Ramble Ramble

Ah, three day weekends. So glorious, yet the return to the “real world” is always tough.

We had a fantastic weekend, full of productive things, relaxing things, and general goodness. There were trips to the beach, and plants bought, and baby things discussed, and friends we hung out with, and coveted items purchased. Oh, and plenty of good food was eaten as well.

I think what I love about weekends like this one is that feeling that it was productive but not a whirlwind, busy but not insane, relaxing but not lazy. We accomplished many things this weekend, but we also enjoyed ourselves. Somehow it seems harder to do both with only two weekend days!

A few random tidbits from the weekend:

• I officially don’t care that I look and move like a beached whale when I’m at the beach. I do, however, wish I could lay on my stomach.
• Apparently, I married a gardener, something I’m not sure I would have ever expected when we first got together so many years ago. It was so cute to see his face light up like a kid in a candy store when we went to the local gardening center.
• I am a person who covets THINGS. I want things, so many things, and so many things that cost money. I’ve never been a spender when it comes to clothes and shoes and the like, but sadly the things I covet tend to cost more than those items anyway.
• My list of “foods I’m going to enjoy thoroughly once this baby arrives” haunts me. In general, most things are fine in moderation, but there are some just flat out no-nos, and of course, those are the things I want.
• The new Terminator movie is really, really silly. And that’s a nice word to use.
• It’s a shame when a restaurant with good food is marred by bad service. Or weird servers who are bad at their jobs.
• I really love weekends!

This evening, I actually *gasp* went out somewhere. Drove somewhere that was more than 5 minutes from my apartment and got dressed semi-nicely and everything. Who knew hell was going to freeze over today?

A good friend of mine took me out to dinner, and I chose a place in Del Mar called Poseidon. I’ve heard it mentioned a few times, and I’ve seen photos of what looked to be a pretty awesome patio right on the beach, so seemed worth checking out.

And oh, it was. Let me tell you, that patio was right on the beach. Here was our view:

The food wasn’t too shabby either. I didn’t get pictures of the hummus plate (yum) or our our cocktails, but the house salad was pretty good–no boring iceberg lettuce here:

The Ginger Pesto Day Boat Scallops were also amazing–the ginger cream sauce with pomegranate molasses was very unique and the scallops were perfectly cooked. Plus they were pretty…I mean, look at this guy:

Of course, that should have been enough, but I couldn’t leave well enough alone. First there was dessert and another cocktail. Then, after a walk on the beach, we moved locations to have another cocktail, and ended up sharing 2 more desserts.

And then I had to be rolled home.

Ah well, stuffed as I am, it was a great evening. Great company, great conversation, great food, beautiful views. Plus I got to see this, just to remind me how thankful I am to live here:

I’m trying to teach myself photography. I’ve been influenced by so many bloggers out there, and inspired by what they’re doing with their cameras, that it was inevitable that I’d end up here. I’m a good sheep.

To that end, I’ve been breaking out the (sad, pathetic) point and shoot camera we’ve had for a few years, and trying to play with settings and learn when it’s appropriate to use the macro setting, when it’s good to mess with the light, how to make the damn thing take decent photos in low-light, etc.  I’m daydreaming of a nicer camera, but since I’m just learning, I can’t really justify the expense…yet.

So here are some beachy photos that showcase what “teaching myself” means:

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Friday I took the day off from work…it was a nice little pre-birthday gift to myself. Anywhoodle, we went to the beach for the day.

One of the best things about living where we live is the easy access to the ocean. 20 minutes from door to the sand, not too shabby.

Of course, now we’re both totally sunburnt (we underestimated the sunscreen applications). Totally worth it though.