stop, drop, roll

The view from our roof deck ... that's not cloud cover, it's a thick layer of smoke. You can see the clear horizon WAY off in the distance.

And that is the sun, with an eerie orange glow.

smoky the bear

In a nutshell, virtually all of southern California is on fire now, which isn't helping me get rid of the cold-cough I've been battling for over a week now. The Santa Ana winds are so strong they toppled over an entire, full-grown tree on campus last night. So that coupled with the hazy orange glow of the sun makes the campus Quad outside my window look like a scene straight out of Apocalypse Now.

of all the places I have ever lived, chico is the only place I have ever felt at home

Last weekend, I went home to Chico for my sister Molly's birthday. I forced my roommate Diana to come along ... because believe it or not, Chico does have a lot to show off. I can't honestly picture myself ever moving back because a) there aren't a ton of jobs in public-sector PR/marketing b) I like "big-city" life too much. But, it's a great town to grow up in and I always enjoy going home.

My favorites ... Maisie Jane's (the Tamari Almonds are the best), Satava Glass Studio, Plutos, 5th Street Steakhouse, Tacos de Acapulco, Bidwell Park, Chico State, and of course ... Sierra Nevada Brewery. That was the first thing we did when we got into town.

(Molly, Lindsay, Diana)

She even tried the beer sampler!

The next morning we got up and took the dogs to the Tree Farm. If you are an outdoor lover and have dogs, Chico is your town. There are so many places for dogs to walk off-leash, the Tree Park being one of them. Here is Mae, with her stick:

Apparently, Mae doesn't realize she is really a black-lab-runt. She carried that stick, er branch, with her throughout the entire morning.

That night we celebrated Molly's birthday at the Madison Bear Garden (the Bear) and Panamas:

Oh ... and Woodstock's too. Diana was excited to see one because she ate there during her undergrad days at UCSB.

Before we had to hop on a plane the next day, we went for a long hike in Upper Bidwell. It was a perfect fall day - clear views with a light breeze. That's what I like about Chico, it has the parties, drinking, shopping, eating, etc ... but drive two minutes away and you are surrounding by beautiful scenery. The perfect end to a perfect visit.

If you haven't visited Chico, it's worth the trip. I'll even be your tour guide :)

watch out ace of cakes!

Diana and I are both quitting our day jobs and opening a bakery.

We made this cheeseburger cake *from scratch* for Molly's birthday last weekend.

How awesome are we???

thailand revisited

Well, I've been back from Thailand almost a month to the day, and am just getting around to posting my pictures. I tried writing a long-post for each destination, but the pictures take up a lot of space and the formatting is off.

Instead, click on the picture of the three of us in front of a temple in Chiang Rai, and you will directed to our online Picasa album. If you have any questions about what's going on in a certain picture, let me know and I'll fill you in!

home sweet home

After a long and uneventful flight, we arrived home safely at 8:30pm last night. Thanks to the wonders of jet lag, I have been wide awake since 4am. I guess at least I slept through most of the night.

Our last night in Phuket was amazing. Leanna and I had the best massages/body scrubs overlooking the ocean. The only downside ... I sprained my ankle walking (or rather falling) down the spa steps to our room. Didn't stop me from enjoying my last night, but I had a total cankle the next day.

The seafood buffet was so delicious. I had lobster, crab, prawns, and salmon. I even celebrated with a glass of Thai chenin blanc wine that was pretty decent. We woke up the next morning and caught our flight to Singapore and then had about 2 hours for a city tour. The city is absolutely amazing. It's so clean, beautifully landscaped, etc. I definitely want to go back ... and think it's a great trip for someone not quite ready for full-blown Asia as it has a more-Western feel to it. The highlight of the trip was our visit to the famed Raffles hotel. It's even more beautiful in person that in pictures and my only regret is I was not able to sit in the hotel bar and order a Singapore Sling!

My goal today is to unpack and sort through my stuff. Pictures will probably be tomorrow. Oh ... and guess I should get back on the Pacific time table!

i left my heart in phuket

Well ... this is my last post from Thailand :( I just got back from a full-day of snorkeling on a boat in the Andaman Sea. The weather was gorgeous and we laid out, ate good food, and snorkled (Leanna went scuba-diving). Our last night in Chiang Mai was great - went to a local street market, got foot/leg massages and ate more good food!

The next morning we flew to Phuket. Our hotel is absolutely gorgeous ... but Patong (the nearby town) is so gross. It's a total replica of TJ. Bars, vendors, skanky girls, etc. And the shopping is a joke. Yesterday it poured rain all day so we hung at our hotel, walked around town ... and had yet another massage (our fifth of the trip).

We decided to do some packing last night and then actually had a great Italian dinner at our hotel and then went to bed early in anticipation of today's trip. We were all nervous about the rain, but Buddha smiled down on us and there was not a cloud in the sky the entire day. The surrounding islands are breathtaking and the water is crystal blue and warm.

In 30 minute Leanna and I are having a 60-min massage followed by a 30-min body scrub at our hotel's spa on the beach. It's a splurge in Thai baht, but still only $90 each. Then we'll meet up with Crissy for a seafood BBQ on the beach. This has truly been the perfect end to a perfect trip.

We fly out tomorrow morning and while I am sad to leave am ready for home and my own bed. Our layover is Singapore is 4.5 hours so we are fortunate to go on a 2-hour tour of the city ... and the famed Raffles Hotel. That will at least be something to look forward to tomorrow.

I will see some of you soon ... and will post pictures for the rest when I can. I hope you all enjoyed this. Ciao!