Total Eclipse of the Moon~Buddhist Thought for the Day

"Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth."

~ Hindu Prince Gautama Siddharta

I chose this quote today not only because it spoke to me personally

but also in honor of the lunar eclipse happening this week. 

According to Susan Miller (via AstrologyZone.com),
Eclipses "shine the bright light of truth",
"act as brilliant illuminators",
"are especially effective at revealing someone's character or true motivations".

They "have a way of changing perspective...
as though a puzzle piece suddenly fell from the sky, right into your hands",
"bring unexpected changes of direction",
"play with our sense of time by compressing it and speeding things up".

With three eclipses in a row (each two weeks apart~ one on June 1st ~solar~,
another on the 15th ~lunar~ and another coming on July 1st ~solar again~,
it could be a BIG month of changes and/or illumination.
That's a lot of alignment among our 'time planets' too.

If you're experiencing a lot of change or emotional upheaval right now, don't worry.
The eclipses just rattle our foundations a little (or a lot, as the case may be)
and force us to make changes we might not have otherwise made,
get us out of that rut, nudge us on to the next level.
They call it evolving and we all get to do it.
Just take care of your health, and
hold on to your hats just in case
 the floodgates may
be opening.

Ok, now that we've been forewarned,
I'm ready (especially for that puzzle piece).
Are you?


~For more information on eclipses,
read Susan Miller's entire article on
How To Deal with Eclipses~

Paris in Jaune~ Missing Paris Day

Jaune was everywhere in Paris this spring! 

Look at this luscious beauty.

A friend recently showed us his fancy old car and I was so excited, 

eyes lit up, I jumped in the front seat asking all kinds of questions, begging for a ride.

Friend turned to The Chef and said,

"I had no idea you had a Car Chick!"

I have to admit it. I've been known to peruse old car shows soaking up the past,

ogling shiny paint jobs and decadent or old, rustic interiors.

Sadly, I'm not the same when it comes to fashion.   

When I got off the plane this last time in Paris,

I was all dressed in black. 

My sister took one look at me and said,

"What? Are you going through your Goth phase?"

So I asked, "Ok, what is the latest in Paris since last I was here?"

She looked at my attire again and said,

"BRIGHT, BRIGHT SPRING colors."

 

And guess what else? 

Sandals resembling the exact make and model

of a pair left back in my Pacific Northwest closet.  

And with the weather being so tres magnifique,

EVERYBODY was wearing them! 

Zuts encore!

Oh well, here are a few lovely Paris yellows

to brighten your day. 

This last one, taken in the French countryside, was snapped on a breathtaking walk! 

In some directions, almost as far as the eye could see,

 fields of Rapeseed (what the French call Colza and make into oil) were so bright 

you nearly had to shield your eyes. 

French relatives most often toss their green salads with a colza oil vinaigrette

and somehow they always taste better to us than ours. 

Europeans are even cultivating it for biodiesel fuels. 

One of these days, I'm going to cultivate it myself

(ie: sneak it home)

and serve it on my guest's salad

so I can hear them ask the same question:

"Excusez-moi, but how exactly did you make this amazing vinaigrette?!"

(Photographs copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Paris in Full Bloom~ Missing Paris Day

 Paris was in full spring this visit,

flowers blooming like ripe cherries everywhere. 

Hard to resist the urge to pluck a few colorful, velvet blossoms

to smile and shine on the dining room table. 

In fact, as I took this photo,

 a small someone who 

simply couldn't resist

wandered into the frame.

I took a few 'photo walks' on my own this trip.

'The Chef' tries to be patient, having to stop and wait for me on every street corner,

but I can see it sometimes wearing thin. 

However, when we pass any Immobilier window,

it is I waiting on the corner while he scopes out Paris Real Estate deals

just to see what's out there and the current price per square meter. 

My camera and I have learned to make the most of these moments,

looking for anything photo-worthy from the corner. 

Hardly difficult in Paris.

Just look for the luscious colors in just about any patisserie.

I've found snapping they pretty little faces

is nearly as much fun as tasting,

but without the guilt.

And can be enjoyed 

over and over again.  

