I urge anyone looking for a pet to check out local rescues and shelters - there are so many desirable and wonderful animals waiting for homes.
Last month, I heard about a young female Persian cat in need of adoption. She was under the care of Rock 'N Rescue, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization based in Bedford Hills, New York, not far from my farm. I love Persians and have been thinking of adding another to my family. I made an appointment to visit right away, and that same afternoon I took her with me back to Cantitoe Corners - her new "forever" home.
Here are a few photos of Magnolia, enjoy.
Here I am in front of Rock ‘N Rescue, an animal adoption center and community cat and kitten therapy facility. This larger location opened last fall and is now able to accept more pets and expand its foster and adoption outreach.
Once inside, I was greeted by Julia, Rock ‘N Rescue’s office manager. The center is completely run by volunteers who give so much of their time to fostering animals and providing them with good transitional care while waiting to be placed in permanent homes.
This is Juli Cialone, founder and executive director of Rock ’N Rescue. She is holding Kit, one of the center’s two office cats.
And this is foster coordinator, Kathleen Birmingham, with Scooter, her cat and the facility’s therapy office feline.
In the back of the rescue is a quiet room for new adoptees. Cats are medically evaluated and temperament tested and then given quiet areas to decompress and acclimate to unfamiliar surroundings.
And while Rock ‘N Rescue focuses on placing cats, it also takes in dogs, birds, rabbits, and other small or exotic animals needing homes. All reputable rescue centers will conduct interviews, reference checks and contracts for the safety of the pet and its new guardian.
Potential adopters are able to use these “meet and greet” rooms to spend time with prospective companions.
As each pet is adopted, new guardians are able to pick toys to bring home.
Adopters and visitors are also able to purchase t-shirts and other pet supplies and gifts to help support the organization.
I was eager to meet the four year old female Persian I heard so much about in texts and emails. I was directed to the front “cuddle” room with large floor to ceiling windows. This room is used as a meeting area and animal therapy space.
Here she is, known as Angel, resting comfortably in the basket of a cat tree – so calm and content.
And here she is at her new home – my home. I renamed her Magnolia, and she is a most lovely silver shaded Persian with beautiful golden-copper eyes and a friendly disposition.
Magnolia lived in Manhattan, but after her previous owner passed away, she was transported to New York City’s Animal Care and Control Center and then to Rock ‘N Rescue.
Persians are known for being laid-back, charming, and affectionate. Magnolia loves people and greets all those she sees.
These cats are well loved for their regal appearance and are often referred to as the “aristocrats of the cat world.”
Males and females are medium-to-large-sized cats with round, flat faces, known as brachycephalic, and long, flowing coats.
Magnolia is also quite curious – roaming from room to room, upstairs and downstairs.
In addition, she is a very good eater and drinker – a sign of excellent health, especially when acclimating to new surroundings.
And, she also takes well to grooming. In fact, she purrs with every stroke. Persian cats with long hair require daily combing and brushing to prevent their fur from matting.
Right now, Magnolia is still going through a transitional phase – getting to know me and all the activity around my home, but she’s doing extremely well and will be a wonderful addition to my menagerie and my family. Welcome home, Magnolia.
If you love Japanese food as much as I do and want to treat yourself to a very special and most luxurious meal, go to ITO the next time you're in New York City.
ITO is owned by best friends, Chef Masa Ito and Chef Kevin Kim who met a decade ago while working in California. Their 16-seat sushi omakase restaurant offers two-hour tasting experiences that feature seasonal ingredients, premium fish flown in from Japan, and fine sake and wine pairings. And because the restaurant space is small and intimate, both chefs personally oversee sushi service right at the counter. Earlier this week, I enjoyed a wonderful meal with Ray Mizrahi, president of Black Diamond Gourmet, my publicist John Rice from Susan Magrino Agency, and my longtime makeup artist Daisy Schwartzberg Toye.
Enjoy these photos.
ITO New York is located in downtown Manhattan. Chefs Masa Ito and Kevin Kim prepare and serve dinner from this large counter – traditional Japanese favorites with their own unique and modern interpretations. There are two dinner seatings a day. We sat down for the first seating at 6pm.
It takes a lot of time to set-up for the two dinner services. Preparations begin each day at noon.
Each course is beautifully presented.
This is Sake Sashimi – king salmon, ponzu, myoga, topped with micro cilantro.
This is Kanpachi Sashimi, also known as yellowtail or amberjack. It has a clean, crisp bite with a delicious buttery flavor. It was served with Maitake truffle and fried kelp.
Next on the tasting menu was this Meiji Maguro Sashimi, or bluefin tuna, with garlic soy, sliced pearly onions, wasabi sprouts and crispy nori topped with micro cilantro.
This appetizer is called Uni Ikura Hokkaido. It is uni with marinated salmon roe, sea urchin and osetra caviar from Black Diamond Caviar.
After the appetizers we all enjoyed a comforting bowl of seasonal miso soup. The base of traditional miso soup is a simple combination of dashi, the stock, and miso, a fermented paste created from soybeans, sea salt, and rice koji.
