Secret Agent Josephine

I’m up at Matt’s in the Bay Area and it’s the first time I’ve been able to sit down to my computer for months. I mean, I do a little graphic design here and there but it is surprising how busy my new life at my parents keeps me. In order to dump more content I have to catch you up on what else I’ve been doing since May.

Firstly, we have some cute pictures of Bug and I in Costa Mesa. I commute into Orange County once or twice a month to visit with Bug and help out an old neighbor of mine. I do miss the OC. But between you and me, the Sticks is where it’s at. The sun and spending time with my parents has completely cured me of my depression. Most of that due to the fact that I am not weighed down with a 3K a month rent payment. Money may not be the root of all evil but not enough of it sure is. It was just so much stress.

Now I am free everyday to work on new projects like painting this old trailer. My parents bought it years ago and neither of them are mountain bike addicts so a new design is in the works. I probably won’t start it until the weather stops being so hot so maybe after October.

Here are some pictures of a wedding I did in Joshua Tree. My dad and I drove out early in the morning to the new local flower market in Riverside that is just as fantastic if not more fantastic than my old flower market in Orange County. My dad was such a huge help and after he saw how I do weddings, now he’s my biggest fan and trying to get me more wedding gigs.

Here’s how I wrecked their kitchen and some shots of me doing some installation at the wedding sight. My dad tied on all the chair bows for me. He’s the best.

I didn’t stay for the wedding but the groom sent me some photos so I know everything turned out okay. It was pretty hot for May. You just never know what you are going to get in the desert. It could be cold and windy, it could be 103. This day it was 103.

I bought myself a cute little moka pot espresso maker for the stove and here my mom and I are trying to cull through her massive teacup collection. We are throwing a community tea party benefit for the park we live in. See how I am already wrapped up in the goings on of this retirement community I live in? I try not to over-commit but it’s hard not to want to get involved and help out with fun events like tea parties. Stay tuned for more details on that.

Here is a rare day of June gloom in the desert. It actually does happen for about two weeks and then the heatwaves of summer hit. Also rare: pictures of me in shorts. Now I am wearing them all the time because it is just tooooooo hot not to! I’m rapidly getting over my self-consciousness of my legs. I used to think I was so fat and full of cellulite but now I realize everyone over 50 is and it ain’t no big thing. What can I say, I’m a girl from the 90’s and super models wrecked my brain.

Here is an early summer picture of my garden. It’s looking more and more fabulous everyday. I can’t wait to see how it changes from year to year.

Random shot of the sunrise through a cool flat bottomed marble I’ve had forever but never actually used for its intention until now.

A woman out standing in her field.

Amari (Rapunzel’s daughter) turned five and they took me to Disneyland with them to celebrate. It was very sentimental since I am the one who got to take Rapunzel to Disneyland for the first time when she was four or five. What a strange long funny trip it’s been being an aunt and now a great aunt. I love them so much. Disneyland I don’t love so much. It was hot and in my old age of menopause I HATE BEING HOT. I wouldn’t go again if someone gave me a free ticket. It’s just too much heat and standing in line. But going with my niece for her fifth birthday was worth suffering for.

OH! And here’s some big news: My dad and I bought a car together. It’s actually his car in his name since my credit is now wrecked but I am making the payments so please send work so I can keep making those payments and never default on my dad. I love the car. I named it “My Cousin Venny” or just Venny for short because it’s a Hyundai Venue and I love that movie.

Here are some homemade butternut squash ravioli’s I made. I don’t make homemade pasta often because it can be pretty heavy but when I do, it’s delicious! This was inspired by a food giveaway box that had butternut squash, ricotta cheese and sage in it. My parents get food giveaway boxes about once a month and it blows my mind that there is so much good produce given away. Standing in line with other poor people is eye-opening. It’s sad but also heart-warming to see how much churches give to the community.

Here’s Venny in the garage. This is very noteworthy because my parents have NEVER had an empty garage. I think once my dad fit his truck in the garage when they first moved here but that did not last long. Their garage is usually filled to the brim with old furniture, boxes of gloves and jackets that my dad sells, crafts, paint, tools, bicycles…you name it, it’s in there. It was really quite something that we found the floor and places to put everything that used to be there. I am really proud of our hard work.

Bug and I have kept up our tradition of going on mother-daughter dates. We went to on of the first In-N-Out locations on our way to Huntington Gardens.

The Huntington Gardens in Pasadena (technically San Marino) is one of our favorite spots. We both love it here so much.

Since we have been so many times we went directly to our favorite places and skipped the long hot trek through everything.

Desert cacti? Skip! Get us to the shade ASAP.

We spent most of our time in the Chinese and Japanese gardens.

We painted and took photos. I am so happy I raised a daughter who loves to do all of my favorite things with me.

More prettiness. Bug and the architecture.

Now we are back to my other pride and joy: my parents and my garden! Look at those juicy tomatoes!

And flowers! I planted a massive zinnia patch but they are taking their sweet time to bloom. My nasturtiums took off and the dill is shooting up like fireworks.

Every day is like an Easter hunt trying to find the latest bounty. Will it be giant zucchinis or tomatoes coming out our ears? Fresh basil and maybe a jalepeño pepper?

There have been a lot of fires near us. We think there might be a firebug but who really knows. Them’s the breaks when you live in California. We’ve come to recognize the golden glow of the sun shining through smoke and brace for power outages. So far we have been lucky but we are ready if we ever have to evacuate. Go-bags are packed and drills are practiced.

I’ve also taken up dog-sitting as an alternate odd job to cleaning houses. This is Buddy and Pua

Another perk of living in a retirement community is acting like I’m retired. Margaritas at the pool? Count me in! Bug and her new boyfriend came out to visit and joined the fun (not for margaritas of course).

Here’s another Mother Daughter adventure, this time to The Getty Villa in Malibu. I’ve been wanting to go for a really long time and built it up in my head to be more interesting than it actually was.

In many ways it is beautiful. The garden pool is long and goes on forever. I thought it would be a swimming pool but it’s just for looks.

Here’s a fun photo of Bug squinting. Did I mention I dyed my hair red again? It’s just a temporary rinse so it will fade out to pink as the weeks go by. I was feeling extra old and frumpy so I had to mix things up.

We wandered around and made silly faces with the statue heads.

My favorite part was just hanging out with Bug and being silly…

And having a great hamburger for lunch. I think I might have liked the hamburger more than the artifacts and marble floors if I’m being honest.