It's All Good, Baby. All Good.

Since I haven’t been around these parts lately, I want to share what’s been happening with life around my neck of the woods.

VERY GOOD:

Had a birthday (Thursday), took 2 days off giving me and the husband 4-day weekend. He treated me well for my birthday, exceeded all expectations. We don’t normally do a “big” thing for our birthdays. Dinner is the norm. However, for this birthday he pulled out all the stops. Flowers, cake, a sunset dinner Hornblower cruise around the bay, a beautiful sapphire ring, mani-pedi, massage, lunch at a Filipino restaurant in the Mission Distrit, a short road trip to Occidental, Bodega Bay, Tomales Bay, Olema, Pt. Reyes.

ALSO SO GOOD:

Friends came over the next day to share dinner at home. Got the very best scribbled b/day greeting from my favorite 7-year-old boy who we babysit. He decorated the drawing with kitty heads. He knows I’m a big cat person. His folks on the other hand gave me a wonderful set of jewelry. The mom knew I adore fashion jewelry and had asked me before where I shop for them. I really adored the gift. My other friend got me a wrap-around skirt, which would need a little bit of alteration, but I got the sewing machine for that. The night was wonderful. Filled with adult conversation and discussions from politics to culture to fashion and everything in between. It was as satisfying as the pesto pasta we had for dinner. The party broke at midnight.

On Saturday, we went to dinner with my two brothers, mom, and one sis-in-law at our favorite hole-in-the-wall Chinese place in El Cerrito. We ordered up a storm, got two dishes to go and only added up to $80. I chose the place because that’s my mom’s favorite spot and also wanted the family to know about this place. I think my sis-in-law is already making plans to bring people there. It’s a nice place to eat, if you don’t mind the nonexistent decor. Always I find my table the only non-Chinese when dining there. Talk about authentic dishes. They have for that day snails in black bean sauce that my brother adored. I scored big time there. It impressed him, because in restaurants like this you don’t want to see sweet and sour pork in the menu (although they have it).

On Sunday, we went to a friends’ wedding. We met the groom through church. We’ve been around them awhile, through the ups and downs, and we’re elated when they told us they are finally getting married. I didn’t do a church wedding because I am the type to shy away from spotlight. I don’t want the attention, but I enjoy going to parties like a wedding reception. The ceremony was casual, fun, and the priest was on top of his game and very funny. Honestly though, it was too casual for my liking.

The reception was held in Pleasant Hill and has an open bar. Truth be told I was hungry like a horse but threw caution to the wind and drank while munching on apps. I had three drinks (2 margaritas and a mojito) and didn’t feel buzzed at all. I guess the drinks were weak. The affair was catered but the bride and groom had requested that my husband make his famous cauliflower biryani and chicken kebab to supplement the food. The couple loved my husband’s cooking and so we both “slaved” at the kitchen Saturday evening and Sunday morning. It was all worth it when the caterer asked my husband after the dinner was served how he cooked his biryani and if he has a restaurant. High compliments, wow! My husband can really cook!

We were at the table with good friends of ours, a couple with their two kids, the younger one was one of the flower girls. She devoured every dessert and like any 5-year-olds has learned to manipulate people to get what she wants. She’s so adorable. I came to the table with my plate full of apps when she saw I had desserts. The girl immediately asked me where the dessert table was. She had more servings than I can ever count. Later her mom must have put out the stop sign on her dessert table trek so she asked me if she could go ahead and grab some dessert for me. Wise eh? I said go ahead, get me one and you can go and grab one for you too. She did. I let mine sit at my plate. I never intended to eat it. It was for her all along because I knew she would ask for it later on. And she did!!!!! I love that adorable girl.

Later, the mom texted me a picture of her and the brother all asleep in the car on the drive home. I’m glad she didn’t crash from sugar high that night and gave her folks a quiet Sunday night.

NOT SO GOOD

My reading has been derailed. First by a renewed attraction to Bejewelled Blitz and second by a new addiction to coloring these wonderful designs that are like zentangles. I have 2 books that I was reading simultaneously, but both are now waiting for whatever free time I’m going to have after all these hobbies.

Wow

Amid all the despair and sadness of the past few weeks, I managed to find something really beautiful. I thought God gave me this day to tell me that things will be better.

My niece had lost her 3-year battle with pancreatic cancer the day before this video was taken. When she was first diagnosed I was about to leave for my India/Bangladesh vacation in 2012. I remember that clearly because I phoned my brother just to give him a heads up that I will be out of the country for a month and our elderly mother who lives with me has all the sitter she needed at that time. I always ring my brothers and email them later whenever I leave so that they know my whereabouts and at the same time ask if they could drop by the house to see mom, as she gets sad when I'm not around.

Anyway, when I rang him he said he's in LA because my niece is in the hospital. They discovered something in her insides they don't know yet, but likely cancerous in nature. She was a very strong intelligent woman with 3 small children, ages 10, 7 and 5. The tumor was small when they found it in her pancreas, chemo blasted it or something. She had a few months of health. But it came back, more aggressive or something. I don't know really what happened. I get different versions depending on who I talk to. Needless to say, pancreatic cancer is tough to beat.

Long story short, she kept battling until the very last breath. My SIL (her mom) told us that under the respirator she mumbled: IT'S TIME. She bravely chose her ending. I don't know how she did that, but you know I'm not very surprised because while alive she's been doing things I'm afraid to touch with a 10 foot pole. And while technically I am her aunt, our age gap is merely 7 years and we're more "cousins".

She was in the ICU for a couple of weeks before she passed. We saw her on the first week and she was without respirator, but by the next week she just couldn't breathe on her own. The chemo made her lung linings (pleura I think) very thin that enabled water to fill her lungs making it very difficult to breathe. She had tube on her side, or back, to drain fluid. She was suffering too much.

Anyway, when the plan to take a short weekend trip to the mountains she was in status quo. Nothing was said about taking the respirator off. On Ash Wednesday, my hubs phone rang while we were in church. I stepped out to take the call and my brother said it's bad news. Her ICU doctors said they cannot do anything else for her. The husband asked if he could take her case in Stanford for second opinion. My travel plans were hanging in the balance until Friday afternoon.

