last weekend in July

Last weekend in July.  The pre-birthday weekend.  We fit in a lot this weekend, or so it felt.  And yet, that was a nice Saturday afternoon nap, I tell you!  So then, let's talk the weekend that was....

Friday I worked from home, and not having to allow for commuting time, plus getting up early, plus staying at Van's overnight meant that I was able to do a good, long morning walk.  Over 8 miles for me.  Not bad!  My step count for July has been pretty darn good.  I was pooped and sweaty come the end of it. 

I was happy to start the day that way, though.  Nicely done, me!

We absolutely love our friends at the restaurants where we are regulars, but we also find ourselves wanting to go to other restaurants sometimes.  Last Friday was one such time.  We sort of tossed around options for dinner, and I found myself not really wanting any of them, until he reminded me of Perle.  We'd enjoyed our last time there, sitting at the bar, so we decided to go back.  Other than cocktails (the La Plage for me),

we shared everything:  bread and butter, escargots, mussels and fries and green salad, Basque cake for dessert. 

A second round of cocktails (Last Words, thank you!) capped the evening there.  Nice time of it, and not too late a meal. 

It was good to have that little bit of change.

Saturday was an easy day with some self-care.  A more casual walk to start the day, then, of course, Conrad and I made our way to Amara. 

Conrad then took care of odds and ends at home whilst I headed off to a massage, a haircut,

and lunch with a friend before meeting Conrad to do some grocery shopping.  That's where I picked up a nice pair of steaks that turned into an enjoyable dinner in

with a bottle of a Justin reserve Cab to pair with the food. 

Cocktails first, of course

- sometimes I like to sip with Conrad while he watches me cook dinner.

Oh, and there was a cute little gift from Courtney and Robert in the mail,

a farfalle (bow tie, get it?) keychain from Eataly. 

Fun!

I was so looking forward to Sunday.  Van had invited Heath and Nicole over, and he was going to grill burgers for us.  He went to such great lengths to make it a lovely evening, and it all paid off.  We hadn't seen Heath since the cocktail party and Nicole in far longer, so it was terrific having them over.  Bonus:  they brought their dogs.  I only got a shot of Rollie, but what a cutie. 

Olive mostly ignored them, so that was a relief.  Anyway, Van

made us mai tais to start with,

then on came the burgers.  Tasty, especially with tater tots. 

Dessert was a carrot cake that he'd picked up.  It all felt very special, a nice way to end 55.

It's taken me days to get this post written.  I fear that I may lapse into some gaps in posting if I'm not careful.  We shall see what August brings! 

more scenes from morning walks

I had such a nice, easy evening last night.  I got home from work a little before 6PM, got changed, and got in the kitchen.  Conrad was having his own date night with Van, so I had only myself to cook dinner for.  Some ground lamb in a skillet with diced carrot and onion, some garlic.  Browned it up.  Added broth and reduced that down, added more broth and reduced that down.  Added some tomato.  Stirred in some butter, then some of the starchy water from cooking pappardelle.  Rather than stir the pasta in the sauce, I ladled the sauce on top of some pasta, then sprinkled on grated parmesan.  That and a Vesper made for a simple dinner for me as I watched old episodes of Red Dwarf.  That was my perfect little evening.

But no photos of it.  So instead, as I check in on this Thursday, let me share with you further sights from morning walks this week.  I've ramped up the walking a little, culminating in 7.1 miles this morning.  Nice to get out on foot.  And, of course, I took photos all over.  Flowers,

buildings,

local art,

other things that caught my eye,

totally vain selfies

- my walks have had it all.  And curiously little Conrad!  I'll get him out on foot tomorrow, I swear. 

drinks with Lessa

Tonight will be the last of a week of activities before a small break before the weekend.  And that will be welcome.  But no, it's not that it's hard to have concerts or dinners or other fun things to do.  Not at all.  Like last night, for example.  I put on a fuzzy sweater

and left Conrad at home and headed over to Maestro

where I met Lessa

for a drink.  Which actually turned into two drinks - both of mine were the Fall Sour,

a tasty new drink on their menu - and some plantain chips and guacamole.  Plus lots of ALA and other chat.  The bar was super crowded with local realtors when I got there, so we sat outside on a mildly cool night.  Great to catch up with her!

I'll be checking emails and checking in with my team today and trying to move program review forward, but I'll also be cooking.  Dinner with Denny tonight.  Stay tuned for that post tomorrow!

another short post from Hawaii

A busy day of work behind me, a fully belly from dinner with colleagues.  I am soon to bed here.  So let me say aloha, hello, and goodnight.  I was welcomed and honoured today, and I feel grateful for that.

shorn

If a gay gets a haircut and doesn’t share it online, did he really get a haircut?

I got a haircut.  Thank goodness!

yesterday I ventured out

A negative test! 

Oh, that was a happy sight yesterday morning.  And another one this morning, so I believe I am well and truly done with this bloody thing.  YAY!  Good.

Conrad and I headed out on a walk yesterday morning. 

It was already in the 70s and bright sun when we left, and no, I did not enjoy that.  Ah well, it was still good to walk a bit, finding all the shade we could.  How did we survive all that time in Rancho Mirage in the summer???  It wasn't a superlong walk, no, but it was better than zero!

We did, unsurprisingly, stop in at Amara for breakfast.  I still don't have a big appetite, and I had a chicken empanada as a lighter meal along with a decaf latte.  Conrad had his usual, though. 

Look how cute he is!

It was 80 degrees when we walked home.  By 10 AM, that is.  A hot day was in store.  I just really won't ever wear shorts out in public (yes, I know my legs are ghostly white, I don't need others to see them and point it out to me), so it was short sleeves, seersucker pants, and hey, why not, a hat!  A cool enough outfit for the day.

Our main plan for the day was meeting up with Sharon and Scott

to go take in the Pasadena Showcase House.  Now, had we fully understood things, we would have had them park at Van's and then we all would have Ubered over.  Alas, we instead thought we had to use the shuttle from Santa Anita race track, so it was a slog over there and back bracketing our time.  We met them at the shuttle stop, headed over together, wandered through the house and garden

(I didn't take photos in the house other than the bar,

sorry!), poked in the market set up on the grounds (I grabbed some Herban soaps - I love their stuff - and a few truffles), caught up enjoyably, and endured the 97 degree heat together.  On May Bloody10th, that heat.  Ugh.  It will cool off this week, but that was a lot.  We found shade to wait for the shuttle back,

and then parted from them at Santa Anita.  I hope we see them again before too long!

An easy evening after that.  Conrad and I did a quick shop for dinner, and I got it all heated and on the table for us at Van's.  No television, just home by 9:15ish, wanting to keep cooling down and rehydrating.

It's an easy Sunday here.  I'm about to pour myself more decaf, we have a FaceTime with Courtney and Robert planned for this afternoon.  I'll post this entry this evening, and maybe get the last Sonoma post ready to go live tomorrow.  Some laundry on the go, a wine order to pick up.  Not a bad life today!