casacaudill

SOME (OK, A LOT OF) THOUGHTS ON HAWAII

2012-02-24T14:56:00.001-08:00

Because we visit the Hawaiian islands every year, I'm often asked which one is my favorite. For the first couple of years Maui was my answer. Looking back I think a lot of that reaction was tied to the fact that it was the first island we visited together and there was a lot of sentimentality associated with it because it's where we got married.

After this third trip there, however, I think I'm ready to admit to myself - and the world - that while Maui is a truly beautiful place in the world, and it will always hold a special place in my heart, it's not my favorite of the Hawaiian islands.

Right now it's a toss up between Kauai and the Big Island, with Kauai maybe in the lead. Funny too because the first time we went to Kauai, I'm sad to admit we didn't have a great time.

No one had told us that it rains - a lot - in February in Kauai. We had maybe 2 days of sunshine in the full week we were there and we spent a lot of time in the car driving to parts of the island that were supposed to be sunny and dry. Apparently, contrary to many blogs and travel books, it does rain in Poipu (although maybe that's only when we're there and I'm ready to cry). On that trip we also stayed in an outdated condo that was advertised as having a lot more amenities than it had in reality. Adding to this, our particular condo overlooked a parking lot that backed up to a dirt field which was bad enough in and of itself. This problem was exacerbated when we found out that the dirt field doubled as a motorcycle race track for locals several times a week. Racing started at 7 a.m. and went until after sunset, so not only was our view terrible, but we had nowhere we could really just relax since we were constantly hearing engines whirring by, while racers screamed at/for each other. And the roosters? Oh my god the roosters. When people say that Kauai is overrun with them they are not kidding. Consider yourselves warned. When we got home I said I was done with Kauai.

A few years later - 2008, actually - I decided to give the island another shot, this time visiting at the end of summer. Our experience was like night and day. Our condo was located on a beautiful property with a view of the pool and ocean, the onsite restaurant served a fantastic dinner our first night there, and the weather was near perfection every single day. Yes, the roosters were still there but suddenly they didn't seem so terrible. We had such a fantastic time that trip that we returned in May 2010, this time staying up on the north shore in Princeville. Our condo didn't have quite as lovely a view as the previous one, but the location was perfect for exploring all of the wonderful sights located up north, including Tunnels Beach, Anini Beach, Ke'e Beach, Secret Beach, and Hanalei Bay - one of my favorite beaches in all of the islands. Princeville doesn't have the lush, wild & rugged look the rest of the north shore has because it's an upscale golf community, but that also means that it has great access to food and groceries. We went shopping so many times at the local Foodland so that we could grill dinner overlooking the ocean and the sunset from the property's cliff top location. Kauai has become one of my favorite islands and one that I'm definitely looking forward to visiting again and again throughout the coming years.

The Big Island is another of our favorites, and I think a lot of that has to do with the wide range of activities available for visitors, paired with the accommodations we've stayed in each time. We first visited in 2002 following our wedding in Maui away from our friends & family for a four-day honeymoon. On that trip we drove to Waimea Valley, cruised over to Hilo for a helicopter tour of the volcano (it wasn't spewing during that particular time), and spent the day at the resort's pool. It was a very quick trip that left us with an interest in wanting to visit again, but for whatever reason we didn't make it back there until 2009, when we traded our timeshare for a condo for five nights down in Keauhou. We had an absolutely fabulous time on this trip - aside from my abscess tooth and emergency root canal upon returning - and it left us definitely wanting to return someday soon. We stayed at the Holua Resort at Mauna Loa Village which is pretty much the last condo complex (not a resort as the name would imply) down in this area. I was really impressed by how lush the landscaping was, and while it was somewhat removed from all of "the action" it was still a very convenient location for exploring the Kona and Kohala coasts. We also liked that with the exception of the last day, most of the guests were adult couples.

The Big Island is a hard one for people to grasp at first glance. You have the large city of Hilo, which isn't really a vacation destination itself. There is the volcano area, which you can stay if you choose, but is more of a long day trip for travelers as most people choose to stay on the other side of the island around the major resort areas. Kona is a cute little touristy town that has a lot of oceanside condo complexes. Each time we've been there it's been quite green and lush, and a little further south up in the hills is where all the coffee plantations are located.. The Kohala Coast is where all the major resort areas are, and it is DRY. In fact, you have to drive through miles upon miles of barren lava fields to reach the resorts, but once you do you're in for a beautiful location. We stayed in a condo up there we rented via VRBO last March for our 9th wedding anniversary. While in Hawaii, we've swam with manta rays, hiked the Kilaua Iki trail, snorkeled with more fish & turtles than you can imagine, kayaked the Kohala Ditch trail, an area most tourists don't take time to visit, sampled fresh Kona coffee, watched the sunset from atop the 13,000 foot Mauna Kea mountain, and experienced an actual tsunami.

We've also visited Oahu a few times and I'm torn. I think the fact of the matter is I don't much like Waikiki, but I really love the rest of the island. Unfortunately, there aren't many condos you can trade into on the rest of the island so we end up using Waikiki as our home base and take many day trips to other parts. This would be fine, I think, but I don't really love the actual condo complex that is part of our timeshare group as it's actually a pretty far walk from the best part of Waikiki. We first stayed here with my sister and her husband when she was pregnant with Nora, and we returned to Honolulu back in August 2007 for my 30th birthday, cashing in points to get a free flight to the island and using Hotwire to stay at a hotel near our condo. The hotel wasn't great either (especially as we felt it pretty much was tailored only to Japanese tourists) although all of the rooms do have a spectacular view of the marina, and I thought the location on Hotwire was incredibly misleading, which put a bit of a damper on the trip because I probably would have picked a different place closer to the core of Waikiki, but what's done is long done.

With my sister and brother-in-law we went snorkeling (unsuccessfully) at Hanauma Bay, spent a wonderful afternoon at my other favorite beach in Hawaii, Lanikai Beach, and visited the worst luau known to man at the Polynesian Cultural Center. It was so bad - from the size, to the entertainment, to the food, that we actually left early. I felt so bad for having subjected Jenny and Sean to that after we'd had such a lovely time at the Old Lahaina Luau for our wedding just a five years earlier.

When we visited again in 2007, we were extremely surprised to find that the North Shore beaches were incredibly lovely in the summer. In case you don't know, during the winter, that area of the island is world famous for its giant swells and major waves, and Sunset Beach and Waimea Bay are major surf capitals of the world at that time of year. It's funny - looking at my pictures of all of our Hawaii trips I usually have about 150 per album, but our last trip to Oahu only has 80 pictures in total. While I tend to use my Flickr albums to measure how active (or good) a trip is, my memories of that trip are much better than the photographic evidence would suggest. While there we "hiked" to the LOST waterfall where we spent an hour or so swimming, swam in Waimea Bay, circled the island by car, stopped at Lanikai again, went ATV riding on a ranch where a lot of movies and TV shows are filmed, and on our last day we spent an afternoon at Waikiki Beach where Alan first learned to surf.

I'm in the process of trying to figure out where to go for our end-of-summer vacation and am leaning heavily toward either Kauai or Oahu. Where we can use our timeshare is going to be a big factor in this decision, but I think we would have a great time at either one. And our trip to Maui, staying at the Kea Lani, reinforced for me that for us, when it comes to a great time in Hawaii, it's not necessarily about luxury accommodations or resort amenities. Our best trips have been when we have comfortable lodgings with full kitchen facilities, and the ability to explore and wander the island, without having to worry about whether or not we're dressed well enough to not look shabby next to the rest of the guests. Because really, I don't know if I'm any happier in Hawaii after a long day snorkeling, my hair a mess of sand and saltwater from various ocean adventures, capped off by a drive in the car with the top down, finishing the night cooking fresh fish on the grill while we drink local beer. That's the good life.

MAUI - DAY 5 & 6

2012-02-22T16:28:00.000-08:00

With the exception of breakfast and a walk to our wedding site and then down to the beach before heading to the airport to catch our plane, this day was pretty much our last day in Maui. Before leaving on the trip, we had talked about what activities we wanted to do while on vacation. A couple of times Alan's talked about learning to stand-up paddle board, so that was an option. And then we started talking about surfing.

Now, for me to even contemplate trying surfing is a big deal. Back in 1993 when I was a wee thing living in Southern California I told my parents I was going to the lake or something for the day. That had been our intention but instead all of us decided to drive down to Huntington Beach. And then we decided to surf. Some people in the group knew what they were doing. Some people thought they could teach me what to do. On my first attempt I was dumped by what I consider a "giant wave" and then I was smacked in the head with a heavy ass surfboard and then tumbled in the water. I had no idea which way was up and it wasn't until I rolled onto shore that I knew I'd live. Since then I've been somewhat terrified of waves that are taller than me and surfing. That said, it's been 19 years since that fateful day and I was determined to conquer my fear and join Alan in this activity.

(If you follow me on Twitter you know this did not end well for me. See how happy I look in the "before" picture? Ha!)

We booked a semi-private lesson via our hotel concierge via Maui Beach Boys (which I didn't really love). Pretty much all the surfing lessons in south Maui take place at Kalama Beach Park, which I've since found is described as follows: "A park you go to for an event or the wide selection of public facilities, not swimming and sunbathing." There is a reason for this. You see, the whole ocean floor is covered in rocks and coral. The waves here are great for beginning surfers but those rocks? Yeah, when you (repeatedly) fall off your surfboard bad things happen. In my case, you smack the following body parts against said rocks: knee, right hip, face. While you're down bemoaning the pain of your hip hitting a rock, your surfboard somehow manages to float just above your head so actually coming up out of the water is darn near impossible. Then, on your final run you smack your knee so hard against all that rock and coral that it's bleeding and immediately swollen. It's so painful that you don't actually have the strength to lift yourself into standing position on the board even though you've finally figured out the whole balance thing. So then you end up having to get towed back in, having never actually gotten to surf and even though the company has a money back guarantee no one ever actually offers to give us back any money even though I'm bruised, bleeding, and didn't really surf. Thankfully for my pride I wasn't the only person that required first aid after exiting the water. There were a handful of us sitting on the chairs with bloody knees and hands being tended to.

Afterwards, exhausted, defeated, and starving, we walked across the street to Kihei Caffe for another moco loco. After an hour in the water, fighting to just stand upright, that big old plate of rice and beef and eggy goodness was just what the doctor ordered.

After lunch we went back to the hotel to play at the beach, finally go in the pool, and just hang out for the rest of the day. We had a beautiful sunset from the lanai, and then a fabulous dinner at Nick's Fishmarket.

Aloha!

BED LOVE

2012-02-22T10:44:00.000-08:00

I'm kind of in love with the Atwood Bed from Crate & Barrel.

So impractical for our current house, but there's something so lovely about it, no?

MAUI - DAY 4

2012-02-21T23:07:00.007-08:00

Our 10th wedding anniversary.

The only real plan we had for the day was to head up to Lahaina for the Old Lahaina Luau, which is where we went with our wedding guests the night of our wedding. For the rest of the day, we were free to hang out and just relax.

On our way to the luau we stopped in the center of town so that Alan could visit his favorite tree in the world, the giant banyan that sits in the courthouse square.

Since we first went to the Old Lahaina Luau, we've been to a couple others and haven't enjoyed them nearly as much. In fact, if you're thinking of going to the luau at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Oahu, I would encourage you not to. It's sooo cheesy, and it's huge. There is nothing intimate or lovely about it at all. We disliked it so much we left early. But this luau? Just lovely. And the food is pretty darn good too, which is hard to find with luau food. And the sunset was just spectacular! We didn't glimpse any whales breaching this time off shore, but the experience was one I'm definitely glad we chose to repeat.

MAUI - DAY 3

2012-02-21T22:47:00.001-08:00

One of the things we like most about staying in condos is the ability to put together a really great breakfast. For us this usually includes coffee, pogmosas, toasted bagels, and juicy rip tomatoes. Because we were in a hotel room breakfast was a bit trickier this time around so on the days we didn't just make do with papaya, we had to seek alternate means of sustenance. One of the places we visited was Kihei Caffe, and boy am I glad we did because I loved the loco moco there.

And I wonder why I gained seven pounds in six days!

We were thinking of going snorkeling so we drove back down to South Maui, passing the Ahini Kinau Reserve area when there was no parking and a lot of people. We knew we probably wouldn't be able to snorkel at La Perouse Bay but we decided to drive down there anyhow to see what it looked like. We both remember taking our Jeep offroad 10 years ago, but now there's a paved road that dead ends into a parking lot. We got out and decided to walk over to a beach we saw off in the distance. Unfortunately it was windy as heck so after making it to the first beach area we turned around and walked back.

Since we went through the trouble of buying a cooler and beach chairs we decided to make use of them again by hanging out for awhile at Makena Cova. Couples that have planned a wedding in Maui will likely recognize this area as Secret Cove as you'd likely drive right past it if you didn't know it was there, making it a good location for a public beach wedding ceremony. In fact, as we were getting ready to leave the bride, groom, friends & family for a wedding were just showing up.

The water here was a bit scary and choppy so we really couldn't get in the water. That said, we got some excellent turtle viewing in as there were a couple swimming in the shallow waters, munching on some algae. You can see the people in the picture above trying to catch another glimpse of the honu. After about an hour or so the winds kicked up something fierce, throwing sand in our drinks and in our faces. We decided to pack up and head back to the resort where at least we'd have the protection of an umbrella.

We also had some excellent hono spotting at the far end of Polo Beach before sunset.

Rather than going out we had dinner at the resort at Koi - it was phenomenal! So glad we decided to stick close to "home" for this trip instead of traipsing all over Maui trying to find some food.

As we were sitting in a hammock after dinner these two little boys ran up to the hammock and ... well ... I'm not sure. I think the one kid was going to jump on it, but didn't because the other kid actually ran into it. I swear he could have decapitated himself. And strangely, they kind of hung around afterwards. I'm not sure if they expected us to get off the hammock or what, but they were just walking around us jabbering about who knows what. Their parents came down the path behind them and I think the dad was slightly embarrassed to see that there were people in the hammock that his kids were hovering around, but the kids had no shame. I have nieces and nephews - and obviously I was a kid once upon a time - so I'm somewhat familiar with how children behave and these kids just seemed ... weird. We tried to tell them goodbye, and give them verbal clues that their hovering wasn't all that cool, but they totally didn't pick up on the signals. Their dad finally called them away and they kept on walking. The whole time I was wondering how long they would have hung around.

Interestingly enough, for the rest of the trip we saw a bunch of little boys using the hammock as some sort of swing contraption. They'd hold on as tight as they could while others swung them in the hopes of flipping them over. The goal was to be able to hold on while upside down, facing the ground. I'm going to guess these two little boys were part of that group because they clearly wanted that damn hammock. Kids are so weird. A full resort with a glorious pool and beautiful ocean, and they spend hours obsessed with a hammock. Huh.

Before going to sleep we watched our wedding DVD that I remembered to grab as we were walking out the door to our flight. I don't know who those two people were - they were babies! Alan says I look exactly the same. To me he looks exactly the same. And yet, not. It was so awesome to see my college best friend recite e.e. cummings' "i carry your heart" nearly from memory, laugh when the officiant tried to make me cry, huff a bit when said officiant went off script and started talking about rose gardens, repeatedly. Good times. Good times indeed.

MAUI - DAY 2

2012-02-20T22:12:00.004-08:00

On our second day in Maui we woke up well before sunrise to head a couple of miles down the road to Makena Beach Resort for a sunrise snorkel cruise to Molokini on the Kai Kanani. For those that don't know, Molokini is one of the premier dive & snorkel spots in all of the Hawaiian islands.

A natural shelter, teeming with life, Molokini Crater is a largely submerged volcanic cinder cone that lies three miles off of the South shore of Maui and rises about 160 feet above sea level. This volcanic cone was active about 230,000 years ago (give or take 90,000 years) according to measurements from lava fragments within the cone. Half of the Molokini Crater rim has eroded away, causing the floor of the crater to fill with water, leaving a crescent moon islet and a sheltered coral reef. The walls of the crater provide a natural nesting place for sea birds, and was declared a marine preserve by the State Marine Life Conservations District in 1977. Famous for its amazingly clear waters, excellent visibility and designated a protected marine sanctuary, this offshore wonder is home to over 250 species of colorful reef fish, some of which are endemic to Hawaii.

Before we left for Hawaii I replaced my old underwater Olympus with a new version since mine died after our last trip to Kauai. Unfortunately the menu was just different enough that I didn't quite get the hang of the various underwater settings until the second half of our trip, so the first few pictures have a really weird pink color cast to them. I have no idea what I did, or how I did it differently afterwards, but it is what it is.

The second stop on the tour was a spot called Five Graves (or Five Fingers, depending on who you ask), which is well known as a resting spot for turtles. The water here was colder, but the coral formations were more interesting in my opinion. Unfortunately, while I was out in the water I didn't see any turtles. I started to get GERD from an early morning combo of Excedrin, coffee, and banana nut muffin so I had to make my way back to boat. Too bad too because Alan got to swim with a few turtles while he was out there.

