Geek Week(end)

If you know Steve, you know that he, like many other guys can appreciate a good electronics store. He's into all kinds of video games (it took him days to catalog his collection), Blu-Rays (not DVDs, don't call them DVDs!), computers, and computer parts. In general, he's a geek! (I grew up in a family of geeks, so I love it!)

Here in California, there is a big electronic store chain called Fry's. Surprisingly, going there was one of the things people said was a must-do! They are bigger than Best Buy and carry all kinds of geeky goodies (more than Best Buy). And what's more fun is that each store has a unique and elaborate theme (although I didn't really get the theme of the one nearest us, which was apparently the 1893 Chicago World's Fair), some of which include Mayan Temples, Alice in Wonderland, and 1950's Sci-Fi.

Basically, I knew it would be a fun, stress-free, low-key (and with any luck, free) outing for an afternoon that Steve had off where we didn't want to really go anywhere, and a real treat for him. So I surprised him and took him there a few weekends ago. As you can imagine, he was like a kid in a candy shop!

Trying to contain his excitement!

Oh the nerdiness!

We spent several hours exploring every department. My second favorite was the "as seen on TV" section. I am so attracted to those goofy products! My first favorite would have to be this one:

Yes, they had a cafe! (These are some smart people... keep the wives happy with their frothy coffee drinks and let the husbands rack up the big bill!) I almost had to retreat there after following Steve around for a little longer than I could bear (with a short reprieve in their awesome theater demonstration room where they were showing Despicable Me in 3D with a projector on a big screen), but thankfully he took the two DVDs Blu-Rays he found (for a great deal, because he may be a nerd, but he's also cheap frugal) and hit the check-out line. (Somehow I knew this was not going to be a free outing!)

Look how happy! (That is Ip Man and Ip Man 2, for those wondering. Don't worry, if you've never heard of it, you're in good company.)

Aw. That's a smile that makes me happy, too :)

And the next day, we headed to Santa Cruz between church services and hit the board walk for some fried food, fresh air, and even more geekiness! We cruised the boardwalk a bit, and then hit the arcade (Steve says to note that it's one of the biggest in the country). Steve checked out the games they had (yep, he had a lot of them at home!) and got a bit nostalgic. And then somehow he got to play a game for free! (So at least the arcade didn't cost us a penny!)

Kicking virtual butt -- my hero!

We also indulged in some deep-fried Oreos (oh, yum)...

...and a romantic sky ride!

He may be a geek, but he's mine, all mine! :)

Monsters and Robots and Toys! Oh, my!

Pixar movies are some of my favorites... From Up to Monsters, Inc. to Wall-E, Toy Story, and Finding Nemo... they really tell great stories! And coincidentally (or not), they all made me cry. (Not that that's hard.) I even had a stuffed turtle from Finding Nemo and a stuffed Sully from Monsters, Inc. (Yes, if you did the calculation and found out that both of those films were released after I turned 20, you are right. And?)

Well, Pixar Studios is in Emeryville, CA, (about a half hour's drive from us) AND I have an awesome friend from college, Hasia, who works there! (Talk about a cool job!) So my friend Sarah and I (two Sarah's necessitates nicknames, so she's "T" and I'm "Koz," FYI) went to visit for lunch one afternoon, and a brief tour. My inner child was so excited!

It was so fun walking in past the iconic desk lamp (Luxo, Jr., from their logo) and ball, from their first animated short film. And then inside, to be greeted immediately by the some of my favorite characters, Sully and Mike Wazowski! 

T and I pushing the Pixar ball... and it's clearly no contest.

"Kitty!" (I really wanted to hug Sully but I restrained myself!)

 

Buzz Lightyear and Woody made of Legos! (Careful!)

In addition to good food, great company, and incomparable photo ops, it was so interesting to see a little bit of behind the scenes of how they make the awesome animated films! We got to see color boards, sketches, and models they used in the making of their newest feature, Brave. Hasia works in their PR department, so she was a great tour guide! It was a pretty brief tour, though, because much of the areas are closed off to the public and TOP SECRET! :) Overall, the facilities are amazing -- they have a beautiful swimming pool, a tennis court, and an amazing cafeteria on site.

It really does look like a fantastic place to work.... too bad they don't need a toxicologist!

Let Them Eat Cake!

During the month of August, I undertook a tasty adventure into cake decorating.

Yes, me, decorating cakes! Me, who hardly ever even baked a cake, much less decorated one. Some friends from church told me about the class, which was at Michael's and encouraged me to sign up with them. Oh, and it was 50% off, so of COURSE I was in!

And it was a blast -- I looked forward to Thursday every week in August. And at the end of the class, you had not only something beautiful, but something delicious to take home. Score! And I found out that it's actually much easier than it looks. If you can follow directions (not always my strength). And if you're patient. And steady-handed. And have the right tools. (There are so many tools and gadgets!)

Me with my first cake! Success!

Cupcakes are great fun to experiment with!

I graduated!

I think Steve liked enjoyed the results of the class, too!

