Yes, you can swim with sharks in the wild.
Last year, when we went down to San Diego to visit our friend (and former bridesmaid) Jamie, she let us know that Leopard Sharks come to La Jolla every year so you can snorkel with them. In the wild. Not in a tank.
Awesome.
And we have committed to going back every year.
So. Since we were 1/2 down there anyway…. (because of Lobsterfest) … we headed on down to San Diego to visit Jamie and Zack and the sharks.
And Andrew and I pretty much …

I love love love pretty much anything mid-century.
Let’s face it. I pretty much wish I was born in 1934 like my grandparents so I could have lived through mid-century America.
I have been waiting my whole life (not an exaggeration) for mid-century style to come back.
I got a new soundtrack on CD the other day — Promises, Promises — and I really love the album design. It’s a musical based on the 1960s movie The Apartment, and so has a delicious mid-century feel.
love love

Add that to … I have been thinking …

Ok, not *technically* the Beatles ….
Although, they DID perform at the Hollywood Bowl (waaay back in 1964-5 I think) …. And recorded an album (The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl)
(video below … blame the poor sound quality on the legions of crazy fans)

Last Saturday, we ALSO saw the Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl – or, rather, a Beatles tribute concert ….
My parents, grandmother and great-aunt all came out from Phoenix for the weekend to attend the Hollywood Bowl. Also along for the ride, my uncle/aunt/kids who live in Santa Clarita …

It’s no big secret that I love musicals.
With all my heart.
Last year I got to go to 2 (TWO) musicals at Pantages — because Julie wanted to go and needed a date, I guess
Then, for Christmas she gave me a gift certificate for the Pantages.
And I hyperventilated a little bit…..
And then strategically planned how I was going to get to see one of my top choices on a weekend (since I work nights) that Andrew could also go.
No small feat, I assure you.

But !!  We did it!
In the …

Another in the series of Top 5 Favorites.
We really like where we live and all the food options around us …. I figured I should narrow it down somehow, so for now just the top 5 favorite restaurants ON Ventura Blvd NEAR us …. Otherwise this list could go on forever….
P.S. When you come visit us we’ll take you to any one of these places.
Top 5 Favorites
My favorite restaurants on Ventura Blvd (in no particular order)

Tomato Patch – Fresh fresh salads, sandwiches and soup. The kind of place where the …

I saw my brother over the weekend.
He quit his job in Meridian, Mississippi to take another job.
He’s got a couple weeks in between jobs and came out to Arizona to see our parents and move out all his belongings.
Why is he moving all his belongings to AZ? To a storage unit?
Because his new job is overseas.

Kevin’s new job is with a small company that holds government contracts.
My little brother is now a government contractor.
For the war in Afghanistan.
Of all things.
Mid-July he goes to Baltimore to train for 4-6 weeks …. …

Sunday Sunday!
Our last day on the cruise …
Once again, the other girls were out until 5a or so, while I went to bed at a reasonable Midnight the night before.
Which means when I woke up, got showered, left, ate breakfast and was out on the pool deck by 9:30a – I was pretty much the only one there …..

Except for the families with little kids. Which, by the way, why on earth would you bring a 6 year old on a party cruise? No idea.
So, Sunday morning was lovely and …

Saturday of our cruise was “in port” in Ensenada, Mexico.
Since many of our fellow cruisers were off the ship, breakfast/pool deck/etc was delightfully un-crowded.
We all got up, ate, and took our sweet time about it …

Getting off the ship, there is a little building *right* away to buy junk souvenirs. Shot glasses, magnets, sun glasses, etc. There’s also a shuttle to take you into town if you don’t want to walk …

The shuttle dropped us off in this dingy run down parking lot/alley … just a couple blocks away from …

Why are “vacations” always so exhausting???
A couple weeks ago, I went on a 3-day cruise with Kaitlin, a bunch of her friends and cousins to celebrate Kaitlin’s bachelorette-ness…
FYI: For those of you who have never been on a cruise, this is NOT what most cruises are like. Every other cruise, no matter the cruise line, has a much older clientele, stops at ports and serves as an actual vacation. Not a 3-day-party-on-a-ship. I made Heather and Nichole both promise they’d go on a *real* cruise someday …

The Lido deck (deck …

In roughly chronological order …

The digital images to come ….

I lived in Santa Clarita for something like 16 or 17 years and I never ever went to the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival (formerly the ‘Cowboy Poetry Festival’) …. but as soon as we move to Encino, there we were. back in SCV!
Every April for a full weekend the city of Santa Clarita puts on their Cowboy Festival.
It reminded me of the Renaissance Faire … but for the ‘old west’ ….
For the last decade or so, the festival has been held at Melody Ranch, an old movie studio deep in …

On our way home from San Simeon, we stopped by Morro Bay …
It was a bit windy.

After driving around the town a bit, we stopped by a little hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant for lunch. It’s always weird choosing places like that. But it was SUPER busy, so how bad could it be? We got it to go and walked down to the bay ….
Where it was even more windy. And cold.
So it was kind of nice to have warm enchiladas to eat ….
the birds left us alone, so that was nice. …

Before we leave San Simeon for the foreseeable future ….. Just a glimpse at the San Simeon Lodge where we stayed (and where you should stay when you go to visit Hearst Castle).
This is the hotel that is *closest* to the edge of the Hearst land …. This is the hotel that is recommended by one of my favorite travel books (Road Trip USA by Jamie Jensen). …. This hotel is all 1 room wide, so every room has a courtyard view…. (and inexpensive)
love love

Can’t wait to go back!!!!!!

Finishing up our tour on Saturday morning of Hearst Castle ….
As we left we kitchen …. we exited the house (that word is used very loosely) into this little outdoor niche …. with more walls not quite finished …

Julia Morgan‘s little lean-to outside the house where she worked. It was supposed to be temporary … and then something like 20 years later she’s still working out of this little hole.

And then 1 final stop at the indoor pool …

(sad how the ceiling is rotting a bit)

So. How did you like …