I had been told the day before we wouldn't be able to check into our new room until 4 p.m. so we decided to drive up to West Maui for lunch at Aloha Mix Plate, and some snorkeling at Napili Bay. We had plans to hit up Kapalua Bay as well but it took a lot longer to get up there than we initially thought it would, and we were pretty tired from our pre-dawn wakeup call, so we decided to stick with the one beach. While we had a great time at Napili the last time we were there, the water was a bit rougher than last time, and we had a hard time finding a spot that was somewhat shaded that wasn't on a crazy slope. We didn't remember the beach being at such an incline, but apparently it is. We stayed for about an hour, arriving back to Wailea around 4 p.m.

Back at the hotel, much to my chagrin, the front desk attendant (one of the ones from the day before) was one of the ones we spoke with the day before. She remembered us as well and took the opportunity to get in another snide jab about us moving rooms. I also found out that the room had been ready that morning around 10 a.m. Her snarky attitude, however, was quickly forgotten when I saw the view we'd found ourselves with.

We wasted practically a day of our vacation, which I'm incredibly sad about, but in the end, having this room made the rest of the trip so much better. Watching the whales from the lanai was a great treat - something we would never have been able to do from our rock wall room.

Once we got settled into the room we went down to the beach for awhile to read and watch the sunset. While there we watched a couple getting married on Polo Beach, about ten yards from where we were sitting. It brought back a ton of memories of our own wedding. I've convinced Alan that we'll do a vow renewal in Hawaii for our 25th anniversary. Fifteen years to go!

Even though it was Valentine's Day we had no grand plans for the evening. Rather than trying to get in to one of the area restaurants we drove to Safeway and stocked up on poke, sushi, beer, and other sundries for the rest of the trip. We finished the night eating al fresco overlooking the pool from our lanai. It was probably one of my favorite Valentine's Day dinners ever.

I'd like to say I slept soundly that night but that'd be a lie. You see, the hotel was hosting a couple of weddings and corporate offsites and the attendees for these events either couldn't read the pool rules (closes at 10 p.m.) or they chose not to adhere to the rules. Unfortunately, the hotel failed to enforce these rules either, so until 2:30 a.m. a group of a-holes were in the jacuzzi directly below our room drinking and screaming and laughing and carousing. While I had hoped to be able to fall asleep to the sound of the waves below, I had to close the doors and turn on the AC in hopes of getting any sleep.

The way the guests of these corporate offsites took over the hotel, and the complete lack of respect they had for other guests, is one of the reasons why I'm not sure a big resort like this is for us. Obviously because these groups are bringing in much more revenue for the hotel than we - or guests like us - were, I'm pretty sure no one thought it was a good idea to try to enforce noise rules or encourage these rowdy guests to adhere to any sort of standard of common courtesy. All's well that ends well however: I started reading a new book series that I promptly fell in love with and the extra hours I had of wakefulness helped me get further in the series. Yeah, I'm looking for the silver lining here.

MAUI RECAP - DAY 1

2012-02-20T19:02:00.005-08:00

As you all know by know, we spent the last six days in Maui celebrating our tenth wedding anniversary. Because this was our third time back to Maui we spent a lot more time relaxing at the resort than sight seeing and exploring. It made for an incredibly relaxing trip, although it was not without its problems.

We flew Alaska Airlines direct from Oakland to Maui and I have nothing but good things to say about this airline and this flight. I don't know if you could ever convince me to fly anyone else to the islands after our last two flights with them.

We returned to the Fairmont Kea Lani - where we had been married - and I'm somewhat torn on this decision for a couple of reasons. Obviously this place has a lot of sentimental value for us, and it's undoubtedly a beautiful resort, but there were things about our stay that were somewhat frustrating. To start, I'm not sure - for us - it's the best value (obviously a five star resort is never going to be a good deal, so I'm using the term "value" to encompass a whole lot of intangibles that I'll discuss further on).

Whereas we normally go to Hawaii for a week, we reduced our trip to five nights because of the cost differential between the resort and our usual condo rental. The last time we were in Maui five years ago we rented an ocean view condo up in Kapalua for $289/night. It was, up to that point, the most amazing view we'd ever had so aside from the somewhat nasty weather on the west side of the island it was a wonderful place for us to stay. I could watch whales breaching from the bed - seriously. On subsequent trips back to Hawaii we typically use our timeshare to book nice, but not luxurious, one bedroom condos that come out to about $800/week with our yearly dues.

For this trip we booked a package trip (air, car, and hotel) via Expedia for $3495 because it seemed like a good deal. In hindsight I think if I was planning the trip again I'd book everything separately because I'm not sure it actually saved us all that much money (despite what Expedia will tell you). Also, when dealing with people at the front desk, it was very clear we were treated differently than if we had booked through the hotel directly as a few people mentioned that we booked through Expedia. In fact, our check-in paperwork very clearly called out that we booked through Expedia. I think this is why our first room, despite paying more to upgrade to a better view when I initially booked online, was pretty unacceptable. We were supposed to have a view of the resort grounds but not the ocean. What we got was actually the wall of the condos next door, and a driveway for the service carts to use to go down to the bottom of the resort. Buggies were driving by every two or three minutes. No privacy, and no view. For $400 a night, I don't think so.

We complained, mentioned our Fairmont President's Club status, and were told they had a couple of rooms on the other side of the resort. We asked about view and proximity to the ongoing construction (which I had been told when we booked last year would be completed by 2012 but is still ongoing through the end of April). We were told that there was a room available that had a view of the resort grounds, but that you could see the construction but weren't actually near it. We decided to check it out and everything seemed fine. What we didn't realize - because it was during a lunch break - is that the room next door was being completely remodeled. When we moved over there we were immediately assaulted with the sounds of heavy construction. It sounded like our room was giving birth to a demon. You could actually feel the walls vibrating. I wanted to cry.

We went back to the front desk and the lady working there was kind of a bitch about it. Yes, we were being somewhat high maintenance, but we were also being treated unfairly I thought. I got the impression - more than once - that the staff there thought they could shove us in a crap room and we'd be so grateful because we were just happy to be there. Don't get me wrong, I was happy to be there. But I'm NOT a Motel 6 kind of gal and I don't expect to be treated like one. Not to sound like an uppity bitch, but I've stayed at Ashford Castle for crying out loud, paid less, and was treated much better for the experience. So, the lady we talked to said she needed to talk to someone else and we should have a seat. After a couple of minutes we spoke with an Assistant Manager and he told us he'd put us back in our original room and that he'd upgrade us to a better room the following day. At that point, I didn't even care about the upgrade. I just wanted to get away from the demon construction, but I was thrilled that he was willing to give us a room with a view.

By thistime it was already the late afternoon so we'd pretty much lost the first daydealing with room changes and snotty attitudes from front desk staff.Truthfully, I don't even remember if we got any beach time in that first day.There are no beach pictures on my camera, which is odd for me. I feel like wegot maybe an hour or so in before going back to the room to change before walking down to the beach for sunset, and then along the 1.5 mile Wailea Beach Path over to the Shops at Wailea for some shopping and dinner.

So the resort itself is stunning. Just gorgeous. From the lobby, to the rooms (suites) themselves, to the restaurants, the pools, and beaches, everything is what you'd expect from a top-of-the-line beach resort. We visited several beaches during our trip, and the beach fronting the resort, Polo Beach, was among my favorite on Maui this time. The sand is powder fine and the waves are big enough to be fun, but not so large as to be intimidating (except for one day when we had abnormally high surf along the southern coast). Having not stayed at any of the other resorts in Wailea I don't know if it's better than some of the others. What I can tell you is that if we go back to Maui I'm not sure we'd ever stay there again, which is really sad because I wanted to love it - and a lot of it I did - but after this trip I'm just not sure a big resort is for us and I'm not sure the cost matches the value for how we like to vacation.

TEN YEARS

2012-02-16T15:50:00.001-08:00

Ten years ago today Alan and I got married in Maui. Today we're sitting at the same hotel, getting ready to visit the same luau we went to that evening. It's been a wonderful life together and I can't imagine sharing it with anyone else.

Happy anniversary to us!

STATUS UPDATE

2012-02-09T18:58:00.000-08:00

In a few days, I'll be here.

But right now I'm here.

I've been on Twitter a lot lately because if I don't vent somewhere, my computer will be tossed from a moving vehicle which might get me fired. Keep your fingers crossed that I don't go agro in the next few days.

KELLY CLARKSON!

2012-02-06T10:06:00.001-08:00

This is why if I ever decided to bombard you with streaming music on the blog, my first choice would be Kelly Clarkson.

She is flawless.

MY BLOG PROMISE TO YOU

2012-02-05T18:14:00.000-08:00

After going through Google Reader and unsubscribing from about 25 different blogs that at one time I must have loved, I've realized there are a lot of things I really don't like about blogs that either try to go big time or are big time. Because I don't like these things, I imagine there are a lot of you out there that don't like these things either.

So here is my promise to you:

I will never add music to my blog so that when you open a window on your browser you're assaulted by what I think are awesome tunes (but if I ever lost my mind and one day decided to do this any way it'd likely be Kelly Clarkson or Florence & the Machine, just so you know).
I will never have ads on this blog. The only thing I will try to sell you is my husband's free iPhone app.
Along those lines, I will never pimp out my sponsors ... unless at some point I actually do something that warrants sponsoring. Like humanitarian work. You know, things that matter.
I will not inundate you with products that I've only used because some PR person convinced me that my readers absolutely need to know about said product. Remember, I come from a PR background - I know the tricks. If I'm telling you about a product I love, it's because I use it and I really, really, really love it. Not because some company wants me to.
I will not have more giveaways than content because it drives traffic to my blog. In fact, just so we're all aware right here and now, I'll never give you anything.
I will not fancy myself a photographer and post photography tutorials with pictures that are largely out of focus.

I'm sure there are a hundred other things that bugged me about these blogs, but you get the point. I realize that some people take blogging a whole lot more seriously than I do, but I just can't imagine they have deluded themselves into thinking that any of this is actually good, quality content. Can they?

BLOG STATS

2012-02-04T13:11:00.000-08:00

I know it's not "the big time" and it doesn't really compare with some of the blogs I read on a regular basis, but I'm happy to report that we're now getting over 2000 unique hits to the blog every month. That's lovely to me. It makes it feel like I'm not just talking to myself - or my mom.

Strangely, one of our biggest traffic sources over the last week has been from an NBA site. I have no idea what this means or why anyone who is interested in basketball would be coming here. And my Kindle white screen of death post continues to drive a lot of outside traffic as well. But mostly everyone's interested in my posts about travel, food, and home decor. That's good, because that's what I'm most interested in too.

ALAN IS A NEWS GANGSTA

2012-02-04T12:49:00.000-08:00

For the last long while Alan and a couple of former colleagues have been working to get their own technology company focused on news aggregation off the ground. Over the past few months, things have taken off and people are starting to really make use of the iPhone app (if you're interested you can download it here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/scoople/id474606690?mt=8). My personal favorite channels are focused on celebrity, technology, and politics news, but there's also a section devoted to Apple, film, and Canada.

A couple of websites have written about the app, and feedback in general tends to be pretty positive. Recently though, the most awesome review ever was posted on a gaming blog. It is so absolutely amazing that I'd be remiss if I didn't share it with you all. Behold the wonder.

Yo yo yo, who says a gangsta can’t stay in touch with current events? I’m turning that stereotype around gangsta nation. I just picked up a new app, Scoople. Get the latest news in technology, Apple, celebrities, film, green, US politics, and Canada. Share with the homies on Twitter and Facebook. Stay current, like a real gangsta should.

I really wish they had more news pertaining to the world. International news is important homie. You gotta believe that. Some gangsta shit goes down all over, you gotta up your game. Stay in the loop. Get a new perspective on the world. You feel me?

Bottom line: If you wanna stay smart and current pick up this app. Plus, that shit is free. You got free knowledge at your finger tips, don’t pass that up.

Yes, he included Coolio's Gangster's Paradise. Wonderful.

COOKING AT THE CASA

2012-02-01T16:40:00.000-08:00

PowerPoint is majorly messing with my afternoon, making me want to throw my computer from the window, so I decided to take a much needed mental health break to post a couple of recipes I've promised on Twitter and Instagram.

First up, is what I'm calling a Mediterranean quinoa salad. Up until Friday night I'd never had quinoa but I know it's a gluten-free grain and I'm really, really, really missing hearty meals this time of year so I asked a couple of friends about it and my friend Audrey convinced me that I absolutely have to try it and since I trust her food recommendations implicitly, I decided to give it a try. Now, mind you, I kind of made this recipe up based on some of my favorite flavor combos.

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

This recipe can be made with meat, or without. We had some leftover lamb roast from a few nights before, so we chopped it up and added it to the mix. I made this again for lunch a couple of days later without the meat and it was just as tasty. And SO easy to make. The most time consuming thing is chapping the cucumbers.

1 cup cooked quinoa
1/2 english cucumber
10 cherry tomatoes, cut in half & roasted with olive oil and oregano
A bunch of chopped parsley (to your liking)
Chopped, pitted kalamata olives (quantity to your liking - I like a lot)
Meat (or not)
Olive oil for drizzling
1 cup of feta cheese

In a bowl, mix all ingredients and plate. Add a drizzle of olive oil and a dollop of yogurt with dill and you're good to go!

Another recent meal here at the casa was an updated take on a dish we make a lot during the winter. Now, I know a lot of Texans would say this isn't proper chili because it includes red beans, but I like beans in my chili and I'm not from Texas, so they can just go fly a kite.

Buffalo Chipotle Chili

This is another one of those "throw everything in a pot and let it cook" recipes that I love so much. It's also kind of light on exact measurements because except for things that are pre-measured for me (like the can of beans), I pretty much cook to taste, adding a bit of this, a dash of that.

2 T olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 pound of grass-fed ground buffalo meat
1 can of kidney beans
1 can of yellow corn
1/2 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1/4 can of chipotle in adobo sauce
3 T chili powder
2 T taco seasoning
salt & pepper to taste
grated cheddar cheese
chopped green onions

In a dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat.
Add onions & garlic and cook to translucent (about 5 minutes)
Add the buffalo meat and cook thoroughly
Add the chipotle and spices
Add the remaining canned ingredients
Cook for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally
Serve hot & top with grated cheese and chopped green onions

See, so easy a child could make it! What I love about using the buffalo meat is that it has a different, deeper flavor than using regular beef. Also, the chipotle gives it a nice kick.

WANT.

2012-01-31T18:21:00.000-08:00

For the last several months I've kind of had a thing for burl wood. This thing was only intensified when we stayed up in Trinidad at Alan's friend's house and he had a burl wood coffee table. Since then I've been scouring Craigslist hoping someone was silly enough to give theirs up. No such luck. And now I get an email from Joss & Main and there's one sitting there on my screen, taunting me.

I can't buy it. Besides the fact that it's $1300 and our last coffee table was on clearance for $125, I've made some other home decor purchases lately that are well beyond what we normally spend. And we've got other bills too. But oh how I want it. So gorgeous. So impractical. So, so, so ...

LIGHTING

2012-01-31T10:09:00.000-08:00

When we bought our house nearly six years ago, the light fixtures in most of the room were brand new so we didn't want to spend the money to replace them, even though they weren't particularly to our style (nipple lights, anyone?) or provided adequate lighting for the rooms they were in. Here we are years later, transforming the major rooms at the core of our house, and I'm thinking a lot about what I want to do about the lighting situation. Because of the situation of our house on our lot, and the proximity of the neighbors, we don't get much natural light in any room except my office. We definitely need something that is going to brighten up the space, while at the same time adhering to the style we're looking to have in each room. I've long coveted a few chandeliers from Pottery Barn, but I just don't think most of them are right for the space. There are two, however, that I really do love and think would look great in our rustic eclectic elegance craftsman space. (I used a mish-mash naming convention like on Secrets from a Stylist.)

Veranda Linear Chandelier - $329

Exeter 16-Jar Pendant - $399

In looking for the two previous images, I stumbled across a few new chandys at PotteryBarn.com and I think I'm in love. Totally wrong for our space, but oh so right in so many other regards.

Clarissa Glass Drop Chandelier - $449

Stanyan Lantern - $399

Capiz Pendant - $199

Townsend Oversized Hammered Pendant - $449

I've also recently seen a few beautiful options on Ballard Designs. I always forget about that store and I don't know why since they have such beautiful things available for all different styles.

Eldridge Rectangular Chandelier - $399

Stafford 5-Light Chandelier - $379

In addition to chandeliers, we also need to think about flush-mount styles for the living room. This one is a bit harder because nothing seems quite right for the space, but I do really love all of these.

Morgan Ceiling Mount - $169
Ballard Designs

Stafford Ceiling Mount - $179
Ballard Designs

Julian Flushmount - $149
Pottery Barn

Hundi Semi-Flushmount - $199
Pottery Barn

What are some of your favorite lighting sources?

