0:04
spanish tortilla recipe
I’m thinking about the moment you walked into that San Diego kitchen, eyes on the eggs, Yukon Gold potatoes, and a single onion. The plan was simple: a classic Spanish tortilla, the kind that feels like a built‑in snack bar—protein and carbs in one pan.
The method is straightforward. Slice the potatoes thin, layer them, then caramelize the onion in olive oil until it’s sweet and soft. Add beaten eggs, let everything set on the stovetop, and if flipping feels risky, slide the pan into a hot oven for a frittata‑style finish. The result is a rustic, a little uneven, but utterly satisfying tortilla.
Kids love it, and the beauty is that you don’t need fancy tricks—just good eggs, potatoes, and patience. If you’re ever unsure, the oven finish guarantees it stays tender and fully cooked.
Enjoy the humble, hearty dish, and remember that a little “ugly” often means it’s exactly the way it should be.
0:30
# 420: Lavender Blue Dilly Dilly
Oh dear, I’m pretty sure that my garlic has white rot, a fungus caused by Sclerotium cepivorum. Yah, I’d never heard of it either so I did a little digging (no pun intended) and what I learned gave me pause. This nasty fungus can live for thirty years in the soil. You read that right. Thirty years! Plus, it can infect plants from where it is hiding 12 inches below the surface of the soil AND even just 1 plant can infect 20 to 30 adjacent plants. It’s particularly active in cool, wet conditions which, for most of the year, is what I have right here on the North Olympic Peninsula of Washington State. This does not make me very happy.
Even though I’ve been growing garlic for over 40 years, I didn’t understand the symptoms … plant pulling apart and rotted roots (which is the head of the garlic itself) … when I saw signs of it in 2024. I brushed it off as planting too close together. For the 2025 crop, I planted with plenty of space and got a fairly decent crop although I did see more rot than I would have liked. When I harvested the 2026 last week I found that I had lost well over 50% of the crop. You’d be very right in thinking that I’m bummed.
The good news is that the fungus only affects alliums; garlic, leeks, onions, shallots and such. I don’t have a plan yet but but I’ll figure out something whether that be bringing in new soil or even possibly moving the garden to another location on the property. I’m in pretty good shape and fairly strong for a seventy-three-year-old but the thought of this is … well … daunting.
On the other hand, it’s been a GREAT run and over the decades I’ve gifted lots of beautiful garlic to others and provided garlic seed for the garden’s of others, too.
And I’m looking forward to the day when I can plant it once again.
I live fairly close to Forks WA where all those vampire novels took place and maybe I’ve grown so much of it I don’t need to worry about vampires showing up at my door anymore!
Do you remember the song Lavender Blue Dilly Dilly? I sorta kinda remember a recording of Burl Ives singing it when I was a little girl but what I didn’t know is that Lavender’s Blue is an English folk song and nursery rhyme from the 17th century. The earliest surviving version of the song was printed in England between 1672 and 1679 which you’ll see in the photo below along with the one in The Baby's Opera – A Book of Old Rhymes and the Music by the Earliest Masters.
Next weekend is the annual Sequim Lavender Festival and lavender will be the color ALL around the town just fifteen miles east of me. In 1996, I was harpsichordist with an early music group that played at the farm that started the festival which has grown a lot now bringing in tens of thousands of people. I try to visit the craft fair on the morning of the first day when there’s still plenty of parking and the crowds haven’t yet arrived.
Just two weeks later, my e-bike Arrow and I, for the third time, will ride the Tour de Lavender, a 35-mile route that visits seven lavender farms in the Sequim-Dungeness Valley.
And my own lavender is blooming like crazy which means there are very happy bees at Pie Cottage! If you turn up the sound in the video below you’ll hear the birds AND the bees. I love the look of lavender and especially that it requires little care once established. Once a year at the end of the season, I grab a big swath of stems with spent flowers and take them off with a scythe. That’s it! I think this fall I will plant some more around The Little House.
Speaking of The Little House. Well, it is still coming along but oh it seems so slow at this very last stage when things just need to be finished up but that isn’t possible until the cabinetry is finished by the person who said it would be ready to install in July (Yay!) but now says it will maybe be August (Boo!). But, heck, what do I know? There may be more things that have to happen that I don’t know about for it’s completion. I had hoped it was going to be done a year ago August. The folks who are working on the project (in-between their other jobs) are great and I’m practicing patience as best I can. «sigh» Send out that good energy and join me in the mantra: It WILL be done soon. It WILL be done soon. It WILL be done soon.
And here’s Burl Ives singing Lavender Blue Dilly Dilly.
This Friday, July 17, 2026 at 4 PM Pacific / 7 PM EST join Rebecca Blackwell from the galley of her sailboat to make 3 easy summer dishes: A colorful hummus platter, sesame chicken salad, and watermelon and feta salad.
This is the first of 12 sessions that will be held once a month as a perk ONLY for Paid Subscribers. You’ll find the full lineup below.
