July Update

Ok, so I haven't updated my blog for a while.  Its been a month since I last blogged and again, I feel bad I always forget, when it makes me feel good that I actually blog.
But anyway, there is quite a few stuff to update, the past month, as I said, was the first time hubby left for a short onsite stint, so for a month it was just me, yaya and Jess at home.  Did a couple of things to while away my time. That is, aside from actually working and transitioning myself back to the corporate world.  But I will forever be grateful that I landed this job, I believe its really more than what I could ask for.  A great role that is both a challenge and a sign of achievement (naks!), pretty good compensation (I am not super highly paid, I just feel that I am fortunate to land a job where I can comfortably stay and not feel underpaid), and winner location, where I actually do walk from outside the village to the office.  Its not something people are lucky to get.  I won't mind working in Makati if it would give me a good role or good pay, but this one, this is just a dream.  And I love it because of that.  One month forward and I'm ok with work.  I love that it doesn't kill me with pressure.  There are downsides of course, such as half-day saturday work which is a first, but since I live too near home I don't mind.  The people in the office are ok, my boss is trying to mentor me, but I think I am slowly getting in the stream of things.  So work-wise, there is a lot to be thankful for.
Last month I got myself to finally work up the courage to enroll in driving school.  Thankfully, I can now drive the car to work (and sometimes a bit farther too!).  Yey for me! I have yet to go a longer way, but I'll let that be slowly. I still like it better when I'm the passenger anyway.
Hubby is finally home, and we're now enjoying time together, as if we're newlyweds! Kidding! We will get back to the mainstream though, just as soon as he's recovered from jetlag.  But all in all, he's ok. And I feel the time away from each other has also helped us see the value of the marriage and being together and actually spending time together (believe me, these are entirely two different things, which you will only realize when you are away from each other).
In summary, the past month was a great one for me, and hopefully a start of better things to come. :-)

financial freedom

Another dream I am yet to attain. So far I've tried and given as much effort as I can to being debt-free, but I'm far off from being so at this point. I have really set a target to be debt-free, but its been a moving target ever since, and probably till I start being good in my new venture or start on a new, higher paying job, then that would be the only time I can call myself financially-free. I have tried loans, balance transfers, and what have you, but I still have a huge debt and most of my monthly income goes to paying off credit card bills.... hay, ranting. I'll be setting 2010 as a target, hopefully we'll be out of the rat race and enjoying all the money and not giving it to interest. and on that note, jess might be starting school then so we really need to save up!

venting out.

i'm a bit scared with the recent exchange of text messages I've been having with the owner of the house we are planning to buy. just this morning he told me might stay till end-june. i firmly said it was not possible since, to put it bluntly, we will be homeless by end-May. Scary but true. I think it was a matter of negotiation on our end, and we might have handled it better, but then again these are things that come to light a bit too late. in my end I really think that if they handle the transfer the soonest possible time they would have no problems at all and they will get the loan release by the second week of May. And for me this is really essential to the deal, and it should be honesty now, because the second we hand them the payment, then it really is ours. they cannot simply say they intend to stay till june, because we cannot simply give out our own plans to see to theirs.
just venting out....

Eggs Blauhaus

Serves 2 sumptuously.
Ingredients:
4 or 5 strips of good bacon (smoked, uncured bacon from Trader Joe's is what I used)
4 good, cage-free eggs, preferably organic (especially if you like runny yolks)
4 slices of crusty bread, or perhaps crumpets or English muffins
4 slices of brie (amount depending how naughty you are)
A big handful of grape tomatoes, halved
A shot of vodka (white wine or vermouth would probably work fine)

Hardware:
A knife
Two teacups
Two plates
A big saute pan (or any wide pot/pan for poaching the eggs)
A skillet (cast iron is good)
A means of toasting bread (I did it under the broiler)
A spatula
A perforated spoon or skimmer

