Kressler and Rodel Were In Santa Cruz!

Yay! Ate tons of food and showed them all the highlights of Santa Cruz, including a hike through UCSC (no banana slugs, sadly), bike ride along West Cliff, and riding the Giant Dipper twice at the Boardwalk. Whee!

We're Expecting Guests!

Baked a strawberry tart for some guests we are expecting!

It's Still Strawberry Season, Dagnabit!

I'm so glad I got to pick berries this summer before the season ended - and strawberries no less! My favorite! Albert and I picked only enough to eat and to make a strawberry tart. It's hard to stop picking once you're out there because you'll always see a big, bright red one that is just calling out to you.

Print On Print: Part 2

Plaid button-down over a stripe tank top. On our way to see purchase a pillow at Harts Fabric, air filter for my car, and see a performance of The Three Musketeers at UCSC.

Print on Print

Stripe shirt with printed shorts and colorful sandals. Yay for summer!

Gabriella's in Santa Cruz

Dined at Gabriella's last night. Ordered roast beets, tagliatelle, green beens, and black cod. For dessert, bread pudding and cheese plate. There was one creamy cheese from the plate that accentuated everything else except the cheese. Very good!

Wristlet Wallets: Part 2

I completed a whole set of these! I used a set of orange patterned fabric that I purchased in Thailand. There are six prints and I paired them up so that I could make a set of two wristlets and use one fabric on the outside and another on the inside and vice versa. Like so:



I also added a ruched detail on the outside, which was inspired by this and this. They look so cute as a set! I'll probably keep the first one I made since it was a prototype. What should I do with rest?


Here's a photo without the vignette effect.

Another Foodie Event!

I found out about this from the Oh Joy! blog. Albert and I are totally going!

You're Not the Only Tart Around Here

You'd never think it was actually summer due to the weather, but I'm stubbornly holding on to the fact that it IS summer! Had plans to go fruit picking this past weekend, but couldn't because of the weather and because there isn't really anything to pick in August. I didn't let the lack of hand-picked produce stop me from making a summer tradition - fruit tart using Paula Deen's recipe! Oh yes...butter, flour, sugar, cream cheese. And fruit, of course. I'm kind of surprised there isn't lard in this recipe.

It's Dinner Time!

Albert made the Japanese curry and I made the tonkatsu. The pink drink in the background is Lemon Bird's Love Potion #9 syrup in club soda.

Lemon Bird Pink Grapefruit-Mint Jam

As a kid, I never really enjoyed jams, jellies, preserves, and that sort of thing. But as an adult, my mind was completely blown when I first had pepper jam with cream cheese on a cracker. Delicious! And now I check out the jam sections for new, exciting flavors. I picked up this pink grapefruit-mint jam made by Lemon Bird at the SF Renegade Craft Fair. I didn't get to sample it before purchasing, but I love practically anything grapefruit and they only had three jars left so I let impulse take over. The jam is more liquidy than the kind you'd find in big commercial grocery stores, but that does not take away from the eating experience. It also has candied grapefruit pieces and mint leaves inside. And the taste, oh the taste, is like candy. Checking out their website, Lemon Bird has such drool-worth jam combinations. And they're organized by season! I've got my eye on the passion fruit jelly once this jar of pink grapefruit-mint is finished.

Gentlemen to Bed! For Tomorrow, We Breakfast!

I love the weekends because that is the only time I get to enjoy breakfast. (I like to sleep in and go straight to work on weekdays.) Albert is the breakfast king. Last weekend, he made sunnyside up eggs with breakfast sausage and toast. I noticed that I have started eating eggs like him too! Eat the whites first, leave the yolk whole, place it on top of a piece of bread, and eat it in one bite.

Ippuku

While in Berkeley last weekend, Albert and I had dinner at Ippuku, the Japanese izakaya on Center St. They're doing pretty well for themselves - almost all the tables were reserved when we got there at 5pm. Sorry for the dark photos!


Grapefruit chu-hai cocktail - I should just start making this at home.


Negiyaki - green onion in a fried pancake with Kewpie mayo and fish flakes on top.


Spicy chicken tartare - yup, that's raw chicken!


Omakase gushi - five skewers of random parts selected by the chef. We got hearts, gizzard, breast, shoulder, and thigh with green onion.


Bacon wrapped mochi.


Veggies in a dashi broth.


Potato salad with mentaiko, cod roe.


And to finish the meal, minced chicken with rice and green onions. Yum!

Homemade Avocado Ice Cream

My talented neighbor/coworker made avocado ice cream using the avocados from the tree in her yard. The taste is a perfect mixture of sweet and tart yogurt with avocado. Yum!

Roasted Summer Squash

Purchased a basketful of summer squash from the local farmer's market and roasted them for lunch tomorrow. I love how they taste so savory after roasting!

Wristlet Wallets

Now that I have some down time till my next running event, I plan on completing more sewing projects and, perhaps, baking French macarons. Here's a prototype wristlet wallet I completed this evening. I plan on making more of these.

