Love Week -- wedding details

I was updating my portfolio, and reminded how much I enjoyed making all the pieces of our wedding. I'm dying for another event to make for, and wish we could get married all over again, or have another super fun party to create things for.  I'm pretty sure our paper suite was my favorite part.  

In honor of Valentine's Day, I'm going to celebrate love all week!

Let's do it again.

Saturday night at the ballet

We bought a season subscription to the San Francisco Ballet this year, and the season opened this weekend.  The first program this year is Onegin, which is a ballet adaptation of a Pushkin poem. Here's how they describe it online:

The passionate story of Russian aristocrat Eugene and his lost chance for love with the beautiful Tatiana, unleashes heartbreaking themes of unrequited love, anguish, and tragic irony. Set to a powerful score by Tchaikovsky, this production features lavish scenery and costumes by award-winning designer Santo Loquasto and lighting by James F. Ingalls.

It was fantastic. I think even a non-ballet lover would enjoy it.  You can get tickets here, they added an additional performance so it's running through February 3rd.

photo:  Erik Tomasson

YUM!

    Hello Three twins' Dad's Cardamom ice cream, you are possibly the most delicious thing in my freezer.  Absolutely amazing. Keep it up Three Twins, excellent job.  And they're from Petaluma!

Funny how we use the word “mustache” to describe handlebars, and the word “handlebar” to describe mustaches, isn’t it?

How fun is that tee from Amos Bros?  You can get one here.

Have a beautiful weekend!

Even though I’ll be working tomorrow, I’ve been waiting for this weekend all month – Monday is August, and it means work eases up and calms down, and I start getting my Saturdays back. I think my whole company is holding their breath until then.
Andy’s been in DC these last few days, and flys home tomorrow. Casablanca is playing in the park tomorrow night, and if Andy's up for it, we might go with some friends! Here’s a little photo of Andy having his Birthday lunch at Town Hall last week. Have a great weekend!

A Breath Of Fresh Airline

I love Virgin America's ad campaigns. I'm desperately dreaming of a get-a-way weekend ASAP, whether it's camping in the mountains, exploring a new city, lounging pool-side, or eating on a patio over-looking the water (beach, sea, lake, sure), I'm hopped up on dreaming of summer weekends (two things that don't go hand-in-hand in my life) and looking for a quick August vacay.

Have you driven a Ford lately? I have.

Funny thing:  I'm somewhat afraid of ANY abnormality having to do with our car and driving.  One of the very first days I started my new job with my new car commute, (literally, like day 2 or 3) I had to drive down San Jose for a meeting. It was a stormy morning, I said goodbye and good luck to my dashing husband, walked up the street and found the car with a flat tire. Umbrella in one hand and coffee in the other, I ran back to our apartment, hoping Andy hadn't left yet, and could help me change the tire in the windy, rainy, messy, morning, and not ruin my tights or dress by kneeling in the muddy street.  Turns out, I had driven over a screw, which was slowly leaking all the air out of the tire. I think that day shattered all my confidence.
Since then, I find myself checking before I get into the car for flat tires and the like, and realized last night after dropping Andy at the airport, that I was nervous something might happen with the car while he was away.  Perhaps it's because I didn't buy it, perhaps it's because I spent four blissful years not driving, perhaps it's that marriage has made me seemingly less independant (before, had I a flat tire on my own car, I would have just changed it myself, and did a number of times). It's true that I know next to nothing about our car. It's a Ford; I've never owned an American car. I know that the gas tank is on the wrong side, the gear-shifter works differently, the windsheild wiper controll is goofy, and the headlights turn on with a dial on the left dash.  I just assume that under the hood is equally backwards, and live in constant fear that I will be stranded, late, scared, and in danger somewhere, sometime.
I much prefer to be a passenger.

Ahh the hatchback, her most redeeming quality.  We moved our SOFA in it.

Pick Ben F.!

I'm embarrassed to say how very into The Bachelorette I am.  It's more than a guilty pleasure, it's a guilty obession. I'm so excited  that I squeal through it, and am sad when each episode is over and I have to wait another week to see what will happen next.  