Cut the bacon into 1-inch pieces and put them in a pan (I used my deep cast iron skillet). Turn on the heat and cook it until it starts to get some brown color. Add the tomatoes, a generous dose of black pepper and a few shakes of salt. When they start to soften a bit, add the alcohol. Let them cook, stirring occasionally.
Fill a big saute pan most of the way with water. Bring it to a simmer. You can add a bit of vinegar, but it doesn't make a huge difference.
How are the tomatoes doing? You want to gently cook them for a while to concentrate the flavors. It's not critical how long, but the more moisture you cook off, the better the flavor.
Toast the bread with some olive oil. Arrange it on two plates, and put a slice of brie on each piece of bread.
Into each of two teacups, crack two eggs. Simultaneously and gently slip the eggs into the simmering water (each cupful on opposite sides of the pan, so you don't get one big mass of poached egg). Let them cook until the yolk is done to your liking (I am necessarily ambiguous here; it seems to go differently every time I poach eggs).
Cover the brie and toast with bacon/tomato mixture (I put the egg on first this time, but Lindz and I agree that it would work better to put the egg on second). Top with the egg. Eat.
Although I didn't have any at the time (I made this whole breakfast up on the spot), I imagine that topping the whole thing with a confetti of basil chiffonade would be the cat's ass.

This dish is all about the flavor of the bacon and tomato, supported by the luxurious, yielding beauty of the poached egg and the brie. Cheap bacon would have diminished it, and I'm not so sure it would be as good if I had used canned tomatoes.

I liked it. It's not exactly fat free, but I get sick of EggBeaters and whole wheat tortillas now and then.

online selling

Now that i am finally a free (ergo: jobless) lancer, I have to find ways to earn online without having to burn my brains out. One way is to do paid posting, another way is to do free online auctions, by selling some unused but good enough stuff. I just need to plot some of the stuff I can still sell, so that means cleaning up the closets again. Sometimes the free online auctions are also a venue to just be able to put up your own online store. of course, that's if it doesn't require huge costs just to be able to post. I'm going to try my hand on this online auction thing really soon, for now I'd have to search my deepest closets for the stuff I can get money out of.

No More Grandparents

(Listening to Henryk Gorecki's Symphony #3, Op. 36, "Symphony of Sorrowful Songs")
This is a glass of single malt whisky, the most contemplative of drinks. It stands in front of a slice of apricot tree. The man in whose yard that tree stood until 31-odd years ago just passed away this evening. I grew to appreciate the qualities of this sort of whisky when Dad passed away in 1993.

The stark reality that all the grandparents have gone is now standing on top of me with stunning weight. Why does Time have to keep moving? Can't nostalgic, deedless fools like me have a few more decades to figure out what life is all about?

The Visit

My sister and her hubby came down from Meechigan for a long weekend of above-freezing temperatures, fellowship, food and drink. Here are a few selected images, in no particular order.

I made this pizza (half is marinated mushrooms and artichokes, half is caramelized onions and bacon, with a blend of Italian cheeses over all:
Tim brought me weisswurst from Willi's in Frankenmuth. It was part of breakfast one day:
Here is evidence of the newly remodeled kitchen being used for a food porn photo shoot:
Big Boss Coffee Stout, as enjoyed at the Raleigh Times Bar:

Caramelizing onions for the pizza:
Blurry people:

starting anew

Ok, here I am again after a LOOOONG non-posting period. And I really do feel guilty about not posting, but then everytime I attempt to write my mind ends up blank so I simply forget about it.

Its been a while, holidays have passed, non-eventful if I may add because I am kinda financially incapacitated with no job the past few months. I'm actively searching now, and since I already have a new housekeeper after more than 2 months without, then I have a bit more time for myself while waiting for interview invitations and things like that.

So what else is new? Right now I am too busy hoarding scrapbook kits that I am finding for free courtesy of some n@wie/plurk referrals, and I am hoping to start and be active again at digiscrapping. I have a lot of pics I need to digiscrap anyway, its just a matter of putting it altogether. hayz. Maybe I should make a target, like 10 in a week. that'd be neat. :-)

Oh, and if any of you have any job leads in purchasing and supply chain (middle manager posts), please feel free to call buzz me, I'm more than happy to try it out!

Triptych: Beer, Lamb, Corks

Bell's Doppelbock (Lindz and I went for a walk, and we went into the Taproom at my urging):
Local NC lamb shoulder chops braised with lemons, olives, tomatoes and rosemary, perched on top of some grits:
A bowl of corks:
It has been a good weekend. Lindz took the first two of these photos. She also whipped up a tasty dessert to follow the lamb: Vanilla ice cream with toasted pecans, dates and honey. Ausgezeichnet.

Jess is now 3 years old!