We decided to push through with the trip on Friday evening. When we were leaving for our trip on Saturday morning, I rang my brother to check on them. They were arranging funeral services. That was when I found out that my niece and her family decided that she would go that Saturday, respirator would be taken out at 2 pm.

With our bags packed we drove to the hospital to say our last goodbye. Other nephews and nieces picked up my mom and drove her to the hospital for their last goodbye as well.

The whole drive, I had one eye on my phone. By 2 pm, I texted my nephew to ask if he's still in the hospital. By 3 pm, I got a text saying she passed on. It was a tough road trip. Road trips usually give me boost, a therapy for whatever ailed me in past.

The snow was unexpected. Days before the trip I kept calling the lodge to inquire about weather. When all I heard was sunny skies without chance of snow, I packed accordingly. Then on our second day, we awoke to this.....

I captured our travel buddies going to their car to get to the restaurant for breakfast.

Not my first winter wonderland experience, but it's the first in a very very long time.

Who knew snowfall can be very comforting and therapeutic?

Some of my favorite.....

2013_07_16 049, originally uploaded by M'roy.

....things in the world are friends and family and big big trees.

Back from Vegas

We just got back from a 4-day road trip to Vegas. A wonderful winter break. Stayed in Excalibur and one day drove 3 hours to Zion National Park in Utah where we hiked two different easy trails and ate Subway sandwiches for lunch under the beautiful sunny blue sky. We went crazy photographing the incredible red rocks. Another day we went to revisit one of our favorite places in the world, Valley of Fire State Park, where we went crazy with shooting everything in sight again. One day we hoped to get back there early and go hiking, to trails we never been.

Dining wise we were not planning on getting on any buffets. After driving 9 hours from home on the first day, our dinner consisted of Baja Fresh burito and salad. On the second day, I had reservation to a Brazilian churrascaria called Pampas located inside the Miracle Mile Mall at Planet Hollywood Hotel & Casino. I was able to snag a deal from Travelzoo so that was good. On our third night we had dinner and a show at Excalibur's Tournament of Kings. A very good show, okay food. We were good with eating. We didn't go crazy with spending for dinner. We even got a breakfast buffet and the dinner and a show in exchange for sitting on a timeshare presentation. Haha, I know. We are curious about what's out there so we sign up. The freebies are not bad either.

All in all we had a good time. The long drive was both tiring and relaxing. On the drive to Vegas, I took the first shift and I probably drove 3.5 hours. We stopped for gas and subway somewhere in Tehachapi. Then hubs took over until we reached Vegas at about 7 pm.

On the drive back, he took the first shift of driving per my request. I find the city driving layout complex especially when trying to find the freeway exit. Good thing he took the first shift out of Vegas because it was extremely windy and blustery. The little compact that we were driving was unstable. I nearly got carsick, which I never do, ever.

All through the California desert area, the wind was blowing like crazy. There was dust spiraling in the distance, tumbleweeds dance from one side of the road to the other, but the passing scenery was truly relaxing for both of us. We had the radio on alternately on PBS, on a pop station (always trying to find a Pink tune) and on classical station.

So the first vacation of the year is done and over with. We usually do a little overnighter around our anniversary (May) so that's one thing to look forward to. Until then, it's back to the salt mines for the both of us.

Oh we pray for rain. And snow in the Sierras. We badly need precipitation here in California. The gov't is already talking about mandatory water cuts and hopefully it won't get so bad that the water need to be rationed in the summer time.

A week later

What a difference a week make, huh? Last post a week was telling how I was rushing to get all my cards replaced after I "lost" my wallet. Well, after that crazy Friday and the weekend, the rest of the week went by without the thought of the lost wallet crossing my mind, until about Thursday I believe when I realized that I had another bank card in the wallet. I knew that stressing about it that time was not productive so I just let it be. The account was the one I had when I was single, so there's hardly anything there. I just use it when I want to splurge on a cup of mochachino or something.

Anyway, the story about the lost wallet didn't end there. On Saturday, as we were leaving to go shopping, the hubby took the driver's seat, we were in my car. And the minute he opened the door the wallet was there. It was just there. On the side of the seat.

WE LOOKED throughout the whole car, on several occasions. The hubby LOOKED more than once and he's very thorough. So the only explanation left about the wallet is if it's hiding you won't find it until it's ready to show itself.

I let out a humongous laugh that went on for minutes it seemed. The sound of relief! Afterwards we spent the whole afternoon shopping. I finally got the piece that would complete my outfit for hubby's company's party in a couple of weeks.

And, we even got a good foot/neck/shoulder/back massage. What a great Saturday.

Now for Sunday.....

I've been teasing the husband about how he cannot do spontaneous. Trips are always planned way in advance, dining outs are well thought of and planned as well. So it was good to see that we began the year with a spontaneous trip to Pacific Grove, 2 hour's drive away. The Monarch butterfly sanctuary in Pacific Grove had some butterflies and are ready for sighting.

Up until yesterday, I had the impression that Monterey was about 4 hours drive. 2 hours drive is nothing on a day when everyone else seemed to be watching the hometown team, the 49ers on TV, so the roads were clear.

So we went to look at the butterflies, sipped organic coffee and ate yummy cookie at a coffee house cum bookstore, walked up and down the downtown area stopping at restaurant windows reading their menus, ended up taking rock fish quesadilla and thai spice wrap to go for a picnic on the waterfront where we were joined by birds and friendly squirrels while we chow down our delicious meal outdoors on a sunny day.

Then the spontaneity didn't end there. On the drive home, we stopped at Capitola, another fave spot, for a bit of sunset shooting.

What a gorgeous spontaneous day!

Twas a lovely weekend altogether.

Daily October (18)

October is a crazy time. It's no longer summer but the temperature has not gone down significantly from summer. It's the period of quiet before the storm (of Holiday activities).

I'm getting antsy. Bored. But I don't blame October for that.

My feet wants to go place. My camera longs to photograph something new.

I need a breather from the routine.

I need a trip.

Even a road trip.

Happy weekend everyone. I must go check where I can go for a short break soon. I need it.

I'm lost!

