New Year's To-Do List - Hike Cowles Mountain

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I took a peek at my New Year's Resolutions and taking into consideration it's already August, I'm not doing that well with them. In some cases it is the old conundrum of not having the money when I have the time and vice versa. One thing I did accomplish last month was hiking up Cowles Mountain!

What got me out on a Sunday morning  when I should be in bed was the enticement that I was going to do the hike with a very handsome guy. I met him through an online dating site and this was to be our 2nd date. It was my idea to do the hike, he enjoys doing them and is experienced and I figured I would tough it out so I wouldn't look like a wuss in front of him.

He picked me up early and took me to where he said was the "easy" hike. This is the path located opposite to the main entrance. To get to this path we had to park on residential streets and get in to the grounds crossing a locked gate.

Very quickly I realized how big of a mistake I made, I got winded within the first 10 minutes and I just wanted to go back. I'm not going to mention how horrible it was, nor the vertigo I got, the desire to throw up from the exertion, the sweating and cursing. All the time, my companion had the patience of a saint and just kept pushing me to the next curve, the next rock, the next bush. It took me two hours what other people do in 45 - 60 minutes.

Of course, I wore black, which was another mistake on my part, but I don't have colors in my wardrobe. Although I will admit it's starting to get annoying trying to find a particular black top amongst a sea of black tops.

And then when I finally made it to the top and could be proud of my accomplishment, I realized how overrated the whole conquering-the-mountain thing is! I've seen better views at night from the top of a high rise with a beer on my hand. The air smells better when I'm lying on the beach. This is officially off my list and not something I will ever do again!

As for the guy, I doubt I'll ever see him again and I'm not too worried about that. We may have a lot of things in common, but our idea of entertainment is very different.

Garden Window Decor - Comic-Con

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My garden window decorations usually revolve around seasons or holidays, this time, my theme revolves around an event. It is the holiest of comic weeks, San Diego Comic-Con International, an event like no other!

I went around my place and gathered a few of the items I've purchased at Comic-Con over the years, I had to leave quite a few things because of the lack of space, but this collection is representative of my favorite themes.

First of all are the collectible books from each time I've been to the event....9 in total and I'm lucky enough that I will get to go for a 10th time. The most memorable occasions have been when I've been with my brother and sister, and I really feel like an old timer when I tell people I used to be able to buy tickets the same day! Imagine that!

In the back I have a print autographed by James O'Barr creator of The Crow, I have two of his prints and the graphic novel. Next to the collectible books are Magic The Gathering cards, my new game and obsession.

Here we have Buddy Christ from the movie Dogma, this was so hard to find! I went through every single booth until I found it and it's been with me for at least 8 years now. In the back you'll see a furry brown ball...that's a Tribble, originally seen on Star Trek TOS on the episode The Trouble with Tribbles. This one makes the cute Tribble noises and thankfully it does not breed!

The upper shelf is dedicated to Doctor Who, last year (2012) is when I got most of my collectibles, including a Tardis lunch pail - which I've used to take my lunch to work - sticky notes, a Dalek foam hat and the ever crucial sonic screwdriver!

Last but not least, I painted my nails in Comic-Con colors, which are also reminiscent of super hero costumes.

This year I will only be going on Saturday and Sunday, I know it will be a tiring and painful experience, but it is one I don't want to miss!

Cross-Stitch - Heirloom Baby Name

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My latest cross stitch project was done in honor of a dear friend, chick lit author and client Susan Buchanan. She recently had her first child and I was just waiting for someone close to me to have a baby so I could create this heirloom piece:

The pattern was purchased from TheStitchery.com - Loving Hands Tiny Feet and it took me close to 4 months to make, working on it an average of 3 - 5 hours per week. So if someone is in a hurry to make it as a gift, I expect it can be done within a month. It felt so good making it, especially the precious little toes...too cute!

And as a shout out to Susan Buchanan, check out her books, she writes very funny chick lit based in Scotland and it always makes me smile when I think about the kilt scene on the Dating Game....she put those Scottish hunks in kilts just for me!!