DINING ROOM PROGRESS

2012-01-30T08:17:00.000-08:00

My goal was to be done with the dining room project we're working on by the end of the month. Given that today is January 30, we're not going to hit that deadline but we're close. Very close. In fact, I just made a purchase from Joss & Main that puts us that much closer to a finished project. I'm kind of in love with it. It's exactly what I've been looking for at TJ Maxx, Marshalls, Craigslist, etc but not finding. It's so over the top fancy that it's going to be that punch of WOW that I've wanted for the space. That's all I'll say about it for now though. Pictures hopefully coming soon.

GALLERY WALL - TAKE II

2012-01-29T13:06:00.001-08:00

Several years ago - before it was the trendy thing to do - we put up a gallery wall in our front room. It was mish-mash of frame styles and random pictures and while I liked it, I never really LOVED it.

We're doing some redecorating in the dining room and this gives me an opportunity to update the gallery wall in a more cohesive style. After looking at all of our frames I've decided to move the small white ones into my office since I already have a white frame set going on in there. That leaves me with wood and black. In reviewing the inventory we have more than enough large wooden frames to do a wall of just those. I like that idea because it will unify the decor and bring a bit of cohesiveness to what was otherwise a bit visually chaotic.

Unfortunately the frames are actually too large for the space I have to work with by about three inches. So now I need to re-think the layout and come up with something that will work so that I can put this project behind me and move on to others.

ANOTHER TV POST

2012-01-28T22:01:00.000-08:00

Through the years we've established two things:

(1) I love TV
(2) I love historical romance novels

In fact, in 2012 alone I've read at least ten of them. I love nothing more than getting lost in the world, imagining the fine ladies and grand gentleman - the houses, the decor, the dress, the manners. So it made perfect sense that I'd fall head over heels in love with Downton Abbey. Unfortunately I couldn't find it anywhere on our cable. I'm not even sure we get BBC (although we do get more sports channels than any one person should care about - when will cable companies start offering a la carte packages?!) so I hadn't been able to see it.

Until now, that is.

Alan is hanging out with friends tonight and I'm feeling under the weather so I stayed in. I was going to rent Jane Eyre, but that doesn't seem available On Demand anymore, so I was trying to figure out what to do. Then I decided I just needed to suck it up and pay the $14.99 to watch all of Season 1 on iTunes. I'm 40 minutes in to the first episode and I'm in love. It's everything I imagined life like this would be when we stayed at Ashford Castle in 2009.

If you're at all a fan of period dramas, you have to watch. I implore you.

A LOOK BACK AT MAUI

2012-01-24T16:26:00.000-08:00

As we're gearing up for our upcoming trip to Maui, I took a quick trip down memory lane with pics from our last trip in 2007. I'm looking forward to doing some of the things we didn't get to do on either of our trips to Maui, as well as revisiting some of our favorite beaches and activities.

30 DOWN

2012-01-19T19:19:00.000-08:00

I've spent the better part of the last year engaged in a love/hate relationship with food. Essentially, I love food, and a lot of it hates me. When I was first diagnosed with GERD a couple of years ago, I was told to avoid tomatoes, coffee, and alcohol. I found, however, that these foods weren't problematic for me. In fact, the only food that I had credible evidence of being "bad for me" was heavy pastry, and only before 11 a.m. One of the worst attacks I'd had up until this year was on our second day in Paris when I had a wonderful, lovely croissant before going to the Louvre. The next day I had pastry again and the same thing happened. Since then I've avoided early morning sweets, but night time sweets have been fine.

Until this year. For a long time there it seemed like no matter what I ate I was having terrible GERD and I become incredibly despondent about it all. In June I realized that in addition to food being a major source of food, it was also a major source of my ever-increasing waist line (and ass, and thighs, and every other expandable part of my body).

Looking at pictures of me from our trip to Hawaii at the beginning of March, I kind of don't recognize myself. I mean, those are my eyes, but that's a really fat girl looking back at me. I was growing out of most of my clothes. My fat pants were tight.

A month before that trip someone mistook me for a woman whose picture I was able to find on the Internet. The person they thought I was is kind of enormous. I was appalled, but it wasn't enough of a wake up call for me. It was unfortunate, to be sure, but I'm lazy and I hate diets. So I continued to be fat and unhealthy.

In June I started Weight Watchers, and I thought that in addition to my weight problem it might also help my GERD problem. Unfortunately, I wasn't losing weight all that fast, my GERD continued to be incredibly problematic, and I was miserable. I was ALWAYS hungry. Going to the grocery store was a major pain in the ass because I had to figure out the point value of every damn thing I wanted to put in my cart. I know WW works for a lot of people but I am, apparently, not one of them.

In mid-July, at the urging of my friend and my sister, we started a modified version of the Paleo diet. Immediately both Alan and I started losing weight. I had more energy. My GERD lessened. Since then with the exception of December we've pretty much stuck with this new lifestyle and there's been a marked improvement in our weight. Yesterday I stepped on the scale and I was down 29 pounds from the day I started Weight Watchers (on which I only lost four pounds). Clothes that I haven't been able to wear since 2008 fit me again. My skinny jeans were baggy jeans yesterday. I look in the mirror and I know I look better and that makes me feel better.

I still have struggles with GERD (example: pretty much all of New Orleans) and I don't know that I'll ever get rid of that particular albatross, but I'm slowly getting rid of my fat and that makes me healthier overall. I have another ten pounds to lose before I hit my first major goal weight, and it's so close I can taste it. I won't hit it by the time we go to Maui (which was my original goal) but I'm not going to beat myself up over it either because hello ... I'VE LOST 30 POUNDS.

And I have to admit, it feels great when I see people I haven't seen in awhile and they tell me how awesome I look. :-) It might even feel better than a slice of cake tastes. Maybe.

PORTLAND, OREGON

2012-01-17T18:51:00.000-08:00

It's no surprise to anyone that knows me that I have a bit of wanderlust. Growing up, we never lived in any one house for any length of time. Since Alan and I have been together, prior to this house, the longest we ever lived anywhere was our loft for two years (nearly to the day). Approaching the six year mark on this house, I am oftentimes curious what it would be like to move on to a new place.

While my dream is to one day live in Tofino, I realize that this is a bit of a ... well ... dream. That said, I don't see us living in Oakland - or even the Bay Area - for much longer. If our house wasn't so far under water, I'd be trying to convince Alan that it was time to go now.

With my team based in Portland, and my love of the weather and landscape of the Pacific Northwest, that city makes the most sense for our next move. Given Alan's background, I also have no question about him being able to find employment. Heck, I could probably get him an interview with my boss.

Now, I'm not saying we're packing up and heading north anytime soon, but I do think a lot about what it would be like to live there. Especially when my colleagues are talking about snow and cold temps and I'm sit starting out my office window unable to discern what season it is. Outside of Tofino, Portland is a place I could see us living quite comfortably. Because of this, I often check out the real estate listings. Today I came across a house I am absolutely drooling over. Allow me to indulge by sharing it all with you.

At only $349,000 it's practically a steal.

SNEAK PEEK

2012-01-17T09:36:00.001-08:00

Here's a little sneak peak on what we're working on at the casa.

CHRISTMAS 2012 - THE COUNTDOWN TO TOFINO

2012-01-15T21:21:00.000-08:00

I know most of us are still trying to get caught up from Christmas 2011 - putting away decorations, taking down our trees, trying to lose weight from all the holiday treats we consumed - but I'm already thinking about Christmas 2012. Yeah, I know. I'm one of those people.

Originally we had planned to do a European river cruise to visit the Christmas markets up and down the Danube, but lately the thought of a 14-hour treck to Munich or Frankfurt is more than my fragile nerves can handle so I started thinking about alternatives.

Since we've visited Tofino in the summer and have talked about heading north for winter storm watching season, we decided to take those two weeks we would have spent in Europe and put them toward a relaxing vacation in one of our favorite places. We decided that instead of our regular suite at Middle Beach Lodge, we wanted to rent a house on the ocean that provided reliable wireless internet connection and which wasn't prohibitively expensive. After looking at all of our options, that narrowed the field to about ten properties. Unfortunately three of these have already been rented for the holiday season which left us with fewer options than I had anticipated. Knowing we had to act quickly before losing out on any more great properties, we decided tonight to pull the trigger and put down our deposit on a beach front house on Chesterman Beach. It's not going to be cheap, but I know it'll be wonderful.

Since returning from Tofino in September, I've been following practically everyone who lives in Tofino and uses Twitter. This week I've sat at home, looking longingly of images of Long Beach, Mackenzie Beach, Cox Bay, and Chesterman Beach covered in snow. I can only hope we get a bit of the white stuff when we're there for the holidays. If not, we'll get the opportunity to watch the waves pounding the coast, or to go hiking in the rain forest. No matter what Mother Nature serves up, we win.

In the meantime, for the remainder of the year I've got a whole new reason to look forward to Christmas, and unlike this past year it has nothing to do with how I'm going to decorate the house.

I'm giddy with excitement.

NEW PROJECT AT THE CASA

2012-01-14T14:14:00.000-08:00

We've got what I consider a major project going on right now. I'd say I'm about 1/16 of the way through. Yikes! There' absolutely no way I'll be done in time to link up to the Pinterest Party hosted by The Stucco Bungalow, Miss Priss, Merrypad, Hernando House, Design Build Love, Baby Gators Den, and What the Graham?!, but my goal is to get it completed in the next 30 days. So in the meantime, go check out these other bloggers and see what they're doing in their houses.

RETHINKING THE KITCHEN - AGAIN

2012-01-12T14:40:00.000-08:00

When we first moved into the casa back in July 2006, the kitchen was one of the first rooms I knew we'd need to makeover. A complete remodel wasn't in the budget, but we definitely needed to do something about the hideous 80s oak cabinets with their brass pulls and broken down, beat up appliances. Over time we painted the cabinets white, replaced the appliances, and painted the kitchen blue.

Initially, I loved the look of the crisp white cabinets but over time they've become a bit of a pain. It's hard enough to keep the countertops a bright white (bleach is the best remedy), but because I'm a bit of a sloppy cook and Alan is a bit of a sloppy dishwasher, the bottom cabinets have become stained and chipped and all around unsightly. You can't tell from far away, but close up it's actually kind of disgusting. I'll spare you the photographic evidence. We don't have the wherewithal to change the flooring at this point, but I think we could do something about the bottom cabinets with a gallon of paint and some elbow grease.

So, I'm kind of thinking black bottom cabinets and white uppers. Some inspiration pics:

Source: houzz.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: traditionalhome.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: kristenbuckingham.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: houzz.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: decorpad.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: greigedesign.blogspot.com via Becky on Pinterest

8675309

2012-01-12T11:50:00.000-08:00

I have a new obsession, thanks to a new-to-me blog, The Nesting Game. Having seen the bloggers Dark & Moody Bedroom Makeover on Design*Sponge this morning I fell into a swoon. First of all, you know how much I love navy, and the new bedroom paint color is fabulous. And those rugs, faded and worn, are absolute perfection.

But it's the bed that caught my eye the most. I am in love with that bed, a Jenny Lind style. Previously I'd only seen beds like this on cribs in twin-sized replicas for a child's room, so I never thought much of it beyond, "that'd be cute for Nora's room." But an adult-sized version? I want. I want badly.

Right now we have an Ikea bed that we had to purchase in a bit of an emergency when our previous Ikea bed fell apart. (That's probably why they stopped selling it shortly after they started selling it, eh?) I don't particularly love our bed, and it's definitely cheap looking, but it's been a great stop-gap for the last six years or so. Since then I've been trying to convince Alan that our next bed will be a grown-up bed, and not one you see in every staged real estate ad or vacation rental. I've sent him countless pictures of Pottery Barn beds in hopes of convincing him, to no avail. But the time is coming where we definitely need to do something. I am now on the hunt for something like this, but sadly I can't find anything in a king size. Anyone know where I can track this down?

(Gold star to those who get the title's reference.)

Edited to add: Alan informs me he's kind of meh on the bed. Apparently it looks more cabin to him than bungalow. #boohiss.

WHAT'S UP DOC?

2012-01-09T10:09:00.000-08:00

We took down the Christmas tree and other decorations yesterday. The house feels so empty now.

I bought a lamp and shade at Target and as far as I can tell the shade does not, nor was it ever intended to, attach to the lamp base. It just sits on top lolling about. Is this how Target is doing it nowadays? So sad too because it's a pretty good replica of a $280 lamp I'd been lusting after for a couple of years.

One of my goals for 2012 (I don't do resolutions) is to read 50 books. So far I've read five (three by the same author, Georgette Heyer). Admittedly, these aren't Pulitzers or anything.

Alan tore out one of the more offensive plum trees in our back yard over the course of the last few weekends. It's weird to look out and not see it anymore, but we have plans for the space. The goal is to have that area taken care of by his birthday.

Other than this, there's not much else to report at casacaudill. Hope everyone else's January is off to a tremendous start!

I HAD A DREAM

2012-01-03T13:38:00.000-08:00

Have you ever woken up from a dream actually laughing out loud? That happened to me this morning.

Right before I woke up I was dreaming that I was somehow, miraculously despite not being all that funny, a part of the SNL cast. During a skit that had me trying to order Viagra without actually saying what I was asking for I lost it and couldn't stop laughing (side note: one of my favorite things on SNL is when Bill Hader plays Stefan and he cracks up in the middle of the skit). Bill and Jason Sudeikas were in the skit with me and my laughing caused them to crack up and the three of us were laughing like hyenas while the live studio audience was looking at us like we'd lost our minds. We were completely unable to deliver our lines and I kept trying to hide behind a door as if I wasn't disrupting a whole network television show with my insane bout of the giggles.

It was kind of an awesome way to wake up.

KICKING OFF 2012 WITH A WHIMPER

2012-01-02T13:24:00.000-08:00

Two years in a row now I've found myself huddled over a toilet emptying the contents of my belly. Let me tell you, this is not a positive way to ring in the new year.

This year we went to my friend's house on the other side of town. Earlier in the afternoon I was feeling alternately cold and then hot. I took some Excedrin for a headache that was threatening to go hog wild and then I felt better. We cooked dinner at home (Alan's favorite meal - braised chicken, roasted brussel sprouts, and fingerling potatoes) and afterwards I felt a little nauseated, but I thought it was just my GERD so I popped some pills and figured that'd be all.

We get to my friend's house and we're having a lovely evening sitting outside by their fire pit. Alan brought chestnuts and our roasting pan and I ate a few but one made me almost retch so I didn't eat any more. Then when people started roasting marshmallows I had to bow out because the thought of the gooey chocolate and marshmallow was making me kind of queasy. Unfortunately, I didn't lay off the champagne. In fact, I drank a lot of champagne, which in hindsight was a terrible idea.

Shortly before midnight I thought I was going to be sick, but nope. Then after midnight I got sick but thankfully I made it to my friend's bathroom in plenty of time. I walked back outside, sat down, and then proceeded to throw up everywhere. It was disgusting and mortifying and embarrassing and all things terrible. We immediately left and I continued to throw up in the car on the way home. And then when we got home, I threw up in our bathroom. I climbed into bed sometime after 2 a.m. shivering and feeling like I'd been hit like a semi.

We woke up around 9 a.m. to go to dim sum, a New Years Day tradition we started ten years ago when we first moved back to California. I felt fine. I was surprised how fine I felt given the night before. I scarfed down some delicious dumplings and noodles and all things that I love and am not supposed to eat and then we came home and I crashed. I took a nap for a couple of hours and when I woke up I felt terrible. I had an enormous headache which threatened to turn into a migraine. And then the nausea came back. All day I felt off. Gross. But I didn't throw up again, thank goodness.

Then I baked a pacific rockfish and it was delicious. We ate our New Years Day dinner while watching reruns of Friends. (My goal is to see all 250(ish) episodes this year.) Before dinner was even over I started to feel queasy again. I ended the night curled up on the couch moaning and feeling disgusting. Alan went to bed and I stayed in the living room because I felt better sitting up than laying down. Around 1 a.m. I went to bed. Immediately I could smell the fish and the smoke from the campfire and I ended up getting sick again. Just typing this out makes me feel queasy.

I slept until 11:30 a.m. this morning and felt fine when I woke up. But now I can smell the fish again so I have all the windows open and have peppermint oil in the diffuser going to clean out the air. I had errands I was going to run today since I have the day off but I'm thinking I might just sit here and relax. My head is pounding and I feel like crap.

At least I know that I wasn't throwing up at my friend's party because I am that girl that can't hold her alcohol. I hate that girl. Nope, it's because I have the flu. I am exonerated!

Next weekend we're going to take down the Christmas tree and put the decorations away until next December. I'll be kind of sad to see the tree go since I really do love it so much, but I'm looking forward to giving my house a nice deep clean. Or maybe I'll hire someone to do it for me. Yeah, that's a good resolution for 2012. This will be the year I finally hire a housekeeper.

So I've got two concrete resolutions now:

1. Watch all episodes of Friends
2. Hire a housekeeper

I like to keep things doable.