Was going to tell you where I was today, but the street had no name.

Still here

Memorial Day, the unoffical start of the summer season, had come and gone. Personally, I feel it's all downhill from here. The rest of the year would be gone before we know it. But it's a nice change to have a little more heat than we normally have. Although I'm pretty sure I'd be whiny when I can't get some sleep because it's too hot. Still summer is a time of creating happy memories. I have a camping trip in July at the same cabin we stayed at a few years ago with family. I'm going with friends this time around.

I took a short 3-day get-away this Memorial Day. We drove out on Monday, Memorial Day itself, happy that the traffic was all on the other side of the road. We stayed in Mendocino at the Mendocino Hotel courtesy of a Travelzoo voucher. I fell in love with Mendocino at first sight many years ago and vowed to return and stay at this historic hotel. I was a bit deflated when I was given my room number and was told that my room was on a separate location. It's actually just behind the hotel, they have two garden houses that double as garden suites. I have no complaints about my room, have been dreaming of staying in a Victorian room. The garden setting is likewise very charming - well all of Mendocino is charming.

We timed our arrival perfectly. The flowers are all blooming. Each house is decorated by blooming garden.

We didn't have a plan or a list of what to see, although we did research about them. Most of the eateries close at 8, some shops close earlier. We looked around for places to eat, but nothing attracted us. For one, we don't want to spend too much for meals. Not only were we conserving our pennies, we were also planning on avoiding ingesting too much calories on this trip. Thankfully we found a local grocery store (like Whole Foods) that has a good deli. We bought salads and Mexican food and Indian food from them. Their food is amazing. Plus, they don't give you a paper or plastic bag with your purchase. You have to make a separate purchase for bags. Then they give you a token (dime for a bag) signifying you bought a bag. The token is to be placed inside one of the four glass containers before leaving the store. Each glass container is for a local charity. What a nice gesture.

At a Vegan/Veggie store I found an ylang-ylang oil, which brought me home to the Phil just by smelling its fragrance. I wanted to buy one bottle, they come in small bottles, but it's way too expensive for me, it was $18.99 for a small bottle. Can't afford it.

This part of California is wet and foggy. We had rain for the first two days. Well, more of a drizzle on and off on the second day, but it was foggy. We went to see the Albion river, the Mendocino Botanical Garden, the Mendocino Headlands State Park and the Glass Beach. We stopped at stores to browse merchandise. Also stopped at a nursery to find the plant we wanted and found. It's called Tower of Jewel. We forgot to stop on the way home to buy it though, yikes.

The hotel didn't offer free continental breakfast, so we went looking for breakfast. On the second day, we went for brunch (yes we were on vacation so we got up late) at Eggheads, a local dive. Good food. We both had omelets. I was craving for hash browns, but they only have country potatoes. Not the same. So on the third day, despite all good sense, I dragged the hubby to Denny's for hash brown. It's the only one we could think of that has hash browns, so we forced ourselves to have some Denny's breakfast. Not that their food is bad, it's just not good. You know what I mean.

The rocky, rugged coastline, the charming Victorian houses, the plentiful wildflowers, the tall trees, the cold wind, the salty air, kelp all over the beach, the scenic Highway 1 - there's so much to enjoy in the north coast. I didn't realize that last year we were up here on the north coast again for our anniversary, except we went further north in Eureka as our base. It's just beautiful up there.

Especially when the sun comes out and the fog lifts and the sky is blue and the ocean is pretty shades of blue. Yes, it was like that on our third day, our last day.
We found ourselves singing the California state song while watching the waves crashed on the craggy bluffs..... I love you California, you're the greatest state of all.

Nope, This Isn't A Weekly Blog...

.....I just happen to be lazy.

And in a rut.

Don't ask me why. It might be the monotonous routine of 5-day work and 2-day errands/church. I need a little change of scenery so to speak.

One more reason I don't have time for blogging here is that I've been trying to keep up with all the season finales of the many shows that I follow. Sweetness, I didn't realize that I watch way too much television. Although let me tell you that my husband has been telling me that for years. He said we should find other things to occupy our time after dinner. He suggested listening to music while he reads the newspaper. Yap, we still have newspaper delivered to our house daily. Yes, we get most of our news online, but I suppose it's the tradition of the newspaper that we are keeping here, or else we're trying to singlehandedly keep the newspaper business alive.

Last night was a good example of how crazy our tv viewing schedule is: the teams we follow all were playing last night - the Giants, the Warriors and the Sharks. The Giants started and ended early; I completely ignored the Sharks. And I flipped back and forth between the Warriors and the finale of American Idol.

I taped THE BIG BANG THEORY and SCANDAL. Then watched them later last night, after the 11 PM news. That is the reason why I'm yawning and tired all day today.

If I'm not mistaken the only shows that have yet had their finales are PERSON OF INTEREST and THE GOOD WIFE.

Hopefully, after all these regular Fall Shows take a summer break, I too would break from tv viewing. I really need to have something to do after dinner and it shouldn't be blogging or facebooking either.

Tomorrow, Saturday, I'm looking forward to seeing the TERRACOTTA WARRIORS in San Fran at the Asian Art Museum. In case I don't get to go to China, I'd be able to see the terracotta warriors. Plus, they say here at the museum you could see them up close, whereas in China you could only see them from a distance.

Another event worth looking forward to is my wedding anniversary at the end of this month. We initially wanted to keep it open just in case we have to do this "thing" that we need to do; but this "thing" that we need to do has been pushed back to August, which leaves the dates free for us to do what we can do. And we can finally go spend a couple of nights in one of my favorite coastal towns - Mendocino. I cannot wait to go back there.

And I broke tradition this year. Hubs and I vowed never give gifts to each other on b/days, anniversary, Christmas, etc. In lieu of gifts, we agreed to go on a get-away or road trip that we both could enjoy the experience. But this year, I saw this little thing on Group-On that is hopefully an answer to his needs. And I couldn't keep my mouth shut I told him about this gift. He was a bit pissed because yes I broke the vow, but when I told him I could use it as well and that the price was a deal - of course he knows the price, just like me he monitors GROUP ON, TRAVELZOO, LIVING SOCIAL, et al daily.

