We are back. The cool beautiful weather, vacation is in our past. It was so awesome to be able to sit outside to eat, breakfast, lunch or dinner, without swatting at flies, mosquitoes or having to spit and hope the wind carried it back in your face to cool off. In one word the 10 days were, exhilirating! We were in awe of the cool days and even cooler nights in which we could sit down to eat and enjoy the pacific ocean, or the most gorgeous flowers. We went to a street fair in San Luis Obispo and ate strawberry crepes, tri-tip sandwiches. The farmers market down the streets were filled with artichokes 10 for $1.00,, strawberries, 3 baskets for $2.50, carrots so huge, I took a picture of them, and if I can figure out how to transfer my pics from my iphone, will post the picture of them. We had a ball. Tried quail eggs over a cream cheese sauce. Ate at Valentino’s in Santa Monica, the Palette, one of our favorite places in Glendale, Portos, a Cuban restaurant where you can buy the best chocolate coissants in the world. Went to Big Sur, Carmel, Pebble Beach (but didn’t get close to the golf course where all the biggies were playing. Went to Santa Barbara, Hurst Castle from a distance, Los Gatos where were went to church and heard Chip Ingraham. Each day brought us so many new memories that I cannot list them all……BUT…..I have to tell you about one of the most exciting things. I finally tasted black truffle mushrooms. At Valentio’s…we had Black Truffle Mushroom Risotto and honestly, it is one of the best tasting dishes I have had. The taste was like something so buttery and creamy and the mushroom was so delicate. What a treat. When we heard the story of how the mushroom is hunted, it really made me appreciate it even more. They are hunted once a year, by hogs. Yes, that’s right. The hog is able to smell it, even though it is underground. As soon as the hog begins to dig, the hunter takes over and begins to dig and there it is. So we were excited to have this tasty morsel in our memory book. It is good to be home, as long as I stay inside in air conditioning. Went to the store, so will get back in the grove of cooking. Am excited to have Sevy coming over on Wednesday night for his 6th birthday party dinner. We had a wonderful time and hope to go back, but until then, we will enjoy our family and friends which will help us forget about the heat and just enjoy the memories we make right here.

Well, found a computer, so had to tell you about our experience yesterday touring SanFrancisco….it was indeed a beatiful day and we had a glorious day, walking around Fisherman’s Wharf, but, and let me say that again, but… here is a little sample of what lead up to our beautiful day, then I will tell you about our 48 hour tour, (oops, it was actually only 2 hours, but seemed more like 2 days)

First, our flight out here was wonderful, even slept on the plane for a little while, where the story begins………when I fell asleep, I had a glass of cranberry apple juice sitting on the tray, which I was going to save and wash down my coconut M&M’s with, after my  little nap. But I fell so sound asleep, I knocked over the glass of juice all over my white linen blouse and pants, while I slept. So upon waking, I looked like I had poured a whole bottle of red wine over myself, all the while  now looking like I had wet my pants. So if that is not bad enough, we manage to hide most of the stain with baggage and stop for an In & Out Burger on the way to the hotel. It is 4:00 p.m. our tummy time, (but only 2 here) so we are starving. As we inhale our burger and french fries, which are the best in the world and always our first stop once we get off the plane, I am in such a hurry, I drop 4 french fries, soaked in ketsup all down the front of this same blouse. So now, I have red juice all over the front, plus ketsup dribbling down the front of me. What a mess……we go to the hotel, clean up and decide that Sunday will be better.

