On the road...highlights from Day 1

After the uncontrollable diarrhea-like torrent of previous posts, I've been taking it easy on blogging since we are on vacation right now...

Currently we are in Pebble Beach, staying with my Ninang ("godmother") and her husband. Earlier today, they took us to Carmel for breakfast and the Mission Carmel (where the #1 abuser  of Native Americans in the name of Catholicism, Junipero Serra is buried), as well as a mini redwood forest near the small town of Felton (heh, as in Tom Felton, who plays Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter movies), and Santa Cruz.

Oh, the posts will definitely be pouring like cats and dogs in a few weeks or so...Just you wait.

But I can't leave this post pictureless so here's a few to whet your appetite...

Highlights from Day 1 (we are currently on Day 5):

"Excuse me, have you seen this boy?" (line from "Terminator 2" - Robert Patrick as the bad Terminator cop!)

It's (going to be) a Girl!

So the biggest event for me this past weekend was TORC's baby shower. She and her husband are expecting a baby girl this coming 4th of July (give or take a few weeks). The theme was circus, but we played around loosely with the theme in terms of decor (zebra and giraffe print napkins). However, in terms of desserts, once again, the talented Jenny of Foray into Food has outdone herself yet again with these adorable Circus themed cupcakes (For a bigger and better photo, check out her flickr page here!)!

Cookie favors...

Before we get to the shower, I just wanted to show you what TC and I worked on a few nights before. I bought two spools of ribbon from Wal-Mart (only .47 each; hot pink and light pink), a 50-pc pack of clear treat sacks and a sheet of Baby Shower stickers. I thought they would be cute for the party and since her theme was "circus", I was attracted by the elephant. I figured each bag would have a unique sticker and it saved me the time from having to make a "Thank You for Coming" tag. Because I'm lazy like that. Or shall I say, "innovative"? Heh.

Graduation and party food!

After graduation, the counselors booked it outta there with a quick change in clothes (from our dresses and a coat/tie for the lone male), we headed over to BF Wang's PF Chang's at the mall.

Another Bird Update

Well, since this weekend, the last bird has left the nest!

I remember checking on it Sunday afternoon and I saw it sitting in the nest.

The next morning it was gone! I quickly checked underneath the bush to see if it had fallen. Nothing there. I mentioned to Bert later that afternoon that the bird was gone. He said he thought he saw the bird practicing to fly as he left for work that morning. As he went to mail a bill, he noticed something fly out and land in the driveway in front of his car. After he went to the mailbox, he observed the bird as it made a shaky but short flight to our neighbor's tree.

I was happy when he told me he saw the "fledgling" practicing its flying skills. Later that afternoon, I checked the nest to see if it had returned. It hadn't, but the mother bird was nearby chirping away on our neighbor's tree.

It's nearly the end of the week and we haven't seen the birds since but I've heard them chirping so they're around somewhere. That was fast wasn't it? At the end of May there were eggs which hatched one week later, and now two weeks after the hatching, one of the three birds (hopefully) survived and is on it's own.

Update as of 8:00 pm tonight. - Sad news. Our neighbor's daughter and friend found the bird mangled after their dogs were chasing it. They heard the dogs barking and chasing the bird which had a messed up leg. They are now burying it in the front yard. I guess the fledgling had taken refuge in the neighbor's yard. Unfortunately, it also met it's demise there. So sad that it lived for only several weeks.

PubCakes again!

After our lunch at Sang Dao, we headed east on El Cajon Blvd (from City Heights all the way to La Mesa) for dessert at one of my favorite dessert spots, PubCakes...

Return to Sang Dao

Wow, what a miracle! I'm actually posting this on the same day! This will be a quick 'n dirty post. After almost a year's absence, it was time to try some Lao food once again. The occasion? To celebrate the graduation of my former student who recently graduated from a prestigious business school back East. I gave her the choice of Thai (I was planning on Sab e Lee in Santee if she chose that) or Lao (either Sang Dao or Asia Cafe)...

Since she hadn't had Lao food in awhile, I chose Sang Dao. Remember, Sang Dao is closed on Mondays! I still remember trying to come here with some friends, so excited but the happiness was dashed by the closed sign. No worries today though.

You can't go wrong with black and white...

Graduation always signals the end of the year for me so  you can bet your @$$ I was happy that day finally arrived.   It's also one of those "special" occasions where I either wear a skirt or a dress. In this case, a skirt which I usually prefer because I can mix and match the tops. I am so much more comfortable in my holey jeans and t-shirts. But then again, I hardly wear monkey outfits like this so it's like what Pee Wee Herman says, "Take a picture, it'll last longer!"

Leaving Toronto...

On our way to the airport, I snapped this shot of this Filipino grocery/take out store, Pook ni Butchukoy (which means "Butchukoy's place; not sure what dialect that is because I know it's not Tagalog). "Pook" is not pronounced as "pook" like in "spook" but "po-ohk" (two syllables).  No, we didn't stop here but as we passed by the open door, I could seen an elderly man sitting down at one of the tables. No matter what city we're in, I like taking photos of anything Filipino related...

Island Foods

With our next vacation looming ahead, I felt compelled to finish up these last few posts in a burst of frenzied energy. It's only been nearly a year right? Heh heh.

Anyhow, since it was on the way to the airport, we stopped by Island Foods West Indian Cuisine.

Heading out...

Raining while walking to our car...

Funny how just a few minutes ago, it was sunny and really warm. I even took off my sweater because it was that hot. But it seems like mercurial weather is common here.

We headed out to have lunch across town. Below, a Chapters store - this is the Canadian version of Borders or Barnes and Noble.

We had lots of time to kill before heading to the airport but anal me, I wanted to make sure we had lunch and got to the airport early. The thought of missing our flight would have stressed me out....

And I was wrong, it's not Jamaican food, it was West Indian food. Oops. Coming up next.