I Am A Naturalist - Experiencing Nature at PVS

Most of my family and friends know that Jay and I live in Palos Verdes Shores, a community of residents, 55 years or older, who live in manufactured homes on the bluffs of the Palos Verdes Peninsula.  

Nestled between the town of San Pedro and the Trump Golf course, our little piece of paradise provides us with expansive views of the Pacific Ocean, Catalina Island, 

the Port of Los Angeles, tanker ships, fishing boats, and an occasional whale or dolphin. We enjoy daily ocean breezes, mornings with marine layers, 

hummingbirds visiting our deck feeders, monarch butterflies visiting our milkweed plants, 

the evening serenades of local coyotes and once in a while an uninvited raccoon trying to get into the trash bins.  

While we have the moving parking lot of the 405 freeway just a few miles away, it is easy to forget the hustle of the city and submerge ourselves into the natural world that surrounds us.  Separating us from the Trump Golf course is the Ocean Trails section of the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve, areas of the peninsula that are protected by the Land Conservancy from development and provides hiking trails while preserving the natural setting.  After our wonderful rains, the Preserve was lush and green and later, filled with golden flowers of the wild mustard plants.  

But like all living things (ourselves included!), these plants age, and dry, and wither away…creating a disaster like a brush fire just waiting to happen.

But the city of Palos Verdes is on the ball and as well as employing various persons to comb the hillsides with weed-whackers, each year they also bring in goats to eat the invasive plants.  The Conservancy says goat grazing is considered environmentally friendly and economically efficient.

So, today Jay and I decide to take a walk over to the trail head and looked down on the busy baa-ing goats.  On our way we passed this sign that reminded us that there are other living creatures that also share our surroundings!

Except for the goats and one other man ahead of us on the trail, we felt like we were alone in this magical place.  

To the left were the rooftops of our community homes, and before us was hillside filled with goats.  

Some were chomping away, some were fighting over who was going to stand on top of the big rocks, 

and some were just resting while they digested!  

Later we walked over to the tall trees adjacent to our golf course to check out the red-tailed hawk nest and see if we could get a glimpse of mama hawk and her one little “hawklet!” 

Jay and I look at each other and say…”We live in paradise! 

Being surrounded by the beauty and the peacefulness of nature is restorative.  It gives us a chance to remove ourselves from the "noise" and be reminded of the essence of life.  All we have to do is turn on the television or pick up the newspaper and we realize that we don’t recognize our world anymore.  The “new normal” is frightening to us.  We feel assaulted by dissent, anger, disrespect, chest-thumping.  We don’t know what to believe or who to trust. We don’t understand our modern world and the urge is strong to assume the fetal position, to withdraw and hide.  But what we find ourselves doing instead is reaching for those behaviors that are constant and remind us of who we are at our core.  

We are currently taking an Omnilore course that is studying the ancient philosophies of China and we are reminded of mindfulness and all the wonderful tools that help us practice warm-heartedness, presence and goodness and that contribute positively to our well-being and our surroundings.  Being aware of nature that surrounds us contributes to that little bit of serenity.  

As Confucius say..."Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated."  I think I'll go take a walk!

I Am A Fishwife - Shopping for Calamari

As I continue to mature…ahem…I realize that the events that often bring me the most energy and excitement and make me feel “young” are the ones where I venture into something unknown and try something new!  Saturday morning was such an event for me.

When we first moved to PV Shores, our good friend and painter, Themis Americas (a transplant from the city of Kalamata on the Greek Peloponnese peninsula) came to our house with a huge bag of fresh (read uncleaned) squid.  “Calamari” I exclaimed!  Not only did he gift me with squid but he showed Jay and I how to clean them and told us…shhhhhh…where to buy it!

 

Jay with Themis

Christmas is coming, I am Italian, I am preparing the dinner for Christmas Day, I need a vegetarian dish…Calamari!  So Saturday morning Jay and I set the alarm, got up early, and headed down to the huge building at the harbor where many fish mongers sell their catch to the public. 

