33 posts tagged “becky”
Are you a morning person or a night owl?
I hate mornings. If I could sleep until 9am everyday, my quality of life would increase tenfold.
I really wish VOX would allow people who are not registered with the site to comment on blogs. The reason we have this blog is to keep friends and family updated on what's going on with our lives. I have it on good authority that some people have stopped reading because they can't communicate directly with us and really, they don't want to sign up for VOX. I wonder if there are any plans in the future to open comments to all readers and not just registered users? I know it would make me happy, and I imagine a bunch of others as well. If not, I may consider closing down shop and going back to LJ. I'd be sacrificing look and feel for communication capabilities, but if the point of my blog is to communicate with others who I don't necessarily speak to on a regular basis and who aren't on my friends list, that may be the best way.
I grew up eating Mexican food and know a good burrito when I eat one. Today, I'm constantly on the lookout for the perfect burrito. There's often a catch though - a place that makes a good Baja-style fish burrito might not make a killer carnitas burrito, and very rarely do I find a place that has perfect carne asada. Depending on my mood, there are a couple of different taquerias I'll visit or recommend.
1. Taqueria Cancun in the Mission District
2. La Taqueria in the Mission District
3. The unknown named taqueria in the Emeryville public market for its al pastor
4. The little place up by the Claremont whose name currently escapes me
The editors for the San Francisco Chronicle recently put their skills to use and put " ... 85 beloved Bay Area burrito joints to the test."
Taquerias are an indelible part of the Bay Area's food culture. They provide their customers -- blue- and white-collar workers, college students, families of all backgrounds -- with the region's indigenous fast food. They're a near-ubiquitous presence in almost every area, neighborhood and town.
The "Cylindrical God" has since become a worshiped local art form. Two Web sites started in the last year alone -- Burritoeater.com and Burritophile.com -- devote themselves to taquerias' Topic A.
Click on the link above to see the results. I've been to a couple of these places. We got to Cactus
Taqueria a couple times a year (more than 5, less than 10). It's
decent, but great? I dunno. It's reliable and predictable which is
always a good thing, but I never walk out of there saying, "that's the
best damn burrito I've ever had!" Maybe I should give the tacos a try,
since the author specifically calls those out as something he loves
about the restaurant.
I was also surprised to see only a handful of places in
the East or South Bay. Maybe, like so many San Franciscans, he's
afraid of crossing the Bay Bridge or driving down 101?
I'd love to see one of the food critics put together a similar article, but focusing on dim sum.
I read an article earlier today about VC-funded social media sites, which pointed out a company that is specifically devoted to photo blogs - http://www.fotolog.com/. Curious, I went to the site to sign up for one to see how it would look and whether or not I'd want to move my (outdated) photo blog from Live Journal to this new site. Um, that would be a negative. What an awful user-interface! I tried, unsuccessfully, four times to sign up before I gave up. First, it didn't like my email address (apparently, Google's email service is not recognized as being "real"), then it didn't like my username (not enough letters), then it was just having random errors. Finally, I gave up. I can't imagine anyone would ever use that service, let alone recommend it.
Show us a picture of someone that can always makes you laugh.
Share a photo of something that made a huge impact on your life.
Show us your camera smile.
A lot of people know I love taking self portraits of Alan and me. If we're off on one of our weekend trips or a long vacation, there's bound to be at least one, usually multiple. Here's one of my favorites, taken in Oahu at the end of 2005. You can see some of the other ones I like in our photos section to the right.
If you could only save one thing in a house fire (thing, not person), what would it be and why?
Submitted by donnunn.
This is assuming pets are included in the "not person" stipulation, of course.
I used to say it was our wedding photos, but not so much anymore. I definitely think it'd be our wine. I wonder what Alan would say.
Speaking of wine, my new favorite is 2004 J Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley.
The Vineyards
J’s 2004 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir is an elegant composition of wines made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes sourced from our Estate Vineyards as well as from selected growers in the Russian River Valley Appellation.Processing
Our grapes are picked at night or in the cool morning hours to preserve freshness. The fruit is then carefully hand-sorted before de-stemming into a variety of open-top and closed-top fermenters. The must is given 3 days of cold soaking before fermentation is allowed to begin. Malolactic fermentation occurred in both oak tanks and French oak barrels. Our process allows us to craft a wine that is balanced, exhibiting layered complexity of flavors and aromas.Ageing
Malolactic fermentation occurred in oak tanks and French oak barrels. The wine aged for 11 months in French oak barrels, 30% of which were new French oak. A loose filtration process with no fining was employed before bottling.Tasting Notes
The 2004 vintage exhibits the full potential of our vineyards and the unique terroir of our region. The growing season in 2004 was relatively long and warm, with low yields, concentrating fruit flavors in the berries. As you pour the wine, Bing cherry and plum aromas burst forth. Hints of blackberry, violets, wild fennel, spicy cinnamon, and creamy vanilla round out the bouquet. The finish is full, long and silky with coffee, smoked bacon, warm spice and brown sugar notes.Harvest: August 17 - October 1st, 2004
Final Analysis: Alcohol 14.1% by volume
Bottling Date: January 2006
Cases Produced: 20,000
Today after work I went to Longs to buy a bunch of plants to replace ones that we've pulled out and then I came home and planted them all by myself. Some of these plants are out of control. Others are just starting to bloom and really take root. Others did not do well at all. You can tell the people who planted didn't give it much thought since there really isn't any cohesiveness to where certain plants are. The right side is one giant bunch of marigolds, while the left side is somewhat barren. I'm trying to fill in the empty spaces with plants that will grow and flourish in direct sunlight (something that obviously wasn't considered with some of them previously). I've always wanted a flower garden that looked out of control and just overflowing with flowers, and I'm finally starting to get that. I can't wait to see how it all comes together and transforms throughout the year.
What was (or is) your favorite subject in school?
In high school, my favorite class was Interior Design. In college, my favorite classes were The Roaring 20s (literature), Shakespeare on Film, Philosophy of Film, and Art History.
