So cute!
We took our four most ambulatory dogs on a hike on Mare Island.
Previous to the hike we went to the art exhibit on Pintado Street which included very cool work from our friend Manny Furtado, who lives on Mare Island.
We happened to be there right after they had “wreathed” the military cemetery that is along the hike.
It could happen! Once in a while, I can proudly land a perfect one. I row with the Solano Rowing Club on a whaleboat most weekends. Maybe you had to be there, but while we were putting the boat away for storage today our coxswain Alison said, “next time we’ll work on ab holds”
I retorted, “What did you call me!?”
An original quote from yours truly is that “laughter is the best revenge against death,” by which I mean we can laugh and that alone makes life worth living. On another macabre note, I always wished I could sleep less when one thinks that a 75-year-old person has slept away 25 years of his or her life. I’ll never forget the chill I get when I heard the antagonist in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea claim “sleep is just a slice of death.”
Now for a segue.
We recently lost the goddess of candy pants, Judy Tenuta, to fucking ovarian cancer at the age of 73 (the same age my mother was when she died of fucking ovarian cancer in 2016). I saw Judy live in New York City years ago to my glee. Riding the subway home I had to hold on to my companion because I thought I’d fall on the subway tracks I was such jelly from recalling her jokes. I’ve always gravitated toward funny women, which partly explains my Streisand fandom, but Judy’s wit will be so uniquely missed. I went out and ordered her books and whatever else I could find on her but I always searched for her online to see what she was up to. I recently read her first book on the plane to Hawaii and quickly started using her quips with my husband on vacation. I still believe Judy was very underrated.
Fortunately, Judy was sometimes on the Stephanie Miller Show to talk about not just politics in her special way, but also her attempt to KICK CANCER’S ASS. I do listen to Stephanie Miller every morning on FreeSpeechTV and encourage everyone to join in. Stephanie spoke at Judy’s celebration of life recently. Through the last several years of SCOTUS packing and general mayhem in American federal politics, comedy like Stephanie’s and Judy’s has kept me sane.
“Is anybody hearing this? I feel like I’m taking CRAZY pills!” — Will Farrell
This was just in front of our house.
I’ve been rowing with others in a whaleboat most weekends with Solano Rowing Club, but my friend Nancy recently inspired me to try to get back into kayaking, which there is a great club in Vallejo that facilitates that. In Dan Foley Park we kayaked adjacent to Six Flags Park and got to see giraffes eating on the side of the lake! Who knew!? There are roller coasters and other things to see from the lake, but the hills and the park are wonderful as well. What a cool place! We hope to do this regularly. Dan Foley is such a beautiful place. We’ll be back for more.
Speaking of rowing in a whaleboat, periodically the boat needs to be brought back and forth between my neighborhood in Vallejo (Glen Cove) to Benicia. During one of those trips, I had to take a picture of these geese on top of this house right by the water. I hope the residents of this house don’t have to suffer from this kind of goose attack that often, but it would be worth it for the views they have!
Sometimes nature surprises me. I’ve had some of these cacti for years, many of which I got from my mom’s house after she died of cancer a few months after her house was destroyed by fire (in an unrelated incident). This one just took my breath away, and like so many amazing things in nature, it only lasted a day or two.
Our next-door neighbor town within Solano County is Benicia. Like our Glen Cove neighborhood it’s on the water and has amazing views of this lower part of the Sacramento Delta feeding into the Carquinez Strait, San Pablo Bay followed by San Francisco Bay and then of course the largest body of water in the world, the Pacific via the Golden Gate Bridge. These kayakers have great views and plenty of guts since this does have large ships coming in regularly!
These photos are just a small sampling of the marina down the hill from us where I row with the Solano Rowing Club on a whaleboat.
This particular Marina in Vallejo has been rated one of the ten best in the United States! The “Lighthouse” building is an event space, but the natural setting and meticulous landscaping help make it a site to behold.
The marina has its own vineyard and there’s a beautiful senior living facility just up the slope, with several businesses and then our neighborhood. The layout is fabulous, with parks all the way along the waterfront and lots of million-dollar views. More galleries are available on GlenCoveVallejo.com. Here are just a few I took on this glorious January date from the pier.
Some people think I’m crazy when I noticed that January is when things “start warming up” for Spring in California. The roses always blossom in January and the days literally start getting longer from the Winter Solstice in late December. I remember feeling this way even as a child when I lived here. I’m so appreciative to live in this amazing climate; one that I very conscientiously picked to move to, and to a city I knew had the diversity and beauty I wanted to boot.
Before we bought in Vallejo, I literally studied meteorological reports and compared them to Hayward where we rented. I did this because we did not want to lose the ideal conditions of cool nights and warm days without experiencing scorching weather for months. We are happy to VISIT the heat and snow as it suits us.
Our drive down to Palm Springs via the scenic route whenever possible (especially during the daytime) with a stop in rural, coastal Santa Barbara County.
My parents lived in the Lompoc area before I was born, and my dad is from Monterey originally, so it’s always particularly nostalgic to stop in Central California, where I still have a ton of relatives on my dad’s side. Pebble Beach has this amazing Monarch Butterfly Grove. We were there when most of them were still asleep, but it was still a nice place to pause on our trip down.
Santa Barbara County is magical. I forgot to take pictures of us having tea with Oprah, Harry and Meghan, but you can imagine they were delighted to receive us again. It was great seeing the kids too.
While I was working Shando took a hike in Palm Springs:
Had dinner with good friends Richard Kraft and James from BC.
I also ran into the identical twin brother of my friend Rob from Princeton, New Jersey (they both live in San Diego now). He happened to be in town at the same time as me. I had never met his brother in person. Unfortunately the picture is out of focus, but what a small world!
Crow on a palm tree in downtown Palm Springs