Yey! Our one and only princess in now three years old.  The other week I was sorting through her kiddie pics trying to prepare for an avp or mini-movie about her 3 years, but I stopped midway coz I realized the music I put in there sucked. I'm still looking for good music to put in the AVP. Inspite of that, I was really, touched, amused and generally pleased looking back at those pics, and I realize just how much my little girl has grown up.  I won't say I'm the most "hands-on" mom on this planet, I still leave a lot of work to the yaya most of the time, but generally I still could say that I know my daughter inside and out. I can tend to her even if the yaya goes away (have proven that after taking care of her myself for more than two months this year).  But I would say, and I always will, that leaving my career, which was, I believe, a good one, was worth it, despite the financial difficulties now.  I feel that I would never trade off this one year that I have spent together with her for any promotion or higher salary. Being a mom is the best career there is. I guess, if not for me wanting her to have the best of stuff, and giving her everything we can possibly afford (without spoiling her too much), then I won't mind not going back to work.
Generally her birthday passed well enough, my in-laws generously gave what they can so we can celebrate jess' birthday (just us family). So we cooked up a few stuff. I wanted to please the little girl so I made a few surprises for her too. I got the pabitin she used last year at her party and filled it with fruitos, lollipops, nips and some chichirya, then put a few toys in there too that I got from that veinte store in Robinsons (where everything is 20bucks only).  She got to pick the stuff and food she wanted anytime (there is still some more here till now). Also found some old party hats from her first birthday and made her wear them. She also got to blow her birthday candles on the cake.
Happy birthday my baby! Mommy and Papa loves you!

Another Day at Work

More Adventures of Guardian Service

 

We drank a bottle of Lone Oak Vineyards Vin du Roi with dinner. I boiled the potatoes in Grandma's Guardian pot, then put them on the grill for a bit of smoky flavor. The main course was marinated grilled chicken thighs, and the veggie was a foil packet o' vegetables, also done on the grill.

3.141592654

Bryan hung out with us at our house today. We did some cooking. Lindz and I had bought a big bag of Bosc pears at Costco, so Bryan made a Pear Cranberry pie. It was delicious. The cranberries were a nice foil to the sweet pears, and the all-butter crust was textbook perfect- flavorful, luxurious and flaky. If the shortening in my pantry hadn't gone bad with age, we might have had a more ordinary crust. Shortening can be more predictable in pastry work, but butter has better flavor. In the middle of this day of cooking, we had a treat that reminded us of our childhood- we ate the scraps of pie dough, baked on a sheet pan with sugar and cinnamon. It was some goodass crap. We ate some pie after dinner- I made marinated salmon with roasted red pepper coulis and mushroom risotto, and Lindz made a salad of baby greens, pears, toasted pine nuts, feta and mustard vinaigrette. We drank a tasty Ripasso from Trader Joe's, and then we watched Anchorman- the Legend of Ron Burgundy.

Simple pleasures. A big shopping trip and a bunch of cooking. We live large here in Raleigh.

The next project

This is the next target of our nesting-on-steroids campaign. It will be a different project than remodeling the bathroom, since we don't have another kitchen. We won't be able to drag the project out over a year.



There are lots of cute shows on HGTV about remodeling, and Lowe's or Home Depot are more than happy to give you a bunch of catalogs full of expensive shit. I wish some of it pertained to our kitchen. The USA's home improvement marketing machine doesn't have the dinky galley kitchen on its radar. I don't pretend to be surprised, just annoyed. I took the two pictures above while standing in the same spot. This is a small kitchen. It's nice and efficient for one cook, but it bears no resemblance to the vast rooms full of custom cabinetry that fill magazines and catalogs. I'd like to make some aspects of it more space-efficient; perhaps IKEA will have some options. Our kitchen is huge by European standards.

Anyway, we're thinking Corian or some solid counter top material, a big, deep, single bowl sink that takes less counter space than the present shallow two-bowler, apothecary glass cupboard doors, and perhaps a new window. We're replacing the Reagan-Era dishwasher anyway.

Our house is a modest, comfortable ranch. Tearing out walls and doing a dream kitchen would cost more money than we'd ever get back from a buyer, so we're going to be moderate. It will be a harder project to live with than the bathroom, though.

