THE LAST SUPPER....

Certain things will be hard to say good-bye to in San Diego, among them...

 in this case it is the best Mexican food on the planet in Logan Barrio.  The line is long at 8:30 in the morning and they do not serve breakfast.  

There have been subtle changes over the years... this is what it looked like when we moved here 11 years ago.

 When we were there this week it had been painted, the pictures had changed...and, I was now using my iPhone to photograph!  Personally, I like the old color better...but...





The food is still prepared before your eyes, at a continuous pace.

 This is still, quite simply the best plate of food EVER!!

Literally, more food than you can eat, and all for $9.40--seriously!!

I can tell you exactly how long the line is by what doorway you are standing by down the street.  The longest I have waited is 45 minutes...and I would do it again and again and again.

Cash only!

6 items on the menu!

All perfection!!

Down to the homemade tortillas!

As Arnold would say...I'll be back!

 

APRIL 17TH...

April 17th was an important day in history...

1970 Apollo 13 returned to earth

1961 Bay of Pigs invasion

1790 Benjamin Franklin dies 

1976 Mike Schmidt hit four consecutive homers 

1964 Ford Mustange debuts at World's Fair

2002 General Hospital airs 10,000 episode

 

2000 Gift Certificate issued for a aromamanicure & pedicure at LaCosta given to me for my 49th birthday

Promptly misplaced

1/4/2012 Gift Certificate FOUND!!!

 

The legendary Spa at LaCosta welcomed me for my manicure and pedicure (after being informed that gift certificates do not expire in California).  This was helped along by the fact that there was no value written on the gift certificate--who knew a mani/pedi today would cost $105.

  The decor is exquisite!

Tammy, my manicurist, said that I should be glad I waited as she has worked there for 13 years and it is much nicer now!

She was lovely...they all couldn't have been nicer.  OK, it was a little embarrassing when they held up the gift certificate for all to see what things were like in the "old days".

Besides 12 years ago I would have never been able to get a shellac on my nails (only on my furniture).

 It was a lovely gift,

a lovely day, 

 

a lovely venue.

Thank you to Betsy, Jeff, Mark, and Katie for my wonderful day at the Spa! 

 

FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS...

...it tolls for someone with a sense of humor.

We met Jacob and Betsy at Taco Bell tonight for dinner.  Betsy's first statement was slightly oxymoronic--she said not to say anything to her because she was ordering the good food.  Which means not from the "Fast Fresca" menu.

We place our order, get our drink, and head to the condiment aisle.  

We came upon

 SPORKS

STRAWS

&

SNIFES

To make matters worse, I picked it up to see what a SNIFE was...turns out it is a knife with a sense of humor!

LETTING GO

I guess the biggest questions from everyone have been:  "How could you do that!  I could never throw away all my stuff!"

Well, everyone except the people who are probably thinking:  "Three trucks of junk...seriously."

Well, today they came to pack what was left, and although yesterday I was proud of my 1-800-GOT-JUNK  accomplishment.  Today, I am just thinking, why didn't I get rid of more.

Someone said to me:  All those memories, how can you let them go?  The only time I look at 80% of all the items that I cannot live without are when I am packing them (or someone else is) to move.  It used to be every couple of years but lately it has been about every 10.  Looking at something once every ten years and thinking I need it is pathetic.

I will be reading my Kindle copy of

 happy that I am "Kindle-ized" and will have no more books to discard.

As I unpack, I will be thinking, "what was I thinking?" and wondering where is my 10% off 1-800-GOT-JUNK frequent visitor coupon.

HAVE YOU ANY WOOL...YES SIR, THREE TRUCKS FULL

...I am de-cluttering.  For many of you, this means cleaning a couple of drawers...shredding some papers...for me it took a little more...

 That is right...all of you who know me have been waiting for this day for years.  These two fearless men were set to make my day.

 They are smiling...I haven't opened the garage yet.

 or Cliff's room,  or Henry's office, or the spare room, or the long awaited emptying of "the room"

I sorted, I selected, I culled, let's face it I did a great job!!!  They were shocked...wow, you have alot.  I said, when we called we said we had alot.  Evidentally, that term is relative.

They called for reinforcements...another truck

In 3 and a half hours all of it was gone...all of it!