The Acacia trees (in full purple or white bloom)

can even be enjoyed more than once. 

It's been far too long since we've been in Paris in the summer

(winter being our travel season of late)

and while it was officially spring this visit,

our first week felt just like early July.

The parks were filled with the laughing, young, international set

picnicking and frolicking in the grass. 

I might have been right out there with them

but I was too busy~

capturing their likeness.

My apologies for being away from the blog so long this week.
Technology issues have plagued.
But happy to be back.
A wonderful week to you!


(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Ok, I've admitted it...

I've finally admitted it.

At a writing friend's surprise Birthday Tea Party yesterday, I announced it: 

"I......am a Cake Slut." 

My family knows it.

My co-workers guessed it. 

I've only just admitted it to myself 

and they say that's the first step.

"Hi, my name is Kirsten...

and I am a cake slut."

Jessica Maxwell, author of the wildly popular 

"Roll Around Heaven: An All True Accidental Spiritual Adventure"

all but accused me of it recently:

"I know you'd do anything for a piece of that cake." 

The cake, by the way (pictured above),

is her famous healthy, gluten-free, dairy-free 

Chocolate Cake with Cardamom Frosting and Ganesh Ganache

(the recipe soon to be revealed in her-we hope-forthcoming R.A.H. cookbook).

I'd tasted this conglomeration of goodness at one of Jessica's tea parties last spring and fell in deep infatuation with the combination of rich organic chocolate frosting,

 delicately fairy-dusted with a feather-light hint 

of its peppery-gingery-smokery flavor. 

It is a cake with a ghost...

 albeit a well-wishing, well-mannered friendly kind of ghost; 

the kind of ghost who watches over your friends and family,

tells your cat you're only a block from home and to run to the door,

and possibly plants the idea for cardamom paired with chocolate 

into the head of an adventuress-writing chef.

*****************

Um, my sluttiness does not extend itself to much else in my life. 

(Note the word 'much'.) 

When it comes to sweets,

 I can graciously turn down cubes and even whole bars of chocolate 

with a smile and slight shake of the head. 

Cookies?

Flat-disk temptations possibly from outer space meant to entrap our race 

with the need for 'more than just one'. 

Oreos? Who cares?!

Oatmeal-Raisin? No thanks.

Now, Peanut Butter Cookies?

These definitely come attached to some wicked kind of ghost,

 pulling a close second to the temptation of cake. 

But peanut butter comes from its own planet, don't you think?

Ice cream? 

Simply meant to go with cake. 

When we attend weddings, The Chef knows we cannot leave until champagne and cake have been had. 

He's escorted me to weddings for enough years to know better than to ask,

"Can we leave now?"

The answer/question to that question's answer is:

"Have they cut the cake yet?!" 

****************

A few more photos of the heavenly tea party:

To understand the significance of the flying chocolate pig...

you'll have to read the book: Roll Around Heaven

which you can find at JessicaMaxwell.com.

And one last Joyeux Anniversaire to the princess of the tea party! 

And  Merci to the hostess.

Birthday week is now officially over.

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Restaurant Laperouse~ Missing Paris Day

Thought you might enjoy these photos 

of the Restaurant Laperouse on the banks of the Seine.

I adore the exquisite old paintings found on ancient buildings in Paris,

frequently on the sides of what used to be,

and sometimes still are, boulangeries.

Founded in 1766, the restaurant and bar Laperouse

sit in an old, restored Parisian mansion along the quai

with a view of the Seine.

I'll have my kir in a window seat, thank you very much. 

Located at 51, Quai des Grands Augustins in the 6th,

see more photos and a glimpse of the ethereal interior at Laperouse Restaurant.

"Boire sans soif et faire l'amour en tout temps, Madame, il n'y a que ca qui nous distingue des autres betes." ~Pierre Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais

('Drinking without being thirsty 

and making love at any time, Madame, 

there is nothing else that distinguishes us from the other animals.')

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Knocking around Brittany

More photos of Brittany coming your way. 

You don't mind, do you?!

I love how this old Medieval house sags in the middle,

so making me wish I could see inside and walk the floors. 