No Sweet without Bitter

(listening to J.S. Bach's "Wir glauben all an einen Gott," BWV 680)
For many weeks I have felt unmotivated and uncreative with regards to this blog. I have had nothing to say, or at least nothing I felt was worth saying. I have cooked things, I have taken walks, Lindz and I have discussed what we want to give each other for Christmas as well as why the hell we're living in Raleigh. My mother drove down to visit us.
("Dieu parmi Nous", Olivier Messiaen)
Work has gone through varying degrees of tolerability and awfulness. I had been craving the opportunity to get away for some time on my own, perhaps a road trip. My wish was granted, but not in the fashion I would have wished. My grandmother, the mother of my late father, died on November 5th.
("Prelude and Fugue in G Minor, Op.7, No.3", Marcel Dupre)
Perhaps it was a bit sooner than we expected, but she had wanted to leave this world for years. She had been predeceased by my grandfather and her only son, my dad. She was 93.
I got in my car and drove the 800-plus miles to join my family in Michigan. Here are some pictures which I hastily snapped from the road:
Pilot Mountain, close to the Virginia/North Carolina Border:
 

The West Virginia State Capitol:
 

Of course, it is only when it is too late that a thick-headed fool like myself appreciates the history seen and made by such a person. She was married during the Great Depression, and she lived on a farm. My soft, deedless life does not allow me to comprehend decades of subsistence without the choices, escapes and self-gratification to which subsequent generations feel entitled. My brother, brother-in-law and I were pallbearers. We carried her to her grave which is next to my father's, his father's, and his father's. I pointed out to my young nephew that he was standing in the presence of the remains of two men after whom he was named.
("Fantasia and Fugue in G minor," BWV 542, J.S. Bach)
I'm feeling a bit contemplative and nostalgic, obviously. My thoughts really haven't been on Grandma so much as on my past and my family. I was compelled to ruefully notice how sparse the funeral attendance was. It wasn't because my grandmother wasn't a well-known and well-loved person; it was because so many of the people who knew and loved her had already passed away. However, I was comforted by that which endured: the church which she had attended and in which the pastor officiated her into the hereafter was virtually unchanged since the last time I was there (my grandfather's funeral, over sixteen years ago). The high, vaulted ceiling, the stained glass windows, the narthex's fieldstone floor and the organ were all reassuringly unaltered. The surrounding flat farmland, patches of woods and corn silos are much as they had been for decades. German Lutherans in Michigan are not overly anxious to change things. The funeral luncheon consisted of comforting, Midwestern food: scalloped potatoes, ham, cole slaw, pasta salad, lots of cookies, and stollen, made by my sister in remembrance of Grandma (she had always made it at Christmastime).
We drank beer and talked afterwards. It was good to be home with the family, spending time on the soil which I had taken for granted before I moved away. My nephews and niece are a delight, the silver lining to the cloud of my brooding.
("Toccata, Symphony V," Charles-Marie Widor)
Naturally, I availed myself of things which are available nowhere else. I bought some tasty Michigan beers, and some meat products:

I also drove up to Mount Pleasant to visit, for the first time in ten years, the campus of my alma mater, CMU. Young, beautiful people with their whole life ahead of them were everywhere. They were toting their bookbags over the same sidewalks I had trodden ten years and twenty-odd pounds ago. I strolled by the coffee house where I did a lot of French homework, The University Cup: 

I also had a lovely pint of Two Hearted Ale at a favorite old bar downtown, The Bird.
After a bracing stroll, I headed back to my old home in Saginaw. I headed back to Raleigh the next morning. I had spent three full, satisfying days in my home town.

Gyū-maki

I'm not sure why the picture is slightly blurry. Perhaps the camera focused on the bit of exposed plate in the center, which was a bit further from the lens than the top of the rolls. We ate them, obliterating the possibility of a re-shoot.
Anyway, they tasted good. The scallions added a good element. Perhaps next time, a bit less rice and a bit more beef. Maybe I'll use slivers of grilled flank steak.

A Hard Weekend's Work

Installing the three wall cabinets and the microwave on the stove side of the kitchen was this weekend's business. We succeeded, but we are tired. I drank a bit of tequila at the conclusion of it; I believe this was the hardest weekend yet. The satisfaction is profound: we have closed the cabinet chapter on this remodel project, and we ended up with a nice, neat row of cabinets and a functioning microwave oven. The ductwork was a bit of a pain in the ass (plenty of time up in the attic, of course). I had to wire an outlet for the microwave, too.

