Saturday, March 17, 2007

Sticker Shock

For the people who know me, I love to cook. However, like most people, I get tired of doing dishes and thinking creatively, so going out to eat is a nice change (and a great inspiration at times).

Last night was not one of those times. We decided to venture out for a light meal with a friend at a local restaurant we frequented before. It has been about a year though and in that span of time, food choices can change.

We ordered a sweet and sour calamari, skirt steak satay, and a platter of oysters with a half bottle of wine and a mojito martini. I don’t remember tasting the squid with the calamari because of the breaded substance encrusting the object (it could have been chicken for all we know), the steak satay was alright but nothing to jump up and down for, and the wine was fine…but for the cost…YIKES!

So I feel guilty today for spending that much money on food I could have prepared better, for less cleanup and fanfare and still have enough money to knock off two more bottles of wine.

To put it in perspective, we discovered a little nook near Pescadero, CA that has existed since 1931, which provides fresh soups (using vegetables grown in the back), excellent drinks, and pies to envy (Ollieberry, anyone?). We gorged and basked in the warm weather (see Ocean Therapy below) for about half the price of the above-mentioned meal.

So, I think I will stay home for a little while, mixing, matching and designing my own taste explosions (see Chesca) until I get the motivation to venture out again. I am trying not to think of the better purchases I could have made with the money I blew away last night .

Image above: Copyright Jill Greenburg--Check out her series...while looking for an image, I ran across this fantastic portrait photographer. Her series is called End Times

Sunday, March 04, 2007

Saying "Hi" Years Later

After seeing Ted rekindle old friendships makes me optimistic of seeing friends I have lost touch in the past few years.

Thought I would post some pictures from our recent visitor.

Click here to see more.

Saturday, March 03, 2007

Morning After

"The morning after..." can include several different endings:

...pill for those "oops" encounters. Never did this, but hear some people do.
...hangovers, when you thought that last drink was just fine (I felt great!)
...regrets for comments made the night before when you thought you were of a sound mind (see #2).
...smell of stale beer and old garbarge. Cleaning with a hangover is never fun.
...revisiting a bad joke made the night/day before, which may have started the drinking.

or the morning after includes no regrets, no pains or aches, no weird smells. The morning after is just another new day. Which morning after is today?