So one more week then. I can't wait for this litle road trip to the North Coast. I need to breathe the invigorating ocean breeze.

Enjoy the weekend.

5 Down 7 To Go

Last Day of May already, 5 months down, 7 more to go. Before you know it, we're blowing horns and clicking our glasses to welcome a brand new year. Geez!

I don't know where May went, believe you me. It just whizzed past by me. It was a quiet month. Work, home, church. Repeat over and over, week after week.

I do remember the month was spent browsing online for tours to India, then contacting them via email, exchanging emails back and forth, and finally settling on an itinerary and price that was perfect for us. It was confirmed though that it will be monsoon season when we go there by the travel agent. However, our Indian friends told us there's hardly rain where we're going anyway. I don't really care. I can use some rain :)

Our wedding anniversary happened this month too. The previous two years we've been going to Monterey for our anniversary but this year we decided to go north in Eureka to see the giant redwood trees. Our dear friends, another couple, tagged along. Made for a fun trip. No romantic dinner though.

So that's how May came to me. How was yours?

I'm Excited

I'm excited at the prospect of leaf-peeping drive this fall.

Defeating The Dark Lord and Conquering the Rapids

I went and saw.  I cried and cried. Inside the cinema.  Mostly because the story had concluded or at the time I was shedding tears, the story was reaching its climax.  It's sad when one thing comes to an end - even a joyful conclusion couldn't take the bitterness out of the fact that well there is no more.

However, the movie was indeed quite something.  How long was it?  I heard 3 hours.  It felt like 30 minutes to me.  The minutes flew by and when the credits were rolling I was like, that was it? 

I could have gone for more.  Still, the producers made one of the best Potter films here.  I wonder though if like LOTR this film would take in incredible amount of trophy at the Oscars.  What do you think?  Will the powers that be in the industry look kindly to the Potter series and see what well made films they were?  Or how successful they were and how incredible the story telling was? Or will they dismiss them as simply blockbuster movies aimed at kids? 

Needless to say I loved the movie.  There were minor things in the film that I would have loved to see expounded or further explored, but not having read any books I don't know if they were further explored in the book and shortened on the movie.  Those were minor. 

That was my Saturday. 

And here's how my Sunday went.  I mentioned in the previous post, which is a week ago that we were going to do some white water rafting.  We did.

We met at 7 am at my hubby's worksite, which is 2 minutes drive from home.  We swung by Starbucks first and bumped into one of the guys there also picking up some caffeine treat.

The decision was made to carpool.  Five people in our car and 7 on the SUV.  Twelve people in all.  When my husband was making reservations for this trip they were told that they have to have groups of 6 as 6 per raft is required.  More people wanted to go but not enough to complete 18.

The drive to Gold Country - the place were gold was found and mined in the 1800s here in California - took about 2 hours of scenic pastoral countryside.  We brought sandwiches, but apparently the people in the backseat all had breakfast.  It was a quick drive it seemed.

We arrived at the camp and was surprised to find that camping is allowed here.  The place was teeming with people. It seemed like a crowded Sunday on the river, but the air was festive, all buzzing with excitement.

Chunk - that's his name - approached us and told us to chill for a bit since the trip would commence at 10 am.  He pointed towards the direction of the river and said we could check it out while we wait instead of milling about our cars.

And so we did and found that there were tents up along the banks.  The water however was pretty chilly.  We were all looking at each other fearing it might be too cold if we found ourselves on the water instead of on the raft later.

The guys opened up some cold ones and decided to enjoy a can of brew before starting with the trip.  Then Chunk came around and told us to go to a spot where the life vests and helmets are located and that we should go and get ready for the trip.

There was mandatory talk and instructions given by Chunk.  He is the leader of this group.  It is a huge trip.  A lot of rafts went out that day. 

Anyway, we were shuttled to upriver by what look like prison bus. I was the first to notice it and then someone from our group said the same thing. 

About 15 minutes later, we were pulling up inside a park, like a regional park.  This was our launching station.  Chunk got in the bus and told us to use the facilities since there would be none along the river route. 

Back in the camp we were grouped into 7 and not 6 as we were previously told via phone.  Since the SUV contained 7 people they were boat 1.  There were 5 of us and we needed 2 more.  Luckily there was a couple that signed up for the trip without a group so we absorbed them.  Here lies some misunderstanding via phone registration.  Anyway, the couple, Jennifer and Neal were cool and easily blended with the group.

We were assigned to Derrick, blond, cute, hunky and dreadlocks.  He was also the funnest guide EVER!

The first two hours of rafting was like testing the waters.  There weren't any rapids in this part of the river.  We were simply rolling on the river on a lazy Sunday with temps in the 90s and the water below us was at most I'd say 60 F.  We played games while we were floating.  He would ask one to stand up and balance himself on the side of the raft ala Karate Kid.  We played more games.  He would push people randomly into the water to "cool off" he says.  All in good fun.  Our raft was always noisy full of laughter.

Then we stop for lunch.  Lunch consisted of burgers, chips, and fruits.  The guides prepared them.  There was a camp kitchen and all the guides manned different posts and started grilling and fixing lunch.  The burgers tasted really good in this environment.

Away from the water, we could feel the temperature had really risen.  Our skin burned where the sun kissed it.  It was up in the 90s for sure.  Luckily for me, it was dry heat.   The way I like my hot weather.

Our afternoon ride commenced soon after lunch was served.  This is the part of the trip where we would be conquering some rapids, the Satan Cesspool, the Hospital Bar, and one more that I can't remember now.

While we were rolling onto some smooth river water, our guide continued to give us some tips on what to do.  We would practice them on his cue so the next time it would come up we would know.

Just like this morning's ride, there was lots of water fights between boats.  In the morning run we were catching up with boat 1 where our friends are and would splash water onto them.  I drank lots of river water because I was in the line of fire whenever another boat would splash us with water.  There were lots of rafts on this day.  One contained many kids and they play splash with us.  The other guides would abduct people from one raft onto theirs.  It's called piracy, or pirating here.  What fun.  The kids on the other hand would yell at our raft and say, TAKE ME!.  We took 2 kids and kept them for a while.

