving the way it felt. And I do remember the bar at a very important Paris hotel- the Ritz?  Everyone laughing as they charged their food and drink to an unsuspecting co-worker who would have to do "some explaining" when they all got back to Chicago.  I remember being very sad on the plane ride home-trying to sleep on the three seats.  Yes, dear Readers-- I had three seats to recline on in Business Class and a Limo to take me home from the airport.  This is one very big reason I hesitate to travel now.  Cattle Cars are not that interesting to me.  On that trip I was told I would be moving to Europe.  In a few months.

I am reading a book  "Paris By The Book" about a woman who's husband just vanishes one day and is presumed dead.  She finds, in a dusty box of cereal, a slip of paper with numbers on it.  A code for airplane tickets for her and her two daughters.  To Paris.  They go.  They stay.  They live above a bookstore, manage the bookstore and thrive in Paris-sort of..  The woman goes out walking each day, looking for a man who looks like her husband.  And then she follows that man.  Never catching up to him--just watching and walking where he does.  Hoping someday she'll actually be following her very own husband so she can ask "why did you leave us?".  I haven't finished yet so I don't know if we find out why.

I will pick up and take home to read, any book I find on the library shelves with the word Paris in the title.  Little Paris Bistro.  Paris Apartment.  Paris Key. Paris Bookstore. Loved them all.

I have my herb garden seeds ready to start in the plastic milk containers.  I should have done this weeks ago but it was still cold and snowing and I thought Spring would never arrive.  But it has.  With rain and blustery wind.  But Spring.  One raised bed will be herbs and pollinators.  One will be flowers for Beauty and the Bees. Another will be zucchini for pickles.  The boxes on the driveway will be Tomatoes and Peppers.  And that is it.  Later.  I will plant green beans.  I would enjoy growing carrots as I enjoy eating carrots.  We'll see.  I will grow only what I love to eat.  Buy the rest. Oh and kale.  I always grow kale.

My neighbor across the street is in Boston waiting for a new grandchild to arrive, but packages from Amazon continue to arrive.  We have created a pile of things in our hallway while we wait for her to come back home.  This morning's package was from Whole Foods via Amazon Prime.

I have a new recipe card here on the desk.  From Simple Veganista's blog-- Lo Mein this time. I'll skip the crispy tofu (soy which I can't eat) but the sauce looks interesting and I can load up on veggies. Carrots, asparagus, cabbage, bell peppers, snow peas and Broccolini.  No one has been able to tell me how a vegetarian gets protein if allergic to soy.  Even the fake cheese is soy based.