Browse Author: beakatude

Weekend Recap

On Saturday, I loafed around and managed to finish 5 loads of laundry between my four-hour nap and watching Good Eats. In the evening, Johnny came over and we went to Debbie’s 30th Birthday Party, which was a “Black and White Ball” with everyone dressed in all white or all black. They went all out with a bartender, poker tables, and chocolate fountain. Happy Birthday, Deb!
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On Sunday, the Brother and I had a day in the suburbs complete with a neighborhood jog, breakfast at Denny’s, shopping at Target, shopping at the grocery store, and making chili at home. Exciting, I know. Jes came home from Vegas and we spent the rest of the evening watching TV.
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Despite the lack of excitement and adventure, I’m feeling well rested with clean clothes to wear and 3-days worth of lunches ready to go!

X Gizames

On Thursday afternoon, I went to Staples Center with the brother to watch the XGames. Johnny designed their media guide this year so he had some free passes to use. Gotta love free stuff.
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The XGames weren’t exactly the way I remembered it to be. A few years ago, I went to XGames in SF. I took BART over to the city and walked right in. It was more like a festival by the water just next to PacBell Park. There was shwag and No Doubt was playing on stage. This time, it was indoors in the Staples Center with not very many spectators and really limited viewing areas. It felt more like a TV production with camera guys everywhere and commercial breaks. I took about 250 shots and ended up uploading only a handful. I suppose that’s how you learn. Sports photography is tough when you’re stuck in the stands with poles and TV cameras in your way. The Flying Tomato, Bob Burnquist, Andy Macdonald, and a bunch others were competing and it was cool to watch them skate. At the end we even saw the legendary Tony Hawk in the media booth doing the play-by-play. It was weird since he was sitting only 10 feet away from us and it took at least 15 minutes for us to notice that he was there. Here are the photos I uploaded.

time to play

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I’m in the middle of Week One of Camp. I’ve been getting up at 6 am each morning and on the road by 6:30 am. It’s been rough but I sure am caught up on pop culture through Kevin and Bean and the news through the news radio and NPR.

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So far, everything has been going smoothly and the new coordinators that I’m sorta mentoring are doing great. Unfortunately, I’ve been stuck in the office taking care of the last bit of my paperwork duties. Luckily I finished everything today and I’m ready to be out in the sun. It’s hard work running around and hauling stuff but it sure beats being in the office behind a laptop all day.
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In addition to all the paperwork, I’ve been able to get outside for little spurts to take photos. We have this new “Camp Live” thing where parents can go online and view photos of their kid at camp…sorta. It’s sorta because I’m the one taking and uploading all the photos and it’s hard to keep track of who I’ve taken and who paid for the service. It definitely forces me work on my photog skills. Just wait until I bring my flash tomorrow. Heh Heh.

shuck, suck, and…chuck

On Sunday, we drove to Hog Island Oyster Co. located in Marshall, CA. The drive was long and almost nauseating but well worth it. Vyl and Bang reserved a picnic table and bbq and we all brought fixins for the oysters along with kalbi, watermelon, and plenty of wine/champagne. When you get there you buy raw oysters from guys at the counter and they give you a rubber glove and knife. It’s literally a day of shucking and sucking. I shucked a couple oysters myself and luckily didn’t lose a finger in the process. Raw oysters are actually pretty good. Vyl made a couple good sauces to top the oysters but I think my favorite was the basic cocktail sauce/lemon juice combination. I also enjoyed a bit of kalbi, rice, and kimchee to compliment the rawness.

It was a very pleasant setting with lots of good friends who drove over from the East Bay and SF. Susie and Victor even made it after Susie finished the SF Half Marathon that same morning. Unfortunately, I got a little too much sun and my shoulders burned a bit. On top of that, all the driving on the winding roads, dehydration, and the airplane ride kinda caught up with my by the end of the plane trip home. I kept my composure on the parking shuttle and then let it all go in the trashcan in the parking lot. Once more at home, a quick shower, and a nap made it all better by 10 pm. Ah…it was a good trip. Oh yeah, thanks for the ride to the airport, J!

swirl, sniff, and sip

On Saturday, I woke up early to go for run with Vyl. It was a little chilly and it even sprinkled a bit but it was pretty nice being outside and enjoying the scenery. We ran past the Palace of Fine Arts, up through Presidio, and back. Vyl seriously kicked my ass on that run. We did hill after hill including the famous Lyon Street Steps. My lungs and heart were not happy while my legs kept wanting to go. I think we ended up finishing 4 miles with my lungs weezing and my legs not feeling the burn at all. Weird. The reward in the end was a stop at Starbucks and Noah’s Bagels…mmm.
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For the day, I went to Napa with Jes, Bang, and Vyl. We were late to our 11 am cave tasting at Del Dotto but it actually turned out well considering the wine wasn’t very good and the winery seemed a little shady to me. Later we drove to St. Helena for lunch at Giugnis Deli. I tried to replicate the awesome prociutto/fresh mozerella sandwich from my favorite deli in Berkeley but it came up a little short. The prociutto, however, was noteworthy. After lunch, we went to Sequoia Grove and bought a chardonnay that had the neat buttery finish that we like. Then we stopped at Hall, which was recommended by the guys at Sequoia Grove. We were looking for a good Sauvignon Blanc for the oysters on Sunday and came up short. The wine tasting ended at Mumm. We FINALLY got to do a tasting there. Everytime we go we try to go there at the end for some champagne and end up skipping it because we’re so hammered. Well, this time we were still rather sober at 3:00 in the afternoon and in the mood for something refreshing. We each liked the Blanc de Blanc that we bought for the oysters and then the Cuvee M to take home…that one was especially yummy.
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On our way back, we stopped at the outlets, where I got a pair of $29 strappy sandals to wear to dinner. Dinner was at Fringale. It was a special request made by Jes since we hadn’t been back there for several years and he was missing their special frisee salad. Usually when he obsesses over something like this, it often comes up short. This time it actually lived up the hype. We all ended up getting one and it sure was eggy, fatty, and delicious. I also had the corn soup (A+) and lobster ravioli (A-) that had real lobster it them.

refreshing

I just settled into the Bangs’ apartment and how nice it is to be on vacation! Not only am I hundreds of miles away from Irvine but it’s refreshingly cold here (right now at least). I’m wearing the shorts and t-shirt that I went to work in and found myself freezing my tail off as we waited for our ride at the airport curb. Awesome. As we drove through Oakland, across the Bay Bridge, and through SF, I realized how much I missed the Bay Area. Or maybe I’m burnt out of Southern California and the heat. Whatever it may be, I am officially on vacation! I just uploaded the last part of my camp assignments, have a hefty glass of wine next to me, and life is good. Let’s all take a moment to say “Aaaaaah”. Thank you.