Now to the rapids.  Well, they were more manageable than I ever imagined.  They were big, but not big as I've feared.  Probably because this was a run for beginners as well as experienced rafters.  With all the kids in this trip, I'm sure they wouldn't allow them if this run was dangerous, right?

Anyway, 2 of our friends were thrown out of their boat when they shot the rapids.  We all laughed at how they could have done that.  Anyway that is a possiblity.

All in all the day of rafting was fun.  Three rapids and all successfully conquered by us.  We have pictures to support this claim. 

However, I had the fright of my life when Derrick suggested we play another game that afternoon.  All of us would rise up and stand around the boat and lean back as far as possible.  The object is to fall back into the river with the raft floating empty and we'll all go swim back to the raft.

There is one hitch. I don't swim.  My husband doesn't swim.  Sokny doesn't swim.  The minute I landed on the water I panicked.  Water was coming into my mouth but surprisingly I was floating, just like Derrick said.  The vests are designed to make you float.  And then my husband reached up and grabbed my hand and hand in hand we floated on the river on our backs and from that position I could see our group starting to go into the raft.  We floated quite a bit and then when the raft came close to us we got pulled up into the raft.  That was scary but fun as well.  The cold water took away the 90-degree heat.

That was one heck of a trip. 

Later back in the camp with our dry clothes on, the people on the other boat told us that we were the party boat.  We were continously laughing and having fun and our guide was very cool and super fun, unlike theirs who only lecture about the river :)

Before heading back to the Bay Area, we stopped to get some brew and chow at a local dive next to the photo place where we could order our shots.  I'll show this adventure on my photo blog one of these days.

All in all it was one heck of a weekend. 

A Week Without A Post

A week without a post, how did that happen?

Anyway, we all know that all bloggers have off line lives and they sometimes get really hectic. The poor blogger finds himself/herself being pulled in both directions. And more often than not it's the blog that has to be let go. Enough, let me just tell you what has transpired in the almost one week I was out of blogging here.

• Emma and Buster took their scheduled showers this weekend.  Buster didn't knew what hit him really.  But Emma knew.  She saw Buster and when it was her turn she politely declined.  I let her get her way - for bit - and when she thought her turn wasn't coming - boom, we took her to get her shower.  They smell fresh now.  It was in time with changing our bedsheets.  
• Was planning on watching Thor over the weekend, but wasn't feeling it.  Did I miss a lot?
• Been watching and following the San Jose Sharks (the local hockey team).  Unfortunately, they are getting beaten by the more powerful and experienced Vancouver Canucks.  You should see my friend from Vancouver's FB status posts regarding the Canucks' victories :(
• Loving baseball on tv just like before.  I love my Giants.
• Big NEWS - I finally got my DSLR - there goes my tax refund.  Loving the test shots so far.  Still need to learn how to use it but am so excited.
• Blue Ray players were on sale and we snagged one.  This blogger is dumb dumb when it comes to technology.  Who knew blue ray players are now wi-fi enabled and you can access your Netflix thru it?  Not I? I thought when I heard the wi-fi on the packaging, I could watch You Tube videos thru it :)
• Another purchase - a waffle maker - it was on sale.  So on Sunday night, we had waffle and bacon and eggs for dinner.  I don't need to go out for waffles now.
• Anybody surprised that it was Scotty and Lauren in the finals.  I am talking about American Idol for those who has been living under a rock.
• I got an invite. My niece's son is turning one. I haven't even seen the baby yet and he's one already!
• I just found out that my cousin's daughter has a blog.  My, the girl can write too :) Must be in the genes.
• My little furbabies are sleeping in the bed as I write this post while hubs is in a church meeting.
• Looking forward to a lovely two days.  Driving down to Monterey tomorrow for our anniversary get-away.  Looks like we are creating a tradition here.  We went to Monterey last year and had an anniversary eve dinner at a tapas place and had anniversary lunch at this little cafe - RED HOUSE CAFE.  This year I told my husband we are going there again and I will plan to order the same food I had last year.  He was game with that plan of mine. And of course I plan to test out some more this new DSLR of mine. I suppose I need to name it right?
• I know it's a quick get-away, but I am hoping I can get some rest while there.
• I guess I'm missing the CATS ON TUESDAY post. 

See y'all later.

Let Me Tell You About My Weekend

The holiest weekend of the Christian world.

I took a 3-day weekend. Every year, except last, I take Good Friday off. Last year was the exception as I put in my vacay request late. I didn't realize that there were others in my office that also needed a day of meditation :) And only a certain number of employees can be out at the same time and when my request came to the desk, the number has been reached so I didn't take the Friday off last year.

FRIDAY:
As was my tradition with mom since we came here in the US, we went to our version of Visita Iglesia. Near where we live there are 5 Catholic churches that we visit. Three were open all day, the other two were open after 2 pm, but we went to all five anyway and said our prayers.

My husband also took the day off. His situtation is different. He has some days off that needed to be used.

When my Visita Iglesia was over, my husband and I drove to Berkeley to attend the Good Friday service (1.5 hours to 2 hours). The church is next door to UC Berkeley campus so I was suprised to see many students around. Apparently, Cal (the uni's nickname) takes Spring break after Easter.

The service was solemn, this church knows how to do this Good Friday service properly. The singing was fabulous, they have the best choir. It was spiritually enriching to be attending a service like that.

When the service was over, I couldn't belive how famish I was. Then I remembered that I had a little pandesal and coffee so I could take the medicine. I remembered that I wasn't hungry at breakfast but had to take something to go with my meds.

We decided to run a little errand - a grocery store trip - to get the items we need for our little dish for the Easter potluck at church on Sunday. Since we were in Berkeley, we thought it best to go to Berkeley Bowl a little mom and pop grocery store that has the best produce around. Veggies you don't normally see elsewhere you see here. I particularly like their bulk items section.

We went to their second branch, the newest, that is near the freeway and found that there is a little cafeteria inside the parking lot. We went to see what it was all about and saw many people eating. Since we were hungry we decided to grab a little pack of sushi and keep our hunger pangs quiet.