I am, OF COURSE, pulling for Ben F., the winemaker from Sonoma (who also grew up in San Diego!).

photos:  abc.com

Kerry's Tequila Lime Chicken:

Rub [free-range, organic, happy in the orchard, bug-eating, of course] boneless, skinless chicken breasts [or Safeway frozen, defrosted in the microwave] with garlic, and drizzle (rather heavily, I'd say) with tequilla and lime juice.  Grind sea salt and pepper on top. Broil in a flaming hot broiler for 6 minutes, then pull 'em out, flip 'em over, and drizzle another bit of tequilla and squeeze the other half of the lime on. Go again with the salt and pepper and put back under the flame for six more minutes on this side.

Who knew chicken could be this quick and delicious??  Brilliant for summer dinner.
I wish I had a picture of how gorgeous they turned out.

promises, promises

I just found my vows to Andy in the handbag I used yesterday!  I almost thought they were gone forever, along with our guest book pages-- all those special words from friends-- and so many other things from our wedding that we never got back. I hand-wrote them and tore the page out from my journal (so was only carrying a single folded paper in the pocket of my wedding dress); I didn't have another copy.  I had resigned to the fact that I had said them, promised them, meant them, and that those words would live on in practice, if not in physical form, but I see Andy's every day hanging on our kitchen message board.  Now my words will join his again, in holy matrimony, in our kitchen. 

Daytime Sparkle

I wish I had these on today. I'm tired of boots and rainy weather, and in need of a little sparkle today. Really, everyday, don't you think?

Jerome C. Rousseau "Aizza" glitter pump from Spring 2011.

shoe closet heaven

Moving makes me wish I owned nothing. I hate it with almost every fiber of my being. It does, however, serve as an excellent period of refocusing my wardrobe into what I love, need, and find myself actually wearing. The looming beginning of sharing a closet that in no way resembles the closet heaven pictured above, in an apartment that is probably similar to the size of the closet above is driving me to re-think every attachment to every single item I own.

"Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."

--William Morris

Thanks Will, don't you just know.

Runnin' on Empty [and coffee].

Rarely does a [rather large] glass of wine feel as deserved as when I've worked 26 of the last 30 hours.

Only more so if you've done almost that, and your Aunt died last night. I'm so sorry Friend. (I wish I could have given you a bigger hug and a pint glass of wine.)

Ghost Ride The Whip

Thank you Mista Fab for putting two and two together.

There are plants in the window and diamonds on my finger

Last night I got engaged to be married. This afternoon, inspired by all the gardening I'm reading about everywhere as we usher in Spring, we planted a little herb and tomato window garden.

Adventures in "gardening," take one: "Early Girl" tomatoes, basil, rosemary, and sage.

Happy Spring

It's a gorgeous day in the City, so put on a sundress, paint your nails the perfect shade of red, and listen to this playlist:

*California Stars -Billy Bragg & Wilco
*What Light - Wilco
*To Be Young -Ryan Adams
*Golden - My Morning Jacket
*Fake Palindromes -Andrew Byrd
*Gone for Good -The Shins
*O Valencia! -The Decemberists
*Wagon Wheel -Old Crow Medicine Show
*Chicago -Sufjan Stevens
*You Are The Best Thing -Ray LaMontagne
*Candy -Paolo Nutini
*I Turn My Camera On -Spoon
*Naked As We Came - Iron & Wine
*For Emma -Bon Iver
*Spanish Stroll -Mink De Ville
*White Winter Hymnal -Fleet Foxes
*In The Aeroplane Over The Sea -Neutral Milk Hotel
*The Littlest Birds -The Be Good Tanyas
*July, July! -The Decemberists
*Missed The Boat -Modest Mouse

The Art of Simple Food

I long for a life filled with good friends, good conversation, good food, and good music. Tonight, I had all four at one time, and it was lovely. A wonderful end to a wonderful day.
Switched it up a little and went to a different church this morning. It was a great chance for me to remember all the people that God has made and placed here, serving, living, sustaining; also a great chance to remember where God has placed me.

cross country

I don't know if I ever brought this about from our last little day adventure in winter; we're headed off to another, this time for a weekend, and with four others. Yosemite bound, to passively enjoy nature [and friends], and have some cocoa after we dry out from all the snow that's supposed to fall on us.

Donner Lake Nat'l Park, January 2010

Red soles and a party dress

Taking in glass after glass of champagne last night along with the sweeping veiws of this gorgeous city, means Bloody Mary's all afternoon today. Loved the party, almost as much as the company.

Oh Discipline, you old Dear.

I have a fabulous time of spa treatments booked for tomorrow, and so as to make the most of my relaxed and revitalized state, I'm cleaning and doing all my chores now.