new view

Muddy is moving away and we can't stop him (or haven't lashed him to a couch yet) so I decided to treat him to his last ballgame at AT&T Park on Tuesday's match against the Diamondbacks. Instead of the usual View Reserve seats on the top deck, I tried seats in a different area of the ballpark. I was thrilled with the view from these arcade seats, as you can tell...

Pre-game, the Coors Deck next to section 145 is pretty empty. The deck has fancy seats and heaters to keep people warm.

Even with my six year-old camera, I was able to get a few nice shots of Buster Posey stretching. That is how close I am!

I'm even closer to outfielder Gregor Blanco, who started out in right field that night. He ended up tossing a ball into the section I was sitting in, but due to my miscalculation and hands full of hot chocolate, neither I nor Muddy ended up with the ball. Maybe next time!

Buster at bat!

Vogelsong nabbed quite a few strikeouts.

Melky added two hits that night and ended up beating Willie Mays' record for the most hits by a Giant in May!

Giants ended up winning 3-1, I found a fabulous new place to watch games, and Muddy got a kick out of almost getting a game-used ball... If only I wasn't in the way!

her favorite place

After completing her first year of law school, Cabbage came up to unwind at her favorite place: Triple Rock Brewery on Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley. The brew of choice? Thursday-only's Monkey Head Arboreal Ale. At just $9 per liter, they're prefect for sharing... because sharing is caring!

The potency of the super-beer and the petite glasses bring back memories of jungle beer in the Amazon... what can I say? I'm in a jungle mood.

A few fun sidenotes:

• Triple Rock was established in 1986. That makes the pub as old as Cabbage and I. (Unfortunately Super Mario Bros. precedes me by two years and The Legend of Zelda by one.)
• Both the Golden Gate Bridge and Krispy Kreme Donuts were "born" in 1937, so they too share a birth year. Happy 75th to both!

the other sun

After nearly burning her retinas, Mumsy proceeded to secure a dog to fill the empty space that Johnny "Mochiball" Cat doesn't fill. He looks irresistible with his shiny coat and surplus jigglyness but trust me, he can resist humans.

a hungry love...

So Mumsy decided that even though Johnny is quite precious in his own way, she wanted something she could cuddle every night. After stalking the SPCA's website and hunting on craigslist, she finally settled on one lovely pooch.

Meet Soleil Bambi, a 1 year-old girl of unknown breed with the most beautiful golden eyes and coat. She's energetic and can jump like a cat and so far, has no qualms about showing us her affectionate side during her first hours with us.

Soleil loves nothing more than to lick my face and scratch my chest.
Ouch, girl.

She was formerly known as Sparkle for her eyes but I found the name a bit out of place for our family. I proposed that we pick a "sun" name since we got her on the day of the infamous annular solar eclipse. Mumsy picked the French word for sun, soleil. Mumsy also ended up christening Soleil with her first nickname, Bambi, for her penchant for leaping around. Given Soleil's adorable face and her happy and adoring personality, I'm sure that many more nicknames will pop up in no time.

By the way, Johnny Cat is quite territorial and hasn't let up on his "growling" whenever he sees Soleil. In return, Soleil barks at the Mochiball on sight. These two have a lot of sharing to do!

what not to do: solar eclipse

As Mumsy and I drove around this afternoon, we saw lots of people gathering outside to try and watch the annular solar eclipse. Some experts had telescopes (hope they used a solar filter.) Others went low-tech with colanders on garage doors or homemade pinhole cameras taller than the children looking into the box.

And then there's my mom, who thinks that wearing two pairs of sunglasses will allow her to safely view the eclipse.

Ingenious?

She never listens to me. And I love her, but not for that.

p-p-p-panda!

Last Wednesday was Carnaval at AT&T Park and they could not have picked a foggier, windier, chillier night for this special event... but I have to give props to the Queen of Carnaval, who fearlessly samba-d in her bedazzled bikini despite the weather. Now if only the Giants had brought the same fierceness to the ballfield...

The Carnaval dancers and band played outside the Marina Gate...

... and right before the game.

