Author Archives: olizia

thoughts on growing the vocabulary of adult English learners

Posted on November 4, 2024 by olizia

Extra! Extra! Read All About It! By Elizabeth Scanland I teach English as a second language (ESL) to adults in levels two and three. These students have a great deal of learning ahead of them to communicate proficiently and are … Continue reading →

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to wrack and ruin

Posted on December 27, 2016 by olizia

Today’s findings on a short stretch of beach, in a small town, in Southern California.        Plus bonus material–a tarp!–that I dragged out of the water.

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let’s talk trash

Posted on December 26, 2016 by olizia

we can do better . . . right? From one small cove, on one (relatively) small island, off the coast of Maine, in October 2014, the day’s catch.

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venissimo cheese shop gets it right

Posted on September 11, 2015 by olizia

Venissimo, 754 W. Washington Street, San Diego, http://www.venissimo.com (with other locations in downtown, North Park and Del Mar) Venissimo, a small, friendly cheese shop in Mission Hills, San Diego, is doing a lot right. First there are the samples. Tasty … Continue reading →

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Growing on Plum Island

Posted on November 25, 2012 by olizia

Bittersweet, Marsh-elder, Wood sage, Sedge. Honeysuckle, Black cherry, Winterberry. Spartina, Samphire, Sensitive Fern. Trembling aspen, Sea purslane, Seaside plantain. Wild radish, Sea rocket, Sundew, Rush. Dusty miller, Sassafras, Yellow-eyed grass.

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i thought cactuses were easy

Posted on September 22, 2012 by olizia

This gallery contains 2 photos.

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mon petit chou (my little cabbage)

Posted on September 21, 2012 by olizia

The light has grown dim, making it difficult to read, and I’m developing a hunchback from leaning over the dictionary for the last two hours. But none of it matters—nothing matters!—for I am in love. In love, completely, with French. … Continue reading →

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balsamic vinaigrette

Posted on September 14, 2012 by olizia

Tonight while I was making a salad with balsamic vinaigrette, I remembered a date I went on almost 20 years ago and it made me laugh. But, it wasn’t the memory of a really fun date during which I busted … Continue reading →

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awesome aria

Posted on September 14, 2012 by olizia

Pour a glass of red wine, sit back and relax. Montserrat Caballé sings “O Mio Babbino Caro.”

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waiting for the storm

Posted on September 6, 2012 by olizia

The day before the “hurricane” came to our little yellow house on the cove in Maine was cloudy and warm with a soft breeze. The late afternoon, when the fog appeared suddenly over the water, moved spookily toward the house … Continue reading →

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