Taste of Adams 2013

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For the second year in a row my sis and I go out and take the challenge of the annual event Taste of Adams. Restaurants from Adams Avenue Antique Row, Normal Heights and Kensington participate. This year it was an impressive 31 restaurants, compared to 24 we had last year.

In case you're wondering what the event entails, first you buy a ticket ($30 pre-sale, $35 the day of the event).

On the back of the ticket there is a map and the list of all the participating restaurants and off you go from place to place sampling the goodies they have in store for you. In some cases, the restaurants set up the food outside, in others you will need to go inside. This is a small sample of the food offered:

Sausage over mashed potatoes topped with caramelized onions by Jayne's Gastropub - You were encouraged to sit down and enjoy the food in their cozy pub or the sunny patio.

Cheese Omelette and bite size cake by Twiggs Bakery - A chef made each omelette right in front of us.

Short ribs on top of potato pancake topped with gorgonzola cheese, a cookie and iced tea - It was devoured!

Asparagus lasagna - so good and creamy!

Choice of Chicken or Beef fajitas, beans, rice and a fish taco - People were impressed with the amount of food, the rice was just right and I loved the fish taco.

Carnitas tacos by Ponce's Mexican - I got here almost at the end of the event, was lucky to get the last batch of carnitas.

Brussel Sprout pizza by The Haven Pizzeria - Very good way to get in some brussels sprouts in my diet!

Grilled cheese and veggie sandwich from Kensignton Cafe - The crunchiness was just right!

Some places, like Rosie O'Grady's gave beer, others wine. I also had desserts - cheesecake, ice cream, brownie, ice pop - as well as chicken and waffles, vegan food, Thai food and so much more. I did not get to all the restaurants, 4 hours were just not enough....really! But there's always next year!

In case you want to do this type of event here are a few tips:

• Carry your own water, it can get hot and not all the places offer drinks and where they do it is usually in small quantities.
• Sunscreen! And maybe a hat or visor to protect your face from the sun.
• Carry as little as possible and keep your hands free to make it easier to eat.
• Take advantage of the trolleys going up and down Adams, they are free but a tip for the driver is appreciated.
• I had a tupperware on my bag and put on it the desserts so I could eat later. Every bite adds up and I had a long way to go!
• The best accessory I wore and the one that most peopled envied was a lanyard. I made a small hole in the tickets and attached it to the lanyard. It can be a pain to be constantly searching for your ticket and it kept my hands free to eat, take pics and share online.

So there you have it, this type of events are unique and very fun to go with a group of friends!

North Park Festival of Arts - Craft Beer Block

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So what do you do when events are sold out, you didn't get a free pass and you don't have any money? You volunteer! That's what I did at the North Park Festival of Arts - Beer Craft Block a few weekends ago!

I volunteered as part of the San Diego Beer Club Meetup group, the event would be at a walking distance from my place, seemed like fun and I thought I would have a chance to drink craft beer while I was at it....more on that later.

There were two shifts, one that started at 9:30 AM until 2-ish and my shift from 1-ish til 6 PM. We gathered at The Old  Mill on Ohio street for sign-up, a light lunch and orientation. The biggest shocker: I wasn't allowed to drink any beer, Oh no! And it was a hot day....would be torture for sure!

I was assigned to the Green Flash booth and had the huge luck to be paired with an ex-co-worker, it was total coincidence, neither of us knew we would be there. I had no idea what to expect, but she was a veteran volunteer, so I just followed her lead!

Our job was to pour the beer for the ticket holders and thanks to our different heights, we never bumped into each other, even though we worked side by side for 3 hours non-stop. It was a great pairing!

The beers we were pouring were Imperial Pale Ale and Saison San Diego

Imperial

India Pale Ale

San Diego IPA, as it has come to be known by many, is pale in color, super-hoppy, high-gravity, yet a highly quaffable ale. Our Imperial IPA is created in this new tradition with intense hop flavors and aromas from a unique blend of Summit and Nugget hops.