We haven't had a microwave for three years. I've only occasionally missed it, but I suppose it will be cool to have one. Lindz defrosted some frozen sausages for this evening's dinner, and to my astonisment, it thawed them. Every other microwave I've ever used in my life cooks the hell out of the edges and leaves the middle resolutely frozen. I suppose years of convenience privation will lower one's expectations. It's close to being the cheapest model in the Kenmore line, but it does more than we are likely to ask of it. We were silly enough to go to the mall on a December Saturday looking for an appliance, but that actually went pretty well (I unexpectedly was given a model that cost $50 more for the same price because they didn't have the one I wanted). We're rather pleased with ourselves to have gotten that 54-pound bastard into position ourselves. My main complaint is the feeble light it sheds on the cooktop. The old hood had a brighter light. It also had a weaker fan, a dated bisque color, and 25 years worth of greasy dust inside of it. When we get the counter, sink and faucet replaced, there will be nothing left of the original kitchen but the floor.

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on weddings

My friend, Cathy and Justin will be married soon, 2nd week of June, if I remember it right. She wasn't able to send me any save the date magnets like I would have sent out before, but I do think I was part of the entourage of the wedding. Yikes, I'm so not prepared! hahaha.... I'd have to think out a gift for her too. Tell me, what would I give to a couple who is starting out but must have everything already.
I always loved weddings! And whenever I attend one, I always want to be there in time for the bride to march, simply because I think its an essential part of the ceremony, and I want to be there to see any crying episodes or something. hehehe... call me sentimental! But I simply want to see the love in the couple, I think its really inspiring to see that.
Meanwhile, I would have to think up a nice gift for them already. Suggestions, anyone?

A year since Ondoy

Its been a year and one day since that fateful day when Ondoy struck hard and changed lives of millions.  Us included.  As I look back to the year that was, its more so that I feel blessed for all the experiences, hardships, and gifts of love for the past year.
I've just stopped from work last July 2009 so when Ondoy happened, I was staying at home and was able to clean and put back what Ondoy destroyed.  Despite being one of the thousands flooded that day, all I felt after the flood was through and the electricity was up and we could look at the news, was to thank God for sparing our lives, and while we had to throw so many stuff away and it took us a month to put life back to normal, a lot had it worse, suffering the loss of loved ones, homes, cars, and livelihood.  All our appliances worked after Ondoy. Our car, although it was wet and a bit flooded, survived without any major problems and there was no need to bring it to an auto shop for repairs. We received a lot of help from family and neighbors and friends, and no one got sick because of the flood waters.  It was an experience we won't forget but rather than to feel remorse or abandoned, I feel blessed that whatever damage was brought about by Ondoy, we were able to move on.
A month after I had my first stint at business and I'd say it did well.  Now even as I do it part-time I know it will work and I know some people already trust me to become repeat customers.  I will still work on the bazaars despite working full time.  That I know for sure.
I let our 1st househelp go last December.  I was seeing things that I felt were not good for my daughter and didn't like the way she was acting up.  While I was tired at night having to bring a toddler everywhere, I was thankful that I could spend time with her, while a lot of moms having full time jobs don't get as much chance.  I spent 3 months as full time nanny and wife before the blessing of another househelp, twice as good as the first, came.  I still consider her as one of my blessings.
Starting January I actively started looking for work again.  It was hard in that I was looking at getting into a senior/mid-manager position but a lot that was coming in was more of supervisory posts.  But I tried anyway. I got some offers but they were far below expectations.  And I was finding it harder and harder to balance the home budget.  I was never a big spender but I wanted to have the liberty to go out with family and spend some for them.  And I felt guilty that all the earnings of hubby went to the family.  I always did let him have the things he wanted, spend for his hobbies.  But he stepped up and offered to give everything and just leave some allowance for him. He was even the one to tell me to reject the offers that came that were too low.  He felt I deserved better.
The job offer I was waiting for finally came in June.  It was near our home and the pay is good.  The position was what I was waiting for too.  Its a good company and I enjoy what I do.  Now, three months into this career and there are no regrets.  We get to enjoy some family eat-outs and I can splurge a little when I want to.  Life is good.
So the past year was one great roller coaster ride.  But it brought me closer to family, and while it was the hardest we have had so far as a family, it made us realize priorities and made us want to plan more for the future.  Now life is back on track and while I find myself so busy at times, balancing work, business, some more outside work, family, and friends.  Sometimes I feel I don't even have time to spend for myself.  I'm in dire need of a haircut, a massage and waxing.  But I go to sleep at night and always, always feel thankful for all the blessings we've received.
Sometimes it takes challenges for us to be wiser and stronger. And for me the past year was exactly what I needed. :-)

