Greg Weiss Storyteller

06/01/2026

Feasting on the Farm

My little cat & housesitting retreat is over. As promised in an earlier post, I am sharing some of the culinary experiments concocted while there. I like to tinker in the kitchen and see what I come up with…and the farm provides the perfect laboratory for some kitchen alchemy.

The photo captions tell the rest of the story. Let me know if you want any more detailed recipes😉

06/01/2026

All three are on my spice shelf. Two of them are in heavy rotation. Can you guess which two?

Celebrity chef José Andrés recently shared the three seasonings he always keeps within reach — and they’re probably not all what you’d expect. In his pantry, you’ll always find pimentón, sumac, and furikake, a trio he leans on to instantly bring smoky, tangy, and umami-rich flavor to just...

05/25/2026

Today in the sanctuary
May 24, 2026

Earth & Sky, Flora & Fauna on the Farm

A favor for friends and a necessary retreat from the noise and haste…remembering what peace there may be in silence (with a nod to Desiderata), spending a few days on the farm, cat & house sitting.

A time to slow down, breathe, contemplate, meditate, and reflect
An opportunity to take comfort in aloneness
A chance to connect to the natural world, harvest and eat seasonally, and play around in the kitchen (more on that in another post)

Soon enough I will be back to familiar routines. But for the moment, I am enjoying a little reboot.

05/10/2026

Today in the sanctuary
May 10, 2026

Look ⬆️ Look ⬇️

A great day for a walk. Most of the time was spent lost in thought. But turning a corner, this is what presented itself. The sky was an inspiration. It took me out of my thoughts and swept away the cobwebs.

Upon returning home, I sat on the porch and listened to the birds singing for their supper. Then this fella came surprisingly close. In spite of seeing me just a few feet away, he lingered for a bit, before scurrying away. All in all, I don’t think I could have imagined a better afternoon.

05/10/2026

First Mother’s Day without Mom…coming up on the one year anniversary of her passing (this Wednesday).

Grief is a peculiar thing. It is highly personal—no two people grieve the same way. Heck, no two griefs are the same. The experience of Mom’s passing was different from that of Dad’s.

Found myself stopping in the card aisle of the store, to look at the Mother’s Day cards. Saw one that cracked me up. Being the amazing cook and baker that she was, I think Mom would have appreciated this one too. A little irreverent, but still funny…and yes, she let us lick the beaters when we watched her making cakes.

Happy Mother’s Day to all who provide a mother’s love and nurture.

05/09/2026

05/06/2026

It’s been a minute since I’ve shared a morsel for those of us who like to eat good things, so here’s a quick visit to Ferrara Bakery on Taylor Street, which happens to be on the storied Route 66. And this story comes with a tasty twist…

A few months back, I made my first ever trip to Ferrara in search of my favorite Italian pastry, sfogliatella. Let’s just say that I made a return trip today for the same reason…And I just happened to be in the neighborhood.

So I entered and made a beeline for the pastry case, only to see a vacant spot where there should have been a tray of sfogliatella. Devastated. I mean, there were lots of yummy looking offerings, but I had my heart (stomach, more accurately) set on my personal favorite pastry.

Seeing my disappointment, the pastry person behind the case asked me if I was looking for something in particular. When I told her, she said that a woman had been in earlier and bought every last one of them! I told her that I came expressly for the sfogliatella. Taking pity on me, she said that they had some frozen ones that they could sell for me to bake at home. She said that she would give me the necessary instructions, if I was interested.

It didn’t take long for me to say “Yes!” though I have never baked sfogliatella before. While she went in the back to box up my frozen treats, I happened to notice that they had two un-iced cuccidati on a tray otherwise filled with the iced and candy sprinkled version of this fig cookie. The two lonely cookies were practically begging me to buy them…so what else could I do?

The purveyor of my frozen pastries returned; I made my purchase, and went on my way…mission accomplished.

As always, the pictures tell the rest of the story.

05/05/2026

Today in the sanctuary
May 4, 2026

Intangible Treasures

This afternoon, as I was sitting on the front porch after my daily stroll, the heavens opened up and a torrent of hail & cold rain pelted the formerly warm, dry ground, chilling the air. It lasted all of about twenty minutes before the rain gradually diminished and the sun reasserted itself.

I almost couldn’t believe my eyes. There in front of me, on my driveway, was a small, translucent rainbow. A gift, a blessing, in return for sitting out the monsoon. I am fortunate to be able to share the magic with you. If you want to see what preceded the rainbow, there are a couple of short videos in the comments.