This branch of Berkeley Bowl seems bigger. I enjoyed the salad and antipasti section. We bought a pound of mixed antipasti. Then we grabbed the veggies we needed for our dish and off to home we went.

I was too tuckered out after the service and the trip to the grocery store that I wanted to take a little nap before the 7 pm Taize Service at our church. But when we lay down to nap, the cats jumped on the bed and we got distracted, then Harrison Ford and Indiana Jones was on tv and we watched a bit until it was time to go to church.

A Taize Service is when worship is conducted in singing of hymns mostly from psalm verses. Very solemn and meditative with just votive candles around the cross. Very very nice.

SATURDAY:
Our friends' friends were camping in nearby Sta. Cruz mountains for the weekend. They invited our mutual friends for a day of hiking. They in turn invited us to drive out to the mountains with them. I wanted to go after learning where they camped. It is the very same park that I wanted to visit for the longest time.

The 9 am meet time became 9:30 and off we went soon after that. The husbands were up front and we were in the back. I made sandwiches for the drive. The drive would take about 2 hours, although it seemed so much faster than the 2 hours that took us to get there. Maybe because I am into drives especially if we are passing tall redwood trees, who cares about time right?

But my lady friend sitting next to me wasn't exactly enjoying the twist and turn of the ascent to the mountain as she hurled a few times. I'm not quesy about people barfing, even though the smell bothers me a bit. But this isn't her first time to get sick when we drive on curvy road. She did the same thing on our trip to Yosemite (and we want them to join us on a cruise). We stopped when we see the turnout and she managed to clean her side of the back seat and clean herself a bit. She usually bring another set of clothing for instances such as this. Not this time, but she didn't need it.

Anyway, we managed to find the friends, and their other friends. We went on short hike to different trails - easy one as our friend has a little disability that limits his mobility. We joined them for a very late lunch and found that these friends brought with them their birds (parrot and macau) with them to camping. I thought that was funny. Apparently they never leave these pets behind no matter where they go.

The funny thing is it was a drizzyly cold Saturday both in the mountains and in the valley so I wonder how they managed to sleep under the thin tent. I was assured that they brought enough blankets to cover them, etc.

I did like this park so I told the hubby that I am willing to sleep on tent again especially on this campsite since there is flush toilet and shower a few steps away and one is sleeping under these giant redwoods, what a spot.

We managed to visit one waterfall (the big one is about 13 miles away) and took some photos.

The drive home took us to Half Moon Bay where we visited our usual snack place and gotten some salmon and fish tacos and deep fried oyster - enough to keep us nourished for the drive home.

SUNDAY:
Another 6 am waking time so I could take Mom to her church service at 7 am. The service lasted longer than usual since it's Easter.

Then it was the 9:30 Easter Service at my church. It lasted much longer since aside from the Easter celebration there also was a baptism. Then there was the potluck and the Easter Egg Hunt. I did not participate in both after service activities, since I helped out in clearing the altar. Plus, I had some serious headache attack.

Hubby was on clean up duty so I had to sit in the car nursing a headache. When we got home past noon, we took Mom out to a Chinese lunch. It is in this no frills Chinese restaurant that only Chinese people know about. It is in the new location, still small and all the tables were taken so we were ushered in the back - we even past the kitchen. They have a small set up in the back that my hubby jokingly called the mafia room.

We ordered 6 dishes and paid $40 dollars. That's cheap and food is good, not the American style Chinese food.

My headache persisted all day. I hang dried the laundry then went straight to my computer to work on my project for the church.

My church is holding a big fundraiser this summer. I am the graphics person. I had completed the flyer and the donation letter. My assignment next was to come up with tickets for the event. With hubby's help, we managed to finish this project yesterday and sent it out to the vicar and the one in charge for approval.

And because my headache wasn't going anywhere and not getting any better at all and no amount of acetamenophen or ibuprofen could cure, I went all out and sought the cure that I knew would work:


Well the headache didn't go away completely, but I was happier after taking a full dosage of above meds.

This Is Us Being Spontaneous

We have no plans, travel or otherwise, for the next few months. Nothing. Sad isn't it?

However, we expect to be quite deep into our church's fundraising this summer. So we are clearing our schedules for that - and oh we are saving up for some big vacation - like a 2-week Turkey tour :)

Anyway, my Saturdays are always the same. It's a routine. In the morning, and I don't wake up early either, I have to take my mom out to eat and then run her errands. Later on in the day we do groceries, et al. Not this Saturday. We didn't run our errands after my morning with mom.

Instead we attended my nephew's housewarming party. In all these economic worries, he managed to buy a condo/townhouse. It's a 2 bedroom 2 1/2 baths built in 2005 so it's fairly new. It was foreclosed and thankfully he had 20% down, I wouldn't have guessed. Not to knock him down, but I certainly did not think he was geared towards his future. I am so delighted and proud.

The condo overlooks International Market - across from the college. It's a gated community so it's pretty safe. The 2-storey townhouse has a lovely floorplan that I liked a lot. I went home satisfied after seeing his new digs. Beats the rent he pays for the apartment.

On Sunday, we had church. Afterwards we went home for a little brunch. While chewing, I was also making a list of what we needed to buy at the grocery store.

And then I thought why not drive to Napa. Napa is less than 30 minutes drive from home and a favorite place to go to if we feel the need to go out of the house.

Halfway to Napa, the skies opened up and poured wet blessings on us. I was disappointed because I was looking forward to exploring the revitilized riverfront district on foot. I knew that Iron Chef's Morimoto's new restaurant is in that area. I wanted to take photos.

I told my husband that next time we plan on being spontaneous we check the weather report first.

While we toyed with the idea of making a U turn and watch movie instead, we decided to go ahead with our plans, since the movie tickets were sitting in my computer desk at home.

Despite the rain which was on and off, when it was on it was really pouring, the visit to the riverfront was very nice. Morimoto's restaurant is right there two doors down from Tyler Florence's store. You see these are my name brands. I don't do Dolce Gabbana, or DKNY or Gucci. Those names don't mean a thing to me. What matters to me are Morimoto, Alice Waters (mother/founder of California cuisine, owner of Chez Panisse), Tyler Florence, etc.