But all is well because I have a new Chia Pet! Unfortunately it doesn't really resemble his panda daddy but this is a real Chia Pet, made of absorbent Terra Cotta. Maybe this time I can actually watch it grow (ahem Brian Wilson!)

my new favorite store

You may have noticed that when it comes to frequenting large retailers, I'm a bit sheltered. As it turns out I recently found my way into another fun store, namely Cost Plus World Market. And now I want to live there.

Cost Plus World Market's colorful globe-trotting style reminds me of Pier 1 Imports, except that Cost Plus doesn't push customers to sign up for a credit card. In addition, Cost Plus shows an extensive kitchen collection, giftwrap supplies with prints worthy of Crowded Teeth and Loyal Army, and a fun selection of quirky candy and foodstuffs sourced from all around the world. This is my new go-to store for almost everything (fresh food still needs to come from a proper supermarket or greengrocer, for now...)

Check out this unassuming vase in the likeness of a brown paper bag:

The sassy vase elevates a simple bouquet of tulips to a gift worthy of Tater's graduation ceremony (she got her Masters in Social Work, bless her heart.)

Just today I returned to use my first 10% coupon and snag these ceramic milk bottle vases for myself. The clean lines and modern white can blend with anyone's aesthetic but I picked these for the kitschy design concept.

After passing through the candy aisle, I couldn't resist this Super Mario 1-Up mushroom tin full of sour candy. But the Hello Kitty candy dispenser is purely functional: it's a fully-functioning electric fan!

grrrits!

Beachside Cafe is one of my favorite places for afternoon brunch thanks to its proximity, price point, and palate-pleasing properties. I've never ordered bad food there!

Take this Country Boy breakfast: fried eggs and homemade sausage top a heaping pile of cheesy grits. The grits were warm and the sausage was very herby... you could tell that someone took a lot of time making that little porker.

But this time I actually thought of something to complain about, yet I kept it to myself... there's too much grits! This cornmeal mass is very filling and the serving size pretty much overwhelmed me. I'm not a fan of wasting food so I tried very hard to finish my plate but I had to concede defeat to the glorified corn bits and leave a handful in the bowl. Those grits took me down!

party of crazies

It finally happened.

Last Saturday, at the Fox Theater in Oakland... I finally got to see Calle 13 live!

photo taken by my guy... with his super smartphone!
Let's face it: I need a new camera.

The set drew mostly from their newest album Entren los que quieren (enter those who want to) but a few older songs slipped into the night. Hearing "No hay nadie como tú" (there is no one like you) straight from Residente's mouth was an otherworldy experience. The band was jammin' hard, Residente and PG-13 were jumping all over the stage, and Visitante kept whipping out psychedelic accordion after another. Residente and PG-13 have un montón of energy and put on a fantastic show of Spanish-language genre-melting fun.

Once the music started, there was no way I was leaving my perch... which meant that my very gracious Guy and his friend were getting me drinks from the bar. They knew how long I had been waiting for this show, but it never hurts to say it again, so Thank you D & G (not Dolce & Gabbana.)

And of course, big thanks to Calle 13 for returning to the Bay Area so I could have another chance at seeing them!

bamboo 2

Last week I completed the tour of Bamboo Asia on Montgomery Street and visited the Japan counter when the line was short. This is the Dynamite Roll, which already stands at the bargain of 10 pieces for $8. The roll is made to order and packed with fresh salmon, crab, avocado, smelt roe, and a touch of mango. Definitely not your traditional sushi but it's also definitely savory and cheap. This lunch - which comes packaged in biodegradable containers - fills you up without stuffing you.

After tasting dishes from all three of the counters at Bamboo Asia, I've concluded that the Vietnam and Japan bars are downright delicious. Hey, two out of three ain't bad!

don't rupologize!

Big congratulations to Sharon Needles, the winner of Season 4 of RuPaul's Drag Race and the first ever winner where the American public had a say in the final decision!

image courtesy of google image search

This was one of the funner reunion shows... Latrice Royale won Miss Congeniality (as if she wouldn't!) and the insanely gorgeous yet insanely annoying Willem redeemed herself by coining the word "rupologize." Charo made an appearance to "translate" for little Kenya Michaels and Phi Phi O'Hara actually apologized. Sort of.

RuPaul's Drag U starts in just one month but I can't wait for Season 5 of the Drag Race! There's no television program more fabulous than a weekly date with RuPaul!