Happy (belated) birthday, Rory

I am so embarrassed, I completed forgot to post a Happy Birthday to Rory yesterday. Not that he really cares, mind you, but I actually remembered his birthday a few days ago and swore I'd post something.

May as well say Happy Birthday to Aunt Dottie while I'm at it, she shares the date with Rory. Neither of them reads this blog, but the message is out there just the same.

San Francisco

What a great trip. It was good to get away for a few days. Queenee and I were at the Fancy Food Show at the Moscone Center Sunday-Tuesday. Ok, she was there every day, I was there Monday and Tuesday afternoons for a bit. Huge show, lots of food, lots of cheeses, oils and sauces, and coffees and teas in particular. I was interested in the various displays and packaging designs more than the food, as one might expect, though right next to us was a pate maker who kept us well fed.

On Sunday my friend Ms. No came down from Sacramento and we played tourist for the afternoon. We had a blast, we rode the cable cars and walked and walked and walked. We walked through a fair bit of Chinatown, then down to Fisherman's Wharf to see the sea lions, then up to the Buena Vista Hotel for Irish Coffee (the drink was invented there). I spilled mine all over myself and my purse, and once I was cleaned up, the bartender made me another for free. Good woman, that bartender. After that, we got on a cable car and headed back to Market Street. On the way, I lost my balance and bumped into the brakeman, who promptly scolded me and told me to get behind the door. I was so pleased. PopPop got yelled at back in 1961 for leaning out of a cable car with his movie camera, so I feel like a circle has now been closed. Queenee and I had dinner at Annabelle's, which was recommended to Jim by someone in the hotel as being the place the local maitre d's go for dinner. Queenee had skirt steak and I had salmon. Both were delicious, though the mood of the evening was somewhat tempered by the disappointing choke of the Patriot's in their inexcusable loss to Indianapolis.

Monday morning I went to the Moscone Center with Queenee to see where the Washburn Candy booth was, then headed off to the SFMOMA. I got there too early, which gave me some time to sit in the sun in the Yerba Buena gardens. It was peaceful, with a few people walking or doing Tai Chi, and a good way to spend half an hour. The museum was either taking down or installing several new exhibits, so about half the museum was closed, but that meant that admission was free for the day. The collections that were available were worth seeing and it is a nice museum building-wise (as opposed to the horror show that the NYC Guggenheim Museum is for seeing art). After the museum, I went back to the Fancy Food Show for a while, then back to the hotel to rest up and get ready for dinner. Queenee and I ate with the Gilsons in the Fifth Floor Restaurant. This was very convenient, as we were all staying in the Hotel Palomar and the Fifth Floor Restaurant is on their fifth floor. Not even close to inexpensive, but what a meal. As we were guests of the hotel, we were treated to samples of many of their specialties, like octopus and duck eggs with creme fraiche and caviar. Queenee had pork and I had venison, which was very rare and tasty and not at all gamey like some venison. While we're on the topic of the hotel, let me put in a word for them - this hotel was a great choice, we lucked out staying there. It isn't a big hotel, or even particularly fancy (except for the restaurant), but it is very convenient to everything, with clean rooms and friendly, most excellent service. The folks at the desk or the doormen can tell you anything you need to know.

Tuesday morning I joined Queenee and the Gilsons for breakfast and then headed out to scout the local shopping scene. It's quite extensive, but unfortunately I'm not much of a shopper and I got bored very quickly. I did buy a pair of black trousers at Ross Dress For Less for $10, but didn't see much else. I met Queenee at the show and spent a couple hours there, but as it was the final day, things were slow and we left early. Evidently it picked up after we were gone, but who knew? On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at the Yerba Buena to ride the carousel. Except for a couple of small children on our first go-round, we had the whole carousel to ourselves. Next we did a bit of walking around the Market Street/Powell Street area just to see what all was there. Our feet and ankles were in terrible shape and we couldn't do much walking, so we decided to rest up before going to LuLu's for dinner. This time I had the skirt steak and Queenee had some delicious rosemary scented chicken. LuLu's has an extensive wine list (which we did not sample) and offers tasting flights, where you get four glasses of wine for tasting. And these aren't shots of wine; the couple next to us got a flight and each glass must have had at least 6oz of wine. It looked like a nice way to discover wines you might not have tasted.