Next was the Red Snapper from Ehime, served with yuzu juice and sea salt.
This is Scallop Hokkkaido with dashi soy sauce.
Sawara, also known as Spanish mackerel, is known for its whitish color, light meaty flavor, and opaque appearance. Here it is served with ponzu sauce.
Masu, or Masu-Zushi, is a type of pressed sushi. It consists of a bed of vinegar rice topped with a thin layer of vinegar trout. It is so very fresh and served with dashi soy sauce.
This is called Kohada, or gizzard shad, a silver-skinned fish. It is served with nikiri soy sauce.
Plum sake is a traditional Japanese alcoholic drink made from ume plums and sugar. It was delicious.
Next we all tried the Akami with nikiri soy sauce. Akami refers to the leaner portion of maguro or tuna with very little to no fat.
And this is Shiroebi with rice, dashi soy sauce and nori.
Here Chef Masa shows us all a box full of sea urchins, or uni, from Hokkaido, Japan.
We were each served a piece of Uni Hokkaido with Nikiri soy sauce.
And the last piece was Wagyu Beef Myazaki seared with homemade soy sauce and topped with shaved black truffle. We all loved every course.
Ray brought me a lovely cake made by Loser’s Eating House in Soho. It is salted coconut and vanilla bean – two of my favorite flavors.
The size is just perfect for our group of four.
For dessert, Ito served White Chocolate Miso Custard – so rich and so creamy.
We couldn’t finish dinner without a photo! Here is or group – John Rice, myself, Ray Mizrahi, and Daisy Schwartzberg Toye. Behind us is sushi master, Chef and Owner Masashi Ito. Thanks for a most delectable meal. For more information, go to the ITO web site or just click on the highlighted link. ITO also has another location in Las Vegas. Treat yourself to one or both – you’ll love it.
Winter is the best time to cover garden beds with a rich layer of organic compost.
Fortunately I am able to make it right here at my Bedford, New York farm. During the course of the year, my outdoor grounds crew amasses large amounts of organic debris - felled trees, branches, underbrush, etc., but none of the material goes to waste. The wood is either repurposed quickly as milled lumber, chipped and returned to the woodland as top dressing, or mixed with other biodegradable materials including chicken and horse manure to make compost - that nutrient rich “black gold” that's spread generously over all the gardens to protect plants and growing bulbs and keep them insulated until spring.
Enjoy these photos.
Another very big and important task that is done regularly around my farm is top dressing all the garden beds with nutrient-rich and protective compost. This is it! I make it right here in my compost yard.
Right now, my outdoor grounds crew is covering garden beds all around my home with beautiful compost.
This is my long pergola garden – freshly dressed with compost.
And this bed is in front of my main greenhouse. The boxwood shrub is tucked safely under protective burlap and the surrounding area is covered with a layer of compost to insulate all the bulbs below.
Here’s a closer look at the compost, what gardeners call “black gold” because of all the nutrients it adds to the existing soil.
And much of it starts right here in my chicken yard. My roosters, hens, turkeys, geese, pheasants, and peafowl all help to create my valuable compost.
… And so do my five donkeys and five horses.
Compost also includes some of the organic debris from the woodland. During the course of the year, these felled tree limbs and branches are piled neatly by the side of the carriage road. When possible, it is either chipped and returned as dressing in the woods, or carted away and brought to the compost yard and saved for the tub grinder.
The debris is piled up high in one neat area. This gets processed through the tub grinder which I rent once a year or once every two. A tub grinder is able to grind the wood to produce finer material.
Here is the animal waste and hay collected in another area – this also gets processed.
And here are other piles – leaf mold, or composted leaves, and other organic brush and plant debris – all carbon-rich materials in various stages of decay.
After it is all run through the tub grinder multiple times, it is left to decay naturally under giant tarps and made into garden compost – filled with nutrients.
This compost is well decayed. The rich, dark, and crumbly compost can now support proper soil structure, improve water retention, and promote beneficial microbial life back in the gardens.
Here, Phurba fills a wheelbarrow with compost. I am so proud that I can make this material right here.
Because of all the ground they need to cover, my crew works in an assembly line process, which is fast and efficient.
Weeds are removed before any top dressing is applied. Covering the garden beds with compost will also help deter future weeds… we hope.
The pesky weeds are bagged and completely discarded.
And then as each wheelbarrow is filled, it is brought to the cleaned bed and unloaded in piles. Here is Adan delivering more compost to the pergola garden.
And by hand, a three to four inch layer of compost is spread over all the beds. I prefer this done in winter when flowers are not in bloom and the crew can gingerly walk through without disturbing any growth.
This area is part of my Stewartia garden, where I plant various perennials, spring blooming bulbs, and of course, Stewartia trees.
And this is the garden surrounding my Basket House below the towering bald cypress trees – all bare of their feathery fern-like foliage.
If you can, cover your gardens with a good layer of compost. It’s nature’s best soil conditioner and a wonderful way to beautify the gardens and give back to the earth.
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