iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Went to the new nearby Pogonip Pizza for dinner and had a delicious Magic Carpet pizza with pepperoni, jalapeño, mozzarella, tomato sauce, fresh basil, stracciatella and hot honey. Check it out:

Top-down view of a pizza, a glass of red wine, and various accoutrements on a small table.

010

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

We had a bunch of hard-boiled dyed eggs left over from Easter, so I made egg salad today, using a recipe from Simply Recipes, with avocado instead of mayo. Turned out nice! I heaped it on a German dinner roll from the Brot Box. (Why are there blue bits? Because the eggs were dyed.)

Two halves of a dinner roll heaped with egg salad, on a bamboo board.

100

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

The painting at Stacks/Black Sheep Brasserie in Willow Glen, where I had breakfast today.

A painting of a flock of sheep. Most of them are white, one is black. Several sheep are looking right at the observer.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

Bought more peony tulips at Trader Joe's yesterday.

Looking down on a bucket of pink and purple peony tulips.

030

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

One of my favorite moments from my trip to Los Angeles was the dinner I had at Xuntos, a Spanish tapas place, where I had an appetizer of scallops in saffron butter. I took one of the shells home with me as a souvenir. Speaking of shells, one of the dining room walls was made of scallop shells.

5 scallops in golden saffron butter, arranged on their shells.

A red leather banquette below a dining room wall covered in scallop shells.

010

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

The Getty is such a lovely arrangement of architecture and landscaping.

A fountain in the foreground, two cubes of beige Italian travertine in the background, in front of a bright blue California sky.

Trees and plants in symmetrical layout in front of a building of beige Italian travertine and glass. The Pacific Ocean far in the background.

020

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

These two were my favorite paintings at the Getty Center: Gainsborough's Countess Anne and Goya's Marquesa de Santiago. I sat down and contemplated them for a while. Is "Gainsborough blue" a thing?

A large painting in a gilded frame on a slate gray wall. It depicts a woman with a gray updo of hair, a blue and white billowing silk dress, a golden shawl. and tiny little shoes. She is sitting, with her hand to her chin, contemplating things. Trees and a distant landscape make up the background.

A text note which says:
Portrait of Anne, Countess of Chesterfield
1777-78
Thomas Gainsborough
English, 1727-1788
Oil on canvas

When this portrait of Anne Thistlewaite (1759-1798) was exhibited by Gainsborough in 1778, critics agreed that he had captured the sitter's aristocratic refinement. While one contemporary observer found the hands and drapery to be unsubstantial and unfinished, others recognized that when the portrait is viewed from a distance, the loose brushwork coalesces into rich, luxurious textures and forms.

A large painting in a gilded frame hanging on a slate gray wall. The painting depicts a woman in a black dress, white lace shawl, and coral pinks hoes. She is standing, facing the viewer. A dark landscape and a dark gray sky make up the background.

A text note which says:
Portrait of the Marquesa de Santiago
1804
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes
Spanish, Fuentetodos 1746-Bordeaux 1828
Oil on canvas

By the early 1800s, Goya was the leading painter of the Spanish royal family, aristocracy, and liberal intelligentsia. This bold portrait depicts a wealthy aristocrat known for her independent spirit and quick wit. She faces the viewer with one hand assertively placed against her hip and the other holding a fan. Distinguished by a long white lace mantilla, gold braided sleeves, black lace skirt, and dainty coral-colored shoes, the Marquesa's attire is highly fashionable, but Goya has refused to idealize his subject, depicting her with a frankness extraordinary for the time.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

At Zona Rosa, an encouragement to love tacos, which we heeded.

Large letters spelling out (Heart) TACOS in front of a restaurant.

Carnitas tacos with red cabbage slaw on pink tortillas.

031

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

The sign out front of the Hop and Vine beer and wine bar in San Jose.

A chalkboard sign proclaiming: We have beer as COLD as your ex's heart.

020

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

The tulips are all reaching outward.

A top down view of a bouquet of pink tulips, with each flower reaching outward from the center.

010

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

Trader Joe's sells cannelés now. It was bad enough to have unfettered access to madeleines, but now I am truly doomed.

Four small bundt-cake-shaped desserts on a wooden board, beckoning me.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

Just another picture of these lovely many-petaled peony tulips.

A bouquet of pink peony tulips with double petals, in a glass vase on a dark wooden dining table.

010

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

I really enjoyed today's weather (sunny and 78F/26C). The peach tree did too.

A closeup of the branches of the peach tree, with lots of bright pink blossoms. More blossomy branches out of focus in the background.

021

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Aaah, now I see the appeal of the "peony tulips" or "double tulips" - lots of extra petals. Lovely.

Closeup of a "peony tulip" which has lots of petals, in a bouquet of more peony tulips in a glass vase on a dining table. Two chairs are visible in the background.