Just like those who buy Louis Vitton, I too cannot afford to eat there, but I save up so I can and today was not the day to eat.

We walked around poking into restaurants to see what their menus would be like and how much they charge :)

Went inside Kohl's and grabbed a few shirts, my idea of shopping.

Walked some more and found ourselves in need of some sustenance. We ducked into SWEETIE PIE and had coffee and coffee cake. We found a wonderfully looking chocolate cupcake with almond butter creme frosting that had to be wrapped for enjoyment at home.

The rest of the afternoon went by as we ran our errands. I shall be back when the weather is pleasant and would redo the walk I took.

Thirteen More Reasons To Be Grateful For

I did it again! I started something and did not finish it on time. What you ask? I started to jot down my daily thanks and I stopped at November 17. My excuse had to be the many demands on my time during this Holiday Season.

Allow me to complete the list:

I am thankful for:

1. The deep fryer that went on sale 2 weeks before Thanksgiving.

2. The turkey that we deep fried on that deep fryer.

3. The gorgeous cold Thanksgiving day.

4. Spending the day with friend and family, eating and drinking.

5. Attending my first Charles Dickens Christmas Fair at Cow Palace - a real treat for an anglophile like me.

6. Long scenic drive to the central coast.

7. The picturesque town of Cambria.

8. Spectacular sunset at Cambria.

9. Superb dinner at Robin's in Cambria and lovely dinner at Manta Ray in San Simeon.

10. Wonderful service at Robin's in Cambria and Manta Ray in San Simeon.

11. Patricia/Prativa at Quality Inn in San Simeon.

12. Chance to revisit Hearst Castle.

13. Nature sighting in San Simeon.

14. Walking on the almost empty beach in San Simeon.

There I even have one bonus item to be thankful for. Needless to say there have been many many small things to be thankful for and I hope that I would be mindful of all my blessings from now on.

SHOPPING

Did you go shopping for Christmas yet?

I stayed home on Black Friday. I was too afraid to leave the house and face the mob aka hardcore shoppers.

Hit the mall and stores on Saturday. Was shocked to see the mall nearly empty. Not really a sight I expected given the fact that most of the items were on sale, and I was told that the same deals that could be had on Black Friday was available to shoppers on Saturday. So I completed *fingers crossed* my shopping list.

Last night, we visited our garage. Since we dumped a lot of boxes there when we moved 1.5 years ago, I was too scared to go there (kidding). I have most of my belongings still boxed. I may never get to see my DVD collection ever again - they are in one of the unmarked boxes in the garage.

But last night we went there. Husband knew which boxes contained our Holiday gifts - the ones we bought last year. I find shopping after Christmas more productive. We buy gifts/items that do not expire - like massager, or small appliances, and store them away for the next Christmas.

And boy was I suprised at what the boxes contained. We may have completed our list by the contents of the boxes. So glad we shopped one year early for this Christmas!

The tree however has to be put up today or tomorrow. I can't wait to have the tree up. BUT, I don't know how our little cats would react to the glittery shiny balls and ornaments or the flickering lights around it. I'm afraid that one day I'd come from work and see a big mess where our tree used to be :)

How about you, have you put up your tree and other decorations yet?

Are you excited by the upcoming parties and get togethers and all the eating?

Post B/day Ramblings

Two posts down I mentioned my birthday wishes. Wishes that I knew wouldn't happen, materialize or be fulfilled. It's still nice to jot them down, in case I'll find myself with enough extra cash to splurge on myself.

What you should know is that my husband and I made a pact when we got married that we will refrain from giving each other gifts on our b/days, Christmas, anniversary, and Valentines.

Instead, we will plan a get-away or a vacation, or go out on a day out with meal and movie included.

That way we both can enjoy the day. We both thought that anything material will be another clutter to add to the ones already gathering dust in the house. Don't you agree.

Although, a month before my b/day, we went to a one-week getaway in Cancun, which we both agreed is my birthday treat this year.

However, we also picked up another point and shoot (still no budget for Canon) that would be good for photographing food. You see we have been frustrated with our cameras. They take lousy food pics and the subdued lighting in restaurants don't help any. I wonder how the photobloggers take those lovely food pics.

I had a three-day b/day weekend! On Friday, which was the b/day, we went out for a day long drive to the Sonoma Coast and visited Fort Ross and Salt Point State Park, enjoyed the waves at Grestle Cove where the tide pools were a joy to watch and photograph. Also went to hike Anderson Redwoods State Park - imagine hitting three state parks in one day. That was lovely and a stop at Cafe Bazaar for a quick caffeine jolt.

We didn't need any other sustenance because earlier that day we had a heavy filling breakfast at Sukie's a local dive next town that's been there forever.

And on Sunday, we took in a movie "Inception", which was a fantastic movie. I will try to create a review of sorts on this movie.

Additionally, my sushi craving was satisfied with a meal at Happy Sashimi, another local fave, although their prices are a bit on the high side, but the quality of sushi, sashimi and especially the Hennessey chocolate mocha mousse for dessert were the best.

Thank you, I had the best time. I am tired though. I could use another three-day weekend just to recuperate.

06/15/09

So, the camping trip was over. Finally, I have one less thing to stress about. Seriously, the camping trip was stressing me. As I have written earlier, I was worried about not knowing enough people to enjoy the trip and the fact that showering was not an option.

This was how the trip went. My brother thankfully and unexpectedly loaned us voluntarily (yah!) his pick up truck to haul all the stuff for a two-night camping trip. We met the people at hubs work. His former boss was outside seeing people off and he said hi to me. I was kinda expecting him to be a part of this trip. I guess the organizers, my husband was one of two, didn't want any from the management socializing with them.

It was around 4 pm when everyone who was going arrived at the meeting spot. We left immediately. But it was a Friday and this is the Bay Area where traffic can be a real headache. We hit every imaginable traffic we can find. We got so busy chatting that we missed our Vacaville exit to Hwy 505 en route to Interstate 5. We were already in Sacramento, after getting terribly delayed by traffic in the Davis-Sac area, when we realized our mistake. That made us extremely late that people kept calling where we were. Anyway, it was nearing 9 pm when we finally arrived at Gilman Road which is the entry to the campground. And the surprise is a bear sighting, hah! A baby bear was crossing the road as we took the curvy Gilman Road.