OBSESSED WITH STRIPES

2011-12-30T18:19:00.000-08:00

During my Day-After-Christmas shopping expedition I bought four things at Gap. Unbeknownst to me at the time, I was shopping thematically. Dark blue skinny jeans. Navy & white striped sweater. Navy shirt. Navy & white striped shirt. Basically, I kind of, seemingly, love all things nautical. I'm not entirely surprised by this given this year's quest to find the perfect blue paint for the living room, and my obsession with the picture that is our blog banner, but I didn't realize how overt the love was. And then I started shopping online for clothes for our trip to Maui in a handful of weeks. Of course I fell right back into the same patterns as I did the other day.

Of course, I'm also very, very cheap so I'd never buy all of these at one time. Especially since one of these dresses cost more than the entirety of what I got at Gap the other day. But I really, really, really want one of them. I'm thinking the one in the middle, yeah?

While I'm talking about fashion, can anyone out there explain to me why all bathing suits are halter style? I absolutely abhor having that tie around my neck. I feel like it's choking me within seconds of wearing it. I can't be the only one that wants regular straps, can I?

A WEEKEND IN TRINIDAD

2011-12-29T13:02:00.000-08:00

Earlier this month we spent a long(ish), wonderful weekend in Trinidad. No, not the Caribbean island; I'm talking about the small town (hamlet? village?) of Trinidad, California, approximately five hours from our home in Oakland.

One of Alan's former co-workers is from Trinidad (his father was both the youngest and oldest mayor of the town), and having recently purchased a vacation-slash-retirement home overlooking the water, he is graciously lending it out to friends. Even though we had just come back from New Orleans mere days before, we jumped at the chance for a quiet, relaxed weekend up along the coast. It was sheer perfection.

I took a half-day off from work and we hopped in the car before sunrise for the journey north. Of course I fell asleep, but Alan reports that once we got past Alexander Valley that the drive was simply gorgeous. We stopped in Hopland to fill up and I was giddy to see temps in the twenties. There was frost covering all of the vines and hillsides and it truly looked like a winter wonderland. We stopped in Ukiah at the Slowest Starbucks on the Planet (TM) for my only egg nog latte of the season before continuing on. We finally reached the house around noon and holy heck it was exactly what I was hoping for.

This is the view from the living room window and the first thing you see after you pass the foyer. I posted this to Instagram within seconds of arriving.

We grabbed lunch at Eatery & Gallery where I kicked off my "To heck with this diet" December by enjoying possibly the largest basket of fried clams & french fries I've seen outside of the Eastern seaboard. I finished up working for the afternoon and curled up on the couch with my iPad to finish reading "A Discovery of Witches" (one of my fave entertaining reads of the year). After some more napping we went to dinner at Larrupin Cafe. My food was just okay, but Alan's meal was especially delicious (cornish game hen with roasted sweet potatoes). And let me tell you, this place was decked out to the nines for Christmas. I have never seen a more awesome Christmas tree than the peacock-themed one they had in the foyer. I wish I would have had my iPhone on me so that I could have gotten a picture. It was that amazing.

We came back to the house and Alan built a fire before we settled in to watch Elf. Unfortunately I fell asleep about midway through. (This was, unfortunately, a theme for the remainder of the month as I also fell asleep during Love Actually and A Christmas Story.)

The next day we woke up bright & early and watched an amazing sunrise from the master bedroom before getting bundled up and heading down to the pier for breakfast at Seascape Restaurant. The reviews on Yelp are weird. People either love or hate this place. Personally, I don't understand the hate. My food was good, the view was spectacular, and the service was fast and friendly. What's not to like?

From there we hiked the Trinidad Head. BEAUTIFUL. That said, I don't recommend hiking it on an extremely full belly. Lesson learned.

After another nap we jumped in the car and drove north to Prairie Creek State Park where we were supposed to stumble upon a giant herd of elk. Most were hiding so we only saw a handful over by the ranger's station, but we did get a chance to take another hike through the forest which was an awesome way to further work off the morning's giant breakfast.

That night we drove down to McKinleyville for dinner at Six Rivers Brewery. This is another place that has strange reviews on Yelp. We thought the food was good, the beers were decent, and the ambiance was exactly what you'd think of from a brew pub. A lot of people report having bad service but we had EXCELLENT service the entire night. If you get a chance to go during the winter, their seasonal brews were the best.

We woke up the next morning bright & early to another stunning sunrise from the bed in the master bedroom.

Later that morning we had breakfast at Beachcomber Cafe as a band was setting up for the afternoon. What I loved about this place was the fact that they had excellent coffee and you could tell this was where all the locals go. Everyone knew everyone else and there were people bringing in their own mugs to be filled. It had the vibe that you hope for with a local establishment but sometimes don't see. I loved it.

When we were parking we noticed there was a holiday craft faire going on in the gym of the school across the street. After doing some Christmas shopping up the street we circled back down to the school to check it out. This is a tiny town (population mid-300s) so I didn't expect a huge number of crafts or people. Some of the stuff was kind of granny and regretsy, but as we were leaving there was a table full of pottery that I stopped at. Immediately I saw two gorgeous pottery mugs that I loved. I figured they'd be in the $16 range so imagine my happiness when I found out they were $6 each! I bought two! We also bought a vase for Alan's mom for Christmas and then headed on our way.

I was sad to pack up and leave but we had a long drive ahead of us and we still wanted to stop in Ferndale on the way home. Trinidad is definitely a beautiful town in a remarkably stunning location. It's far enough from home that it feels like you've gone somewhere, but close enough that we can do it as a long weekend. And our friend's house is just perfect for our wants and needs (perfectly outfitted, but not overly fancy). And the view can't be beat. I'd definitely love to visit again at some point in the future and hit up a few more of the state parks for hiking.

CAUDILL HOLIDAY PHOTOS

2011-12-26T16:08:00.000-08:00

Meowie Christmas

2011-12-25T09:32:00.001-08:00

HAPPY CHRISTMAS FROM CASACAUDILL

2011-12-24T11:52:00.001-08:00

PRESENTS

2011-12-23T15:05:00.001-08:00

Festivus Friday: Holiday Greetings

2011-12-23T15:01:00.001-08:00

CRAFTY

2011-12-23T11:59:00.000-08:00

HAPPY FESTIVUS!

2011-12-23T10:34:00.001-08:00

SALT DOUGH ORNAMENTS FAIL

2011-12-22T12:35:00.001-08:00

So, I tried making those salt dough ornaments I posted a bit ago. I attempted to make the stamped version because they were gorgeous. I failed miserably. In the end I scrapped half of them and then just started painting the rest. It looks like a child did them. So disappointing. Next time I'm doodling on them with pen after they come out of the oven.

TOFINO

2011-12-22T09:27:00.000-08:00

Now, obviously I'm not a surfer (I had a bad incident with a board at Huntington Beach when I was a teenager that put me off the sport for good), but no one can watch this video and not admit that Tofino is a stunningly beautiful place in this world. Maybe, even, my favorite place in the world.

Seeking for a new port - TOFINO from GotSurf.ca on Vimeo.

HOLIDAY TREATS: SALTED CARAMELS

2011-12-21T15:22:00.000-08:00

I have basically given up on dieting until January 1. I figure that even when I eat "right" I still have GERD episodes, and while the weight loss has been a fantastic side benefit of this new food lifestyle, I want to enjoy the flavores all of my favorite holiday foods. So, since coming back from New Orleans I've been working on an "everything in moderation" philosophy that seems to be working out okay. Except for the weight gain. In two weeks I've added 3.5 pounds. Not cool. Not cool at all. What is cool, however, is getting to eat some of my favorite holiday treats.

While at Whole Foods the other day I saw a package of six caramels for $10. Now, I love caramel. LOVE IT. But I don't love paying $10 for six tiny bites. So I decided to hit up the blogosphere and find a recipe I could make myself. Now, let me preface this by saying I've never made my own candy. I am not what you'd call a dessert maker. I can throw together a mean savory meal but I fall apart when it comes to cooking sweets. It's something about all the exact measurements that throws me into a tailspin. This effort would not be without its trials and tribulations but in the end I think I made something that was quite, quite tasty.

First, I found two recipes from some of my favorite food bloggers that looked promising, but then I noticed that one of them called for corn syrup and we don't eat that crap in this house. I chose the one from Two Tarts because it looked the simplest (ie, most foolproof) and because I had all of the ingredients readily available.

The first steps were a cinch!

Please excuse how dirty and gross my stove is.

Unfortunately I ran into some trouble when it came time to pour the molten hot sugar out onto a pan for cooling. You see, I apparently don't know the difference between wax paper and parchment paper. Or rather, I do know the difference but I didn't think it would matter much, especially as some other recipes online said I could use wax paper if I didn't have parchment. I believed them, much to the detriment of my caramel.

As soon as the molten hot liquid hit the wax paper it made this strange hissing sound. I immediately imagined the wax melting into the caramel, but I soldiered on.

I added some high falutin' Celtic sea salt that I bought after a Paleo blogger said this was the only salt she uses. It's good, don't get me wrong, but I'm not sure how it differs from Fleur de Sel. I'm sure you could use either. Just don't use table salt or kosher salt. That's not exactly what we're going for here.

I put the caramel in the fridge to cool for ten minutes, at which point I realized that yes, it was completely stuck to the wax paper. I flipped the sheet over and used the blow dryer to warm it up which allowed me to remove some of the caramel in thin sheets so that they looked like the original recipe. But I'd say that was only about 1/8 of the total haul. When Alan got home we heated the whole thing up over the vent for the oven while baking chicken and then proceeded to scrape all of the caramel off with my fingers. By the time I was done a giant pile of ooey-gooey caramel was sitting in front of me and my hands were a sugary mess. Obviously I have no pictures of this to share but trust me when I said this was not a pretty thing to witness.

We ended up rolling the caramel into shapes that somewhat resembled balls, set them on a brown paper bag, and then topped them with more salt. We put them back in the fridge to cool, and now they're actually kind of not so hideous looking.

Okay, maybe a little hideous looking.

But I swear to you THEY TASTE GREAT. Seriously wonderful. I'm considering making up another batch and giving them away to family on Christmas.

LAST DAY IN NEW ORLEANS

2011-12-21T10:32:00.000-08:00

Alan pointed out to me last night that I never posted about our last day in New Orleans. Oops. Here it is just days from Christmas and we were there for Thanksgiving. To say I'm behind schedule on this one is an understatement.

Anyhow ... moving right along.

We woke up Sunday to cold temps and gray skies which I actually prefer at this time of year. But still, it was quite disconcerting to go from 80 and sunny to 50 and wet. The forecast for the week showed that it would get cooler and that we'd have intermittent thunderstorms throughout the trip, but nothing that prepared us for how cold it actually was. We didn't have jackets to wear, so thank goodness I had had the foresight to travel in my Uggs and bring a scarf for the plane. I think that's the only thing that kept me even remotely warm on our last day.

Since our flight wasn't until 6 p.m. we had plenty of time to fit in some last minute sight seeing during the afternoon. We started the day off with brunch at Muriel's. The atmosphere was really elegant but relaxed, and our brunch was made even better by the addition of a live jazz trio. I figured it didn't matter what I ordered since everything that week was making me sick, so I decided to go big on my last meal in New Orleans. I started off with turtle soup which was excellent, and then followed it with ... I can't remember actually. I do remember, however, that it tasted GOOD and that I was very happy with my meal. In fact, I was happy with everything about Muriel's. Contrasted with our meal at Galatoire's the night before, it was night and day.

By this point in the trip, I think Alan's a bit sick of having his picture taken.

After lunch we walked through the French Market looking for a gift for Alan's mom and then decided to try to do a walking tour of the Fabourg Marignay and then back down through the quarter. We started off by going to an open house for a condo on Chartres that I really loved. At $399,000 I thought it was a good deal so I hope it finds an owner who will love it as much as I did.

We were freezing and our attempt at a made-up-on-the-spot walking tour was going less than successfully so we decided to head back through the quarter to our hotel. Still, it was a good attempt at working off some of the rich, heavy food we had at brunch.

And this concludes our New Orleans trip report. I'm looking forward to going back in the next five to ten years. I think this time, however, I'd like to visit for Jazz Fest.

CASACAUDILL CHRISTMAS TOUR

2011-12-20T11:44:00.000-08:00

While the Christmas tree has been up for a couple of weeks now, I hadn't gotten around to taking pictures because the dining table also served as laundry central and then present wrapping central. I managed to clean the house the other day and was actually quite pleased with how everything looked together.

The dining room is where we put our tree because it has the most space and can be seen from our living room (and from the street). I do the most decorating in that room with just a few touches of Christmas thrown in around the house. For instance, in the living room window I hang a pine pomander. I've also already shown the mantel a couple of days ago.

One of the things I struggle with is the disparity between the two rooms. This year's mantel is very rustic and eclectic with bits & baubles from around the house whereas the dining room follows a more colorful theme due to the Amy Butler paper chain I made a few years ago and absolutely love. It's somewhat on its last leg though so maybe next year I'll make a pine cone garland for the tree and extend the woodland theme into the dining room? Of course then I'd have to change my ornaments as well, so there's lots to think about. In the meantime, I really do love this room, even if it's not cohesive.

So without further ado, it's Christmas time at casacaudill.

Linking up to the following tree parties:
Thrifty Decor Chick
The Nester's 2011 Christmas Tour of Homes
a' la mode holiday home highlights
The Inspired Room's 2011 Christmas Homes Tour
Cottage & Vine's Room by Room Christmas Tour

MY CURRENT VIEW

2011-12-16T17:00:00.001-08:00

You can imagine why I haven't yet posted pictures of our tree or the rest of the decorations in the dining room. I am determined, however, to get this room cleaned up this weekend. I swear. No, really.

SALT DOUGH ORNAMENTS

2011-12-16T10:03:00.000-08:00

I kind of, really badly, want to make these.

I absolutely ADORE the stamped version above, found at even*cleveland. I might even have some stamps I could use.

CHRISTMAS MANTEL

2011-12-15T12:08:00.000-08:00

I feel woefully behind this Christmas. Usually by now the tree is near to overflowing with wrapped presents for the family. Currently, however, there are exactly five presents under there and I am at a complete loss on what to get for everyone. I also haven't sent out our Christmas cards even though we've had them for over a week. My goal today is to pick up stamps at some point so that I can get these in the mail. This said, I have decorated the house so it at least feels a bit like Christmas in here. Since we have a faux tree I like to bring fresh pine & cedar garland into the house to help it smell a bit like the holidays. A couple of weeks ago I bought a really pretty wreath and garland from Safeway. The wreath is still going strong on our front door, but our garland is DEAD. It's really quite sad because it looks kind of crunchy and woebegone sitting on our mantel.

Speaking of the mantel, I kept the feather & shell wreath on the mirror and added in some pinecones and a couple of other decorative elements I had sitting around the house. At Homegoods (or was it TJ Maxx) I picked up a cute little white ceramic reindeer that has joined our antique antelope. I actually think our mantel is quite pretty, if the greenery had just lived!

And yes, I still need to paint that very thin strip of wall between the built-in china cabinet and the fireplace. I thought about photoshopping it but decided that was too much effort. (I'm feeling very lazy this holiday season.)At some point this week I'll clean off the dining room table, put away the ladder, and post pictures of our tree. It's quite darling (if I do say so myself).

I didn't get a chance to link up in time, but for another huge collection of gorgeous mantel's head on over to Rhoda's Holiday Home post.

QUICK FOOD TIP: PATE

2011-12-13T15:12:00.000-08:00

A lot of us are entertaining this month, which can be stressful. In addition to making sure our houses are clean and decorated with the appropriate amount of festive cheer, we have to make sure that WE look good and that we have good food & drink to serve our guests which can be difficult if we're focusing on everything else. I'm a big fan of serving meats & cheeses as an appetizer course because it allows people to choose what they want, how much they want, and I find that it can actually be a discussion point. There are a few staples that we serve, but we recently found a new-to-us item at Whole Foods that I definitely plan on serving as an appetizer the next time I host a dinner party: I'm talking about Alexian Pheasant & Rosemary Pate.

We picked up a package of it at the store last week, having had a really great pheasant pate at the Granville Public Market last September. As you can imagine, we don't eat a lot of pheasant (not that I'm opposed to it; it's just not widely available) so I didn't know what to think about this pate, but I definitely wanted to give it a try. We got home Sunday night from a weekend away at a friend's beach house up north to find our kitchen completely devoid of anything for dinner. Being the resourceful kids that we are, we pulled out some cheese, cornichons, very thinly sliced Acme bread, and the pate. It was, in a word, delicious. The flavors were interesting enough to be an unexpected treat for your guests, but not too unexpected. I could definitely taste the rosemary and pecans, which I associate with warm kitchens and fragrant meals.

NEW ORLEANS - DAY 4

2011-12-12T14:37:00.000-08:00

We didn't have any set plans for Saturday except to take in some of the activities that had been closed for the holiday. We started the morning by visiting the apothecary museum which was really interesting. It's definitely not a shoppe for everyone, but we definitely enjoyed it.