DISCLAIMER:  PLAID COUCH NOT MINE

  

Then they swept...

It was a miracle...and they were proud...

I think I want them back...maybe I have another truck in me to throw out!

All in all it was a purifying experience.

I have given away, donated, left goodies on people's doorstep, and sold on eBay.  

 

I threw out the little chest from my parent's house that I started refinishing before Cliff was born 22 years ago.

I threw out my mother's cookware...she has been dead for 40 years, and she had had it for 30 years...it was a sign when the handles fell off finally.

I went through it all!

They say that the first step is the most important.  

 

What did I do tonight?

Went to Barnes and Noble and read their magazines--and NO I did not buy any!

 

I might have learned my lesson. When you are in a pinch you don't call Ghostbusters...you call

1-800-GOT-JUNK

 

WHERE IS NOAH WITH HIS ARK??

The various chores that need to be done are many.  

I began the morning by insulting Henry by saying we should call Ken to take down the chandelier.  That began the response--

YOU THINK I CAN'T TAKE DOWN A CHANDELIER???

He did accomplish the task, but I think if you asked him he would say it was harder than it looked.

I decided to go through the pantry removing the untouched but lovely cookbooks, and clean out the canisters...

It seemed the opportune time to get new supplies.  Henry thought it would be good to just dump the canisters and buy new...but I scoffed at that, they are perfectly good. They just need washing...

So I began the cleaning process...

First came the 

• sugar 
• flour
• Kosher salt
• Corn Meal
• Grits
• Cane sugar
• Sucanat

Things were going well, all of it down the garbage disposal.  Then I added

• Orzo
• Brown Rice
• Rye berries

The first 7 ingredients sound like a recipe for paste...when you add the orzo, rice, and rye it all swells, mixes with the paste in the pipes and your garbage disposal stops working.


Insult #2:
I call Henry and ask him to call Ken to fix the garbage disposal.  His response,

CALL KEN, ARE YOU KIDDING ME...YOU THINK I CAN'T FIX THE GARBAGE DISPOSAL?

Which immediately turned into, 

WHAT DID YOU DO?

He begins to "strain" the sink for what he thinks is rice, not knowing how major the problem really is.

He then decides to plunge the sink.  We had Julia this afternoon so she scampers off to get the plunger.  Henry gives a giant heave ho to the plunger and the air release valve shoots off its base and rice water hits the ceiling and anything else close by...leaving Julia hysterical, Henry not so much.

He continues to plunge, it continues to shoot up.  That is when I decide to turn the canister which once held the rice upside down over the air release...water shoots up and washes back down into the sink.  

Soon he realizes that this is a bigger problem, it needs "the rooter". He and Julia go outside while she sits on the ledge and watches her Poppy jam the rooter into the pipe....which accomplishes NOTHING!

Those of you who know Henry know that patience would not be his strong suit...need I say more.

I GUESS I WILL HAVE TO GO INTO THE PIPES UNDER THE SINK.  WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?

Julia is now bored, she turns to the television.  I am avoiding and saying, probably in a whiny voice, "I said I was sorry. Should we call Ken?"

I turn off the main water valve to the house.  Henry takes all from under the sink, and begins the task of undoing the pipe.

All of a sudden I hear Henry begin screaming:

FLOOD

FLOOD

FLOOD 

He had not counted on the water in the side of the sink where I was washing the now infamous containers.  He had put a wastebasket under the pipe which was now full...

Shades of the Sorcerer's Apprentice...he is now sitting in 3 inches of water and rice, rye, and orzo...and "is not very happy with me--especially when I arrived with the camera.

The little white/brown stuff under the sink is actually rice---the milky half moon of grey at the bottom is actually a trash can of rice water.

Now you can see the U-shaped pipe....that was filled with glue made of expanded rice and all the other ingredients.  Conveniently I was throwing out my needlepoint stretcher bars...one of which was the right size to clean it out.

I asked Hen if he wanted to have rice pudding for dinner but he had no sense of humor.

But in the spirit of Vern Troyer in Fantasy Island screaming Ze Plane Ze Plane

We will forever remember Henry screaming, Flood, Flood, and waiting for Noah and his ark!

I should have thrown out the canisters!

 

 

•