Tidepoolin'

I'm sure you can tell at a glance that these pictures are not from England! This post is the last in a series of three about our recent trip back to California. On our last full day there, our friends, Micol and Chin (newlyweds too) took us to a magical place called Abalone Cove to play in the tidepools. You can check out the rest of our photos in 'Our Albums', but here are a few of my favorites. It was so great to play around on the rocky beach in FEBRUARY, having just left a pile of snow behind in Cambridge. We even found one abalone and refrained from poaching it. All that playing sure worked up an appetite so we hit a fabulous hole-in-the-wall Mexican place for dinner where George and I gorged ourselves with impunity. There is no better excuse to stuff your face, than knowing that we were heading back to the land of mushy peas! Thanks for a fun day, Micol and Chin...hope you get to go back soon! We are missing all our friends and family in California even more than we are missing the sunshine and Mexican food...and that is saying something.

East Fork of the San Gabriels

Last Sunday, Laura, Steve, and I did a short hike from the East Fork of the San Gabriel River. Steve went fly fishing while Laura and I climbed up to the Sheep Mountain Wilderness, part of the Angeles National Forest. It was a beautiful spring day and we were down to our short sleeves by the time we reached the snowline at about 3,000 ft! Next time, we're going to get an earlier start and do the 9-mile trail to the Bridge to Nowhere. These are a few of my favorite pictures including the view down a draw, the biggest Manzanita I've ever seen, beautiful Dudleya, and wild cucumber (Marah macrocarpus) flowers. Check out the rest of my pictures in Our Albums.

Betcha can't eat just one...

Oh yes, they really do make everything bigger in California! We just got back from a week in California visiting our favorite haunts and people and eating as much as we could. This is an olive oil loaf from the Roma in Pasadena, where I stayed with our friends Laura and Steve. Although tempted, we did not eat this in one sitting. It complimented our 100% local Valentine's dinner from the farmer's market and made excellent french toast the next morning. Thanks, Steve and Laura! Also thank you, Woo, for not biting or scratching me the whole time.

As promised...

So, let's say you're sitting around one night trying to plan your exotic getaway to the British Isles, or maybe just pining away for us. So you think to yourself "I'll just give them a call and see what they're up to" but then you realize that it is 4am in England and Buddy needs his beauty sleep. What to do? Well, you can check out Our Calendar! Click on the link in this post or look under the "Sites of Interest (to us)" section to the right. Then, start planning your visit!

foundbynicki

I'm sure you are all aware of my penchant for reducing/reusing/recycling, but my friend Nicki has taken this concept to a whole new level and started her own business based on these principles. Nicki uses 100% reused, recycled, or rediscovered materials to make beautiful bags, wallets, mittens, and other unique pieces. Here are a few of my current favorites. Her creations are not only eco-friendly, they are also practical, reasonably-priced, and GORGEOUS. If you are looking for a one-of-a-kind gift or something for yourself, check out her website at foundbynicki. Enjoy!

Lots of Lion

No amount of wintery weather could keep Meg and Russ from getting to England this time! We had 10 action-packed days together and took some whirlwind trips to the Lincoln Cathedral, York Minster, and London (including Greenwich)! I'm currently reading The Pillars of the Earth, a novel about the building of a twelfth century cathedral so it was perfect timing to go see some of these wonders and marvel at how they were constructed. This photo (entitled Lots of Lion by That Random Guy in Trafalgar Square) was taken on our last day in London. Afterwards we visited the National Portrait Gallery, which was not as boring as it sounds! The temporary Annie Liebovitz exhibit was amazing and inspired me to try working on my photography skills again. Now, if only there were something of interest around here to photograph...take a gander at Our Albums for more pictures. Thanks again, Meg and Russ, for a fantastic trip. Come back soon: we found a Turkish restaurant in Cambridge!

Snow is Awesome, by Buddy

February 2nd, 2009
Check out more photos in the "Snow Day!" Picasa album to the right.