MARTHA AVENUE-Day 39 Felt like a long one... or a short one and we were scrambling the whole time. I did get a short walk in this morning and had a sweet conversation with a park services guy about honey bees and carpenter bees and bumble bees. And then had a quick sighting and distanced greeting with Jim Mahoney! What a treat!
Back home to get cranking on the deliveries for today... sourdough, Anadama bread, apple crumble, strawberry tarte testing, gnocchi, pappardelle and bottling up the Tagine. Got a bit of late start on the delivery route and am definitely noticing more afternoon traffic leaving the city. I know that folks are going to go back to work, and I worry that folks will be more hesitant to ride public transportation and therefore there will be more cars on the road than usual. I hope that is just my glass half empty personality talking and not what will really happen!
The traffic made me redo my planned route and go see Bryan first. We did a trade...ragu for Filipino delicacies!
On to Sharon..dropping off dinner and a strawberry tarte (the new tarte offering for this month until the plums are ripe again) and getting to see her. Even a short chat as we trade empty jars and herbs for full ones, is a shot in the arm. I adore her.
Got to visit a part of the Bay Area that I hadn't explored before...the western side of Richmond where I got to deliver dinner to Bill and Susi. What a cute neighborhood with stellar views of the bay and the GG bridge. This Bay Area is still full of surprises to me, even after a lifetime of living here. It was lovely to see them both and have a 2 minute conversation from the bottom of the stairs. It was absolute torture not to be able to hug and kiss their cute dog! That is one thing that I am really missing. I usually am the first one to crouch down and greet every dog I meet. And now, we are not supposed to touch other people's dogs, and so I am being good but feeling grumpy about it. :-)
Next I drove to Martinez to drop off at Deb's house and along the way (Hwy 4) I got to see a bunch of pretty horses including a little foal, probably only a couple weeks old. That made me smile. Contra Costa is so pretty in the springtime. Fun to see folks that I have only seen over the years at auditions or shows. I like knowing what Deb's cute little house looks like (at least from the outside). It's always nice to be able to picture your friends in their environment, ya know?
Next on to the highlight of the day... talking with little Eleanor and Marian (and their momma Becky) through the window screen. Eleanor is about the cutest, smartest, funniest, most theatre savvy 3 year old that ever lived. I look forward to my stop at their house very much!
Last, Alameda and a stop to deliver to Cynthia, who I know from Dickens Faire. So many lovely people in my greater circle. I feel so fortunate to be a part of so much love and creativity and community.
Back home finally and facing a mountain of dirty pots and flour dusted everything. Sort of how theatre is actually not very glamorous, this business is so not glamorous too. Folks who don't know theater often think it's all applause and pretty costumes and glory and those of us who know theater just laugh at that notion. Well, the restaurant biz is similar. The food is delicious and looks beautiful on the plate, and maybe we all think the cooks and owners are eating high on the hog...but SOMEONE has to do the dishes. :-). Do you think if I just go to bed, the fairies will come and do them?
Here is the menu for Friday. Orders for SF pick up and delivery should be placed by tonight or at the latest tomorrow morning. If you want to place orders ahead of time for next week, that's fine too, just let me know. Monday is also North Bay delivery day, so anyone in Marin who has a hankering to have someone else cook for a bit, let me know.
I will be churning out a few more masks this week too, so if anyone wants to add a mask or two to your order, feel free. They are three-layer fabric with a wired nose bridge and elastic ear loops. Washable and reversible.
For tonight, take care of yourselves... eat nourishing things, sleep as much as you need. Be kinder than necessary. Hug your people, virtually or physically. And give yourself an extra one from me. xoxo