It was already dark and pitching a tent in pitch black was a real challenge especially for newbies like me and our next tent neighbors, even though my husband showed me how to put up the tent in the garage a few days before the trip. The lantern was insufficient, but we managed to put up both tents before the sky opened up. Yes, it rained. It poured like I've never seen nor experienced in five, heck even ten, years. Luckily, my husband has called for someone to put in the charcoal and make it ready for when he arrived. We cooked burgers and hotdogs in the rain, ate them standing in the rain and actually did not mind getting wet.

After dinner, there really was nothing to do. The rain was not letting up, it was actually getting stronger as the night gets late. It was time to hit the sack, for sure. But there was something wrong with DD's tent. Water was coming in. I was just glad our tent was holding up to the downpour. Husband was called to fix the leak and he did as much as he could. I stayed inside the tent and peeled off my clothes. I didn't realized how soaked they were. I was afraid I would catch a cold because I was soaking wet, I did in the past. But not this time. Not yet at least.

The guys and a few gals didn't let a heavy downpour put a damper on their camping spirit and plans, especially when N arrived at midnight. I did however managed to strong arm husband to change his drenched clothing for dry ones before heading out of the tent again, despite the fact that these would soon be as wet as the ones he just discarded because the sound of falling rain in my tent is not going any faint but stronger every time.

I was going in and out of sleep all night. I heard loud music, there was some hip hop playing. DD heard reggae. I must have dozed off when that song came. Then I heard N yell my name. Then he said call your husband. It was 4 am. They were drinking all night, and N and some guys are going down to the lake (Lake Shasta) to fish. 4 am!!!! And apparently my dear spouse had more than he could handle in the liquor department. He stumbled onto our tent. He was too drunk to unzip the tent, so I did. He puked the minute he got into the tent. He had the sense to do it outside our tent, thankfully. When he got in I asked, "You had enough?". I must have uttered it loudly as DD and Dada teased us about it at breakfast the next day.

I didn't notice that hubs was hung over at breakfast. He did his chores, i.e. cooking, with his usual cheerful demeanor. But when the breakfast table was cleared and the trash was taken out, he showed he was in no condition to do anything. He didn't have breakfast at all. I've never had a hang over before. I never drank more than one beer before the trip, so this hang over thing is as foreign to me as PMS is to him.

People started to make plans for the day. Most of them decided to drive to visit the sight, The Shasta Caverns, which is the closest. We were asked if we wanted to go. Husband declined and I was asked by DD since hubs needed to sleep the hangover off. I decided to stay in the campground. Half of the people stayed behind. They went down to the lake to fish, swim, or just enjoy the water. I stayed behind and took photos. And enjoyed the quietness of nature. I found a fallen log, most likely from the looks it was a pine tree, sat on it and closed my eyes. The weather was perfect. With my eyes closed I could hear the birds singing, the crows were doing a flyover above me. They were too close I could hear the flapping sound of their wings. There were four or five of them. Must be some courting going on. I don't know. The sun was barely hitting me, there was a soft breeze. I could hear the whirring of motor boats, kids yelling and laughing, people chatting and then more quiet. It was glorious.

Then here comes hubby. He found me. I thought he would sleep some more. Of course I was pissed. He was stupid. But he doesn't really drink. The last time he got drunk like this was with these same people some three or four years ago. So, I let him drink with them. But I told him, the rules include I have to do one stupid thing to his one stupid thing. He asked what it was I was considering stupid to do. I said shopping. He always thought that was a useless activity. I agree most days. But when I'm pissed and unreasonable, I could buy that expensive shoes that I wanted that I couldn't bring myself to buy when I have my senses regained.

To pacify me and to make up for his stupidity, he asked if I wanted to drive to the bridge. I said yeah, I've always wanted to see the sights around here. The landscape is really gorgeous. I brought the DSLR for this too.

We were heading out when N saw us and asked where we were going. He said that would be a bad idea after learning where we were going. He said the roads were winding and from the looks of hubs, he'd be puking all the way to the bridge. We dismissed N's concern and drove out. We did stumble upon a park only 5 minutes away and so we stopped. We saw the way down the lake was more manageable. On our campground the path to the lake was truly steep and tricky. Since I didn't have enough traction in my shoes, I always manage to bring the wrong type of shoes wherever I go, this was a good place to take a dip. We brought some change of clothes because we thought a dip would refreshed my hubs and would make him feel better.

But the soil was loose and there were rocks on the way down that I slipped on one and twisted my ankle. It hurt so bad I was wincing. I didn't want to go back because the call of the water was so strong, plus I thought soaking it in water would do the ankle good. The sight was glorious and the water was heavenly. The pain in my ankle did not bother me while I was taking a dip.

We returned in the campground and husband started preparing the ribs. The other group was cooking food already. Soon after that the rest of the people who went to see the caverns have arrived ravenous. We had sandwich fixings and chips and a ton of fruits for that.

The second night was fun. I was the one drinking. The girls were drinking. They brought Heinekin. I had two and didn't get a buzz. Ordinarily I get my buzz at 1/2 a bottle. Then the girls were passing out Hennessy shots around the campfire. One guy gushed it was the biggest Hennessy he has seen and asked if it was from Costco. Chatting over the fire was fun. Some one powered the ipod with car batteries and we had music. Nothing I could recognize, but just noise was good. Hubs didn't touch any alcohol, although I did ask him to sip my beer. He did. And I was limping like crazy and my ankle was hurting so bad. It was swollen.

It was a difficult night for me. I couldn't get enough sleep. I could hear some twig snap and I would think a bear was out there. I would freak at something that was dropping on the tent. I could hear three or four different snoring. I was surprised when I finally got to sleep.

We had breakfasted quite fast and cleaned out the campground and was out of there by 11 am. We decided to meet up with DD at the gurdwara a few minutes from the campground, but we didn't find the place. We later on found that the exit given us was wrong. Since we couldn't find the place we just decided to head home. It was a long, hot drive home. I was tired as was husband, but it was a fun trip overall.