We also walked around the Quarter using the natural beauty of the architecture to get a good picture for this year's Christmas card. We ended up not going with any of these, but I still think they're really cute. Also seeing these I no longer feel the need to get our anniversary pictures taken during our February trip to Maui. I can safely say I definitely prefer being behind the camera, taking pictures of my surroundings (and my handsome husband).

We decided to do a jazz walking tour that we didn't need reservations for. We showed up at Preservation Hall at 2 p.m. and found that we were the only ones there. For some strange reason we have an uncanny ability to get access to private tours. It first happened in Rome when everyone in our group cancelled and we ended up with a private tour of the Forum & the Colisseum, in Ireland we were the only people at half of the historic landmarks, and in Tofino we ended up with a private canoe trip. Definitely a perk of traveling during the off season!

I only have one other picture from the actual walking tour because the second we left Preservation Hall it ended up POURING RAIN. We were soaked by the time we were done, but it was a great, informative tour and we got to see a lot of important historical points of interest as they relate to the rise of jazz in Nola.

That night we had dinner at Galatoire's. I know I was supposed to be blown away, and very impressed by it all, but unfortunately we had a really bad experience.

First, it started off with our cab not showing up. With me in a dress and heels, we had to walk through the wet & rainy Quarter to reach the restaurant. Based on everything I'd read, I knew the restaurant was very formal so I made Alan bring a jacket for dinner and I wore the same dress I wore to the French Laundry last year, certain that if my dress was good enough for one of the top three restaurants in the country - if not the world, it should suffice for this place. Unfortunately by this time the crowds for the Bayou Classic had started to infiltrate the area near the restaurant so while Royal Street proved to be a nice stroll, once we hit Bourbon I could smell vomit and urine. Before dinner. Awesome.

We go inside and there's another older couple in front of us. The man didn't bring a jacket so they let him borrow one. The host asks us if we have a preferred waiter. Since we'd never been, we didn't. My only indicated preference was to sit away from the baby that was screaming bloody murder. He laughed and happily obliged. Unfortunately this also put us at the first table outside where the wait staff entered and exited the kitchen. This also put us in a certain waiter's section, which is where I think our dinner runs afoul.

I had read on several message boards that if you're not familiar with the restaurant you should get your waiter's opinion about what's good and defer to his expert opinion. All around us we heard waiters describing the various options in beautiful detail. Our waiter? He kept describing the same dish over and over again. When we asked what a certain dish was like, he couldn't tell us. He used common words like, "good, great, and a favorite." Right, but what's it like? He seemed surprised when we ordered sazeracs, warning us about how strong they were. Our drinks arrived and they were served on ice, unlike the ones at Napolean House. Now, I don't know which is the proper way of serving this cocktail, but I know which way I prefer it and it wasn't with a ton of ice. As an appetizer we ordered Galatoire Goute, a combo dish that was a crab salad and a shrimp remoulade and both were very, very good. It took awhile for us to place our order for our meals because the waiter couldn't seem to be bothered with us. Alan went with the trout almondine and I went with a crab dish in a mixture of bechemel and hollandaise sauce. To say that it was rich & thick is an under statement. It was almost like a dip. Truthfully I was at a loss for how to actually eat it. Once our food came we didn't really see our waiter again. We decided we were too full for dessert and this seemed to piss him off somehow. You know how at every single restaurant in the country your bill comes in one of those little leather folders? Yeah, not this time - even though they were sitting right there and I could see them. He basically slammed down a piece of paper on our table and walked away. I was truly baffled by what was going on. Alan will tell you I never cause a scene at restaurants. Even when food is bad, or wrong, or not what I ordered I never send anything back. I say please and thank you and smile, a lot. I mean, why wouldn't I? I was supposedly at one of the city's finest restaurants. But his service to us was HORRIBLE. I am still baffled by whether or not we said or did anything offensive. In all of my dining experience I have never been so thoroughly dismissed as I was by this particular waiter. We paid our bill and left, feeling really disappointed in the experience. The food wasn't terrible, but we felt really unwelcome and belittled for having eaten there. It cost more than our wonderful lunch at Commander's Palace just the day before. At that point I wished we'd gone to Bayona instead. Hell, McDonald's might've been preferable to that treatment.

Back in our room we let the heavy dinner settle before changing our clothes to head out for the evening. Rather than going back to Frenchmen Street I wanted to hit up Fritzel's, which thankfully was just a two block walk from our hotel. At that point I couldn't guarantee what would happen with my GERD so I wanted to be close to "home" in case I had a bad flare up like I did after August. We had such a wonderful time at Fritzel's. We got excellent seats for the live jazz and stayed there for about an hour. As we left we tipped and the lead singer pointed me out as a role model to the other customers. Ha!

Our last full day in the city we were back in our room just after midnight like the old folks we've become.

NEW ORLEANS - DAY 3

2011-12-12T14:01:00.000-08:00

One of the things we knew we wanted to do when we were in New Orleans was revisit Commander's Palace for their fabled martini lunch. I made reservations well in advance for 1 p.m. on Friday. We took it easy in the morning before getting dressed and walking through the Quarter to catch the St. Charles Avenue street car. Dressing for lunch was a bit of a challenge. I wanted to look nice, but I needed to be comfortable in the heat. In the end I packed an outfit that breaks all fashion rules - white pants after Labor Day! - while Alan carried my heels in his bag so that I could start out in flip flops. He's a good man, that one.

As the pictures show, it was a gorgeous day when we left and there were a lot of people out and about.

We sat in the upstairs garden room, overlooking the magnificent oak tree in the courtyard. We were seated next to four women in the 50s (and maybe 60s) that were having quite the time together. Our food was really decent, but it was really the ambiance that made it such a lovely lunch. We were there for about 1.5 hours and if we return, I'd do it again.

We attempted to go shopping on Magazine Street but we failed to figure out where the best shopping was and instead we were wandering aimlessly. We finally found a couple of shops but it wasn't really what we were looking for and I was starting to have GERD from lunch so we decided to head back to the hotel to rest before going out for the night.

As you can see, sunset from our balcony was pretty nice. The building across the way had already put up Christmas lights so it was a nice way to ease into the holidays.

That night we decided to hit up Frenchman Street for some live music. Our main destination was the Blue Nile club as Kermit Ruffins (a featured musician from one of my favorite shows, Treme) was set to play at 10:30 p.m. (or 11 p.m., depending on whether you believed their website or the door man). We really enjoyed the soulful singer that was on stage when we went in, but once she wrapped up it was over an hour before Kermit and the BBQ Swingers took the stage. In that time, obviously, more people had crowded into the bar and there was A LOT of smoking. I found the night before that if I didn't drink, I felt better so instead I held fast to a cold bottle of water for the majority of the night. The music, once it started, was good, but there were some drunk young girls in the crowd that were kind of over the top. At one point Kermit & his band started singing the theme song from Treme, which the crowd loved. I tried to take a video of it but all you can hear is a Kardashian wannabe in front of me screaming. Also, the only thing you can kind of see is her basically humping the stage. The sober people among the crowd were side eyeing her quite aggressively which made me feel better about thinking her a fool. We ended up leaving the club when Kermit starting singing Biggie Smalls songs (???) since we were there to hear jazz. We walked home down Decatur and crashed once we hit the room.

While I was kind of disappointed with Kermit's concert, I am really glad we got to go to one. In watching Treme those shows look like so much fun, and to be sure, so many people in the crowd were enjoying themselves. I think between my GERD, my anxiety, not being able to breath properly with all the smoke, and not being able to drink, I just wasn't in the right frame of mind to enjoy it. But yeah, that man can blow.

THANKSGIVING IN NEW ORLEANS - DAY 2

2011-12-12T13:37:00.000-08:00

Thursday - Thanksgiving - was our second day in New Orleans. We had reservations for dinner at Restaurant August for 5:30 p.m. but other than that our day was open. Unfortunately, because of the holiday a lot of the touristy things to do were closed, so we used the time to relax and wander the city. But first, breakfast! Our hotel provided a "continental breakfast" that was pretty disgusting - tepid, weak coffee and stale pastry. Appetizing! We found one of the few restaurants that were open for breakfast and kicked off our day there. I had a crawfish omelet that was delicious but very rich. We hung out in the room for a bit before embarking on a walk deeper into the Quarter and a carriage ride.

Our Thanksgiving meal at August was good, and the service was great, but a few minutes before dessert I started having a GERD attack. This led to a panic attack which was not awesome. We started our dinner with a fois gras trio that was somewhat disappointing. At $26 this did not set a good tone for the meal to come. We followed it with a crab & truffle gnocchi which was delicious. For dinner I ordered duck while Alan got a fish dish. My duck was perfection, as were the grits and quince jam it was served with. Truly a delicious dinner. Unfortunately I didn't love the wine that the waiter recommended so I ended up wasting $14 on something that I wasn't going to drink. We split a dessert of a sweet potato cheese cake that had a whole mess of other things going on with it. It was good, no doubt, but it also seemed overly complicated and unfocused. Tasty, but a confusing way to end the meal.

Considering the meal and the atmosphere, I'm glad we went to August. I would recommend it to others. But I don't think it was right for Thanksgiving. And it was VERY expensive. I would probably order differently, sticking to cocktails instead of wine (which is interesting given that they're one of the restaurants in the country wine magazines rave about) and skip dessert.

Unfortunately by the time we got back to our room I was having really bad chest pains from the GERD and a host of other problems from the panic attack. It was terrible. I felt horrible that here we were in a great city, on vacation, and I was ruining everything with my continued health problems. I forced myself to get dressed and go out for a bit, but it was really hard.

We decided to go to the Lafitte Blacksmith Shop which is a great bar with a talented piano man. It's lit only by candle light, which is very atmospheric. Unfortunately because I was having trouble breathing, the smoking indoors was giving me even greater problems. I felt like I was being suffocated so we could only stay about 25 minutes.

Getting up and walking outside I felt much better, but once we were back in the room with the overbearing and stifling air freshener smell I was having problems again. I ended up taking a sleeping pill while telling myself that I wasn't having a heart attack or anything serious, and that I'd be fine in the morning. I eventually fell asleep around 3 a.m. and lo and behold, I was fine in the morning.

HOLIDAY PROJECTS

2011-12-08T11:21:00.001-08:00

After my post yesterday I was feeling inspired to work on a little DIY holiday decor. After work I broke out all of my craft supplies and got to it. And then I realized my printer is out of ink. So I moved on the Plan B. That took A LOT of time. When I finished on the main part of the craft, I went to hang it and hit a complete snag in the plan. It just didn't work. And I really wanted it to work because I thought it would have been so cute. I tried, and tried, and tried, and in the process aggravated my potentially herniated disk so now my arms are all tingly and hot and painful and that just kind of sucks. I finally threw in the towel, and slunk away in defeat. I have a Plan C in mind, but I don't know if I'm ready just yet to tackle it.

Since I have nothing to show you after all, instead here's a video of Casey Abrams and Haley Reinhardt singing Baby It's Cold Outside (which is actually a very creepy song that I love in spite of its lyrics).

CHRISTMAS DECOR THROUGH THE YEARS

2011-12-07T10:52:00.001-08:00

Reading home design blogs at the holiday can make you (err, me) feel a bit like an underachiever. These ladies seriously go all out every year. They have multiple themes they decorate around from year to year. They spend hours on crafts to make their homes look festive and happy. Us? Well, we decorate slowly over the course of a week or two. And we always use the same stuff we've had. Yes, I add to it here and there, but most of the stuff remains the same. There is no theme. There is no rhyme or reason. And because some of the decor we use to decorate were gifts from family members, some of it is even a bit tacky. (This year we uncovered two two foot tall Christmas moose in our loot - we didn't buy them, that's for sure ... I seem to recall getting them as a Christmas present a couple of years ago from Alan's aunt. I think. And yes, they're on display.) One of our favorite decorations is a statue (?) we lovingly refer to as Fat Santa.

It's all a little bit unrefined.

That said, I was excited when I received this months' issue of Country Living magazine and the cover image was a tree decorated with red birds. I'm well ahead of that trend, first adding birds to my tree in 2007.

Christmas 2007

Christmas 2008

I don't seem to have any close-ups of the tree ornaments that year, but trust me when I say the birds are on there.

Christmas 2009

Christmas 2010

I'm still decorating for Christmas 2011 but I'll post those pictures soon.

In the meantime, I never realized how obsessed with the tree Dakota has been in years past. This year she watched us decorate, but didn't show much interest in the ornaments, except for the feathers on one of the birds. When we put the tree skirt down she ran under there to hang out for awhile, but quickly left and hasn't been back. Maybe she's too mature now for those shenanigans?

New Orleans Recap - Day 1

2011-12-06T15:26:00.001-08:00

Whenever we're traveling to the East Coast I like to book redeye flights because this way you don't lose a precious day of your vacation time sitting on an airplane. The downside of this approach, however, is that you're usually somewhat tired and worn out the first day of your trip. Despite the fatigue that can come with this plan, in the past we've had very productive days immediately following overnight travel, especially on our last trip to New Orleans and then again for Boston in 2007.

Before heading out for the airport I had seen on Twitter that traffic in the Bay Area was terrible. Two days before Thanksgiving and the roads were already jam-packed with holiday travelers. We had hoped that by traveling on a Tuesday night we'd get a jump on everyone else making their way to the airport, but local news stations were reporting that Monday and Tuesday were supposed to be the busiest days for SFO of the year. Craptastic.

Not wanting to be worried about whether or not we'd make it through security in time to board our plane, we left well ahead of when we would normally leave, making sure that we had plenty of time to drop off our car at Park & Fly and still get to the airport with sufficient time. You can probably guess where this is going.

We made it to Park & Fly at SFO in something like 20 minutes. There was hardly anyone on the road. We were at the airport HOURS before our flight. The TSA agent at security even remarked that we were very early for our flight. I have no idea where all that traffic The Twitters was talking about, but it wasn't on the Bay Bridge. I don't know where all the people were that were supposed to make it the busiest travel day of the holiday season at SFO, but they weren't there. I hate being at the airport so early, but I also hate running to catch a plane (had to do this in Denver) so all told it wasn't a terrible inconvenience.

The flight to Houston was great. I took an Ativan and was asleep before we reached cruising altitude. Alan woke me up for landing so that I wouldn't jump up and scream. At Houston our layover was quick and painless. We were in New Orleans by 8:30 a.m. CT and ready to roll.

For this trip I wanted to keep initial costs to a minimum because I knew we were going to spend a lot on food, drink & activities. Months before we left I started researching which hotels in the French Quarter were nice enough for our liking, but cheap enough that they wouldn't break the bank. On our last trip we stayed at Loft 523 in the Central Business District and LOVED our room, but the location left a lot to be desired, especially at night when you've been out eating, drinking, and carousing and you just want to go back to your room and crash. Midway through our trip we switched to the Maison Dupuy (it was during Mardi Gras and by the time we booked no hotel had a full week available). That hotel was terrible. Smack dab in the quarter but the room was awful and the ambiance couldn't make up for it.

I initially booked the Dauphine Orleans Hotel which has EXCELLENT reviews on TripAdvisor. The rate for an upgraded king room was pretty decent, and free breakfast was included. According to the reviews, the breakfast was varied and pretty decent. After our trip to Italy where we started every day with a good breakfast, we have vowed that is a major preference for us when traveling. The problem with the DO was the location - it's centrally located in the Quarter, but it's above Bourbon going toward Rampart and this time around we wanted to be closer to Jackson Square and Royal Street. When we were there last I remember seeing the signs for a hotel that is *right off* Jackson Square so I looked into prices directly on the hotel's website. A king room with a balcony was about $150 more total than the other room, but the location of the Place D'Armes is truly spectacular. I'm not sure there's a better located hotel in all of the Quarter (some will say the Omni Royal Orleans has a more coveted position, but I'm not sure). About a month before our trip I canceled the one reservation and booked a room there. I was a bit apprehensive because recent reviews for the place were so varied. It is definitely a hotel where your experience is largely defined by what room you find yourself in.

We stopped in to our hotel hoping for early check in but no dice. Dropping our bags off with the porter, we decided to wander around the city, checking out the sites. Our first stop: Cafe du Monde for beignets and chicory lattes.

From there we hit up the Louisiana State Museum to see a couple of exhibits at the Presbetyre and Cabildo, which is a good thing because they closed early that day and stayed closed until Saturday. The exhibits, including one on Katrina, were informative and well done. Given the fact that there were NO CROWDS when we were there, even though there were a lot of people milling around outside, I think a lot of people skip over these places in favor of some of the flashier tourist attractions that are available. I thought it was a good primer for people who want to know more about the history of the area and gain a better understanding of why New Orleans is the way it is and some of the peoples that have populated the region over time. It's also a beautiful set of buildings overlooking all the loveliness that is Jackson Square.

After the museums we went back to our hotel to see if we could check in then. No dice. We ventured forth.

