Today we discovered that we have not one, but TWO wineries within stumbling distance of our loft. Both JC Cellars and Dashe Cellars recently opened tasting rooms less than three blocks away. What a great addition to our neighborhood. This is the kind of urban development we can support! Tasting is free, and the rich,…
Tag: Kelly
Sam’s Cafe, Tiburon
We had dinner with our friends Steve and Debra at Sam’s Anchor Cafe in lovely, affluent Tiburon. Sam’s Cam showed a crowded deck before we left for Tiburon, but by the time we got there the fog had moved in and it was freezing, so we ate inside. The seared Ahi tuna in an orange…
Our Wonderful Wives
Chris and I have much in common, but by far the best thing we share is our beautiful wives. (Hm. That doesn’t sound exactly right…) There is nothing like the feeling that comes with knowing you’ll share the rest of your life with the kindest, most loving, most talented and beautiful women you have ever…
More from Wyoming
Chris knows this part of the world like the back of his hand, so he took us to several of his favorite spots. He led us on a few short hikes and one very long one. (More on that later.) We drove up Shadow Mountain, (Google Earth Placemark) and back down to Jenny Lake for…
Keeping Cool in Calistoga
OK, I’m beginning to think that we might be a tiny bit spoiled… Yesterday we attended an amazing birthday party for our friend Leslie. We were a bit hesitant to venture out into the 110 degree heat we knew we’d encounter in Calistoga, but we’re glad we went. Leslie is a family friend of the…
Happy Birthday Sonja!
What a perfect evening. We celebrated Our dear friend Sonja’s birthday at Mountain Winery with Chris Isaak, who, just like Sonja, seems to get better with age. Chris treated his devoted and mostly female fans to awesome impressions of Elvis, Roy Orbison – even Robin Zander. Chris Isaak is a thoroughly professional entertainer who can…
Christmas in Fresno
We made our annual trek to foggy Fresno so that we could take part in the very serious business of overindulging with the Hunter clan. Mass quantities of Christmas cookies and candies were consumed along with numerous bottles of wine and champagne before dinner. Later, we searched for and easily found extreme Christmas lighting displays…
Christmas Cosmos!
In my opinion, the best gift is something consumable. Thanks Grant and Sandy, Ali and Neil for the perfect gifts! Oh – and the ergonomic mouse pad is way cool too! Amazingly comfortable. My wrist never felt better! 😉 Highly recommended!
Affymetrix 2005 Christmas Party
While the rest of the country shivers under a blanket of heavy snow, thedude and Kelly attended the season’s first holiday party in 68 degree weather. The venue for this year’s food and wine extravaganza was the beautiful Asian Art Museum. The company provided what seemed like hundreds of tantalizing food options – everything from…
A Roast With the Rowes
Just to be sure we’d had our fill of MEAT on our trip, Steve prepared a huge slab of bison for dinner with Jim and Wendy Rowe on Friday. He paired the meat with a few rare and delightful reds. Yum!
Happy Birthday Terra!
2005 is a big year for 50th birthday parties, and Terra’s will no doubt be remembered as one of thedude’s favorites. The party’s hosts have a stunning and eclectic home in the hills above Orinda. The home has an enormous multi-level deck with views from Mt. Diablo to Mt. St. Helena. The entire compound is…
Happy Birthday, Frank, Dorothy & thedude
We celebrated three birthdays this week – thedude’s 49th, and Frank and Dorothy’s 70th – at one of our favorite getaways, St. Orres in Gualala, California. We stayed in three different cabins during our trip, including the spectacular new “Black Chantrelle” cabin – Jim’s new favorite. The weather was perfect, and we were the only…
Strike a Pose
Kelly, Olive and Ursula ham it up at Jack and Tres’ last night. We’ll be seeing these beautiful kids again later this evening at the Second Official Friday Movie Night in Loft 105! Tonight we’ll be projecting Master and Commander on the big white wall. Popcorn and wine await us!
