Browse Author: beakatude

Winefest

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We went to the Harvest Festival at the Ferry Building last night to taste some organic wine. The Bangs came along and we got nice and toasty by the end of the evening. For $15, I got a bracelet for 5 tastings. I’ve never actually had organic wine before and some were pretty good while others were horrible. My favorites came from Paul Dolan Vineyards, which had a pretty good Sauvignon Blanc and Deep Red. Now, Jes has always said that I’ve never met a wine that I couldn’t drink but the one I had from Clif Bar Family Winery tasted like rubbing alcohol and I actually had to pour it out after one sip. They should probably stick to making energy bars.

The food tastings were all around $2 each, which I considered pretty steep for a small toast point with stuff on it. So instead we went to Acme Bread and shared a huge onion bread slab for $2.95. The one thing that we did pay to taste, however, was the awesomest Japanese pumpkin croquette I have ever tasted. The outside was perfectly fried (not oily) with a silky smooth center and tiny lumps of pumpkin. It was from a Japanese delicatessen that I’m going to have to try for lunch one of these days.

Other stands were showcasing their olive oils. I tried a pretty interesting blood orange olive oil and another oil that was described to be “buttery with a bite” and it sure was.

Along with wine, there were organic beers to taste but I didn’t try any until the end of the night when one of stands was closing up shop and giving out beer if you happen to be standing around them (like I was). Haha. I’ve never had organic beer before and whatever I had was pretty good.

Here are some photos.

Have your costume yet?!

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Juliet sent me some photos of her baby girl Madeleine with Patty’s baby girl Zoe in their Halloween costumes. Baby costumes are so adorable but the babies always look so confused. Here they are together (I think at Juliet’s house) with their get-ups on. In case you couldn’t tell, Maddie is a ladybug and Zoe is a goldfish. Both babies and moms look like they’re doing well.

Fire Update

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Last night my mom called to tell me that there was a big fire in Irvine. I was too tired to think about it last night so I sorta shrugged it off. This morning, however, I turned on the news and it made headlines. The fire is big and not yet contained. Some of the schools in the area are closed and everyone is trying to stay indoors. The photo above is a view of the smoke from the neighborhood. Alan says that it’s only 5-6 miles away. Yikes!

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Here’s a view from Sand Canyon. I used to take this road to the Trader Joe’s! Check out the orange glow!

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We were reassured that the neighborhood is still safe and we even got a shot of our house just to help us feel better. Thanks, Alan!

G-Love

I love Garmin. My Forerunner stopped working a couple weeks ago and it totally bummed me out. After all the firmware upgrades, etc, it stopped finding the satellites. So, I called them today and the very nice tech support dude helped me out. Initially, we tried to update everything again as he walked me though it over the phone but in the end he said, “It looks like there’s actually something wrong with your Forerunner.” When he said that I had two thoughts. 1) “Haha, I’m not the technical idiot you thought I would be.” and 2) “Oh man, I’m either going to get screwed with a repair fee or have to buy a new one.” Instead, he told me to ship it to Garmin and they’ll send me a new one. Solid. Mr. Darrell hooked me up with an extended warranty and a new Garmin. Woohoo! Since it was due to the most recent update (aka not my fault), they’ve put my problem under warranty even though it’s been over a year since I purchased the unit. This has to be one of the most successful customer service calls I’ve ever had.

Run Together

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Last night we had a carbo-load dinner at our place and Jes made some tasty risotto and penne. This morning I got up at 5 am, made my coffee and peanut butter sandwich, and got a ride to the Start Line from Victor. Thanks, dude! I started the race with Vyl but I lost her in the crowd somewhere in the 2nd mile. I ran the rest of the race alone since I couldn’t find Susie but I still had a great time. The weather was very pleasant – sunny but cool. The hills were as difficult as I remembered but I survived. I even scored a finisher’s necklace AND t-shirt when I crossed the Finish Line since they weren’t checking bibs this year. Yes! This year’s race went rather smoothly. My pack didn’t bother me, my earphones stayed in my ears the whole time, and my iPod and Nike+ sensor did a great job recording my race. I guess the only hiccup was that my Garmin stopped working a couple weeks ago. Boo… Afterwards, we had brunch at Home Plate with the Bangs, Tammy, and Angela, which really hit the spot. The rest of the day was spent in my PJs and watching TV. Oh yeah, my finishing time was 2:20 and some seconds.

Here are some photos from Wednesday night’s NikeTown party and today’s race.

great game

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On Saturday, my uncle, aunt, and cousins came up to SF for some brunch. It’s always nice to be with family. They got to see where I live and we had brunch just down the street. Hopefully we’ll get to see more of them in the next few months.  And thanks for brunch and the flowers!

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Right afterwards Jes and I went downstairs to Pete’s to watch the remainder of the UCLA/Cal game. With so much on the line for Cal, it was not a good game for Victor. Fortunately for us though, we won and we’re still undefeated in the Pac-10. It’s crazy how standings can change so drastically each weekend. It was nice to be with fellow Bruins in a place that’s filled with Cal fans. I was so torn since Victor was so invested in his team. But in the end, I was still screaming “RUN!” when we scored the winning touchdown. Victor was so sad that he fumbled his beer glass and it crashed on the floor resulting in Coors Light all over my bag and a cut toe for Jes. No worries though. Jes got a cool Coors Light t-shirt and can opener.