Wednesday was our day of departure, so we got ourselves packed up early and headed down the street to Mel's Diner for breakfast. The drive-in version of Mel's was made famous in the movie American Graffiti and is a fairly typical theme diner, with good, basic, reasonably priced food. We had about an hour or so to kill before going to the airport, so we jumped onto the MUNI electric trolley for a quick tour. We rode to the Embacadero near the Bay Bridge and walked around the pier for a few minutes. I don't know why the statue of Gandhi is there, but it is. Back on the trolley and up to Fisherman's Wharf, where we saw the QE II had docked for the day. We walked out to Pier 39 and saw the sea lions and Alcatraz, then got back on the trolley for the ride back to our hotel and our waiting transport to the airport.

A very good trip and we had gorgeous weather the whole time we were there. It's nice to get away, but we're both happy to be home now. Sophia is beside herself with joy and has not left me since the night we got home.

DamCat is 29 again!

Happy happy birthday, DamCat! I hope it is just the first of many in your new home!!

Bending my knee

Ok, not as exciting as bending our elbows, but for me it's quite a big deal. I was sitting in the bathtub tonight, which is no small cause for celebration in itself, when I realized how much bend I can get in my right knee. When warm, after a soak in hot water, it bends almost as much as my left knee. For those who think I'm crazy to think this is worth discussion, let me explain. Total knee replacement surgery is a big deal. Those of us who have had it and have gone through the many months of rehab required are happy to be able to walk somewhat normally. Setting off the alarms at airports is a bonus. But you can never expect to get the same flex as a natural knee. Many people never get their knee quite as straight as a natural knee. I have one of each and can compare. Queenee has had both knees replaced, so she no longer has a point of reference. So for me to be sitting in the tub, marveling at the fact that both knees bend and straighten almost equally, is more than I could have hoped for, and far more than most people get. I could not be luckier.

Paperwhites

Queenee's paperwhites are in full bloom, giving us a touch of Spring in the dead of winter. Click on the photo to see a couple more pics.

It's a damp, gray day today and cold weather will be settling in tonight. Wednesday will be frigid, predictions are in the low-mid 20's. Brrrrrrr!!

What a game it was between NE and SD ... GO PATRIOTS!!

☺FASHIONABLY[[late]]☺

♥ Well, once again it was an awe-inspiring Halloween. The decorations were put up for the world to see, and as always it was amusing to do. Job Lot has been superior to us this season. Their Halloween items were breathtaking! The neighbor almost outdid MOI, but we pulled through in the end, (and subjugated!) Hopefully, the same will happen next October. Each year we continue to get more and more Halloween bits and pieces for the backyards alteration for the month. "C" has been an immense help this year, and I would like to take this time to thank her! She was classy enough to put up all my webbings, and help me design the yard. Wretchedly, the wind and rain had taken our decorations down for a short while, but that didn’t stop us! Within the last weekend before Halloween, we fixed it all up. All I can say is that this October was superb, and I hope more astonishing Octobers are to come! ♥

Lauren is back!

Lauren is back in the Keys! She is one of my adopted daughters and is in a contest for Motor Boating Magazine. You go girl!

Logan's January vacation

Logan is on vacation this week and we've been having fun! Bobby Ledford, a friend from Boston, was here for a couple days and leaves today. Here are a couple pic's from the MA girls' favorite spots! It's been cool and clear down here lately, making great sleeping weather under many blankets.

Happy New Year

May we all have a happy, healthy 2007!