Our next stop for a late lunch was Acme Oyster House. We went here on our first trip and had a really good time so we wanted to stop here again. We had to wait a couple of minutes with a couple of very interesting people, but eventually we were shown to a quiet table in the back of the restaurant. While it was more private back there, I think that also takes away some of the ambiance and hustle and bustle of the place. We got both raw and cooked oysters, as well as a crawfish dish that was different than how either of us imagined in. Since 2004, we've discovered our love of oysters and I'm sure that had something to do with our reaction to the meal at Acme this time around. Dollar for dollar (a comparison you'll hear me make probably several times over the course of this trip's recap), I'm not sure that what Acme serves up can at all compare to the fresh oysters we get out of Tomales Bay. The flavor of our oysters is briny and sweet and juicy. These had a very flat flavor that left a lot to be desired. I imagine the disaster in the Gulf has a lot to do with the quality of oysters that can be had now, but overall I wasn't blown away.

We went back to the hotel to see if we could check in as we were fading fast. It was HOT. While we weren't yet allowed to go to our room, we did drop off our sweaters and I changed out of my Uggs into flip flops I had packed at the last minute when I realized that the temps were going to be in the mid 70s most days that we were there. I am SO glad I made this addition because it made all the difference. Rather than trying to do anything else, at this point we decided to sit in Jackson Square for awhile and just rest. I may, or may not, have fallen asleep on a park bench.

After our nap, during which time I actually got sunburned, we were finally able to check in to our room! Hooray. The front desk attendant made a somewhat big deal by calling it the "Stairway to Heaven" a handful of times, so I figured we were in for a treat. From the TripAdvisor review photos, I knew which balcony I preferred, but I had no idea what the actual rooms looked like. The good news is that we got the room with that balcony!

The bad news is it was weird. Very weird. I'll spare you the whole review (if you're interested later I'll link to my TripAdvisor review - it's pending approval), but suffice it to say there was a lot wrong with the room. That's not to say that we hated it, just that it made for a very interesting experience. First of all, the only way you can access the balcony from this room is by leaving your room and going through the window immediately outside your door. You better hope someone's inside or that you remembered to bring your keys, because you are not getting back in. The windows IN the room are painted shut so that also means there's absolutely no airflow in the room, making it smell pretty horrible - a mix between stale, cigarettes, and air freshener. Supposedly the rooms are non-smoking but I don't believe that for a minute. The air freshener smell was really bad on my allergies so a few times we left our door open so that the window outside could let some fresh air in. We were up a private staircase with no additional rooms so there wasn't the risk of anyone walking by, but it still felt very weird to have our door open when others could possibly hear our conversations. The linens on the bed had seen much better days (think scratchy 80s style comforter and bottom shelf sheets), and the wallpaper was peeling in areas. There were also water stains on the ceiling near the air conditioner which was LOUD. It turned on one night while I was trying to sleep and it scared the bejeezus out of me.

After resting up for awhile we made our way out for the night. Originally we had dinner reservations at Bayona but I ended up canceling them earlier in the day because we were just too tired to get our act together for a big production of a meal. After seeing the location, I am kind of sad because the restaurant is housed in a beautiful old creole building. The reviews are of course stellar and I'm sure it would have been a lovely meal. Instead we found ourselves at Pierre Maspero's, which has been there since the late 1700s. The meal was alright, but it was exactly right for our level of energy and it gave us an opportunity to regroup and settle in for an evening out in a relaxed atmosphere.

Across the street from Pierre's is Napoleon House, home of what we have dubbed the best Sazerac in the Quarter. I had two - they were delicious, reasonably priced, and they tasted great.

From there we made our way over to Preservation Hall, one of my favorite jazz venues in the area. When we were there last we ended up getting a seat and one of the house cats jumped up in my lap and stayed there for the entire set. I was in heaven. As we were going in I said something to Alan about hoping the cats were still alive and the man at the front said that two of the three were. Midway through the set "my" kitty sauntered in and jumped up on the lap of a woman sitting along the wall. Hooray! I was really starting to get into the groove and feel relaxed and happy. It helped that the music was excellent and the company was fabulous.

When we left Preservation Hall there was a second line parade with folks dressed up as Indians and Pirates and other assorted characters walking down the street. I'm sure they spent some time planning the outing but for us it was a spontaneous addition to what was shaping up to be a great night out on the town, and this added musical bonus was a great surprise.

Next we hit up Pat O'Brien's, home of the famous hurricane, and our first bar stop on our previous trip. We met up with my best friend Heather on that adventure and didn't leave Pat's until we were well and liquored up. This time Alan and I took a much different approach, opting for one hurricane each as we rested our feet a bit and sat by the fountain and heat lamps.

As we left Pat's we heard loud music coming from Bourbon Street. I figured we should at least check out the madness while we were out and about so we made our way over. Holy eff. I remember it being crazy. I remember it being loud. I didn't remember it being disgusting. No one was flashing their breasts for beads (that I saw) but a large majority of the woman that we walked past were dressed like hookers. I know this is what "party" outfits look like these days, but the saddest part was none of these woman were attractive or in a state of physical wellness that would encourage such attire. I guess maybe they don't see themselves as being repulsive, in which case ... good for them? High self-esteem and all that?

We finished our night off at the Maison Bourbon where we watched a traditional jazz band for two sets. When we walked in they were playing our first dance song, so of course I was smitten. And drunk by this point, so I was definitely feeling the love. The place wasn't packed, so we got a great seat, and had just a really enjoyable couple of hours there (I think?). The last song they played before we left was really upbeat and one that I've heard often enough on the New Orleans jazz station on Pandora, so I was grooving in my seat. The lead singer tried to get me to stand up and shake my groove thing but I was content enough to just dance in my seat.

A bit after midnight we made our way back to our hotel, happy and in good spirits. About twenty feet from the door to the building a couple of guys behind us threw their cup full of an unidentifiable liquid and it hit me square in the back. I was pissed. You also have to remember I was drunk. I wanted to kick their asses. I remember screaming, "seriously? SERIOUSLY?" and waving my arms at them like some sort of deranged banshee. They didn't respond, but they quit laughing. The worst part (aside from getting hit with a full cup of liquid, of course)? THEY WERE STAYING AT OUR HOTEL. For the remainder of the trip I kept side-eyeing the groups of young men trying to identify the perps and tell them off, but I was never entirely sure which ones were the offending party. Regardless of the overwhelming stench in our room, I hit the bed and quickly passed out for the night.

What a great first day in New Orleans!

DEAR GENEVIEVE IN NYC

2011-12-04T11:27:00.001-08:00

I watch A LOT of HGTV. Ever since I took my first drafting class in 8th grade, I've kind of been obsessed with interiors. I thought about going to school for interior design but the program at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh was more expensive than full tuition at the University of Pittsburgh so I found myself with a writing degree instead. In the years since then, I've filled my love of design through this network, first with Trading Spaces (where I first "met" Genevieve) and now with shows like Secrets of a Stylist, Dear Genevieve, Property Brothers, and The High Low Project.

Most of the time I could go either way on the new rooms these designers do. Sure they're nice, but they're not necessarily for me. There are always elements I like, but more often than not, I wouldn't have wanted my entire room to look exactly like that. Well, that's changed with the episode I just finished watching, which featured Gen (like how I shortened her name like we're besties?) making over the first home of a 30-something career gal in NYC. The space had good bones but at 500 square feet was tiny and lacked storage and seating (side note: our first apartment in San Francisco was a paltry 475 square feet so I know all about how problematic it is to make a space that small function properly and look good.).

Another confession: even though I get kind of agro in crowds and my anxiety goes full tilt when I'm surrounded by too much noise & people, I've kind of always had this alternate universe fantasy where I lived in NYC for a year. We've already lived in an incredibly tiny space and lived the tell about it, so I have no qualms about our ability to fit our lives into a jewel box sized NYC apartment. And now, I'm a little more design savvy (with more expendable income) than I had way back in 2002 - everything was Pottery Barn back then, thanks to my employee discount - so I have visions in my head of what a NYC apartment could look like, instead of feeling constrained. That said, it's more of a jumble of ideas and thoughts about what I would want than any cohesive design plan.

But this apartment that Genevieve did? Perfection.

Yesterday Alan said to me that my ideal living space is one that looks lived in. This apartment captured that sentiment perfectly. It looked like whoever lived there had an eclectic sense of style and a great love for picking up items that coordinated, but weren't matchy matchy. It looked like whoever lived there was smart, cultured, and interesting. It was a beautiful space.

Unfortunately HGTV does a TERRIBLE job of making the images from their shows available online. Thankfully, House of Hydrangeas also loved the episode and took the time to photograph images from her TV and post them. I love the blogosphere.

Three things that I especially love about this room are the built-in bookcase behind the couch (so much storage!), that grouping of vintage mirrors, and the fact that she didn't try to pretend the TV doesn't exist. So many design shows try to hide the TV - or get rid of it altogether - and I'm always left wondering why they do that. Clearly this homeowner likes TV, and there it is front and center.

I'm thinking that there must be a space in my house for a cluster of mirrors. I just have to figure out where.

RECIPE: PUMPKIN CUSTARD

2011-12-02T11:08:00.001-08:00

Yesterday I was working in my home office, freezing and wanting something sweet. Since we're on a Paleo-lite diet (we ignore the "no dairy" and "no alcohol" rules) I don't eat a lot of sweets and that's particularly hard on me sometimes because I love a good pastry (my preferred item: apple fritter) like I love rain and wind. That is to say, I love it a lot. Realizing that I still had the pumpkin I bought at Trader Joe as decoration for $1.99. I fired up the oven and got to work on a pumpkin custard. I'd made a recipe before and it wasn't necessarily to my liking. I felt like something was lacking so this time I did away with a recipe and just followed my instincts. What came out of the oven was, in my opinion, the best damn pumpkin custard I'd ever made. It put all previous pumpkin pie fillings I'd ever made to shame. Yeah, I loved it that much.

Now, to be fair, this isn't really a recipe that hard core, no carb Paleo eaters can use. But it's a great, all natural treat for those who are a little more flexible with their diets. It's sweet without being cloying. It's light & fluffy. And it reminds me exactly of eating a cold slice of pumpkin pie the day after Thanksgiving, which is kind of awesome seeing as how we entirely skipped any Thanksgiving food this year. (We're cooking our feast tomorrow instead.)

I haven't taken any pictures because it's not a pretty recipe. I'm sure there are ways to make it nice & picture worthy but I was too worried about diving in.

Start with one small pumpkin (I think they call them pie pumpkins)
Cut in half & de-gut (save the seeds for roasting later)
Roast pumpkin at 350 for 1 hour
Remove pumpkin from skin & puree until smooth
Add 1 cup of organic maple syrup to pumpkin puree (the real stuff, not that Log Cabin crap)
Add 1/2 cup of Sugar in the Raw
Mix until smooth
In a separate bowl beat 4 eggs
Add 1 cup of heavy cream
Add 1 tbsp of good vanilla
Add wet mixture to pumpkin puree
To this add 2 tbsp of cinnamon
Add 1 tbsp of cardamom
Add 1 tbsp of nutmeg
Add 1 tbsp of ground cloves
Pour into a small casserole dish and bake at 350 for 1.25 hours
Remove from oven & eat immediately or save for later
Add a dollop of whipped cream if you like

Sneak Peek: New Orleans

2011-11-29T16:09:00.001-08:00

So that it's not all doom and gloom here on the blog, I need to write-up a recap of our four-and-a-half days in New Orleans over the Thanksgiving holiday. Aside from the stuff I wrote about yesterday, there were many high points to the trip. New Orleans is such a beautiful city and I'm so thankful that we were able to return and find much of what I remembered loving about it from pre-Katrina in tact. I know a lot of people think of New Orleans strictly as a party city but step one block off Bourbon Street and it's so much more. Because of its rich history, the beauty - and decay, which seemingly live in harmony with one another - you see around every corner is simply unlike any other place I've seen.

GETTING HONEST: I'M HAVING A ROUGH GO OF IT

2011-11-28T15:11:00.001-08:00

In the midst of reading everyone's blog posts and Facebook status updates, I'm feeling a bit down. You see, I'm having a rough time of it lately and I just don't know how any of this is going to play out in the long run. I've been feeling sick for so long now and tried so many different things that I just don't know what the answer is or when things are going to get better. And I admit, I'm feeling very sorry for myself.

Longtime readers will remember how in the spring I wrote about having insomnia and chest pain and general discomfort associated with my GERD. After an esophageal spasm (I think) sent me to the ER in Portland as I was about to board a flight back to Oakland, I tried several different things to make myself feel better. Because of the heart conditions that run in my family, you can never be too careful. I've had countless doctor appointments and so far the official medical diagnosis is that I have premature ventricular contractions but they're not severe. They're so not severe in fact that I shouldn't even notice them. I had follow-up appointments with the cardiologist who put me on a treadmill and made me run uphill like the dickens which showed a perfectly functioning heart. I had two sonograms (damn those things hurt) that showed no blocked arteries r gave the cardiologist any pause. My cholesterol is high so I was put on a new medication. Unfortunately a side effect (for me) is terrible muscle pain so I've stopped taking it until my next cardiologist appointment in a couple of weeks.

While all of this is going on, I cut out wheat and all grains (minus beer) and for awhile that helped tremendously. I went from having daily GERD attacks to one or two a week that were pretty mild. An added side effect was that I lost 20 pounds. Score! On the medication front I take Nexium daily but lately it's just not enough and so I'm also popping Pepcid Complete and Tums throughout the day. It's a constant struggle wondering what will hurt and what won't. My endoscopy in mid-August revealed agitation of the esophagus and/or a peptic ulcer, but nothing that needed to be treated any way other than what we were already doing.

So, according to two specialists, I have problems but they're not severe and I shouldn't worry.

While I was generally okay during the days the nights are terrible. I don't sleep. When I hear new mothers complaining about how they only get an hour or two of sleep a night I know how they feel - only, it's me that's causing my own sleepless nights. My mind races. My body does strange things. I sometimes wake up gasping, feeling like a bolt of electricity has just run through my body. I'm on medication, but it's not supposed to be for the long term. With the meds I get to sleep between 1 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. Without the meds I get to sleep between 4 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. I'm back online for work between 8:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. It's well, exhausting.

Unfortunately things got worse last Sunday night and have been going down hill from there. Everything was fine. We had a good meal and were watching TV. My jaw - both sides - started to hurt really bad. I didn't think anything of it except that maybe it was my TMJ acting up (even though it didn't feel like TMJ). When it was time for bed I took some ibuprofen because it doesn't have a bad reaction with my insomnia medication. I laid down and within seconds I was having shooting pains in my chest and what I describe as fire in my belly - essentially, the same symptoms I had when the lady at the Alaska counter at PDX called the ambulance for me. Then my arms went numb. Then my face went numb. Then my head felt like it was in a vice grip. I was so scared, but I'd already been through this once before at a hospital with inconclusive results. I tried to relax and eventually fell asleep sometime around 3 a.m. still with pressure in my head and with slight twinges in my chest.

The next day my chest pain was gone but the jaw pain and pressure in my face and head was still there. I was scared while the chest pain is old hat, this numbness is new. I called the doctor and requested an appointment that afternoon. Alan came home to go with me. She - a new doctor - told me that I was basically fine and needed to just be zen because multiple good doctors have said I'm okay. Because the face/head pain & numbness is new she's referred me to a neurologist. I have an appointment in January. She also prescribed me Celexa, a new anti-depressent. I asked her if I was okay to travel since we were leaving the next day for New Orleans. She said I should go and have a good time. And I did, in general. But it was hard. It was oh so hard.

The red-eye flight was basically great with my anti-anxiety pills knocking me out for both legs of the trip. And walking around the first afternoon while we waited for our room to get ready I felt great. At dinner, everything was wonderful. That night I had a few drinks and we went to the jazz clubs and I was so, so happy because I felt good. I felt wonderful for the first time in a long while.

I woke up the next morning with the pressure/numbness in my head and left arm. After breakfast I started having chest pains and worst pain in my arm. It never let up for the rest of the trip. After Thanksgiving dinner I was in the room crying in so much pain. I thought my heart was going to explode. It hurt so bad. as bad as its ever hurt. And every time I get one of those stabbing pains in my chest, I get this warmth and numbness that radiates out to my left arm and up my neck to my jaw and face. Web MD would classify this as a heart attack or a stroke, but to quote Alan, "if that's the case you've had 300 of them."

We had to leave one of the clubs when the pain & dizziness was more than I could handle. The whole trip every time I ate I felt sick to my stomach and then the acid would come, and then the chest pain and dizziness and numbing radiating out over my body would hit. I tried to rally. I had fun in so many instances but the whole time I'm thinking please don't let me die. Because that's what it feels like. Your body is revolting against you: the two organs that are supposed to keep you going - your heart and your brain - are seizing up and causing you major discomfort and pain. And all the doctors can tell you is that you're okay. But you don't feel okay. You feel terrible.