Saison Diego®

Ale Brewed with Spices

Unfiltered golden farmhouse ale, brewed with Seville orange peels, Chinese ginger and grains of paradise. Light, bright, spicy aromas, lively carbonation and earthy flavors co-mingle with musty notes that add funky complexity.

That was my first time being a server and pouring from a keg, but I quickly got the hang of it and I received many compliments on my tidy pours.

For the event University avenue was closed at 30th street, there were booths, music stages, food and I'm sure many cool things which I had no chance to see. Our shift at the volunteer booth ended early when we finished our kegs. People kept coming back and it was common for some to take a shot and then another pour for the road. Green Flash was a great favorite!

The time went by incredible fast, we barely had time to sip water and to the question, why do you do it? Because it's fun! Plus the event organizers threw a get-together at U-31 with beer and food later that week, not to mention the morning volunteers received a ticket for the beer garden after their shift ended....now I know for next year!

Geek Tattoos - Star Trek part 1

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I love tattoos, I like having art on my skin that I can look at any time I want. Over the years I've had several pieces done, big and small and now I'm preparing for my geekiest piece yet. I want the final design to have elements of my favorite sci-fi shows: Star Trek, Doctor Who, Firefly, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and we'll see what else I can add in there.

I wish I could do it all in 1 - 2 sessions, but my budget will only permit me one image at a time. So here is the first one, the Star Trek logo.

Star Trek tattoo

My new tattoo artist is Leo Nava from Studio 767 in Chula Vista, CA. While he admits he's not a geek, he is an amazing artist and I look forward to more sessions with him and showing off my new tattoos.

Do you see that painting in the background? Here it is, made by Leo Nava:

Painting by Leo Nava - Studio 767

Garden Window Decor - 5 de Mayo

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Today is 5 de Mayo, a day of celebration in the U.S., an excuse to party, drink margaritas, Mexican beers and lots of tacos! This date is not a holiday in Mexico, however it is a date of significance in which a small Mexican army in 1862 defeated and sent back the mighty invading French army....for a little while, they came back with full force and established the Second Mexican Empire with the Emperor Maximilian I.

This decoration idea for my garden window was from last year, but I couldn't find any empty beer containers on short notice, so this year I prepared and made sure I had the bottles ready!

The inflatable decorations and banners came from the dollar store, the bottles were once full of very good beer. I highly recommend Negra Modelo, an amber lager first introduced in 1926 and originally brewed by Austrian immigrants, and Indio,  a darker color lager brewed with caramel malts. Both are smooth and a great way to introduce yourself to Mexican beers...other than Corona. These beers are imported and can be found in convenience and liquor stores as well as most major grocery stores.

I like to give my nails a Mexican treatment, I've tried to do the flag, but the seal in the middle is too difficult and whatever I try ends up looking like a blob. I saw these two designs online, they were very easy to do, cute and festive!

I hope you enjoy the day and even if you don't go out drinking, have some tacos!

Afternoon Tea Party - Tips and Recipes

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Last year as part of the Geek Girls of San Diego Meetup group, a co-organizer and I decided to throw an Afternoon Tea Party and the date we choose turned out to be the hottest day in August. I know for most cities/countries August would be a definite no-no for this type of event, but we live in San Diego! It should have been fine, the weather betrayed us!

After that minor disaster, we tried again, this time in what San Diego considers freezing weather - under 60 F - so this time with a fire in the chimney and only 10 people allowed to RSVP, it felt just right.

