Hot fun in the summertime

Happy 2nd official day of SUMMER! I think I can finally put my little over used space heater to bed till fall rolls around. The skies are blue and the days are warming up nicely. Not too hot...yet!

Any plans for the summer? If I could, I would get me a little trailer and toodle around the countryside like Mike and Frank from my new FAVORITE TV show American Pickers!

Frank and Mike doing their best American Gothic

You can catch the guys on the History Channel already into its second season. I've only just discovered it so there are lots of episodes for me to catch up on.

The dudes

These long time friends are based in Iowa and the show takes you along as they explore America's backroads and countryside searching for long buried treasure that they hope to re-sell at their store Antique Archaeology. They are ably aided by Danielle at home base who finds contacts for the boys over the phone and internet.

A fantastic find!

One of the reasons I enjoy the show is that it's a travelogue of the American countryside. You never know what they'll find in attics, basements and decrepit old barns besides raccoons and spiders. They even came across a home that was once a part of the underground railroad, talk about history! The guys have expanded their picking and recently came out west to Arizona and southern California.

Mike, Frank and Danielle probably dreaming about their next pick

My pickings don't send me too far. Just to the Goodwill and neighborhood yard sales. On a recent visit to Goodwill I did manage to score a pair of brand new capris (black stretchy denim with a daisy print) and two bracelets for a mere $8. Definitely not the kind of stuff Mike and Frank would search out but I'm sure they'd agree I did OK on the price.

Sound like fun? Hop in my little pink caddie if you'd like to come along. The more the merrier I always say.

See ya!
Oh! The places you'll go!

HAPPY SUMMER, HAPPY PICKING!

Hi everybody, my apologies for a rather prolonged absence from the blogging scene. I haven't been well these last few months but I've decided the best therapy is to get blogging again but how to bring you up to date? I thought maybe a fun way to do that would be to recap a recent phone conversation I had with my friend Heidi from back home.

Heidi and I met back in the deep dark 80s when we both took 80s fashion seriously from big hair to big shoulders...thankfully, we have moved on!

the 80s!

After a discussion on friends, family, weather and recent goings on, we got to the good stuff like....Dancing With the Stars! We were outraged and declared it a travesty that Kirstie Alley made it not only to the final three but to the top two! She robbed both Ralph Macchio and Chelsea Kane of their rightful spots in the finals.

Kirstie and Max

Thank goodness Hines Ward and Kym Johnson won the mirror ball trophy or I would have fallen out of bed and thought the world had gone completely mad!

Hines and Kym in a winning dance number

The adorable Chelsea Kane with Mark Ballas. Chelsea was cute as a button, talented and a worthy competitor.

Chelsea and Mark

Heidi and I felt that the final dance competition should have been between Hines and Chelsea. It seems like the voting is more about fan base than true talent. Anyway, I look forward to the next chapter in Dancing With the Stars. With all the seriousness going on in the world today, I enjoyed being swept away if only for a little while.

Ok, who got up and watched the wedding? You know which one! I admit to getting up at 3:30 in the morning all bleary eyed and watching...well, in between cat napping that is.

Young William all grown up

So I hear that Will and Kate will be in southern California this summer. What are the odds that they will be staying with the Beckhams?

The Beckham's at the royal wedding

Wouldn't it be fun if they had a reality show called Bunking With The Beckhams?


I'd like to let the duke and duchess know that Disneyland and SeaWorld both have exciting and fun new attractions this summer so start saving up!

Aaargh! I seem to have misplaced my camera! I had some photos to share but that will have to wait for another time. I remember taking pictures outside last Sunday and now can't remember where I placed my camera. Wish me luck.

Have a great week!

Batten down the hattches

Funny, no one mentioned how windy it was going to be today. The windows and doors are rattling but when my heavy wind chime starts ringing, you know it's windy.

My gorgeous wind chime that was a Christmas gift a few years back. It takes a strong wind to get it to chime.