I Am a Runner Because I Run

I ran the Santa Cruz Wharf to Wharf, a 10K distance, yesterday. This is my first time completing a race of this distance and I am really proud of myself. I was really nervous in the beginning because there were so many people crowding around the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk start line. I think the number of people was intimidating as it countered my training experience. My training consists of idyllic, coastal runs on the Bay Trail with a cooling bay breeze on my face and only the sound of the wind and my footsteps to keep me company. Being so nervous, I ended up using the porta-potties twice before the race started. Once it started, the horde slowly moved towards the start line and I heard someone to my left jokingly "moo." Once at the start, I started picking up my feet and ran. Only, we couldn't run so far and so fast because we had to maneuver past all the slower runners and walkers that were in the way. What an interesting way to run, similar to driving a car in traffic under a strong impatient impulse. I kept looking over my shoulder and swerving between people making sure I wasn't going to pummel over anybody. My body temperature rose pretty quickly early on, despite being next to the coast and I pretty much had to force myself to work throughout the entire event. The first 2 miles, I felt energetic, mostly due to the need to maneuver around people. By about mile 4, I could feel my left knee bothering me. I kept running, albeit at a slower pace. I trailed behind Albert by a few yards and he would keep looking back to make sure I was within sight. At mile 5, I picked up my pace and joined alongside Albert. We greeted each other.

"Hey."
"Hey."
"My left knee."
"My right ankle."

And that was the extent of our talk. Once we saw the mile 6 sign, I could feel my energy kicking in again (I wish my runner's high kicked it at the beginning!) and I leaned forward to force my feet to go faster. At the last 100 yards, I raised my hands above my head in a victory sign for the cameras. Then Albert and I held hands and we crossed the finish line together.

A friend asked me, "When did you get into running?" About a year ago, Albert and Jim completed the San Francisco Half Marathon. Going to the SF Marathon convention and seeing both Albert and Jim at the finish line was so inspiring to me. Seeing so many people derive pleasure and joy in something so simple as running was intriguing. Doesn't it hurt? Isn't it a lot of work? Can you really have a good time running? Yes, yes, and yes!

I've been running on and off for about a year. In the beginning, I wasn't so committed. I probably ran consistently for the first month and a half and then stopped for several months. I never ran during the winter except once with Jim and that sucked because Jim has a faster pace than me and he will push you. After that I probably didn't run again until I moved in May. Around that time, I started running once or twice a week and swimming at the local indoor pool on my off days. Sometimes I'd swim more than run, sometimes vice versa. I started running with Albert on the weekends as a way to spend time with him while allowing him to do something physically active. In the beginning I couldn't keep up with Albert; I'd get winded too fast or he'd run on ahead of me, which was somewhat discouraging. Eventually, I realized that running was something to work towards. Albert remarked how energetic I was running up a hill. I started practicing a mid-foot strike, which gave me more energy. And finally, during a solo 4.7 mile run (my longest distance at that time) I felt it. The runner's high! Endorphins rushing through me - my body felt great! I thought to myself, "I could do this forever!" And that was when I became hooked.

Since then, I realize that I have my own style, energy, and personality when I run and I've learned to relish it. I like to run up hills even though it's tiring. Leaning into the downhill portion of a run is a blast as long as your feet can keep up. And when your body gets aches and pains, you take care of it and let it rest while acknowledging the work that is needed on those areas.

The first time I realized I became a runner was when I was looking at my tank top that had the line, "I am a runner because I run." printed on the inside hem. It's so simple, but it is true. So now that I can bask in the glory of finishing a 10K, I'm looking forward to resting my body up and the next run. I'm deciding between the Warrior Dash in Hollister and/or the Gladiator Run in Pasadena.

Eri Sugimoto Pottery

Wanted to share some pottery that Albert purchased from the SF Renegade Craft Fair. These two pottery pieces (not the owl, mind you) were made by Eri Sugimoto. Aren't they lovely?

Watashi Wa...Couch Desu

Yes, you certainly are! Everyone, my new couch. Couch, everyone. Now y'all can come on over and sit down! And look how awesome that fox looks on the couch! (Btw, that fox was purchased from the SF Renegade Craft Fair.)

The Dirty Somethings

Ran another 5K obstacle course with friends in Irvine. They seem to get easier and easier the more you do them. Unlike the Warrior Dash, this one focused mostly on mud, which provided a much needed means for cooling oneself whilst running. Our team name was The Dirty Somethings with an individual name for each person. I was Dirty Turbo (because I couldn't think of anything and because the idea of being called Turbo makes me giggle. Next time, I'll go with Dirty Schmutzdecke.) Thanks for sharing these pics, Kressler!

Dressed Up: SoCal in NorCal

After going on a run with Albert, I felt like dressing up to go to 99 Ranch. (Yes, I know how silly that is, but whatever. I'll do what I feel like.) I consider this outfit to be very SoCal - skinny jeans, wedge shoes, oversized top, jewelry. The only thing that would complete this would be if I did my hair and had a face full of MAC makeup. (J/K, kinda.)




This is a close-up of my necklace. I scored this at the Renegade Craft Fair from Flea Market Girl.


My new wedge shoes. These are Clarks and they are pretty darn comfortable for heels. (I actually sorta gave up wearing heels a long time ago, but I'm slowing bringing them back into my repertoire.)


I got this bag from the Renegade Craft Fair last year. Not too sure what it is supposed to read. "I Godzilla SF?" "I terrorize SF?" "I rawr-ve SF?"

Fort Mason, SF

Visited the Renegade Craft Fair at Fort Mason, SF again this year. Spent a lot more money on items for myself and gifts for other people. I was actually pretty proud of myself for recognizing several booths from Etsy or other blogs. Albert says it is as if I've been shopping for a long time, but sprung for it when it was most convenient (and no shipping necessary)! I'll post some pictures of Albert's and my purchases later. For now, enjoy the look of Fort Mason.


Without the vignette effect


With the vignette effect! Sorry for the not-so-straight horizon line.