I had some more minor attacks on the flight home yesterday. Trying to convince myself that I wasn't going to die at the Denver airport, I looked up the symptoms for anxiety attacks and yeah, in addition to my GERD and my PVCs, I've definitely got panic attacks. I'd say at this point they're gripping. That logical bit of me said, "you're not having a heart attack or a stroke; you're having a panic attack and you'll be okay." But when we were in the car on the way home and I got a stabbing pain in my chest, well, all logic flies out the window. By the time we got home at midnight I was in very real pain. This was not something I was making up. This was not in my head.

I know Alan's tired of it. I can see it when he looks at me and that hurts worst of all.

All day today my chest has been twinging and my left arm has been warm and numb. I feel like I've got an anvil on my chest, but more than anything I've got lead around my heart. I am so unhappy and so sad and I just wish that I felt well. I'm a burden to my husband and it makes me sad. I'm afraid to be by myself in case this isn't just anxiety. I'm terrified every minute of the day and at night. But at some point I have to tell myself what will be will be. But I'm just so scared. And in pain. And wishing that I was neither. So yeah, I'm in a rough place right now. And it sucks. It really, really sucks.

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T08:09:00.001-08:00

This year I am thankful for a really fantastic job, a husband I adore, a beautiful home, great friends (both old & new, "real" & virtual), my family across the country, and the ability to travel to wonderful places.

SPAMMERS?

2011-11-22T10:11:00.001-08:00

Is it just me or is there a major increase in the amount of spam bloggers are receiving lately? Strangely it's all on the same post. Every day I'm getting a couple of different comments that are obviously spam on my Get Me Out Of Here post. At least switch it up a bit people!

PAINTING UGLY BRICK FIREPLACES?

2011-11-21T12:01:00.001-08:00

The brick on our fireplace is mismatched and poorly installed, not to mention just plain ugly. We've been talking lately about painting the brick white to help connect the rest of the room with the white box beam ceiling, and to freshen the look of our mantle. I think this could be a good update, but I'm torn. When I went online to look at inspiration pics, I could only find one person that painted their brick white and left the regular wood surround. Most everyone else also choose to paint the surround white and that's just not going to happen.

The question is though, would the white brick be too stark? Would it make the area look disjointed? Because you know, once you start down that road there is no going back. Painted brick is painted brick. And I'm really afraid of making the wrong decision and then regretting it for as long as we live here. But then again, could it be any worse than the current bright red ugly hideous brick?

While I'm posting pictures, I thought I'd show you how the rest of the room turned out with the blue paint. We kind of love it.

We need to do some touch-ups here and there (including the tiny strip between the fireplace mantle and the built in china cabinet), and then re-hang the pictures, but it's coming along. With the darker color though it's really obvious what a horrible painting job the previous owners did before we moved in. Almost every single part of the wood is covered in primer or pink paint. It's really quite sad that no one cared enough to clean up after themselves along the way. We're going to pick up some brown paint to match and start covering up their carelessness but that project's going to be extremely slow going since it takes a bit of precision.

So, going back to the fireplace - what would you do if you were us?

FAVORITE TABLESCAPES

2011-11-21T10:57:00.001-08:00

We're not going to be around this Thanksgiving, but I didn't want to miss out on Kim's Dare to Entertain link party, so I'm posting pictures of my favorite tablescapes from holidays past.

I thought about prettying up our table for a quick photo shoot, but (1) I kind of thought that was cheating a bit, (2) it sounded like a lot of work, (3) with out ongoing painting a lot of stuff is on the table and I'm too lazy to move it somewhere else.

While I don't go as glitzy and glamorous as some of the holiday settings I've seen out there, I do think we clean up nicely when we have guests over for important meals. Because we live in a craftsman bungalow, I like to incorporate natural elements in my decorations, and in keeping with the aesthetics of the craftsman movement, focus on simplicity over all else.

With that in mind, here are my favorite tablescapes over the years.

2009

2008

2007

[I also linked up to Layla's tablescape party on December 5]

THOUGHTS ON THANKSGIVING

2011-11-18T09:55:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving used to be my favorite holiday. I'd spend weeks planning my menu, shop at practically every store in the area the week beforehand, and then I'd cook up a grand feast for friends and family. One year we had 25 people at our loft and it was an amazing holiday. My sister and her husband flew in and stayed with us, we rented tables & chairs from a local party rental place, and I cooked a 25 pound heritage turkey that turned out amazing. I also imbibed in a lot of my famous sangria so I can't remember half of what I cooked that day because by 4 p.m. I had tossed recipes aside and was winging it. Funny then that was the best gravy I'd ever made.

When we moved into this house we had far less room and a closed-off kitchen, but I still managed to cook up a feast for friends & family. A couple of years ago I even managed to make up a kids' table where all the nephews could sit and pretend to be big boys.

Since that year though, Thanksgiving has gone a bit down hill for us here at casacaudill. My brothers in law have started spending the holiday with their wives' families, leaving just Alan's parents and us. Since we regularly have dinner with them throughout the year, it doesn't seem all that "special" to sit down for a big meal.

In 2009 I managed to convince Alan that we should skip Thanksgiving altogether and instead we went to Ireland for two weeks. We touched down in Dublin on November 15 and our hotel was already decorated for Christmas. As much as I hate the increasingly commercial nature of Christmas (stores putting out decorations before Halloween, advertising that starts on November 1), it was actually kind of lovely. And of course I loved not having to worry and plan for Thanksgiving because it doesn't exist in Ireland. We spent Thanksgiving day in Northern Ireland, exploring the Bushmills Distillery, Giant's Causeway, and Dunluce Castle. I had to remind Alan it was even Thanksgiving back home. It was a cold, clear, blustery day and it was absolutely perfect.

Last year we had Thanksgiving here and it was kind of a disaster. I was unemployed (by my choice) so I tried to be responsible and make a cheap(er) dinner. Since our lives were going through a lot of change, we probably should have kept things pretty traditional but instead we decided to cook a bunch of new recipes and do the turkey a whole different way. We skipped mashed potatoes because Alan doesn't really like them and went with roasted root vegetables instead. They turned out mushy and kind of gross. The skin on the turkey didn't crisp up the way I like it, and basically I was kind of disappointed. Also, it was just the four of us so it felt kind of sad and lonely compared to Thanksgivings of the past.

This year we're heading out of town again and I'm really excited. Unfortunately the weather forecast is giving me a headache. I had planned on packing sweaters, scarves, hats and boots, but right now they're calling for wet and warm, with highs in the 70s and scattered thunderstorms. I have absolutely no idea how we're going to pack for this or what this trip will be like, but I'm looking forward to getting some time off from the (self-imposed) stress of Thanksgiving to just be. And for that, I'm really thankful.

THANKSGIVING DECOR

2011-11-16T10:41:00.001-08:00

Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to participate on time in the first of six link parties over at NewlyWoodwards this week because I've been down for the count with a bug or virus or something that keeps morphing into a new version of yuck. It started off a couple of weeks ago when we both came down with the stomach flu. The week following that I was constantly nauseated, but never actually sick. And always cold. So, so cold. Then, on Saturday when I started painting the living room, I got hot, sweaty, and very dizzy. It was so bad, in fact, that I only managed to get one coat on 1/4 of the room. It's stayed that way since Saturday afternoon while I've spent time in bed or on the couch vegging out. (I'm happy to report though that the part of the room that is painted looks fabulous - even if the color isn't the same as the paint sample Home Depot gave us before.)

I haven't been TERRIBLE, per se, just not great. One of the best things about working from home is that since I don't have to look great for anyone and I don't have to perform all day, I can still get my work done even if I don't feel particularly great. Unfortunately yesterday it was so bad, and I was so exhausted, that I told my boss I was calling it a day and then I slept for hours. Unfortunately I was awoken in the afternoon by the sound of multiple helicopters hovering directly over my house. It appears the Occupy movement in Oakland decided to march to Berkeley on the main street above my house and this required several helicopters. Alan cooked dinner for us last night and I went to bed at 10 p.m., sleeping until 8:30 this morning. I'm currently sitting at my desk hoping the caffeine kicks in soon because otherwise this is going to be a very long day.

Because I couldn't participate, I thought I'd share with you a couple of my favorite projects from the first party. First there's Kim's project which I absolutely adore. The yellow pops so well against the brown walls and the white wainscoting.

I also really liked the metallic pine cones found over at Design Build Love. I think this is a quick & easy way to add a pop of sparkle without going overboard. Also, so inexpensive for people looking to decorate on a budget.

While technically I'm late to the party, I wanted to post my own small contribution. It's not much, but it's a quick & easy - and cheap - project that ties in well with autumnal decorations. You'll probably see it show up around our house until at least after Christmas.

A couple of months ago I bought two glass vases at Ikea for $9.99. This one originally had our succulent terrarium in it, but I killed the plants, so it was just sitting around in our kitchen taking up space. We also have a box of wine corks we've been saving for several years because I'm convinced that at some point I'll make a wine cork wreath (riiiiiight). Playing around one day I decided to throw together a candle holder and see how it turned out. It's likely a very impractical decor item as I'm sure once the candle gets below the cork line there's a definitive fire hazard going on, so it's not exactly functional. Oh well. Pretty serves its purpose in life, right?

PAINTING TO COMMENCE IN 3, 2, 1

2011-11-12T12:21:00.001-08:00

After several trial colors we've finally settled on a paint color for the living room. You could probably guess from the posts leading up to this that we're going with Behr's Distance. Funnily enough - or not - that was the first sample I bought and slapped up on the wall. I guess this helps prove out that a woman's intuition is always right. ;-)

We're making some additional changes in the space in addition to painting the living room. We'll see how this all plays out. I have several ideas for what I WANT to do and how I WANT the room to look upon completion but desire & reality sometimes have a funny way of not playing well together in the sandbox.

Wish me luck!

PARADE OF HOMES: SEATTLE PART II

2011-11-11T17:24:00.001-08:00

I love Seattle so much that I decided to do a second parade of homes, this time focused on higher-end real estate. Basically, it's kind of an alternate reality dream of mine to live in a bad ass condo overlooking Elliott Bay or Lake Union. That's what this post is about. (Ahh, to dream.)

$1.499 million

PARADE OF HOMES: SEATTLE

2011-11-11T16:19:00.001-08:00

It's cold & rainy here in Oakland so it's finally starting to feel like autumn. Unfortunately, there isn't an orange or red tree between here and the Whole Foods I visited a couple of miles away today so I'm taking our parade of homes up to Seattle where it's also cold and rainy but where they do see fall colors.

Seattle is a city that I absolutely love, so much so that we went twice in one year (admittedly the second time was for a friend's wedding, but I jumped at the chance to go even though it wasn't a convenient time having just returned from vacation the weekend before). It's by far one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen. The view of Elliott Bay from downtown is breathtaking, especially when the Olympic Peninsula's peaks are covered in snow. I was even excited to go on a three-day work trip up there in June even though I loathe traveling for work. During our breaks from the meeting, while everyone else was checking their BlackBerry or getting caught up on email on their laptop, I was standing outside under an awning in the rain getting caught up on email on my iPhone. That's how much I love Seattle.

Using the same parameters I've gone with before, here are my favorite housing pics in Seattle. This time I've included neighborhoods as well since that makes a lot of difference in Seattle (just like here in Oakland).

$540,000
Neighborhood: Central Business District

$499,000
Neighborhood: Alki

$495,000
Neighborhood: Madrona

$475,000
Neighborhood: Wallingford

$479,000
Neighborhood: Belltown

$474,900
Neighborhood: Adams

$469,950
Neighborhood: Wallingford

$465,000
Neighborhood: Mann

$449,950
Neighborhood: Fremont

$435,000
Neighborhood: Broadview

REMEMBERING OUR VETERANS

2011-11-11T10:10:00.001-08:00

For many, Veteran's Day is just another "random" holiday where if you're lucky you get a day off work or school (kind of like MLK Jr. Day, President's Day, and Columbus Day) - typically myself included. But this year something's different ... I don't know why but something's clicked for me.

I don't want to analyze it too much, but maybe it's because just a few days ago in my city, on two separate occasions, two Iraq War veterans were brutally beaten by the Oakland Police Department for protesting the increasing disparity between rich and poor in this nation. Maybe it's because we've been at war in this country for as long as I can remember. Or maybe it's just because in my old age I'm starting to think more about those around me and all that they do.

Whatever the reason, I'm asking you too to take some time out of your busy schedule today to think about our Veterans - those that have passed, those that are fighting today, those that have returned home safe and sound, those that have returned home not so safe or sound.

I grew up hearing war stories from both my grandpa and my dad. While recent generations on both sides of my family have stayed away from the military, it's fair to say that there's been a lot of military service in my family over the years.

My dad was in the Marines from 1974 to 1977, discharged the month before I was born. The details on his service are somewhat hazy as he's been known to tell a few extremely tall tales in his lifetime so it's hard to say with any certainty exactly what his service looked like. We do know that he was based in California, Okinawa, and Saigon. There is, however, some debate as to whether or not he was in Vietnam for the Fall of Saigon or afterward for the cleanup. My guess is the latter.

On the other side of the family my great grandfather, Lt. Commander Roy Jacobs, fought in World War II, serving as a medic in the battle for Guadalcanal. He was a mean old bastard before the war and when he returned home, having lost his pharmacy while off protecting our country, he became an even worse raging alcoholic. It was quite scandalous when my great grandmother Gertrude divorced him. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery in an area close to where JFKs eternal flame burns day and night.

My grandpa Edward Jacobs, who died in 2007, was a Staff Sargent in the Air Force, having enlisted at the tender age of 17 (with Gertrude's consent). My grandpa likes to embellish his stories as well (although nowhere near to the extend as my dad), so we're never really sure where truth turns into fiction, but we do know that he was part of a group that helped build a base in Saudi Arabia, and that while in the Middle East he traveled to Ethiopia. We learned this little nugget of information when we took him out to dinner at our local Ethiopian restaurant, thinking we were broadening his horizons with some crazy exotic food.

He was later stationed at Hamilton Air Force Base, about twenty minutes from here by Freeway. The last time we was able to come visit we took a trip there so he could regale us with stories about his time there, including when he was on the base's football team and they played against a bunch of Petaluma chicken farmers and got their asses kicked because, "those cowboys don't mess around." He had a lot of respect for chicken farmers after that.

So wherever you are today and whatever you're doing, think about those folks you know that have served and give them your thanks. Without them the world is a very different place.

AND ... MORE PAINT SAMPLES

2011-11-10T15:45:00.001-08:00

Last night after work I was bored so I ran to Home Depot to pick up some "lighter, more gray" paint samples at Alan's request for a different color. I chose one by Behr whose name escapes me right now and another from Martha Stewart called Schoolhouse Slate.

When I showed him the paint he swore it looked green. I'll admit, it can read green, but it was definitely in the blue/gray palette. So, I put it up on the walls and two things were immediately clear to me:

The coverage SUCKED. We've used Martha Stewart paints before without primer and never had any problems. In fact, the green that is up in our living room right now is from Martha and it went right over that bright orange monstrosity that used to be in our room. No primer, no problem. But this? Yeah, a darker color going over that green is going to need some primer. In this regard I am actually really happy with the Behr + primer paint even though traditionally I haven't been a fan of Behr. I might be switching.
The low VOC paint from Martha smelled worse than the regular old Behr paint. As I was painting I kept getting this "fake clean and fresh" scent that made me gag. The Behr paint? Nada. No smell at all. Strange.

So the lesson in all of this is that maybe I don't like Martha paints as much as I used to? I wonder if the company that makes her paint has somehow changed the formula, or, if because it's a sample size it's somehow a different mixture?

Anyhow, on to the actual color.

Putting it on I really liked it. In fact, I wish it was the color we had painted the dining room when we first painted that room back in 2006. That's the color I *thought* we were painting but the final color versus the tiny paper swatch was a whole different ball game. The other thing I thought was that it wasn't right. I like that it's steely and moody, but it's not saturated enough for my liking. I wanted deep and bold in here and this isn't really that. It would, however, look fantastic in the kitchen.

See?

This was taken with the lights out, using only the natural light coming into the room.

This one was taken with the same natural light + the overhead lamp which makes the room seem a bit warmer.

By the way, this is the color swatch for the one on the far right - December Eve. They look nothing alike.

And this is the swatch for the color that I'm turning out to like the most - Distance. As you can see, this one falls squarely in the blue-green category but it's not pulling that way at all.

In fact, the more I go through this process, the more I'm leaning toward it which is funny since I didn't love the 6 in x 6 in box I painted at the beginning of this exercise. You can't really tell because all of these pictures I'm posting were taken with my iPhone at weird times of the day, but at night with all the lights on, this color is AWESOME. Very moody. Very deep. Very dramatic. It reminds me of how I think of Tofino in my head when it's cold & cloudy there.

Pumpkins

2011-11-09T15:50:00.000-08:00

I know Halloween is over and all, but do I really have to get rid of the cute little pumpkin on my mantle? Can't I keep it for just a little while longer?

Pretty please?

