Photo from SFGate.com. We awoke early this morning to a rare event in Northern California…a thunder and lightning storm!  Our summer weather usually consists of some hot days, and some days when the coastal fog comes in far enough to cool us off.  This is what happens when you have some of each…reminds me of the storms we used to have in Philly.  We lived on the 16th floor of an apartment building, which was the only tall building around, so our view was a canopy of tree tops, and we could see quite far.  It was fun to watch the lightning from up high. It was 100 degrees yesterday,…

I wonder how many years will go by before we can hear the words, “September 11th” without it taking us back to that horrible day.  How long before we forget the tragedy of those who died that day, those who were badly injured, those who continue to carry the harm of that day around inside of them. How long before we forget the sight of people jumping to their deaths from the top of the towers.  Before we forget the gut wrenching signs all over Manhattan, of people missing, while their families hoped against hope that they might have somehow survived. How long before we forget the fear and anger…

I paid $10 for pasta sauce the other day.  I know, I must be insane, right?  It all started at the orthodontist’s office (as so many torrid tales are wont to do), where I sat reading an issue of Cooking Light while various sadists tortured my lovely daughter.  The magazine had a delicious looking recipe for Chicken Parmesan, as well as a taste test of several different pasta sauces.  Just a month or so ago, I saw a taste test of pasta sauces on America’s Test Kitchen, but unfortunately, I don’t think that the winner of that contest and the winner of this contest were both included in either taste…

(photo found here) I spied a single flip flop in the road this morning, the kind of thing which makes me wonder…where’s the other one? Is the person missing their shoe? Or were they trying to throw them both away, and just dropped one? Who knows. But it reminded me of a story from my miss-spent youth. When I was 22 or so, living in San Francisco, in a lovely flat on Fulton Street, I came home from work one night to find a young woman asleep on our doorstep. I was worried about her, but not worried enough to call the police. (Perhaps that would have been the smart…

Really? Is this all I have left in me, blogging wise? Random updates on my life, music videos, and the occasional recipe or book review? Yes? OK, whatever. Sorry if you came here looking for a wonder eulegy of Ted Kennedy, or more debate on the Heath Care issue. Let’s get to the randomness, k? Awhile ago, I read a book called “Why Do I Love These People“, by author Po Bronson. He has a new book out soon titled “Nurture Shock“, in which he talks about how parents’ constant praise of their children hampers them, hampers their school performance, and makes them decode your words and pretty much see…

Dear overpriced mall chain store (aka, Abercrombie in this case, but this has happened in other stores as well), Perhaps I don’t understand basic economics, but it seems reasonable to me that when a hapless 40-something year old mom finds herself dragged into your obnoxiously loud and smelly store, willing to shell out more than she can afford on clothes for her teenage daughter, in order to emerge relatively soon and sane, you might help her out by having some of the clothes that you advertise in stock.  I took my daughter clothes shopping the the other day, and was irritated and then simply dismayed as outfit after outfit that…

One of my favorite books when I was growing up was Album of Horses, by Marguerite Henry, with beautiful illustrations by Wesley Dennis.  Each chapter in the book told a short story, and described a different breed of horse, and what made them different from other breeds.  This is the book where I discovered what made a Quarter Horse special, or a Thoroughbred.  The Arabian was my favorite of all, followed by the Morgan.  But one horse that always intrigued me was the Tennessee Walking Horse.  Tennessee Walking Horses, I read, were bred to encourage a strange gait, which makes them look almost like they’re running, when in fact they…

(adorable photo found here) If you must know, I’ll confess. I’m a bit of a technophobe. A late adopter. I don’t like change. I resist it heartily and look at it askance from the corner of my eye, pretending to focus elsewhere. Imagine my horror then, when our beloved Sony cordless phone recently stopped taking a charge*. I know I seem all tech savvy. I work for a software company, I have an iPod and a cell phone and I (sort of) know how to use them. I blog, I maintain the html on my company’s website, I keep in touch with family via email, all of that. But mostly…

Nothing earth shattering today, k? As if there were anything earth shattering around here lately anyway. Sigh. OK, first, I could have done without the stupid helicopters hovering around in the stupid sky this morning, waking me up a whole hour before I needed to get up. Grrr. Second, I kinda want to make some chili dogs for an upcoming girl scout pool party at our house, but I’m not sure if I’ll make the chili from scratch, or go buy some. What I’m looking for is an all beef chili, kind of like what you might find at Pink’s in Los Angeles. Anyone have a good recipe? Facebook is…