020

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

I'm in heaven. I bought some German bread and pretzels from the Brotbox ("Brot" is German for bread). Each pack of pretzels has four, but there are only three in the picture because I already scarfed one down, after I slathered it with butter. Just like home.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Unsurprisingly, I bought more tulips. Their packaging says they are "peony tulips" or "double tulips", terms which I have never heard before. But hey, they look lovely, which is all I need to see.

A big bouquet of pink tulips in a large glass vase on a dark dining table.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Leftovers from Monday night dinner for lunch: linguini with fennel, sausage and tomato sauce.

A turquoise Fiestaware bowl filled with pasta and red sauce, fennel and sausage meat.

190

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

Do you see the Buddha hiding in the greenery? (This is in the garden at The Crepe Place in Santa Cruz.)

A wooden water slide surrounded by lot roof plants, and a black Buddha figure sitting among the greenery.

230

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

I took myself and my tulips outside for some sunshine.

A bouquet of red, orange, and pink tulips in a glass vase on a sunny patio table, with bright blue sky in the background.

120

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

The tulips I picked yesterday at Earthbound Farm. The blossoms are tidily closed up in the morning.

Red, orange and pink tulips in a glass vase on an oak dining table.

010

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

I really love tulips, and took the opportunity today to pick my own, at Earthbound Farm's Farmstand. Aren't these fields lovely?

A look at several rows of yellow and orange tulips.

A look down on a row of fiery orange tulips.

010

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

Shopped for some groceries, including lunch things, then sat down on a bench on West Cliff Drive and ate my lunch in California sunshine.

Ice plant and big wave breaker rocks in the foreground, the Pacific Ocean washing against the coast in the middle, and the other side of the Monterey Bay in the background.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

I drove across town to Capitola for a movie (Midwinter Break with Lesley Manville and Ciarán Hinds) and a late lunch, at Dharmas, a vegan restaurant. I don't think I've been to Dharmas since I lived in the neighborhood (the "Jewel box," because the streets are named after gems) in the mid-nineties.

A plate with spring rolls and a little bowl of peanut sauce, and behind it a bow of tofu and broccoli, on a turquoise tray on a wooden table.

050

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 22/02/2026

This is how blue the sky was yesterday.

An expanse of bright blue sky, divided by an airplane and its contrail.

030

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 21/02/2026

I love that toof sticking out like that.

A black cat with green eyes facing the camera. The bottom of her fang tooth sticks out under her lip.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

To do or donut, that's the question.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

I like photographing flowers in portrait mode, getting the background nicely out of focus.

An in-focus pink tulip in the foreground, two more tulips and several daisies out of focus in the background.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

These roses and carnations are so pretty.

Closeup of a pale pink rose and several white and pink carnations.

020

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 17/02/2026

Today is Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras, the last day of carnival before Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. I am wearing this fancy hat that belonged to my father, who was part of the local carnival company where I was born, in Tauberbischofsheim, Germany, back in the day

A selfie, me wearing a blue and white brocade and silk hat with golden ribbons, bells and tassels.

The brocade and silk hat lying on a dark table.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 15/02/2026

I got a couple new stickers, including this California rebel quail. Do you like it? Yes, I stuck it on top of the Apple logo. Not so fond of the fruit company lately.

220

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 14/02/2026

Bill got me flowers for Valentine's Day, roses and carnations. I love carnations! They rhyme with my name. (A carnation in German is a Nelke.) So thoughtful.

120

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

I made another meal from my Rainbow Plant Life meal plans: a farro and chickpea salad with cucumber, bell pepper, pistachios, and mint. I think this recipe will go into rotation.

A bowl of salad on a brown side table. the salad includes chickpeas, farro, Persian cucumber, red bell pepper, pistachios, and mint.

010

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

These buttery golden freesias are doing their part to brighten up the backyard.

A freesia plant with three sets of yellow golden blossoms, above a brick patio.

010

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

The San Jose Municipal Rose Garden in February.

A triangle of many rose bushes, pruned back, with reddish-brown new leaves forming.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

I was tempted to buy the purple and/or orange tulips at Trader Joe's, but I still have carnations at home.

A view down on a bucket full of about 10 bouquets of tulips in many colors.

000

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

I went to the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum& Botanic Garden today. They have several gardens representing biodiverse regions around the world - South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. I wonder if the bees and butterflies go, "Hey, let's get Australian food for lunch today. See you at the Arboretum!"

I don't know what this lovely red flame-like plant is called.

010

Elke Sisco (she/her) 🍉 @elkit.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

Daffodils are called "Osterglocken" in German, "easter bells." Isn't that lovely?

A small bouquet of yellow daffodils in a slender glass vase, in front of a fireplace.

010