This Old House

Proudly claiming its space on Calabasas' busy main street (part of the famous Camino Real) is the Leonis Adobe, a venerable structure that has been rooted to this spot since 1844. It's hard to recognize the original building -- it has been enlarged over the years -- but it has endured earthquake and development and stands to share its history with those who take time to stop in.
Miguel Leonis, from the Basque region of France, was a smuggler who had to take it on the lam. By marrying an Indian woman, Espiritu Chijulla, he acquired considerable land and livestock. Over the years he added to his holdings, controlling vast tracts of land by both fair means and foul. When he died, he left his wife a pittance.
Espiritu, whose family holdings had not been inconsequential, took the matter to court -- a bold move for a woman in those times. She received a fair settlement and lived on the property until her death in 1906.

My friend Lin loves history and the Adobe. She loves the educational program offered there -- children not only learn about the history but how early Californians lived. Turkeys, chickens, sheep, goats, horses and long-horned cattle bring the farmyard to life and docents demonstrate home arts like baking in the outdoor oven and making tortillas. (Leonis himself was a snob and insisted on French bread)

Lin is especially fond of Daisy, one of the resident longhorns. She shared this story about her grand-daughter -- a cautionary tale about literal interpretation. Lin and Ross were getting ready to leave town and she told her then-three-year-old grand-daughter, "Catherine, Daisy's going to have her baby while we're gone so I want you to be sure and call me when she has it." Days later Lin got a call from the excited little girl. "Nan, Nan, Daisy had her baby! And Nan -- it was a cow!" Lin says she had a Far Side-style vision of Daisy in a rocking chair, her udder in her lap, cuddling a swaddled baby.

Daisy, who's retired from motherhood, was hot and tired the day we visited -- not really in the mood to pose for a picture.

Malibu Moment

Paradise Cove is a privately owned stretch of beach with a long-time, local favorite restaurant and a nice curve of sand. For those old enough -- and willing to admit to watching a lot of TV -- the only thing missing is Rockford's trailer. Yes, this is where the Rockford Files with James Garner was set. Lin and I walked along the firm sand at the water's edge -- getting our pants legs wet when the waves came in farther than we expected. It was a great scene, with small children jumping and playing in the water and would-be surfer dudes waiting for the giant rollers that never came. Dinner was excellent -- we ate outside with our feet in the sand. The clam chowder was, if not the best I've ever eaten, a top contender. Everything else was wonderful, too, and by meal's end we were stuffed as any well-prepared flounder. About that time we watched a dessert go by. I tackled the waiter, requesting a photo before it was served. Honest to goodness -- cake on steroids! I'll count the layers when I get home and see the photo (which I'll post here later) but imagine a couple of layer cakes stacked on top of one another (not your dinky 8-inchers, either) then cut in thirds. That was about the size of it. And who ordered this gargantuan goody? Three skinny women. Life is definitely not fair!
P.S. In case you're wondering about the big-momma blister -- I went to a walk-in medical clinic yesterday. The doctor doubted my diagnosis of shingles shot reaction but had no alternative theories to offer. The nurse lanced all eruptions, slathered neosporin on a bandage and covered the whole thing up. I plan to leave it that way until the bandage rots and falls off -- the way I deal with anything smacking of yucky.

Okie Pride

Today we visited Ojai, California, a charming and quirky little town where our friends' daughter lives. Rosalyn took Lin and me to the coolest book store -- Bart's Books. The place is put together like a house of cards. It started with a little house but now a maze of out-of-doors (but roofed-over) areas has been added on. Even the outside walls of the store have book shelves with books that stay out. A sign by the door says, "When closed, please throw coins in slot in the door for the amount marked on the book. Thank you." I loved it that the music playing was "If I ever get back to Oklahoma, I'm going to nail my feet to the ground." When I get home, I must check on the group's CDs -- it was Jason Boland and the Stragglers, a red-dirt band made up of members from Texas and Oklahoma. Roger Ray, brother of Bart's owner Dave Ray, plays steel guitar and dobro with the band. Cool, huh?

How Last Year Am I?

Jack and I have just spent the last day and a half in Beverly Hills -- getting acquainted with Rodeo Drive and checking out all the ultra-swank shops. Now we're in Calabasas with our friends Lin and Ross Porter. As Lin and I walked her dog Buster around their neighborhood lake, we met several of her friends and acquaintances. All wanted to know if I were writing about Calabasas. I replied that my article was about Beverly Hills. They quickly assured me that BH was passe; that all the really chic people were now in Calabasas. They even went so far as to suggest that Beverly Hills was "passe." "That's okay," I told them, "so is Oklahoma!" Only in the best way, of course.

Gold in Them Thar Hills

I'm working on an article about the Mother Lode country in California and I'm ready to pack up and go. With gold at over $970 an ounce, I think we're ready for a new gold rush. When I was in Sacramento last fall I toured a closed gold mine and was told that if the price rose high enough, the mine might reopen. California has a lot of environmental regulations that make the mining and processing very expensive. I'm writing about the area south and east of Sacramento -- around Sonora and Columbia. Going over pictures from my last trip, I found one of Linda Clark in her persona of Hard Luck Lin. At the time, she was a docent at Columbia State Historic Park. A lot of research went into creating her character. She got so involved with Lin that she's writing a book about her. Imagine -- a young girl in the California gold fields in the 1850s. It's an adventure I'm looking forward to reading.

Photo: Linda Clark a.k.a. Hard Luck Lin, "My clothes is clean but I ain't done my personals yet 'cause it ain't May!"