Today’s post is dedicated to the beautiful lady cardinal I photographed this morning in my backyard. Regarding the title of this post, my children asked me what team I support. I think they were expecting me to say Giants or Patriots. Read More »

One of my favorite dishes to make in the winter is red cabbage salad. This lightly cooked dish is flavorful and warming. Ingredients 1/2 red cabbage, chopped into small stick-like pieces 1 green apple, peeled and chopped 1/2 onion, red or yellow, chopped into small slices 1/2 orange olive oil 1 tsp. Read More »

Dates in Front of Palm Tree, watercolor on paper, 2011 Tuesday night and Wednesday this week is the Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shvat, the fifteenth of the month of Shvat . I like to refer to the day as a birthday party for the trees. Read More »

Three dogs on the Asbury Park boardwalk, summer 2011 When winter feels like it’s dragging on, I share with you a photo of three dogs on the Asbury Park boardwalk, taken sometime last summer. My daughter was working on a cover for a Cinquain poetry booklet for her class, and she wanted a dog to represent friendship. Read More »

Cardinal in my backyard: As Carver said the last time I posted this bright red bird, “Male cardinals are the flowers of winter.” This cardinal looks like he owns the place. I saw two chickadees in my backyard last week. My, do these little birds jump about. My daughter and I visited Donaldson Park on Sunday. Read More »

Some bloggers have suggested that one do video as part of one’s presentation (especially if you are marketing a product or service). However, having seen some poorly made videos by some bloggers, I will continue to specialize in coding, graphics, social media and writing short web content. Read More »

We’ve been having plenty of red cardinals visiting our backyard. I’ve been good about filling our one bird feeder. They like the sunflowers seeds in the bird feeder box. This cardinal sat in the bird feeder for quite a while, until I got up close to him because I wanted to take an up-close portrait. Read More »

I finally figured out how to make a decent bowl of oatmeal. All you need: 1/2 cup steel cut oats (double for more) 1 cup of water (double for more) Grind the oats – I use my coffee bean grinder. Soak the oats overnight (or longer). Read More »

I discovered this photo of basil I had photographed in September 2009 – now isn’t that a warm image to share on a cold January 2012 evening? For more photos straight out of the camera: Here’s a recipe for basil pesto and a recipe for basil meatloaf . Read More »

A nest in a tree: this is easy to see. Nearby to the nest, I found this large hive. Is something alive and living in this hive? Hornets, perhaps? Birds high in the sky fly by without a hello. Nor a goodbye. I walked in the woods (behind my daughter’s school) and whom did I meet: two deer, what a treat. Read More »

Interpretation of Jerusalem with figures and pomegranate, painting by Anna Abramzon I “met” the artist Anna Abramzon when she followed me on Twitter recently. Read More »

Mayor Gary Minkoff gestures to a roomful of mayors, Highland Park residents, friends On My Blog         Sheperd Pie – vegan version Elsewhere in the Blogosphere Jewaicious – Film Review: A Dangerous Method Ilana-Davita has tips for learning a Read More »

Gary Minkoff is Affirmed as the new Mayor of Highland Park On Tuesday night Highland Park, New Jersey was sworn in affirmed – Mayor Gary Minkoff. I say affirmed because when past mayor now freeholder James Polos (on the left in the photo) said to Gary, do you solemnly swear, Gary corrected him and said “affirm. Read More »

[Show as slideshow] It’s cold out there! I took a walk through Johnson Park last week; I couldn’t find much other than these ducks. Then I headed over to the Native Plant Reserve to see brown remnants of last spring’s joyous perennials. You can see more if you click on each thumbnail above. Read More »

A Section of Route 18 with Graffiti in New Brunswick, New Jersey Last week I had an opportunity to meander through the Native Plant Reserve in Highland Park. I went as far as the edge of the Raritan River, and that’s where I photographed this shot of graffiti on the New Brunswick side. It’s really the only color around at this time of year. Read More »

mushrooms on top of sheperd pie – bottom is turnips, middle is kasha and vegetables It seems that a traditional shepherd’s pie is chopped meat, potatoes and vegetables piled in layers in a casserole dish. I re-found a delightful vegan version of this recipe in my Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites . Read More »

I saw this ball rolling on the street outside the library, and I snapped the photo, not knowing I would get a moment when it lifted off the ground. Seems like a slice-of-life moment, perfect for Straight-Out-Of-the-Camera . Read More »

I believe I have been doing Nature Notes on and off (lots of offs recently, can’t do everything!) since it began, and I thought it would be nice to do a small tribute to Michelle who runs this nature blog meme. Read More »

Hummus with Parsley, Garlic, Tahini, Lemon Juice, Sea Salt Hummus doesn’t have to be bright green. Indeed, classical hummus is usually tan in color. But when you add a handful of fresh parsley (or basil or scallions), you will have a chickpea paste in a pleasant shade of green. Read More »

If you are seeking plot or theme, wrong film. It’s about the candles, plain and simple. If you look at this on YouTube, you’ll notice my son added a lot of tags, including a variety of spellings of Chanukah. Funny thing is, none of those are the way I would spell Hanukkah. My WordPress tag spells it like this: חנוכה (that says Hanuka in Hebrew). Read More »