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  Last night was poker night.  I swear, even though I'm in a job where learning new things every day is a huge component and I love it, a new game is so much different.  Maybe because there is no such thing as a game.  Unless you call a fight to the death (or at the very least, the precipice of pride) a game.  But then I will slay you with my fearsome skills.  Such as revealing my awesome-o poker hand right before the final bet because I thought we were done with the round.   Argh!  Opportunity lost.

But when life gives you lemons make lemonade.  Or at least find a video on Youtube that is so hilarious, it makes tears stream down your face.

Manners!

On a scale of 1 to appalling, how bad is it to lick your thumb, press it in the crumbs from a delicious breakfast pastry and lick it, in full view of the general public at the local bakery. Yeah, I thought so. That's why I didn't do it although I really wanted to!

This past weekend, Mechen was out for a visit. It was awesome! I miss him so much and when he's here, I can't even believe that I get through my days without his (physical) presence. We do well with the phone and email, but I cannot wait until the long-distance days are behind us. Although it's still a long ways off!

So, Mechen came in late on Friday. I saw the baseball game, had a hot dog (yay!) and cotton candy (YAY!) and saw a great fireworks show after the game. It was pretty awesome, although there's no way you'd be able to tell by my iPhone photo. Damn shaky hands and smoky haze!

Saturday, Mechen and I went to the Mission for brunch. He ordered Papas Locos, an amazing mix of beans, crispy potatoes, avocado, egg, cheese, salsa. It ends up looking like a mess but it is so good! I got the French Toast, which is way more boring but we were splitting stuff and figured it was good to have a sweet carb-y dish and it was tasty!

We went to Coronado beach that day then went out to Bianco Rosso, a wine bar up the street in Hillcrest. Our waiter had the most RIDICULOUS Italian accent, to the point where we wondered if, really, was he just completely faking the funk. I had made reservations and when we arrived, we asked if we could wait for one of the two outdoor tables. The waiter promptly went outside and Mechen and I shot each other looks saying, "No, there's no way he's..."

He was. He kicked the people out from their table, "They have reeeeessserrrvations!" Granted, the girl had nothing in front of her and the guy had a bone-dry glass but oh.my. We did not see that one coming, except maybe with a sense of vague impending doom.

But it was delicious. And well-priced! We only meant to get appetizers but the portions were huge! The mixed bruschetta was amazing- four large pieces including tomato/pesto, tomato, lightly marinated mozzarella/pesto and fontina/mushroom. The meat and cheese platter was a little less impressive only b/c I wasn't a huge fan of the meats which were all sausage/salami variety, no prosciutto.

The next day, we had the best caramel soaked French Toast that was a combined effort. We made it the night before and Mechen dipped both sides of the bread in the caramel sauce. It totally elevated the dish. The bottom was a deliciously soft syrupy mouthful while the top had a crispy caramel glaze. Amazing! Later that day, we went to South Beach for some awesome-o fish tacos and delicious margaritas. Then we laid out on the beach for a little bit. Tons of SPF, never fear!

Monday, Mechen left in the afternoon...boo! We went to Bread and Cie for some pastries, which prompted the moral dilemma listed above. He made his flight and is now back in Norfolk safely. Happily, I get to see him in 1 and a half short weeks. Hooray for a business trip to DC!

Sport!

Every time I play softball, I always hum the "Put me in coach, I'm ready to play" song. And I just googled it and, in case you cared, the song is song by John Foggarty (really? unfortunately, I don't care enough to verify past the first Google hit).

Fortunately, I play softball rarely enough that I am saved from major nerd alert status. I played this Spring (terribly) and then the time before that was 7th grade. When I was probably getting major nerd alert status for other reasons.

This Friday, I'm going to a Padres game. Hooray! I love baseball games! Especially when I'm sitting in $14 seats for $12 AND I get a free hot dog and soda. Nosebleed seats hooray! Hot dogs, HOORAY!!! I don't normally eat hot dogs. Ever. Except at baseball games when I magically will away gross thoughts along the lines of, "What IS in a hot dog anyway. Especially a really cheap one?"

I haven't been to an American baseball game since the Colorado Rockies game about 2 years ago. The most memorable thing about that game was seeing the mile high demarcation line painted on the appropriate row of nosebleed seats. Seeing this was actually a disheartening experience b/c I thought Denver was the mile-high city, not just the tippy top portion of its stadium. Boo!

Book!

I re-read the most beautiful testament to love last night: On Alice by Calvin Trillin. It's a thin book that almost overflows with all the stories not told but what does shine through is his absolute, complete and beautiful love that he had for his wife Alice.

I love the shared experience of love. Whether it's the love I'm lucky enough to have in my own life or in some way share in another's life, I think it's a pretty awesome, amazing and lucky thing!

Usually love is a pretty positive thing. Assuming it's the real thing unlike, say, listening to Alanis Morisette and willing the phone to ring which may or may not have happened in my life circa 1996.

But positivity! Yes, that! It's a nice mindset and one I'd like to be in when I write in this blog. I feel like the first blog posts are always a little meta, but I hope to celebrate beautiful things, even if that joy encompasses everything from the deepest emotion to the superficiality of enjoying a truly brain-drain magazine like People. Although if you must know, I'm more of an US woman myself. Stars...they're just like US!