Still on the hunt for the perfect blue

2011-11-09T15:47:00.000-08:00

Despite my best efforts to identify a blue that I want to paint our living room, I've only gotten marginally further along in the process. Last I updated, I was feeling a bit iffy on using Distance as it was too powdery for my liking. From there I painted two additional swatches on the wall - December Eve and Midnight Dream (also from Behr). The general consensus on Twitter was that December Eve was the clear winner. Alan thought Midnight Dream was too similar to our bedroom.

Yesterday at lunch I decided to paint bigger swatches to help us determine which of the two we liked best. Since this is the Behr paint with the primer mixed in I wasn't too worried about going over the darker colors, but with just the one coat on I can definitely see some of the underlying squares.

Among the two, the one on the left - Distance - seems like the better option, but there's still something about it that we're not completely sold on. The larger swatch definitely helped us to like it more than just the little square I had painted weeks ago, but we're still waffling about it. Alan thinks he'd like something lighter and more gray, so I'm going to investigate those options. It could work, but I'm not sold on that idea either. The whole point was to go with a rich, saturated navy in this room. Lighter and gray is a complete departure from that plan. But the deep, rich, saturated blue of Midnight Dream is completely wrong too. It reads too Crayola in here. I wonder if it's because our wainscoting isn't white and all the rooms that I'm loving with navy paint have white trim? Hmm, must think on this some more. In the meantime Alan keeps asking me, "what's wrong with the green?" What's wrong is that you can't tell what color paint will ultimately look until you actually put it on the walls and our swatch read darker and grayer than this albeit lovely shade of mint.

So, the hunt continues.

Parade of Homes: Montana

2011-11-08T14:34:00.000-08:00

Continuing my ongoing series of homes for sale in parts of America that are colder - and in my mind, better - places to live than Oakland, is Bozeman, Montana. If you had asked me in July why anyone would want to live there I would have shrugged my shoulders and said "I dunno." But having visited there for a week at the end of September I totally get the appeal: rural, but with all the amenities. Country, but college town. Woods and Main Street. All in all it's a very adorable, and I would think, very livable place. Oh, and my mom informs me that they have snow on the ground now.

There is actually a TON of real estate available in Bozeman and the surrounding area available right now. With a few exceptions that were too adorable to pass up I focused this post on properties that had land and views and would allow for a lifestyle a bit different than the I-can-see-into-my-neighbor's-house type of lifestyle we've currently got going on. Basically, those properties that brought me back to our week on 10 acres along the river.

$495,000

new look for the blog

2011-11-05T19:12:00.000-07:00

To coincide with month of November, I wanted a look that reminds me of the things I'm thankful for. With the changing of the season, I spent some time this evening sprucing up the blog to match the feel of autumn - reds, oranges, warm, soothing, happy.

This is, as you know, one of my favorite pictures from our trip to Bozeman at the end of September to visit my mom. Even though the trip was for a sad reason, we felt very relaxed in Montana and we loved walking from our little cottage down to the Gallatin River about 150 yards away. The trees in the background were starting to turn orange, yellow, and brown for autumn before the harsh winter hits the area.

I'll probably put together another banner in December as we move into the core of winter and the holiday season. Until now, here's to fall.

CHARLIE

2011-11-04T18:16:00.000-07:00

Instead of working on my NaNoWriMo book I'm procrastinating by finally going through the pictures from my camera card from our trip to Ohio in July 2011. I relied on my iPhone for a large majority of the pictures that I posted to Flickr and here so it's been a fun trip down memory lane to actually open these up and look at them. I came across a few cute ones, but none as great as this one of my niece Charlie. She's such a beauty!

FYI - GOOGLE+ INTEGRATION WITH BLOGGER

2011-11-04T17:28:00.000-07:00

The other day I clicked on a link asking me if I wanted to integrate my blogger account with my Google+ account. I've been using Google+ more and more as a way of having conversations with friends (instead of email or Facebook), so I thought it sounded like a good idea. That is, until I went to comment on someone's blog and saw that my name was no longer listed as casacaudill but rather my name. When I clicked on the link it took me to my Google+ page with my name, my employer, and all of my posts. Also, you remember how when you'd click on someone's name in the comments section and at the very top of their page would be a short bio and a link to their blog and all the blogs they follow? Gone. Poof. Adios. Needless to say, I was kind of freaked out - especially as I try to keep my professional and personal life pretty separate on the crazy old internets. Unfortunately as far as I can tell there is no way to unlink the two accounts.

So, I've edited my public profile and added my blog to the page, but it's kind of hard to find.

As Google tries more and more to become a social computing platform (instead of just the world's largest search provider) I'm sure you're going to see this happening more frequently to the bloggers you're used to interacting with. Hopefully my early folly will be a lesson to everyone on at least being able to find the information we all care about.

ROUGH DAY HERE AT THE CASA

2011-11-04T16:59:00.000-07:00

These photos were taken five hours apart. She has a tremendously rough life.

Autumn is finally here

2011-11-04T11:57:00.001-07:00

This was the scene in my office yesterday.

Hooray for sweaters, socks, gloves, scarves & hats!

NewlyWoodwards' Third Annual Dare to DIY Party

2011-11-03T17:03:00.000-07:00

This past year thanks to a few of the blogs I've been a long-time reader of, and new groups like Blue Door Blogs, I've come across several new and inspiring bloggers that I have faithfully added to my (not so improved) Google Reader. While I don't always participate in link parties or respond to every post out there, the Dare to DIY party from the NewlyWoodwards looks like fun and something that I would generally be doing on my own anyway so I thought I'd take this time to sign up and pass along the information for any of you that are interested.

What's a Dare to DIY Party, you ask?

The point of the ongoing parties is to motivate us to DIY from through Thanksgiving and Christmas – and to do it together. For six weeks bloggers from all over North America (and maybe even elsewhere?) will be posting their DIY holiday themed crafts, starting with a Thanksgiving project and ending with a post on your holiday traditions. I'm especially looking forward to the post on cookie making because we know what we're doing here at casacaudill when it comes to throwing down cookie style.

The schedule for the holiday link parties is as follows:

Date: Monday, Nov. 14

Theme: Dare to be thankful!

Take some time making your own DIY Thanksgiving project. It could be a fun Thanksgiving advent calendar, a banner or something completely unique. Post about what you made, how you made it and photos in its new home.

Date: Monday, Nov. 21
Theme: Dare to entertain!

Show us your table! If you are not hosting Thanksgiving, take this opportunity to make your table look great. Bring out your dishes and napkins and set your table. I promise you that it will make you smile every time you walk by. Get creative and use new things. Or go true DIY and make something totally new.

Date: Monday, Nov. 28

Theme: Dare to eat cookies!

As we begin to attend holiday parties, share your favorite cookie recipe for all to enjoy. It’s like a digital cookie swap. Share the recipe and a review of the cookie. If you can, add a picture. And don't worry about the extra calories. At Christmas, cookies are calorie-free.

Date: Monday, Dec. 5
Theme: Dare to give homemade gifts!

Nothing is more special than a gift made by you. Try out something new to give this year - ideas include bath and body items, kitchen gifts, hand-sewn clothing or home decor.

Date: Monday, Dec. 12
Theme: Dare to deck the halls!

Make something new to deck your halls. Did you find something in a catalog that you wish you had? Wreaths, stockings, pillows or advent calendars? Make it! Inspire us all to do the same.

Date: Monday, Dec. 19
Theme: Dare to have traditions!

Everyone has traditions for the Holidays. Tell us all about your favorites or start a new tradition to share.

So how does this thing work, you ask?

Each Sunday evening a link will appear on NewlyWoodwards. From there participants will post their take on the challenge in the link party, pointing readers back to their blog. To help encourage a more social atmosphere, readers and posters should then visit at least one other blog - and here's the big one - COMMENT. As the original post so aptly puts it, this is important because we want to meet new blogger friends and get inspired. This is a PARTY. Talk about your projects, but make sure you're looking at what others are doing as well. No one wants to be the loud, know-it-all standing in the room saying, "me, me, me." I'm sure we all know that person and abhor her (or him).

With that, happy planning.

Tour of Homes: Lakewood, Ohio

2011-11-01T16:57:00.000-07:00

The next stop in my series on Homes for Sale Across America (in Places that Have Cold Weather) is Lakewood, Ohio. Located about 25 minutes from my sister's house in Elyria, Lakewood is located on the shores of Lake Erie, ten minutes from Downtown Cleveland. Travel + Leisure has named Lakewood one of the Top 10 Suburbs in the USA; in 2010 Businessweek named it one of the Best Places to Raise Your Kids; and in 2008 This Old House Magazine chose it as the best city in the Midwest to buy a house in. Not a bad list of commendations, eh? I find it to be a quaint, mid-sized city with an excellent location for parks & recreation, and access to the major job centers in Cleveland while still maintaining a reasonable cost of living.

A SNEAK PEEK WORTH LOOKING AT

2011-11-01T16:26:00.000-07:00

I don't often comment on the posts on Design*Sponge - either here or there - because ... well ... I don't like many of 'em (shhh, don't tell). It's not that I think those homes are ugly or without merit, but rather that they don't meet my particular aesthetic or they don't seem particularly warm or welcoming. But today I came across one worth talking about when I clicked on the Sneak Peek for Charity D'Amato. Tell me that first photo doesn't immediately draw you in.

I love that collection of portraits, and her little pug asleep on those adorable chairs that are both somehow so out of place and perfectly at home in that room made me want to see more. And then I saw that she's from Lakewood, Ohio, one of my favorite communities in Ohio, near my sister's place. And you all know how much I love Western Ohio (despite its oft-maligned state).

This post gives me the perfect inspiration for the next stop on my tour of homes for sale across America (but only in places that have cold weather).

NANOWRIMO

2011-10-31T12:20:00.000-07:00

Well, that time of year is upon us again - NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month. For those who are unfamiliar with this, the goal is to write a 50,000 world novel during the month of November. You're supposed to write as much and as frequently as you can to get the words down on paper (err, computer). This is not supposed to be an exercise in editing, but rather just to get people to WRITE.

In theory I love the concept of NaNo. I've been composing story arcs in my head since I was a kid. As a child I won writing competitions at my elementary schools. I even had one story published in 4th grade for a district-wide writing contest (I wish I still had that damn book). In college I took several creative writing courses that taught me some measure of discipline but always seemed to be stifling me because the assignment was never what I wanted to write about.

So when I first heard about NaNo I was very excited to give it a shot. Unfortunately it also came during a particularly grueling period of my career and it turned out to be a complete and utter failure for me. I never even started. In 2007 I said I was going to participate. I got about 1500 words in. In 2008 I actually wrote something but I spent so much time editing and re-writing that I never got beyond the 10,000 word mark. In 2009 I picked up that same story and basically re-wrote it and added more character development and flow to the story arc. In 2010, I again re-wrote the beginning and added even more character information and dialogue. I wasn't able to hit the 50,000 word mark during November but I kept writing and I finally managed to get there shortly after the new year. I've continued writing on and off in 2011 and today, that story stands somewhere around 60,000 words. I think I can finish the story somewhere between 80,000 and 100,000.

So, I'm going to use the spirit of NaNo to get me there. I know where the story is going. I know who the major characters are. Now I need to fill in various chapters with additional information to make a more compelling narrative. I need to fine tune some of my characters so they are more integral to the story and eliminate others altogether. I need to decide if a device I used last year is going to remain a major part of the story telling and if so I need to replicate it successfully elsewhere or chop it entirely, which would mean killing about 10,000 of my 60,000 words. My main character has reached a major milestone, and now I need to learn where this takes her and those around her. November will hopefully reveal these things to me.

So, what's this story about you ask?

Olivia has spent her whole life thinking about death and obsessing over how her life will ultimately reach its end. When she meets a mysterious and charming man named William her understanding of life - and death - takes on new meaning as she grapples with the person she once was, the woman she was born to be, and the man who will be by her side throughout.

It's a paranormal romance and it takes place in Ireland, incorporating many of the places we saw during our trip in 2009. In fact, the hotel we stayed at in Dublin - the Shelbourne - was chosen because a pivotal scene takes place there. I felt that I really needed to see the place if I was going to have my heroine move her story forward.

Are you participating in NaNoWriMo? If so, I'd love to hear what you're working on how it's going along the way. Peer encouragement is definitely something that helps make the process so much more enjoyable. I'm even thinking that this year I may break out of my anti-social tendencies and go to a write-in at a cafe near me. Gasp!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

2011-10-31T10:12:00.000-07:00

For the first time in a very long time we got dressed up and made our way to a Halloween party. I'd forgotten how much I loved getting all done up in costume. I also forgot how long it takes to get black eye makeup completely off. I still have raccoon eyes!

We've decorated the front porch, bought candy, and we're looking forward to welcoming trick-or-treaters to our place tonight. At the end of the block my weird ass neighbors are putting together a bonafide hippie drum circle so we'll see if that does anything to impact the historically low traffic we've gotten to our house.

Whatever you're doing this Halloween, may it be a fun and safe one!

NEXT STOP: NEW ENGLAND

2011-10-29T15:48:00.000-07:00

Moving on in our Tour of Homes Not in 80 degree October Weather is New England. Like Northern California, prices in Massachusetts, Maine, and New Hampshire are kind of out of control so I've included several townhome and condo options in this group, sticking to the $400k to $500k range in the Portland listings below.

A side note about this area: A couple of years ago we took a red-eye from SFO to Boston to attend my college roommate's wedding reception (those crazy kids eloped to Jamaica a couple of months before) in Newburyport. We accidentally took the wrong road out of the airport and instead of taking the freeway the 1.5 hours up the road we ended up driving along the coast of Massachusetts. What an absolutely beautiful area! In Salem we stopped to walk around and take a tour of the with museum. The town is adorable and as you would expect, quintessentially New England. I think it was Alan's favorite city of the few we stopped in on our tour of the area. While I'm no fan of living on top of your neighbors (hello screaming babies next door), there are a number of beautiful places in Salem that I would move into in a heartbeat. Portsmouth, New Hampshire, was another area that we really liked. Looking at the map today I was kind of surprised to see how close it is to Kennebunkport, Maine, another favorite vacation spot we've been to.

Bedford, Massachusetts
$500,000

Newburyport, Massachusetts
$499,000

Marblehead, Massachusetts
$499,900

Cambridge, Massachusetts
2 bedroom, 1 bathroom condo
$499,000

Gloucester, Massachusetts
$499,000

Salem, Massachusetts
4 bedroom, 1 bathroom condo
$354,900

Kennebunkport, Maine
$499,000

Kennebunkport, Maine
$475,000

Kennebunkport, Maine
$399,900

Newburyport, MA
$395,000

Salem, MA
$389,900

Salem, MA
3 bedroom town home
$378,500

Salem, MA
2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo
$369,900

Portsmouth, New Hampshire
$450,000

Portsmouth, New Hampshire
2 bedroom, 2 bathroom townhouse
$349,900

Portsmouth, New Hampshire
2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo
$339,900

HALLOWEEN DECOR

2011-10-29T14:40:00.000-07:00

I had to change into a tank top and I may have gotten a bit sunburned, but our Halloween decor is up.

Now I'm trolling Pinterest looking for make-up ideas for my costume tonight. This is the first time we've gone to a Halloween party since we had one at our loft back in ... 2004?

PARADE OF HOMES (AKA PRETENDING TO LIVE SOMEWHERE ELSE)

2011-10-29T11:30:00.000-07:00

It's the Saturday before Halloween and I'm sitting here in my living room in Northern California in the green dress I wore in Hawaii. Why? Because it's hot as hell up in here. This is not right. It's Autumn, for goodness sake! I should be in jeans and sweaters and boots right now. I should be all snuggly and warm. Instead I'm wearing as little clothes as possible to still be considered decent. Just another reason to want out of this place: I need me some cold and gray.

I was thinking about it yesterday when all of my East Coast friends on Facebook and Twitter were talking about the cold front coming through their areas. In Pittsburgh it's snowing. We always used to love when it snowed right before Halloween. It made the night so much more festive (admittedly, we had a really great time on Halloween every year because we had such great friends that loved the holiday as much - if not more - than we did). My co-workers in Portland are breaking out their winter coats and firing up the fire places. I'm opening the windows and sleeping with the fan on at night.

This just isn't natural. It should be cold in October.

In keeping with my "GET ME OUT OF HERE" post of the other day, here's a sneak peek at some houses for sale across the country in places where it's sweater weather. Places where there are four seasons. Places where it snows. Let's take a tour shall we? First stop - PORTLAND.

Portland - $484,900

$419,900

LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

2011-10-28T13:26:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's post made me all kinds of depressed. And then Jean Quan failing to meet with the protesters even after she said she would made me all kinds of agitated. So I went to bed depressed and angry and then I had a panic attack and basically yesterday pretty much sucked. To help get me out of this funk I thought I'd focus on some beauty in the world by sharing some of the favorite things I've come across on Pinterest.

Source: None via Becky on Pinterest

Source: vivaboo.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: thesweetestoccasion.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: blogs.fanbox.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: beautiful-portals.tumblr.com via Debbie on Pinterest