Neighbor’s Tree ( Boca Raton, June 27, 2012)

You take an evening stroll when you spot this cluster in a tree.  It is a work of art and the bees are sleeping (contrary to myth that they never sleep). Their sleep patterns depend on age and role.  

The foragers are under a lot of stress and expend a lot of energy on their collection rounds so they need, as many older creatures do, sleep on a regular basis.  The foragers tend to sleep at night since most of their work is done during the day.  The foragers also tend to sleep on the outside of the cluster to keep any diseases or parasites out of the brood area of the hive.  

The young bees tend to sleep inside cells in the center of the hive.  They don’t have regular sleep cycles, but catch a quick nap as little as 30 seconds whenever they can.  The young bees work as cell cleaners and nurse bees.  They work in the heart of the hive.

It is nesting season once again on our beaches. On any given night on a certain stretch of beach from Juno to Jupiter,  you can see these massive reptiles approach the shoreline to lay their eggs.

The Loggerhead’s journey is an incredible one. As a hatchling, it leaves the coast of Florida and rides the Gulf Stream up towards the Arctic and ultimately swims around the entire North Atlantic across to Africa and back to the beach where she was born. The odds are stacked against her; just one in ten thousand turtles survive the journey. She faces many hazards but her calling comes, and she returns to her beach. When she finally reaches  the same shores of Florida where she was hatched, 25 years will have passed. 

The cycle of nature begins again.  It is a rare and very special opportunity to witness such a unique call of nature.

Art is moving, uplifting and inspiring and doing art projects with children only enhances the experience. The Boca Raton Museum hosts a number of children programs.  One is called Creation Station.  Once a month children learn about a master artist on exhibit and have the opportunity to create a masterpiece in the style of the selected artist.  On Saturday, I worked with about 15 children in creating a piece of Optical Art.  The activity was inspired by a piece in the museum titled Tribal by Richard Anuskiewicz.  Tribal is large scale non-objective art.  Anuskiewicz applies colors both complementary and analogous to create energy or movement on canvas.

It is a wonderful way for children to learn about art in a fun and relaxed manner so if you live in the Boca area, check out the schedule at www.bocamuseum.org.

(Run 4 the Sea,  Jupiter, FL– Friday, June 8, 2012)

When you live in a coastal community, you can indulge in every sporting activity imaginable at any age.  From the local races to the morning sunrise cycles, it is a race to see and experience the views, the breeze and coastal roads.

(Cycling on AIA in Jupiter, FL at sunrise, Sunday, June 10, 2012)

If you are lucky, you can add waves and boogie boarding, body surfing and surfing to your options for fun in the great outdoors.  Check it out on www.surftopreserve.org.

(June 3, 2012– Jupiter, FL)

It is always spectacular!

There is a fine line between fishing and standing at the shore with a rod in hand and looking like an idiot. I have come to appreciate the quest, solitude and desire to catch a fish. 

You breathe in a new day, experience amazing colors at sunrise and sunset, open a bail of a rod and throw forward a shiny lure or tasty bait to kiss the ocean.  It is the excitement of a strike that keeps you coming back.

It is not an easy exercise. You need the correct bait (catching sand fleas above), the right tide, technique and equipment to feel and catch a silvery flash on your line. It helps to have a good teacher–a master in reeling in predator and prey. 

Most important, it is a way to enjoy the great outdoors, seek solitude and share stories–fish against man as if you wrote the script to The Old Man and the Sea.  If you get it right, it is fun.

(Julian Marley, Friday, May 25, 2012)

Bob Marley, reggae’s biggest ambassador who pioneered the music genre and brought reggae to the mainstream tragically died at the age of 35.  However, his legacy lives on in his sons Ziggy, Stephen, Damian, Rohan and Julian. We experienced the Marley magic this weekend when Julian Marley (“Ju Ju”) played at a local venue Guanabanas Friday night. Julian is the youngest son of Bob Marley and a Bajan mother, Lucy Pounder. He was six years old when he lost his father. Julian is a member of the Rastafari movement and his musical style follows the legacy of his father–reggae at its best.

Green Chicken Enchiladas

These deliciously cheesy enchiladas are stuffed with tender chicken and bathed in a spicy, zesty green tomatillo sauce. Tomatillos, related not to tomatoes but to gooseberries, give the sauce its color and tartness; a jalapeño chile provides just the right amount of heat; and Monterey jack cheese delivers a good dose of richness.

Ingredients:
2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breast halves (about 1 1/2 lbs. total)
2 cups chopped white onions
6 cloves garlic, crushed
Kosher salt
1/2 tsp. black peppercorns
6 sprigs fresh cilantro, plus 1/3 cup coarsely chopped
2 lbs. tomatillos, husked (If unable to locate, use (2) 16 oz  jars Salsa Verde made with tomatillos by Ortega.)
1 jalapeño chile, seeds and ribs removed, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil, plus 2 Tbs., plus more as needed
2 cups shredded Monterey jack cheese (We added pepper jack cheese too!)
12 corn tortillas (We used flour tortillas.)

Chopped white onions, sour cream, chopped cilantro and crumbled cotija cheese for serving
Directions:
Place the chicken breast halves, skin side down, in a saucepan. Add 1/2 cup of the onion, 2 cloves of the garlic, 1 tsp. salt and water to cover. Bring to a simmer over high heat, skimming off any foam. Add the peppercorns and cilantro sprigs, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover partially and simmer until the chicken is opaque throughout, about 25 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board, but keep the broth simmering. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and bones and return them to the simmering broth. Dice the chicken meat and set aside. Continue simmering the broth 30 minutes more. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt, then strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean container.

Let stand for 5 minutes, then skim off any fat from the surface.

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the tomatillos, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently (do not boil) until they are tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer the tomatillos to a bowl, taking care that they don’t burst. In batches, in a blender, combine the tomatillos, the remaining 1 1/2 cups onions, the chopped cilantro, the remaining 4 garlic cloves and the chile and process until smooth. In a large saucepan, heat the 2 Tbs. oil over medium-high heat. Add the tomatillo purée (it will splatter, so be careful) and 1 cup of the reserved broth and bring to a boil. (Reserve the remaining broth for another use.) Boil, stirring frequently, until the sauce is slightly reduced, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly oil a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. To assemble the enchiladas, spread 1/3 cup of the sauce in the dish. Mix 1 1/2 cups of the cheese with the reserved chicken. Pour 2 cups of the sauce into a pie dish, and place near the stove. In a frying pan, heat the 1/2 cup olive oil over medium heat. Using tongs, dip 1 tortilla in the oil for a few seconds to soften, and then into the tomatillo sauce. Place the tortilla on a work surface, add a few tablespoons of the filling down the center and roll up the tortilla. Place it, seam side down, in the baking dish. Repeat with the remaining tortillas and filling. Spread the remaining sauce on top, and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes. Serve warm with onions, sour cream, cilantro and cotija. Serves 6.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Comfort Food, by Rick Rodgers (Oxmoor House, 2009)

It is our weekend ritual and it is always special when someone else makes them for you. Thank you, Rick!

More then 500 cycling racers competed in Mizner Park on Saturday for top honors in a cycling event that has been described as “NASCAR on two-wheels”.  It was a wonderful community event and included activities such as bicycle decorating, youth bicycle races, face painting and a selection of edibles from the local restaurants. If you don bicycle shorts and clip-ons on the weekends and experience the freedom of the road, it was pure joy to witness the speed.