Musings

The joy that I felt last year is returning. I am trying to analyze it a bit. One thing I realized is that the flavor of this area is different---maybe it's related to the climate, maybe because it's a big city, but there is so much going on! And people get out and do things, not just young people, not just couples, not just "hip' people. I was experiencing this the day we played golf, the movie and then went to the book talk later. There were many people at all these activities, and all kinds of people. I realized when I was out here alone last year, that that is not an anomaly, there are many people doing things alone, and people of all ages. It's like people embrace activity, are curious about life, and used to going out and doing things. I think the climate has something to do with this, but there is a similar flavor up north in Michigan, though not the same degree. Individualism is the norm, and there is acceptance of it. There seems to be less emphasis on appearance, in all it's aspects, and more acceptance of being different, or being your own person. I feel so comfortable with that, as one who has never quite felt that I fit into any group. I don't know if I can word that right, but I think that is part of my feeling of comfort here.
Pat

We waited 4 years to return to Elko and then our only calamity

Oh dear, this will be out of order from our trip, but as I (Pat) am food obsessed, I have to add this.

On the trip from Salt Lake City to Reno we stopped at Elko, Nevada for breakfast.   This has a history for us.  When we drove this journey 4 years ago, we ended up by chance at this restaurant that was the best omelet and breakfast I have ever eaten.  And I am not a breakfast person, so this really was good!  I have thought about this place for years, and was looking forward to returning there on this trip.  Dan of course kept preparing me for the possibility of it not working out, and I of course was determined for it to work out!  (typical of us!)   Of course, we couldn't remember the name of it, only some of the details of where it was and what it looked like inside.    Well, Dan thought he spotted it,  I was very skeptical and unsure that he was right, until I saw the menu, and then Yes! it was the same place!

The omelet was as good as I remembered:  fresh delicate eggs, fresh slices of avocado, crisp bacon, good white cheddar cheese, and slices of hot pepper.   And the biscuits--ummm, homemade, flaky, warm.   

We didn't take any pictures, we were too hungry to think about it since we'd not eaten since we'd left Salt Lake City.  But we did buy a coffee mug!  The name of the place is "The Coffee Mug."     A treasure!

But here's the calamity, the only calamity on the trip out here----the mug broke, as you can see as we completed our travels.     Oh, woe is me!  (but valentine's day is coming, hint, hint, hint to Dan)

Pat

It sometimes rains in Northern California or the new restaurant new chef new food critics.

Well we have had some rain, and it looks like we'll be getting some more. The locals are happy as the area is in a drought and the last time it rained was last February, but it creates a challenge for us. Nevertheless it is not zero, or below zero (that's farenheit) and we are in California. Yesterday we went up to Napa, and had a late lunch at the Napa Grill. It was very nice, though not on the scale of Bouchon's or the French Laundry. We played with the camera a little and shot this short video. Maybe we'll do that a little more. The restaurant had been closed for a month so they could replace the roof, so everything was a little new and disorganized, but very high quality.   They also had a new chef, who delivered our food.   You can see the starter course in the above video.   Pat also had the mini kobe burger, a spring salad, and celery root soup.   Dan had the harvest platter (above) which was quite interesting.  It had coppa ham, salmon tartare, creme fraiche, raisons-on-the-vine, whole grain mustard, marinated olives, fresh honey comb, air cured beef, petit basque, cypress grove's "humboldt fog" and "la caseria" blue cheeses.   The cheeses were excellent, and I record their names so I can remember, and suggest you all try them.

In the morning we searched for the local YMCA to see if there were possibilities there for working out, and found that it was located at Hamilton Field, the former Hamilton Air Force Base. They let us take out a two month membership, so that should be good. They have developed the base very nicely, turning the hangers into businesses and offices. They have also built some new subdivisions and converted some of the old military buildings to housing. Disney has a production location and there are other businesses there. It is pretty cool.

Other than that we have been getting ourselves organized, walking in the neighborhood, and exploring the area. Last night we went to an authors thing at Book Passage in Corte Madera. It was an event Marin read, where everyone in Marin is supposed to read the same book. The event was crowded, so we watched the author on a TV in the coffee shop, It wasn't a good set up so we left. The place was filled with librarians (not that there is anything wrong with librarians, some of my best friends are librarians). The book they are reading is "What is the What" by Dave Eggers. It is about the lost boys of the Sudan. Might be interesting to read.

