Weekend!

This weekend was crazy busy, and even though I haven't yet caught up on posting about my recent travels, I wanted to post this first. Saturday we had a bit of a family emergency, which was scary but everyone is okay for now. And it didn't stop me from making the most of the holiday weekend! I went to see the A's play the Yankees, followed by fireworks set to tv theme songs, attended an Outstanding in the Field dinner with a friend at Devil's Gulch Ranch in Nicaso (cooked by Thomas McNaughton, who had his pet pig Kona with him), watched the Golden Gate Bridge's 75th anniversary fireworks show from Cavallo Point, had a spa day, and took a mini road trip to the Sacramento County Fair by way of lunch in San Rafael, cherry picking in Farfield, and backyard cocktails (with fresh-picked grapefruit) in Davis. Not too shabby, all things considered. I only wish I'd gotten pictures of the fireworks over the bridge! Hope you all had a great weekend, too!

Weekend, Etc.!

i look very mean in this picture, but it was the best group shot we got
Last weekend I went up to Seattle to visit some very good friends. We went wine tasting in Woodinville, got sucked into Sherlock, shopped, and got ridiculously dolled up for the annual Seattle Red Dress Party, and as usual, we ate some amazing meals at Sitka & Spruce, Paseo, Anchovies & Olives, Cafe Presse, and Skillet, and Chris made his famous homemade pasta that put everything else to shame.


albacore, potatoes, leeks and horseradish creme fraiche at sitka & spruce


croque madame at presse


poutine at skillet

Before I left town, I attended a beer and butchery themed dinner (part of SF Beer Week), where I got to see a wonderful butchery demonstration by Ryan Farr of 4505 Meats, and sample the newest seasonal offering from Almanac Beer with an assortment of foods made from the pig we saw disassembled. (Best corn dogs I've ever had!) I also saw The Artist, hosted a successful dinner party, another RuPaul's Drag Race screening, and went to see the latest Denzel action flick with my girlfriends on Valentine's Day.




Since I got back from Seattle, I've attended a fascinating screening of Lost Landscapes of Detroit from the Prelinger Archive, got to see much-missed out of town friends, and brought home a new car (a big, big change for me, since I've been driving a 1969 P1800 since I was 16!).

Weekends, Etc.

I have been a busy bee lately- I have hardly had a moment to sit still! When I haven't been working like a madwoman, I've been spending lots of QT with my friends and family. Here are some highlights:


photo source
The live radio play of Wet Hot American Summer, one of my very favorite movies, featuring Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Michael Showalter, Michael Ian Black, Marguerite Moreau, Molly Shannon, Sam Levine, Ken Marino, Joe Lo Truglio, David Wain, Christopher Meloni, and guest appearances by Colin Hanks, Busy Phillips, David Cross, and Andy Richter (!!!!).


source
A lecture by Woody LaBounty of the Western Neighborhoods Project about Carville, a community of people who lived in refurbished municipal railroad cars in the what is now the Sunset District at the turn of the century.


A tea party with a few lady friends

A talk by legendary magician the Amazing Randi, along with a short performance by none other than Stallion at the Contemporary Jewish Museum (where a wonderful exhibit about Houdini was on).


A crab feast with friends.


A double feature of San Francisco classics (Dark Passage and The House on Telegraph Hill) at the Noir City festival on a rainy night.

This coming week promises to be equally entertaining, with another noir double feature, a knife skills class, a pop up dinner, a film screening, and who knows what else!

Weekends, Etc./ From Afield: West Oakland

The last couple of weeks have been busy! I attended Pop Up Magazine, which was one of the most interesting and fun events I've been to in a long time. No pictures were allowed (or recordings- you had to be there), but suffice it to say that it was a really magical evening and I can't wait for the next one!! In addition, I went to a burlesque show, attended a fundrasier at the abandoned 16th Street train station, and wandered around West Oakland taking photos. I went to a wonderful pop-up dinner hosted by Hapa Ramen and Almanac Beer at Bar Tartine, got to see Joan Didion- one of my favorite living writers- interviewed by Vendela Vida at City Arts & Lectures (she was so charming- I loved the bit she read from this Vogue piece), had some fantastic meals at Zuni, Camino, Boulette's Larder, upstairs at Chez Panisse, Wayfare Tavern, Ippuku, and at a Dux pop-up at Summit, and savored Chris Lee's amazing boudin blanc at the Beaujolais Nouveau celebration at Kermit Lynch.  Maybe most exciting, I finally got a juicer!  Having a fresh glass of juice every morning makes me feel great.  Photos:

donuts from cibo per strada

Weekends!

I have fallen behind on my weekend reports again, and as usual lots of fun things have been going on. Here's a bit of what I've been up to lately.

This weekend, my friend Jessica and I attended Le Diner en Blanc in Golden Gate Park's Music Concourse, conveniently scheduled on one of the warmest evenings of the year! I made salad Nicoise and a pear clafoutis, and Jessica brought some lovely rosé, cheese, charcuterie, and bread for our picnic. I wasn't totally sure what I was getting into when we put our names in the hat for an invitation a few months ago, but the event was truly magical. 3,500 people dressed in white, dining in candlelight al fresco... incredible! You can see a glimpse of Jessica and me in this video, at 2:10.


In the past couple of weeks, I also took a walking tour of Craftsman homes with my friend Christine, organized by the Oakland Heritage Alliance,


took a ferry ride across the bay,


had brunch at Doña Tomas with Erik,

saw an exhibition of photographs from the 1991 Oakland Firestorm at the Berkeley Art Museum with my friend Elka,


went swimming at the Coppola Winery pool with some girlfriends,


enjoyed multiple avocado smoothies at the Sweet Booth in Oakland's Chinatown,



attended my dear friends Jenn and Ajax's wedding,


finally ate dinner at Una Pizza Napoletana (exceeded its reputation!),


made it to an Oktoberfest Monday at Camino,


spent an afternoon going through the clippings files at the Oakland History Room,

participated in a big board game night,


went to Oregon for my family's annual vacation, along with two of my favorite lady friends,


attended Home Movie Day screenings at the Oakland Museum,


cooked a lot and was cooked for,



visited the Santa Cruz County fair with Marina,



toured the historic Fox Theater in downtown Oakland (built in 1928),





as well as the gorgeous Paramount Theater (built in 1931),


played bocce ball,


and even took a gondola ride on Lake Merritt!