The Day Started Out Well Enough…
Of course, after breakfast at Paragon, wine tasting at Rosenblum, sushi at Tachibana and not one, but TWO strong mai tai’s at the Conga Lounge, we all felt a teensy bit thrashed by the end of the day. Good thing I won’t be seeing these people again for almost four whole weeks! 😉
I Will Work for Food
At least when it’s Ben’s fabulous Thai cooking! Last night I got her wireless networking going in exchange for a fabulous for dinner. I think I got the better end of this deal. 🙂
Great Food and Fun
We definitely should do this more often. Thanks, Steve and Diane for allowing us to trash your pad!
Our New Favorite Hangout
The Conga Lounge is fast becoming our favorite after-work destination. The delicious and powerful Mai-Tai’s with fresh mint are two bucks cheaper during happy hour wich runs from 5:00 – 7:00 PM. The place has an intimate feeling that we both love. There is always island music playing in the vintage stereo and and a…
The End of Our Holiday Weekend
While having a fabulous lunch on the balcony at the Paragon Restaurant in the spectacular Claremont Hotel, we witnessed this brilliant 22 degree sun halo. This is not an uncommon event. What made it special (besides the oysters on the half-shell and the wonderful spinach salad) is the rainbow seen at the bottom of the…
Rinsed, Ozonated and Gassed
You absolutely can not beat an event at Rosenblum – our favorite winery in an airplane hangar five minutes drive from our loft. Ten bucks gets Wine Club members the chance to taste 60 premium wines and eat a ton of delicious food – including Tucker’s fabulous Zinfandel ice cream – and you get to…
One in a Billion?
Luckily for us, our good friend Grant is a cousin of one the world’s most gifted musicians. With Grant’s help, we were able to score five seats in the second row at the resplendent Davies Symphony Hall for last night’s performance by Cliburn winner Jon Nakamatsu. I simply do not have words to describe the…
Cinco de Mayo
A few good friends, a few good margo’s and one amazing meal. Loved the pozole! Thanks to Tom and Julie for another fine feast.
On A Moment’s Notice…
…without warning, a couple of our friends called to say that they were on their way to a party just four blocks from our loft. So, we gathered up a few of our closest friends and neighbors and crashed the party. The reason for the party was to celebrate the completion of a live/work loft…
Lazy Hazy Easter Sunday
If you can possibly avoid the usual gathering with extended family, it turns out that Easter Sunday is a great day to get things done. We easily made our way up to Mount Diablo to take in a somewhat hazy, but otherwise perfect view, got the car washed and even ate a little salt-and-pepper calamari…
(Incr)Edible Art
Thanks to some very kind people at work, Kelly and I were given a gift certificate at one of the very best restaurants in the Bay Area. I was expecting the food to be good – maybe even great – but it exceeded even my most optimistic expectations. I know it sounds hard to believe,…
Tachibana and Toni
If you know me, you know that I could live the rest of my life on a diet consisting of nothing but sushi. Hamachi sashimi is the simply best food in the world – period. And the very BEST hamachi can be found at Tachibana n Oakland. Ah, but it doesn’t end there! The sushi…
Happy Birthday, Tom!
We were blessed with perfect weather for our first visit to Tom’s new pad. We were there to celebrate his 41st birthday. It was beautiful! Many thanks to Julie and Emile for the totally awesome chow. And, of course, let’s not forget Tom’s mother’s amazing lumpia! We love your place, Tom. I’m looking forward to…
We Really Should Stop Meeting Like This…
Another weekend – another grueling trip to the valley. Each and every one of these gals can all outlast thedude. When will he learn??? The brief visit was BIG fun, though. Congratulations to Wendy! (Love that sweater!) Glad I could help increase the odds, Frank. (I’m sure I’ll) see you again soon!
Happy Birthday, Joanna
Jim and Kelly will be very sad to see our dear fiends Paul and Joanna move to Temecula next month. None of us were thinking about that tonight though, while toasting Fatso’s 39th with a couple pilsners and a smoked pork shank with spaetzle at Speisekammer. Happy Birthday with lots of love from Jim and…
Sleepless in Santa Rosa
We drove to Santa Rosa yesterday because I had to work on another computer. (The story of my life.) As it turned out, the trip was very worthwhile. My “client” gave me four(!) fabulous cases of wine in return for tuning up his Linux server. Thanks Neil!! Kelly’s high school classmate Steve and his girlfriend…