This is a shameless endorsement for a waffle mix, because dang it, this stuff is good. The recipe is easy, but finding the waffle mix, not so much. Not so much online, that is, because stupid Williams-Sonoma doesn’t have it in their online store. Oddly enough, they DO have it in the brick and morter store downtown.  We bought some a few weeks ago, and we whipped up a batch on Wednesday morning.  Mmmm.  Really, really good.  Especially with their pecan pumpkin butter right on top.  The waffles came out fluffy and light, with just the right amount of pumpkin/pecan flavor. Sigh. The only cruel thing is that there’s a…

The other day found Maya and I shopping for clothes…her jeans had all gotten too short, and some of them mighty tight as well. Most parents do their major clothes shopping in August or September, for back-to-school, but we tend to wait, so I can see what size she’ll be when the weather finally changes, which is right about now. Maya loves Limited Too for her clothing purchases (usually…sometimes we go in, and there’s nothing she wants). Just the other day, we got a catalog in the mail, and it included a coupon for 25% off of your entire purchase. So, coupon in hand, off we went to the mall.…

I saw an article on the Wall Street Journal about the huge increase in sales of St. Joseph statues spurred by the lagging housing market. Lore claims that if you bury a statue of St. Joseph in your yard, it will guarantee you a quick home sale. Um…ok, I’m tempted to give it a try. I’m ashamed to admit that, but the thought did cross my mind. Then I thought, wait, I’m willing to risk a lot worse than my home not selling by being an atheist, right? If I’m willing to risk not getting into heaven someday, I should be willing to risk not selling my home. In other…

Last night, as Maya was doing her Earth Science homework, she asked me if I had ever studied the Richter scale.  “Um…”I thought about it a bit, “No, I don’t think so.”  “Really?”  Clearly my education has been lacking.  Or maybe we DID study it in 6th grade, and I just don’t remember. Then, a few hours later, we were getting ready for bed, and we had an earthquake! (SF Gate is trying to scare us, telling us that it was the biggest earthquake since ’89, and raises the danger of a big one on the Hayward fault.   Should we be scared?  Who knows. Maybe it’s time to put together an earthquake…

I have a question for you…a ‘what to do’ type question. Here are the specifics: Maya’s girl scout troop is planning several outings this year, including a sleepover at the zoo, and two camping trips. The total cost of these outings is somewhere around $150 per scout. Some of this cost may be deferred by cookie money, but not the majority of it. I kind of feel like Maya should put up some of this cash herself, as these are things she is opting to do, rather than school activities, etc. Maya and I recently split a cat-sitting job for the neighbors’ cats. We went over twice a day…me in…

(click to enlarge) Last Sunday, Ted and I took our weekend ritual walk over to Cafe Heavenly, where we usually get coffee for Ted, and we often get breakfast for both of us. We ordered our breakfast, plus a bagel to take back for Maya, and the total of the bill came to $19.43. “Oh,” I said to the young woman behind the counter, “1943…that’s the year my father was born.” She looked at me with a completely blank face that clearly said, “and I want to know this why?” and I realized, I’m turning into one of those people who just randomly says things that pop into my head,…

(photo found here) My favorite thing to do in Yosemite National Park is to hike up to Vernal Falls. It’s a moderate hike, and takes awhile, but heck, what else are you going to do all day? 😉 If you’re feeling brave, and you have longer, you can keep hiking up to Nevada Falls. It’s a cool feeling to find yourself at the top of a waterfall (see the tiny person there, to the right of the falls?), and a unique way to experience the beauty of Yosemite. Hopefully, while you’re reading this post, our place is in the process of being sold (goes back on the market today, first…

We awoke on Saturday morning to a long, slow rain…the first rain of Autumn, coming in like a promise, a promise that unlike last winter, this will not be a drought year…a promise that there will be enough water for everyone, for long showers and healthy lawns…a promise of a change in weather, of crisp cool mornings, yet still warm afternoons. A promise of apple cider and pumpkin pie in our future. Today the sun is out, and they’re saying by Wednesday, it will be back in the mid to high 80s again. But I don’t care. I know, Autumn is here, and though it comes slowly and gradually in…