see.goodbye

Last Sunday my very sweet friend Melanie hosted a 'going away party' for Mike and I in her beautiful Oakland backyard. Melanie and I are co-workers. We have the same name, sit by each other, our last names both start with the letter "B", and we work on some of the same type of stuff. But most importantly we have grown to be really great pals. She is great. Back to the Party: On the menu was grilled fish, shrimp, chicken, and plenty of fresh veggies. Mike and I squeezed about 30 limes to make fresh margaritas. A good amount of people came by and we all just enjoyed life.

These beets are from Melanie's garden. She topped them with fresh onion, mint, and feta cheese. So yummy!

My friend Kristin from Florida! She now lives in Oakland.

Melanie on her way to grill up the food.
This is Connie. She brought fresh oysters to put on the grill and she spent half the party opening them up for us. So sweet! Oh and the oysters were so good!

This is Mile's best friend in San Francisco, Richard. I also call him my San Francisco Uncle. And sitting beside him- Joy aka 'lunch buddy'.

Melanie and Kris' baby- Olive.

A great big thank you to everyone who came! We had such a great time! I wish I took more pictures but I was busy eating and chatting and enjoying the warm weather and beautiful backyard. A special thanks to Melanie. I will miss you my friend!! See you soon at the farm!

see.art

Introducing.Art.Glut

One of my very good friends in San Francisco, is an artist in training. She not only has amazing talent but she also works very hard to improve her talent in Art School. Her name (you will want to remember it because she is on her way to becoming very famous) is: Michelle. During one of our many 'Good-byes' in the city, the girls and I decided to meet for beer and pizza. When I got to the bar I noticed this painting sitting next to Michelle... she painted a portrait of me. Her paintings in person are stunning, and for her to use my picture as her subject was really moving. Needless to say, I cried... in a bar. True love.Please take some time to look at her work and check back often!

http://michellesteen.blogspot.com/

see.we.new.beginnings

The time has come... we are taking the big step. On Monday Aug. 31st we are moving to...

In case you didn't get it... that's:

!!!! C-H-I-C-A-G-O !!!!

see.tofu

It's been a long few weeks and when you are from the South (like I am) and you have had a hard day you crave southern food aka comfort food. Being vegetarian, I would say this can sometimes be a challenge. But not all Southern food is slathered with meat. When I first moved out to San Francisco my sister was so afraid that I wouldn't have grits available she would mail them to me. Just so I would have a little taste of home always available. The truth is, you can find grits in San Francisco, but they aren't as good (unless they are from my kitchen!) Thursday night I was in the mood for the taste of the South. So I made vegetarians southern dinner. This is truly my inspiration. A Vegan Soul Food tent from the Oakland Farmer's Market. The food is amazing and imagine... NO BUTTER!!! Well, my will power is not that strong, butter is and always will be a critical ingredient. But this is where I started thinking that just because I don't eat meat, doesn't mean I can't eat Southern!

So this posting should really be titled: "my adventures with tofu". Here it is, I used 'extra firm' tofu, drained it and stuck it in the freezer for a night. This changes the consistency of the tofu to have more texture. When you take it out let it thaw or run warm water over it. Then before you use it get as much water out as possible.

I sliced it and smothered it with barbecue sauce. Tofu (for me) is not a meat replacement, it is just tofu. I don't think of it as meat so I don't get all emotional when the texture is not the same. The best thing about Tofu is that it is the ultimate mimic. Tofu can be sweet or salty or savory it just depends on what you want it to do!

Green Beans! I sauteed up some onions, soy sauce, and garlic, then added the green beans.

And what southern meal wouldn't be complete without corn bread. Yum!

Here it is... well here it was.

see. visit

This past Sunday we visited Amanda, Nick, Lola and Henry at their house on Travis Air Force Base. Lola is always so happy to have people come to visit. Henry likes visitors too! Especially when they are as cool as we. I played on (and off) the slide with Lola while Henry watched in amusement from the sidelines. He is amazed by his sister and his whole face lights up when she is around. Mel took pictures of the whole scene.

Me snatching up Lola in my arms after a competitive game of chase!

Lola loves to go down the slide in all kinds of different ways. Whether on her bottom or her tummy she is always ready for a laugh on the slide.

Showing off some more sliding skills!!

Miles loves Lola too! She loves his kisses!

Henry enjoyed all this fun outdoor activity from the comfort of his daddy's lap. He watched and laughed as I chased Lola around the backyard, as she played on the slide and as Miles and Allie played their own games in their own dog ways. All in all, it was a really nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon as we spent the rest of it grilling veggie burgers and lounging around out back.

see.she

favorite.things

I don't spend too much time on the Internet. Perhaps it is my limited attention span, or the fact that I work on a computer for 8+ hours a day, or my overwhelming desire to craft... or read about crafting, or just daydream about crafting... Le sigh. I digress, I do have a few favorite web pages I love to peruse and excite my little rods and cones (in my eyes that is) with the merriment of color and overall creative skill- here are just a few!

http://jennarose.ca/2009_spring/about.html


http://3fishstudios.com/

http://www.simplywoodrings.com/index.html

http://www.kara-line.com/index.html

see.russian.hill

Sunday = lazy day. After a late night out in the Mission District, Mike and I followed our tummies and meandered to the car for a drive to Russian Hill. I hadn't fully explored this area of town until my pal Marissa of marissaandmichael.com from L.A. sent me a really sweet article of 'Things to do in SF' from Domino Mag. Inside I discovered the Candy Shop. Yes! A little Candy Shop devoted to all things sweet. We made our selections, and merrily went on our way to wander around Russian Hill. It was a beautiful day! It takes a few days of real sunshine for our bones to warm up and dry out from the cold and fog.

In case you are in town and looking for the shop...

They have jawbreakers the size of softballs! $10 each!
Candy river stones.

Who doesn't enjoy a little fluff from time to time?

Chocolate olives... not to be mistaken with chocolate covered olives (Im not sure there is even such a thing) however, the candy shop does carry chocolate covered gummie bears!

JARS AND JARS of delicious candy! And if you ask nicely you and sample anything you want!


Candy Legos!

Salt Water Taffy and an amazing view!

Rice pudding shop! We didnt try any... yet!

It is inevitable for Mike and I to end up at a Bookstore. We are nerds... what can I say. San Francisco, like most cities has many many bookstores and this one is full of great books both new and used. Plus they are all discounted. I even found a few to take home!