Dan

giggles, great soup, Salt Flats, Casinos, and our Destination!

Since we are here for a long time, we won't be blogging everyday, but will consolidate this on-line diary.

How many of you guessed why the eggs weren't hard boiled? You have to guess, I won't answer it yet!

Anyway, we had a great last night in Salt Lake City, on Saturday night. We babysat for Isaac while Matt and Rachel worked, and had so much fun with him! The picture is of Rachel coloring with Isaac He is sitting on a Pampers Box, since he doesn't have a chair yet, and was having so much fun with his mommy.

We then let her get some work done. We got him giggling, which made us giggle and love him so much. He came over to both of us for special attention, but he has his own subtle way of doing it, just sort of positions himself in front of us to be tickled or picked up, and smiles happily.

Matt made us dinner later on, a really great squash soup with cheese croutons. It was truly excellent. We bought the wine and the dessert.

We left very early sunday, and made sure we had gas in our car for the drive across the dreaded "Bonneville Salt Flats." The last time we drove this 77 miles of nothingness, we were practically on empty, as the last gas station beforehand was out of power. I included a picture of this land, as it is unique. Although there are foothills in the distance, it is just flat, flat land. This time of year we noticed it was sort of brownish, with some flat lake beds along the way, but other times, it's been miles of white nothingness. yes, it IS salt, and there are salt processing plants, I guess you'd call them, along the way.

We then got into Reno, made great time. We stayed at The Grand Sierra Casino. It's a new place, and really, really beautiful. The room rate was $49! (plus $20 for the dog, but they take dogs, which is great). It was really fun, as we watched the Super Bowl down in the sports bar room with many others, who were quite loud in their cheering. A fun place to watch it!

The next day, we drove into Ca., and to our condo in Novato. We spent the day unpacking and organizing, and shopping for food, etc. Today is Tuesday, Feb. 3rd, and we are still getting settled. We had to wait for our golf clubs most of the day, but we continued to organize. I went to Jazzerize tonight, which felt good and familiar, seeing some of the gals I remembered.

I walked Gus to get the paper this morning, and again, it was good and familiar. It feels oddly familiar and homelike. Dan is settling in, I will let him talk for himself. He really likes the condo, as this is up on a hill with the Pacheco Open Space Preserve out the back. We saw deer today, in our yard. No turkeys yet, though, I miss them! Pat.

Last night I woke up at my regular time 3 am, to go to the bath room and noticed the outside lights go on (motion detector), and there was a large buck deer in the back of the condo. It was eerie but very cool. They are mule deer, and their racks are different than white tails, but he was at least a six pointer. Tbe good part about this location, is the location. We are close to San Francisco, Napa and Sonoma. The condo is bordered by open space. I sat on the deck and smoked a cigar tonight and did enjoy the setting. There is sprawl around here, and some of it is pretty bad sprawl, but there are also some good things. We found a very good Chinese restaurant and we are near all the things that seem necessary these days such as Costco, Petco, Bevmo, and other stores that end in O. No mo for tonight.

Dan

we are back on, but it's time for quiz

O.k., we are finally in Novato! We will catch up with the rest of the journey shortly, but we just got internet access, so we have to download pictures and catch our breath. Plus, we've been waiting all day for our golf clubs to arrive from Fed Ex, and as I began to write this, they came. Now, we wanna get outta here and explore the area, and do errands.

So, just to keep you interested, if you aren't already bored, here's a quiz!

I had forgotten to mention this earlier, the day we ate lunch near Park City: part of our lunch were some hard boiled eggs we had made when we were in Estes Park. Dan made them, made them the "Martha Stewart method" of boiling the water first, then putting in the eggs, and letting them sit 10 minutes after they return to the boil. he is quite proud that he has always used this method, and was quite diligent about the timing. Anyway, as we peeled the eggs, we quickly saw they were NOT HARD BOILED, but were instead, soft as could be. Dan realized why later that day. Do any of you know? Please let us know your guesses!