TEAS

I've never considered myself a tea person, but somehow all the following were in my cupboard:

PG Tips - A popular British tea, some British people I know tell me that's not the best, but what do I know? I like it, I drink this instead of coffee, really gives a caffeine kick!
Barry's - Irish tea, also gives a great kick and from what my Irish friends have told me, Dublin drinks Lyons, the country drinks Barry's.
Mary Queen of Scots - A blend I bought at Shakespeare's Corner Shoppe. It combines black tea with lavender and lemongrass. It is very fragrant and delicate, this was one of the favorites of the afternoon.
Mighty Leaf - I'm not much of a herbal tea drinker, but I can never resist these ones. They are gourmet blends and a very nice treat.
Chamomile - A must have in my house, take it hot with honey and it calms down an upset stomach (I used to make this for my sister when she was a baby). It is also great for puffy eyes!
Flowering Tea - Have you seen the movie Marie Antoinette? There is a scene where the Queen is talking to her brother, they drop a small ball into their tea cups, it opens into a small flower and it brews as tea. Fancy, right? We'll we had that too! I have the special pot and used up my very last flower. I waited until all the guests had arrived in order to drop the ball in the teapot and we all just watched the flower expand. I found the tea in Target - of all places! - in case I can't find it there again, I will be ordering online. The flavor and fragrance are very delicate and it's better to drink without adding sugar or anything to it.

How to brew tea:

• Warm the pot
• Empty the water
• Add 2 tbsp of loose leaf tea per teapot
• Add boiling water
• Brew for 5 minutes
• Serve

When teapot is 3/4 empty, add more boiling water and let sit for another 5 minutes. 3 pots can be made from 2 tablespoons.

How to serve it:

•  Drop 1 or 2 lumps of sugar in your tea cup (optional)
• Add milk (optional) 
• Put a tea strainer on top of your tea cup
• Pour the tea and remove strainer
• Mix everything with a tea spoon and enjoy

The milk is added before the tea to protect the delicate tea cup from the hot water. The strainer captures the loose leaf tea.

FOOD

The ladies brought in all sorts of goodies: cookies, creme brulee, fruit tart, scones, etc. I was worried we would only have sweet items, so I asked one of the guests to bring something savory - she made quiche - and I made little sandwiches...including the famous cucumber one!

There are so many recipes online, I went for the more traditional and economical ones. They were very fast to make, it took me 30 minutes to make 3 types of sandwiches - tuna, egg and cucumber.

Tips for your own event:

• For our event, I used a kettle to boil the water in order to brew the loose leaf teas and refill the pots. For those who wanted to try the various tea-bags we had an electric kettle on the side with enough water so they can just get the hot water they need.
• We had a selection of half-half and Lactaid.
• We're American, so I don't think we understand the concept of using lemon in our teas. I had some, just in case - nobody even asked.
• We had sugar cubes (available in major grocery stores) which made it easy to add sugar, didn't leave a mess of sprinkled sugar all over the countertop and we all felt dainty using the little silver tongs.
• It's hard to keep up with everyone's dietary restrictions (vegan, raw-vegan, non-gluten, non-dairy, etc.) so having the event as a potluck will ensure that people will bring what they can eat.
• While it is nice to have a very nice tea set, mismatched sets are even better. They bring an Alice in Wonderland feel to the event. We had 6 different styles of tea cups, everyone had fun looking and choosing their favorite.
• Tea events are such a lovely way to spend an afternoon, you should try it too! And maybe even watch an episode or two of Downton Abbey while you're at it!

Garden Window Decorations - Valentine's Day 2013

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OK, so V-Day is not my favorite holiday, but I'm not gonna get on my soapbox, no rants this time. Last minute I did decide to decorate my Garden Window in a simple and cute way...with kids valentine's day cards!

I just kept remembering how much fun it was to have a decorated shoe box filled with cards and the preparations of my cards to my friends, it was so sweet back then. So I got some Muppets and Shrek cards and called it a day!

And the fun doesn't stop there...I did a quick search for fun cards from my favorite shows and found these:

Game of Thrones

Downton Abbey

Cute one

Doctor Who

Star Trek - Wrath a Khan - this scene always makes me cry!

Ay Papi!

Garden Window Decorations - Mardi Gras 2013

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Once again time for Mardi Gras decorations, everything is full of color, brightness and beautiful masks. I love the fun of the celebration and then with a huge hangover get over to the Church for Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent. But who thinks about that part when there is food, drinks, beads and masks!