Here's one that was a gift from my aunt from a trip to Sea World probably back in 2001.


This one is a Japanese wind chime that was a gift that I brought with me from Hawaii. The original tag with Japanese writing unfortunately got quite tattered and I replaced it with one that says All You Need is Love.

We've spent a lazy day watching some TV...a marathon Harry Potter weekend...and tonite I'm looking forward to The Amazing Race and The Celebrity Apprentice...and don't forget tomorrow night is the return of Dancing With the Stars!

The wind has unnverved my usually unflapable kitty. He has spent the entire day in the house venturing out just a few times only to come racing back in when a big gust blows.

Sadie and Kitty just chilling in bed as it storms outside. We expect some rain tonite with the bulk of it coming tomorrow morning. It promises to make the morning commute a bit dicey tomorrow.

Nothing like making a pest of one's self!

I spent some time making oatmeal cookies! The aroma from the oven was heavenly! I didn't use as much sugar as it called for but I did add some chocolate chips. Does that mean I just cancelled out using less sugar? If you haven't tried the recipe on the Quaker Oats box you should, it really is a no fail recipe.

A little too close for comfort! Not to worry Kitty isn't into oatmeal cookies!

How do you like Kitty's collar? I have had trying times with him and his assorted collars. He has a habit of losing them. I can't figure out how they turn up lost but I may have found a solution and it's called Beastie Bands. They are soft, squishy, and seem comfortable for Kitty. They have a velcro closure and you can cut them to size to fit your cat. So far so good


Beastie Bands come in all colors and prints and because Kitty is very politically minded, I knew he'd appreciate the peace collar. He's also a hit at parties because we, quite by accident, found out that the collar glows in the dark.

Thought you might like to get a glimpse of the latest addition to my tea pot collection. Actually, I got this quite some time ago but never got around to making the reveal. It's from Goodwill and was only $3. It's a peach all right!

Hope you are enjoying your Sunday wherever you are AND stay dry!

Here Comes the Bride

This is the third year that my friend Ed has invited me to the bridal show at the US Grant where he works in catering. I have to say that although I missed it last year, this has to be the "funnest" bridal show ever. Thought I would share a few pics with you.

Here's a dramatic evening shot of the historic U.S. Grant Hotel in downtown San Diego.

Here comes the bride!

Here's one with an interesting little bustle. A lot of the dresses seemed more like lingerie

Suddenly, a flapper made an appearance!

I think this was my favorite as it seemed 20's inspired. I loved the headpiece for the veil.

Taking a cue from Madonna, a somewhat see-through bustier.

I thought this was elegant

For some strange reason this dress reminds me of Taylor Swift

The food samples were, as a friend of mine likes to say, to die for!

These were the best cupcakes I have tried in a long time.

This display of chocolates belongs to my friend Maria. At a cost of $6 per person you get a tantalizing spread of all things chocolate.

Yummy!

This was my lunch! A fabulous portobello mushroom slider with french fries that were drizzled with truffle oil. I can't begin to tell you how delicious this was!

A gourmet mac and cheese station but I have to tell you that it doesn't matter if Wolfgang Puck made it, the best mac and cheese is Kraft's Macaroni and Cheese in the blue and yellow box!

A few wedding cakes to drool over!

I believe this cake is in honor of Prince William and Kate Middleton. Did you get your invitation yet?

There were tons of gorgeous floral arrangements

I enjoyed this "lovely as springtime" table setting

I fell in love with the napkin ring

Place setting bling

I think this really was my favorite table setting

Especially the parrot

Gorgeous colors

Did you enjoy your little trip down the aisle?

The fashion show played a lot of 60's British music like the Beatles, the Stones, Spencer Davis Group, etc. It got me thinking to what kind of music I would like for my reception...were I to get married! I came up with my short list and I hope you have been enjoying it. I think the operative word for me would be FUN. What would be on your playlist?