Many of the doors were closed and we realized that those who want the best choice are there at 3 am.  It was already just past 7:30 and many had folded up shop!  But the last shop, the LA Fish Company, was open and we ventured in.  Fortunately we knew enough to wear old shoes because the floor was totally wet from the ice and water used for the fish.   

 

And what fish they had and what prices!  I was fortunate that when I entered a friendly woman shopper took pity on me and became my guardian angel.  Sue lived in Carson and came here often for fresh fish.  She swore this place was the best! 

Jay and I stood in awe of the variety displayed…all fresh (read uncleaned). 

 

Look at the blue lips on the parrot fish!

Then I spotted the little squid I was looking for in a large box with the price written on a piece of cardboard…50 cents a pound! Sue showed me how to get the plastic gloves on and where to get the large plastic bag and we both dug into the treasure trove.  She had never prepared this so I told how I cleaned them and how I prepared them.   

Finally a had my selection 

Weighing and paying!

but before I left, Sue pointed out her favorite fish to me…pompano…and told me how she prepared it. So I selected two fresh ones (read uncleaned) and then she said… "They will clean them for you for about $1 a fish!"  So I gave them to one of the men working on the tables along the side and received them back cleaned and butterflied!  He didn’t want any money… "Merry Christmas” he said…so we tipped him instead!

We were so energized after the experience that we treated ourselves to breakfast at the Pacific Dinner

and talked about the task ahead of us for the afternoon…cleaning that bag of squid and getting it packaged for the freezer…and the recipe I would use to prepared it for Christmas Day.  I went home feeling at least 10 years younger!

I Am An Explorer - A Day of Discovery

My husband loves maps!  It can be a globe, an atlas, Google Earth, or an AAA local map…he can pour over it and notice things that never hit my radar.  I look at a map and I search for the name of a city I am hunting for and that is it.  He sees so much more…the change in altitude reflected, blue curvy lines of rivers, the green patches that indicate a grassy area.  That is why, when we travel, I handle the logistics…the airline flights, the hotels, the trip insurance while he handles each day’s itinerary…where we are going and the route we will take.  As a result I have been treated to some of the most interesting sights and undiscovered jewels of locales and we always travel in a loop…so we never retrace our steps.

Yesterday, Jay stopped at AAA and procured recent maps of our locale and last night he was pouring over them with his highlighter and his magnifying glass.  

Today, he invited me to go with him for a ride.  He promised it would not be far and yes, we could stop at the Italian market, A-1 on 8^th street on the way home.

Where did we go?  About one mile down the street from our house to the end of Western Ave.  There he had seen a small patch of green on the map that turned out to be White Point Park.  We are fortunate to live along the coast but most of the coastline here is rocky cliffs and it is only at a few secluded locations that you can actually make your way down to the water.  This was one of them.  We drove down a steep incline to the water’s edge where there were rocky breakers, surfers, fishermen and people sitting…contemplating.  The air was crisp and clear and we spotted rocks covered with seagulls.

We returned up the incline and discovered a lovely little park and then, a Nature Preserve filled with walking trails.   

This part of the Palos Verdes Peninsula is subject to ground movement and this area is restricted for that reason but has been restored to its natural habitat.   Loved this sign..."On this restless ground lies a gem of open space!"

We walked around the preserve, commenting on the plants, the birds, and reading the signs about the Native Americans who originally lived here.  We passed many people walking their dogs, some boys on a dirt bike, everyone just enjoying the natural beauty set in the midst of our urban area.

From there we headed to the Italian Market.   

We have shopped here before and always seen the sign of Mirabella Winery next door but it is always closed.  Today as we walked buy it was open so we ventured in.   

How could we pass up a building with a bulletin board like this to greet you!

 

What a surprise!  Inside this large warehouse were all shapes and sizes of wine casks, grape crushers and other wine making equipment 

and inside the tiny salesroom was Tony Mirabella.   

He told us his story…his family had run this business for over 70 years and were able to provide everything a home winemaker could need to make their own wine.  It used to be a booming business. Now, even though most of the old Italian and Croatian home winemakers have passed away or moved away from San Pedro, he still stays in business, open 2-3 days a week unless it is crushing season,  because it is his heritage.   