Centuries of footsteps: children running, women cooking, animals pawing, mice scratching.

Imagine how many families have lived, loved, whispered in the night together here. 

********************************************

And no trip to the coast is complete

without these slimy little delicacies, le plat des huitres. 

Not my thing but The Chef adores them. 

Now THIS is MY thing:

I cannot tell you why I hate liver and 

LOVE Foie Gras! 

(Obviously I try not to think about the making of it.)

Paired with a Sauterne (a sweet white wine from the Sauterne region) and confit d'oignon,

it is absolutely one of my favorite French special treats. 

(My sister's ex-French-mother-in-law makes it for us nearly every visit!) 

So while the restaurant version is never quite as good,

this one was served in a way I've never had it before. 

The confit d'oignon was cooked down with 

Carambar (a children's caramel candy).

It was a fantastic combination!

I actually brought some caramel home

so I can try it with our own confit d'oignon.

And the jokes on the back of the Carambar wrappers

must have rubbed off on the food 

because we giggled like little children while we ate.

Or...

could've been the wine. 

These photos are just a glimpse at what this poor body had to endure this last visit. 

Needless to say, this girl is making healthy, low-cal/low-fat choices for awhile

trying to get the body back

(before the 30th high school reunion this summer). Zut alors!

While we'd traveled to Mont St. Michel and St. Malo a couple of times in past years,

we'd never gone further or explored the Brittany area. 

I fell in love with the very short glimpse I got of Fougeres

(another Medieval city we saw only briefly at dusk

for a quick crepe dinner before driving back to Paris--

pictures next time) and cannot wait to go back 

and explore next visit. 

(All photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Dinan~ The prettiest Medieval town of Brittany

Just a hop, skip and about a 4-hour train ride west of Paris

is one of the most beautiful, and well-preserved, medieval cities in Brittany. 

Dinan, filled with 15th century half-timbered houses

and cobbled streets,

one of our first stops in Bretagne,

is also a tourist mecca of creperies, bars and restaurants

(under the watchful eye of ancient figurines). 

I am seriously just a fool for those waddle-and-daub houses

and their mingled energy of centuries past.

Only a very few left in Paris 

(thanks to Haussmann),

this town is so well-preserved as it luckily missed the bombing of WWII. 

A quick stop here on our way to St. Brieuc where we spent the night

before exploring the coast the next day. 

The weather graced us with summer-like temperatures over Easter weekend,

allowing us to sip our drinks in late afternoon sunshine

surrounded by towers and spires, 

named after the Duchesse Anne,

ruler of Breton until forced to marry French kings. 

The doors and windows of these fairytale cities

always make me want to climb through

to another time; 

a simpler (albeit 'slightly' more barbaric) time 

without cell phones and computers,

neon signs and Wall Street. 

A window in time~
I've always had a 'thing' for doors and windows,
incorporating them into my artwork
and basing an entire collection and art show
on their themes of passage, opportunity,
visual and spiritual bridges.

But as I stare at this time portal, wishing for it to speak to me, tell me its secrets,
where we'd travel to and when, who looked out and stared at this very space I'm sitting in,
what might have been cooking centuries ago behind those walls,
it's the smell of a savory crepe that brings me back.
Voila!
C'est la vie... dans cette siecle.  

Chocolate Easter-Walks in Paris

 Am in Paris this month

and got here just in time to enjoy (at least through glass)

 the many wonderful shop windows 

gleefully celebrating the joys of Easter and chocolate.

 So thought I'd share.

I spent Easter weekend with family 

making a quick road trip to the beautiful Brittany coast

who was (unusually) having the best weather anywhere in France.
I fell in love with the Medieval town of Fougere,
which will have to be another post.

These eggs and goodies were inside my favorite bakery in Paris (for the decor):

La Fontaine de Mars boulangerie right across from the square of the same name. 

The interior is magnificent with the ceiling and moulding

still resplendent from days long past.
(photos can be seen here)

Spring is in full swing here in Paris

and I loved this giant chocolate egg

covered with butterflies and daisies for the season.

Happy Belated Easter and spring to all from Paris!



(photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)