Lucky Girl!

It has been a “sweet” week.  A fantastic weekend renewing friendships and enjoying what fall in New England has to offer. Followed by five days of immersion with an old friend, playing tour guide of my humble home and seeing it through another’s eyes.

My five, four-footed roommates are settled around me and the bees are out enjoying the surprising warmth. I just finished reading an article about bees and was remembering introducing Barbara to my hive and how excited I was with all the honey they have stored. It’s not every house guest who will don a veil to get up close and personal with thousands of insects.

My weekend guests, Seth and Aline sent a lovely note along with an article from the Wall Street Journal about bees and a magazine that floored me – edibleBOSTON.  What flat rock have I been living under? Hint to daughters: $35 for my Christmas gift subscription. Succulent photography on soft, rich paper, this publication made me stop, put everything else down and curl up in a chair to devour it. The website is as crisp and well made as the magazine.  The cover?  Honey of course!

An article by Leigh Belanger called “Busy Beekeepers!” fascinated me with details of urban beekeeping I had not considered from my rural site. Hives in community gardens, hives on roof tops of four-star hotels. Though the honey production sounds significantly less, the submissiveness  of the bees was encouraging. I loved the idea of a “Tour de Hives” on bicycles though out the city. Michael Piazza’s photography is jaw-droppingly good. My hive shots are all “Plein-air” and though these were studio shots, the beauty of beekeeping tools was dramatic.

Yesterday when tasting olive oil and vinegar at the Newburyport Olive Oil Company, I pitted them against my favorite source, La Roux in Portland, ME. I bought the Persian Lime Olive Oil to compare and the Serrano Honey Balsamic because, well, how could I resist?  I tried out the balsamic on chicken wings tonight and let me just say, this is a winning combination.  I added some “sweet soy” just to thin the balsamic and give a sweet tang.  Unbelievable, even “Jeff the Chef” my ex-husband would be impressed!

Coincidentally, a blog I follow, Suburban Rancher,  posted this fascinating article on gathering honey in rural Russia. Sweetness and beauty abound!

So as I sit here and review my day, I ignore the “to do” list that will rule tomorrow and find some beauty to revel in for minute.  I am a lucky girl.