Last week Sage and I loaded up for a day on the coast – tidepooling, whale watching, and an exploratory visit to Tomales Bay and the Hog Island Oyster Farm. Sage is 5 and generally adores fresh fish and seafood of all kinds – grilled Baja dorado, my cider-cured and applewood smoked trout, and Bodega Bay crab are all favorites. He also eats ikura, shrimp and tako nigiri like a champ. But I wasn’t sure how oysters would go over, and I knew it would be risky to drive all the way from Bodega Bay (the whales) to Marshall (the oyster farm). But lately I have been fixating on local seafood myself, and I discovered that the Hog Island Oyster Farm was not only visitor friendly but also produces what might be the finest oysters in the Bay Area. So I took my chances and we made the drive.

The…

I knew I should have put a wire cover over the chicken yard. But after nine months fenced under some apple trees our eight happy hens seemed immune — immune to the wild uncertainties looming in the adjacent pinons and sagebrush. Sure we kept them locked in a sturdy coop at night, but otherwise they were outdoor birds. Bears and bobcats, coyotes and weasels all haunt the property, but because of the llamas that live right next to the chickens it seemed that none of these wily predators were interested  (llamas are great guard animals).  At least not until the onset of deep winter. Over the past week Gwen’s dad (Big John) had noticed the bobcat patrolling the area more brazenly and in broad daylight. She always patrols the area, but usually in those crepuscular hours when few are awake to notice. Those midday recons were a sign, but I…