2:33
Writing a Second Cookbook with Alana Kysar and Kelly Snowden
Alana Kysar’s second cookbook, Aloha Veggies, came about after a seven‑year gap that felt too long for her. She didn’t set out looking for a new project; the idea grew when she fell in love with plant‑forward cooking that fit Hawaiian flavors. Because her first book, Aloha Kitchen, had been a hit and she’d already built a relationship with editor Kelly Snowden at Ten Speed Press, she pitched the new concept right away, honoring the contract clause that gave the publisher first look.
The familiar team made the second‑book process smoother for Alana. She knew the publishing schedule, the various departments, and the balance between storytelling and recipe development, so the stress that marked her first effort was much reduced. Both Alana and Kelly emphasized openness and shared goals, which has deepened their trust over the two projects.
For listeners who write or plan a cookbook, the takeaway is that a supportive editor–author partnership can turn the daunting logistics of publishing into a collaborative, less stressful experience, especially when you already know the workflow from a previous title.
3:05
STAT+: AIDS activists slam Biden R&D deal with Gilead over HIV prevention drug patents
The activists finally secured the research‑and‑development clause that was the core of the Biden‑Gilead settlement over the patents on Truvada and Descovy. They’re saying the deal is a missed chance to push the public‑health side of HIV prevention forward, rather than just settle a legal dispute.
The settlement wrapped up a lawsuit the Trump administration started six years ago after the CDC warned that Gilead had used research it funded without proper credit. That CDC work helped shape the two pills that are now standard for pre‑exposure prophylaxis.
The government argued Gilead downplayed the CDC’s contribution, kept the patents to itself, and refused to sign a licensing deal even after multiple attempts. In the end, Gilead kept hundreds of millions in profits from taxpayer‑funded research.
Activists see the agreement as a narrow fix that doesn’t address the broader need for affordable, widely available prevention tools. They’re urging the administration to go beyond the settlement and invest more directly in expanding access.
3:35
Don't Lower Your High Cholesterol
Most adults over 40 are on a daily pill that blocks the liver’s own cholesterol‑making pathway—about 40 to 90 million people, and roughly 93 % of those prescriptions are statins. The liver actually produces most of the cholesterol in our blood; diet contributes only a little for most folks. That cholesterol isn’t junk—it’s the building block for hormones like progesterone, testosterone, estrogen, and cortisol, for cell membranes, for skin‑made vitamin D, and for bile acids that help digest fat.
LDL and HDL are just transport vehicles: LDL delivers cholesterol to tissues, HDL brings some back to the liver. The “bad” vs “good” labels stuck, even though the biology is more nuanced.
Dr. Ray Peat argues cholesterol rises during stress, inflammation, and tissue repair, acting more like a protective antioxidant than a clog‑forming culprit.
So the takeaway: statins are widely used, but cholesterol itself plays essential roles, and the simple “low = good” narrative misses that complexity.
4:03
Not Everyone Is Autistic. Here’s Why So Many People Think They Are.
I’m looking at a video that’s been popping up everywhere—someone claims that turning away from the shower head is a sign you might be autistic. The clip itself is flimsy, just a tiny habit, not a symptom or a diagnosis. What’s striking is how many people comment, “I do that too,” and feel an unexpected wave of relief.
That relief comes from finally having a label for a private quirk. When a stranger names something you’ve always done, it suddenly feels like a shared experience, like you’ve found a little piece of an identity you didn’t know existed.
The article points out that the behavior itself isn’t meaningful; the meaning is the social validation. Seeing your habit listed among thousands of others turns a private oddity into a communal sign‑post, and that connection is what eases the anxiety.
So the takeaway isn’t about diagnosing autism from shower habits—it’s about how naming even the smallest quirks can give people a sense of belonging and calm, even if the original claim is just internet noise.
4:33
This one looks good - and it's free
ILLUSION is a free documentary streaming July 24‑26, inviting viewers to explore consciousness beyond the usual buzz about frequency. I think you’ll find it intriguing.
Instead of focusing on vibration or sound, it asks why the number 12 recurs in nature, biology, and human experience, suggesting a link between structure and awareness.
The film doesn’t claim to have answers; it simply opens the floor for bigger questions about how consciousness might need coherence to avoid instability.
You can sign up for free via the provided link and watch the three‑day premiere at home.
4:51
13 July 2026 ~ 3 Good Things
I’m sharing a quick note about the “Tell Me 3 Good Things” habit that grew out of a tough summer in 2015—my daughter broke her leg and my grandmother passed away. The author started emailing three friends each night with three positives from the day, then kept a personal list for herself. It’s not a cure for grief, but it nudges the mind toward the small bits of good that coexist with sorrow, helping the balance feel a little steadier. Recently she mentions zero traffic on her commute, the nostalgic scent at Mom’s Organic Market, and finally finding old photos of her dog after a digital clean‑up. She also reminds friends there are paintings still for sale before her shop takes a short break.