Now I just need to stop dreaming about different flavor combinations (like the s'mores cupcakes below with marshmallow filling and graham cracker butter cream frosting below) because I'm always making myself hungry! (And there are way too many good ideas on the Pinterest website.)

Okay, so who needs a birthday cake? I need an excuse to bake! (Especially now since I have an apron and can stop wearing my stretchy long skirt like some kind of weird, strapless, makeshift fashion disaster! Thanks Mer, Jill, and Mindy!)

Steve in the Big City

After a fun week with friends exploring Northern California and including several days of fun in San Francisco, Steve had a long-awaited weekend off (he's still only getting every third weekend off). And after hearing about all of our SF adventures, he decided it was his turn!

So we headed out for the day and saw the sights. We had been a couple of times previously and saw Fisherman's Wharf and Golden Gate Bridge, but Steve had a few specific things he still wanted to see/do, including the Japanese Tea Garden, Chinatown, and a ride on the cable car! (What trip to SF is complete without a cable car ride, after all?)

So off we went! And I threw in the mix a visit to a fantastic gourmet ice cream shop that I had recently indulged in with friends on their visit. What a great time. This city has so much to offer!

Great gardens and Japanese architecture at the Tea Garden

And we enjoyed some green tea and cookies with a great view.

We waited in a lengthy line for the cable car...

And it was worth it! Ding ding!

Steve finally got to Lou's for lunch! A Tom Kozanecki favorite.

And I thoroughly enjoyed the ice cream at Bi-Rite Creamery -- amazing!

Oh yeah, and we tracked down the house from Full House. The Tanners say hello! :)

Oh yes, we did!

Summer Visit

Where did summer go? That is what I'm asking myself lately. The days are getting shorter and a touch cooler and breezier. It rained recently (so I hear) and there are also rumors of leaves changing colors (I haven't seen it yet). It's a far cry from the beautiful falls in Michigan, but while there are no cider mills and the air doesn't have that pleasant nip of fall, I've already had three pumpkin chai lattes from Peet's Coffee and am looking forward to more of the fall goodies! :)

But anyway, summer is almost gone, so I'll set out to update you on my summer in the next few posts, starting with a quick overview of one of the highlights.

I was so excited to have two visits from friends this summer. One was Memorial Day weekend, which was (sadly) my last post. The next visit was from dear friends from Michigan who made a week of touring the Northern California beauty! Whew, we sure did pack a lot in there (ask my car's mileage for proof!)... From San Francisco to Monterey, Carmel, and Big Sur, a day trip to Santa Cruz (with Steve), Yosemite, and Napa Valley! Phew!

We started in San Francisco, where we explored Fisherman's Wharf (including a yummy seafood lunch), Ghiradelli Square, a Bay tour and a bus tour! That gave the girls a good overview of the city, and then they checked out some of the other nooks and crannies in the city, including the Japanese Tea Garden, Golden Gate Park, and a cable car ride! (Not to mention witnessing San Francisco's lack of a public nudity ordinance! Yikes!)

Near Ghiradelli Square after enjoying lunch at Fisherman's Wharf

Gorgeous weather to enjoy a Bay Cruise in SF Bay

Enjoying many of the delicious offerings of the Ferry Building

Cable car ride that ended in their trolley breaking down!

Then we spent an afternoon at the Boardwalk in Santa Cruz (with special guest, Steve) where we stuck our toes in the Pacific (burrrr!) and enjoyed the lively atmosphere. This visit included a ride on the hang-glider ride and a sampling of deep fried Twinkies and Oreos (so bad and yet so good!).

Mindy's first time touching the Pacific!

Love!

Next, the girls and I drove down the coastal highway to Monterey, Carmel, and Big Sur. The grey skies didn't stop us from enjoying the immense beauty of God's creation in Big Sur or the quaint beauty of Carmel (or the pastries in Carmel!).

 

Then we adventured to Yosemite (and thankfully did not stay in the camp that had the Hantavirus outbreaks!) where we were awed by God's creativity and majesty in his creation there. Amazing! (If you've read other blog posts about Yosemite, you probably get that I think it's one of the most beautiful places I've ever been!) We did some hiking (er, some of us did some hiking) and exploring by car and "glamped" (glamorous camping) in a sweet cabin with a wood-burning stove (which I managed to keep a fire going in thanks to my sweet Girl Scout training... haha, that's a joke, folks! Girl Scouts was social hour for me and my friends!).

View from Olmsted Point, including the back side of Half Dome, upper right

Meredith and I climbed Lembert Dome and were rewarded by amazing views

And finally, we made our way to Napa and Sonoma Valleys and explored some gorgeous vineyards there (including, apparently, the one owned by one of the former Bachelors...ya know, the TV show). And we feasted on a lunch of fancy cheeses and salami with fresh bakery bread. So good!

Lunch at V. Sattui Vineyard

Arriving for our tour at Mondavi Vineyards

It was so fun to have friends visit and to show them a bit of Northern California! These are only a few photos from the week (this post is already long enough!), but I may post more someday on Facebook when I get around to it!

So long, thanks for reading! Next time (hopefully soon!) I'll tell you how Steve needed a trip to San Francisco after hearing about the fun we had there! :)