california i'm coming home

teenagers heading into the surf at cayucos beach

i just spent a few days visiting my dad and then my brother's family in california. on the way up the coast i got to visit lori of lori times five!! as i've told many people by now, she is every bit as lovely and genuine as she seems from her blog. lori said that meeting blogging friends in "real" life is a new frontier, and i agree. it's amazing how much we can gauge about one another through cyberspace, and it's fascinating to see how it pans out in reality. well with lori, it panned out great - we could have talked all day and i hope to visit her again sometime soon for some hiking and kayaking in that great blue pacific.


once we got to my brother's, we spent a lot of time drinking good central coast wine, around fires.........

and at mind bogglingly gorgeous vineyards

such as this one

where the grapes were heating up on the vine in the 104 heat wave that hit this area (can you hear the sound of grapes bursting??)

love sipping that crisp white as we looked out over

this
ahhhhhhhh california....

then we headed out for a highschool football game to watch my nephew. just recovering from eye surgery, coach let him quarterback the fourth quarter....

and we were all happy to see him come off the field in good shape at the end -- they won 34 - 12!!
go tigers!!!!

since it was 104 degrees (the santa ana winds were blowing in from the desert, heating things up) what better remedy than head to a friend's beach house to drink beer 

and walk their dog near the sparkling pacific

one night we attended a charity dinner at the madonna inn -- if you've never been to this place, brace yourself for entering a twilight zone of sheer, unadultered kitsch.........

as in the pink dining room. 
did liberace live here or something?

on our last night, my sister and i prepared a birthday dinner for our sister in law, using the ridiculously colorful produce from the farmer's market

there were a couple meals that went uneaten at the charity auction, so we took home the filets, which my talented sister sliced, marinated and turned into a meal fit for a king (or queen, in this case!!) to which we added thai marinated grilled shrimp, orzo pasta (my favorite!), warmed artisan bread and salad with golden raspberries. and of course,
maybe i was drinking a little too much of that great wine when taking this foto? hehe


this -- a madonna inn birthday cake. pink,
naturally.

and speaking of desserts, i liked this sign i saw hanging on a deli wall. 
dessert is much better than stress, wouldn't you agree?

so i'll leave you with this video of joni mitchell singing a favorite song, california. 
that 104 degree day on the beach i found myself alone for a little while, and proceeded to sing this at the top of my lungs to an audience of seagulls, rocks and crashing surf. it was a good house to play. 

this is dedicated to lori, the ultimate california girl, with love.




 it never gets tired, this driving along the california coast. much like watching a 747 take off, you could do it a million times and it will always be exciting, mysterious, and full of wonder. 
that's california to me. 
ocean, mountains, the sun and sky, the scrubby bushes, the yellow fields.
especially the central coast --
there are few places on earth that beautiful.
you always feel as if you are on the edge of something out here.


so as joni says,

I met a redneck on a Grecian isle
Who did the goat dance very well
He gave me back my smile
But he kept my camera to sell
Oh the rogue, the red red rogue
He cooked good omelets and stews
And I might have stayed on with him there
But my heart cried out for you, California
Oh California I'm coming home
Oh make me feel good rock'n roll band
I'm your biggest fan
California, I'm coming home


xo♡a

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