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long due postings

whew!!! been able to blog after the longest, and I mean the longest time. Its so sad I don't even get to post as much as I want nowadays. Understandable though. Jessica's yaya is on vacation, we have moved, and in between there are a whole lot of stuff we attended to in the past few weekends. Now that we've moved though, I understand there might be quite a few events to come my way, so I can have my much needed rest. Hmmm... I still owe the suppliers' ratings for Jessica's first bday and the details of the BIG MOVE, but that can wait. Anyhow, Cathy's wedding is coming up and I'd also have to prepare for that. Another whew. Another thing to do. I would have to buy me sexy shoes next week when I get back to work. Sexy silver shoes, that is. That's because that's what would match my dress for Cathy's wedding. Hay.

will post some more soon!

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The Pantry

We worked our asses off this weekend. It's not completely done yet (the doors still need to be painted and attached), but we went from here:

to here:
It involved moving the entire contents of the pantry, painting the pantry, painting the old kitchen wall cabinets, installing them, building some shelves to fit the corner (out of the old shelves) and moving everything back in. We'll have to live with it for a while and fine tune the placement of everything, but I think we gained significant storage space.

It looks great in there. It's the same color green as the kitchen (amazingly difficult to photograph; it looks completely different in different lights). As an amusing side note, we found a date stamped on the back of one of the cabinets: January 13th, 1981. We installed these cabinets in their new location 27 years to the day after they were built.

Santa Barbara, Nexus of Delight

It's heartbreaking. Every time I've been there, it has been idyllic. The bar is raised to impossible heights, but each visit to Santa Barbara is ludicrously pleasant. This time had some perversely nice twists. First, I was simply accompanying my wife on her business trip, so the expenses were considerably less than if we had simply gone there of our own volition. Next, the weather was flawless. Not just "Oh, Gee, it's nice, considering it's January," but nice enough to compare with anywhere, any time of year. Lindz attended a multi-day business conference replete with presentations and lectures; I wandered around. I took pictures, drank beer, wrote in my journal and plowed through The DaVinci Code. During our stay in Santa Barbara, my harshest dose of reality was the need to purchase band-aids for my blisters (I had been walking in sandals all day, each day). Hellish. Absolutely hellish. For starters, here's the view from our hotel room that greeted me at sunrise our first day (I would have missed it were it not for the three hour time difference):

And I wandered.


Pelicans on Stearns Wharf are unafraid of humans; I was able to get close:

A slice of sky from underneath the 101 overpass at State Street:

A sidewalk in the afternoon:

I don't know the exact age of this edifice, and the picture does not quite do justice to the fine stonework. Perhaps my brother will drive up there and photograph it properly:

Fulfilling my duty as a spouse, I attended each evening's social events with Lindz, and we chatted with political/commerce-minded folk from around the country. That was pretty much my only requirement during the trip, which served to prevent me from wandering too far or getting too drunk. All things considered, I'm quite the lucky son of a bitch.
Lindz's conference concluded, and we headed into the hills for some wine tasting. We pulled off from route 154:


Here are some backlit cows grazing near Sanford Winery, of Sideways fame:
Incidentally, this place is my favorite. The wine is superlative. They make a lovely, seductively complex Sauvignon Blanc, and their Pinot Noirs are of peerless stature. We brought back a bottle of the Pinot Noir 2001 La Rinconada Vineyard. It's the shit. Rich, deeply extracted fruit with licorice, mineral and spice notes. Probably the best pinot I've had the luck to drink, and I've had some good Pinot. It's a bigger wine than many Cabernets. The place is unassuming and quaint:

We started south for Los Angeles (we got a hotel room near LAX because our flight departed early the next morning). The sun disappeared behind one of the Channel Islands, and Lindz snapped a picture while we were driving:

We were in a daze; the drive had been so beautiful. We drove through fine Santa Barbara County scenery during photographers' fabled "Magic Hour."
After that, via Ventura and Thousand Oaks, we gradually descended into the ordeal of traffic that is the hallmark of that hateful tumor of a city, Los Angeles. What potent mixture of drugs allow Angelinos to maintain the will to live? I'd likely put a shotgun in my mouth if I lived in that Disneyland Trashcan. Lindz was kind enough to put up with me as I swore at the traffic. What can I say? It was an infuriating and confusing undertaking just to fill up on gas on Sunset Boulevard, and two hours earlier, we were sipping great wine in Buelton.

Like photography, life is meaningless without contrast.