summer in February

This winter weather is unreal. Mr. C and I couldn't resist a stroll on the beach at Montecito.

It's not hard to see why it's called the American Riviera. Beautiful.

And the crystal clear sunset... dang. It was a totally perfect day, sandy feet and all. How did you spend your Saturday?


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Mr. C and I quite like being out and about around town. So much in fact, that we're going to start sharing our wanderings & ramblings on a new blog, Bungalow. It's not all the way ready yet, but we'll keep you... posted.

Life, Death & Computer Malfunctions

This month is flying by, a rapid succession of adventures as days that I can barely keep up with. Since last I wrote here, I have turned another year older, a good friend has departed and my computer has completely broken down.

The laptop is fixed. I wish everything was as easy to repair as making an appointment at the Mac store. As for the rest of us, we will keep moving forward, keep having birthdays, keep getting older, keep breaking down. Until one day we won't. So it goes.

And on that note... have a fully wonderful Memorial Weekend friends. It's a long one, but it goes fast.

{the photo is my 2011 birthday self portrait}

ready for the weekend

This weekend's forecast: sunny and 70˚

My bikini and I are so ready for the heat. We're planning some sandy lounging at the beach. What about you? Have you and your swimwear got weekend plans?

Saturday at the Getty Villa

The Saturday that followed my birthday found me and Ian at the

Getty Villa. 

It was such a lovely day and such a day for lovers.

While we explored some of the ancient arts, most of our time was spent in the gardens.

We  observed the wildlife and gazed at the water lilies.

Scenes, scientific plant names and fallen pink rose petals were collected in our sketchbooks.

There were tall stalks of unusual Hollyhocks...

... and this glowing red specimen called "Lovage." I loved it.

We took turns being the photographer and being the model...

... and both posed for a stranger who offered her photography services.

Then we lunched where pink cows graze in a field of yellow. Perfection.

Welcome home, Atlantis

Did you all feel the landing of space shuttle Atlantis yesterday? It made our house shake and woke me up. 

The video above is of Atlantis returning to Kennedy Space Center from another mission. It was supposed to land there again, but bad weather brought the shuttle to the deserts of California. I love how the video shows the shuttle as slow and elegant, when really, the landing is an event so fast and forceful that we feel the earth shake from 133 miles away. So amazing. Here's a pretty good article about the most recent Atlantis mission.

As Ian and I sat around in our PJs discussing space travel and air force bases, I remembered a mix up I had as a kid. I thought that Nasa and Napa were the same thing. My Uncle Louis and his family lived in Napa Valley and to me that meant that Louis was an astronaut. I can recall asking my parents where the spaceships were we'd go to visit.

signs of summer coming

Here is the first lily to blossom in our garden this year. It seems fitting that it should open up just as the Memorial weekend begins. I always think of this weekend as the kick off to summer, even though the seasons won't officially change for almost another month. At any rate, a holiday weekend is always a great excuse to do something fun. We'll be classic Americana as we go to multiple weekend BBQs.

What will you be doing?