Just standing in there looking at the items brought back old memories of homemade wine, the glass bottles under the sink or under the table, ready to be pulled out when a guest arrived at the house.  My brother, Fred, is such a wine-lover…maybe I can introduce him to Tony and he can take up wine-making when he finally decides to retire!  I will know right where to take him!  Salute! 

I Am A Time Traveler - Stepping Into A Time Warp

This morning Jay and I decided to run a few errands.  In return for his faithful service, I promised Jay we would go to Pronto’s, the Mexican restaurant down the street from our home, for Huevos Rancheros.  (He will do anything if I promise him food!)  

After a yummy breakfast, we were walking back to the car when I spotted a sign I could not believe…it said Meat Shop and Deli.   

Could it be?  Dare I hope?  I opened the door and low and behold…it was!  It was a real butcher shop.  It had fresh meat arranged without plastic wrap in long trays in a meat case.  It had machines behind the meat case…machines like a meat grinder, a butcher’s saw, knives and cleavers, a scale. I felt like I had died and gone to heaven. 

While we have certainly reduced our consumption of meat products, we are not vegetarians.  So it is frustrating to go to a market and look for a specific cut of meat to told, that cut doesn’t do well in this store and we do not carry it.  I remember my mother going to the butcher’s shop to request three types of meat cut into cubes (veal, pork, beef) to be used to make one of her favorite recipes, “City Chicken.”  The meat was threaded onto thick butcher skewers (which the butcher happily provided), then breaded, browned and baked in the oven.  I remember as a young wife, seeing an unusual cut of meat and the butcher, as he wrapped the exact amount I asked for, proceeded to tell me exactly how to prepare it when I got home…and the next week he remembered to ask me how it turned out.

So to find a real butcher shop in my new neighborhood was a delight.   

South Shores Meat Shop is owned and operated by Darko Skracic, a friendly dynamic, gray-haired Croatian immigrant.  Darko said he has been in this shop since he was twelve years old.  Not only does he have fresh meat and seafood, he makes and sells his own sauerkraut and traditional sausage as well as cevapcici (a Croation style sausage).   

We left with sauerkraut, cevapcici, some freshly sliced liver, freshly baked rolls and a smoked ham hock for split pea soup.

From there we went to stop in at the Assistance League Rummage Sale.  Many women in our Park belong to this philanthropic organization and we had given them some donations for the sale.  When we turned on to 8^th street in San Pedro we experienced another time warp…here was a little piece of Americana, one block long with unique shops where people stop and talk to you. 

I found a Clock Repair store that says they could repair our wall clock from Sorrento, Italy. “Please bring it in and we will see what we can do.  If we can’t fix it, no charge to you!”  

We discovered an Italian Deli, Pirozzi's, that had imported products and the Italian pastry, Sfogliatelle, that they get shipped in frozen from New York and then they bake it fresh on site.   

 

We left with a six pack of blood orange flavored San Pelligrino sparkling water, a tube of Italian Tomato paste and....ONE sfogliatelle.

There is a tiny post office…the only volunteer post office in the United States that is staffed by Assistance League volunteers.  

Finally we reached our destination, the Assistance League’s Sale.  As I browsed around talking to some of our new neighbors who were working there, Jay was off pursuing his own objectives.  I found him out front talking to man about a horse…no...about an old set of golf clubs.  Now that we have a 9 hole golf course just outside our door we are thinking of trying the game.  Not knowing if we will take to it, we do not want to invest heavily in equipment.  

So the guy says…”Make me an offer.”  

Jay says, “I’ll give you a dollar and a half.”   

The guy says, “Make that 5 and it is yours.”   

Jay says, “I’ll take it!”

On the way home, we remarked “What a great day!”  We could have been in Kent, Ohio or Macomb, Illinois.  We could have been 10 or 17 years old.  For those few hours we experienced a time warp!  No wonder we feel younger in our new home!