1. Things We Do and Say
(EAT/DRINK/Foodie Research)

...ita hills near Buelleton. A great place to invite friends and have weekend picnics. Okay, it's not really my vineyard and those aren't strangers but my friends. Alas, it was another lovely time...

2. Where do i begin?
(EAT/DRINK/Flavor Spot)

...ramen from Itsuki's.  Sigh. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy living here. But the thing i can't really believe is how much i love my job. I never knew what that was like... i'm serious. I no...

3. I'm still here
(LIFE/Latest)

...rwhelmed by the recent changes in my life - notably taking a new job and moving to a new city. But what i really want to share is Gorecki's Symphony No. 3. It is an achingly ethereal and spiritually s...

4. Walking On Sunshine!
(LIFE/Joie de Vivre)

Yes. I really am this much of a dork. But whoo-hoo - I'm moving to Santa Barbara to take a great job and this ebullient song by Kartina and the Waves hits the nail on the head!

5. The Big Blue Marble
(LIFE/Joie de Vivre)

...fessor Randy Pausch, who is dying from pancreatic cancer, gave a "Last Lecture" speech on "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" 9-18-07. Pausch's moving speech talks about lesso...

6. Poem for today
(ART/BOOKS/Poetry)

...you could see,   hadn’t faced before, and his shoulders sagged. I don’t know. I really don’t know. But if all he said is true, the only answer is commando skills. ...

7. I am a junkie
(EAT/DRINK/Foodie Research)

...... i said the last roast was the best one and unbelievably, i was wrong. This roast is the best one yet. Really. I'll probably have a couple more of these and then do some laundry, clean my house, cl...

8. The early years.
(LIFE/Joie de Vivre)

...plays of how people were tortured in Australia's early days (what is the point of that?); And pizza, they really just didn't know how in the heck to make it.   ...

9. Tomatoes from my garden
(EAT/DRINK/Today's Menu)

There's really nothing better than these Eva Purple Ball heirlooms from Germany. Tasty, perfectly round, and delicious perfection.

10. Itsy's House of Wine
(EAT/DRINK/Foodie Research)

...es. So for 48 bottles of wine... that's a little over $3 per bottle of wine. And the taste? It's good! No really. It's way better than my parents wine which they made in Dhahran. Yuck. That was a head...

11. There Was A Time
(LIFE/Esprit d\'escalier)

...ifetime. To protect the trees. The fish. The people. Now i sell cake and ice cream to tourists. Not really but my occupation isn't that far off. It's ice cream you can only lick if you've wander...

12. Coffee Roasting, Part II
(EAT/DRINK/Foodie Research)

...morning i embarked on roasting up 1/2 lb of Tanzania NgoroNgoro Covent beans (yes, produced by Nuns, yes really) - hopefully this time without flinging it all over my deck . First crack at 10.5...

13. day twelve, class nine
(LIFE/Joie de Vivre)

...bbit Pose, SASANGASANA… i had the most incredible euphoric feeling. It was the first time i pulled really hard on my heels to completely the stretch in this asana and it was magic. I was filled...