So Sunday dawns and we get dressed, go to church and then head to San Francisco…..we arrive at Fisherman’s Wharf, beaming with excitement. We walk around, enjoying the stares of people that look at us, wondering what planet we re from, with my Dallas Big Hair, and Randy’s “casual look” of dress pants and nice Tommy Bahama shirt” all the while seeing that we need to definetely dress down the next time we come back to SF, to fit in alittle more, and I need to flatten my hair about 5 in” not in length, but hidth…….anyway, we go to a nice restaurant, order crab cakes, salad, over looking the bay and Alcatraz and then head out to catch a tour bus. We are in luck…there is a tour bus just leaving, AND it is only $20/per person, for a 2 hour tour….WOW are we in luck….we board the double decker, with Randy insisting that we head to the top to catch the sights as well as the sun. Well, we don’t get to sit together, there are only two seats left, across the isle from each other. He grabs the first one which seats him next to a cute  and skinny little 20 yr old and I am honored to be sitting by a lady weighing at least 300 pounds, which, bless her heart, is the sweetest thing, but I have only room for one of my “cheeks” to sit on…the entire 2 hours..my right “cheek” is numb after the first hour and she kept apologizing for being so big and taking up so much room. I can only say, “that’s ok”, when I really wanted to say, “would you please just let me sit on your lap”, but figured that this would make Randy owe me the rest of his life. Well, the first 15 min were very interesting, but then the tour guide told us that on this tour, he wanted to teach us as much as he possibly could aboutj San Fran…….and that he did. He never shut up…for 2 hours…and each sentence had at least 3 “ok?” in it…example, “honey, did you know that SF is only 7 mi by 7 mi, ok? and that China town is only 4 blocks by 11 blocks, OK and then we will be circling around Town Hall, ok? and on and on and on…..if I ever hear the word ok in my life time, it will be too soon, ok?

Well, we get off the bus, head for ice cream and Tom Tom donuts and sit out on the pier, watching the Sea Lions, walking around watching all the weirdos with spikey hair nd tatoos on every inch of their bodies…well, we get home to the hotel and I am changing clothes and I look down at my linen capris and yell. I have gone to church and all over San Fran with two “HUGE” holes in the back of my pants…….it’s like the material just rotted away and gave out…..I’m not talking a little pin hole here, I’m talking about two holes the size of a large orange, on both sides. So when people were looking at me, I guess they were not looking at me thinking, “my how young she looks to be almost 60” they are looking at me thinking, “my, it looks like her butt is so big that she is busting out at the seams”…stay away from the ice creama and donuts, lady!  Guess that is what I get for thinking what I was thinking while continually sliding off the bench of that double decker bus….

Now, we both got a little burned, sitting out there with the sun glaring down on us yesterday, so this morning when Randy goes off with a friend to visit some people, he says to me, “oh great,I look like an alcoholic with my red face”. So we are hoping that tomorrow will be better. Will let you know how the rest of today goes……OK?

Well, will be out of pocket this week. Am going with Randy to California to relax, drive around beautiful San Francisco and just enjoy my husband. We are so blessed to be able to go visit some beautiful places and eat lots of great sea food. Will be hopefully posting some great new restaurant finds when we get back, plus maybe a few new recipes from friends we will visit. Talk to you when we return on the 20th……….Signing off, California Crusin Chick

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CLEVER IDEAS WORTH KNOWING
Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store. If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen  faster. 

  
Add a teaspoon of water when  frying ground beef. 
It will help pull the grease away from the  meat while cooking.

 To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a  couple of spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream  in and then beat them up.

For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a wonderful minty  frosting. 

Reheat Pizza 
Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. 
This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro pizza. I  saw this on the cooking channel and it really  works. 

  
Expanding Frosting 
When you buy a container of cake  frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. 
You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving. 
                                              

Reheating refrigerated  bread  To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were  refrigerated, place them in 
a microwave with a cup of water. The  increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat  faster. 

  
Broken Glass 
Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up the  small shards of glass you can’t see easily. 
   No More Mosquitoes    Place a  dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away.

Squirrel  Away! 
To keep squirrels from eating your plants,  sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn’t  hurt the plant and the squirrels won’t come near it.
   
 Flexible vacuum 
To get something out of a heat  register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty  gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in  narrow openings.
   
Reducing Static Cling 
Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your  slip and you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works  with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of  slacks and … ta da! … static is  gone. 

  
Measuring Cups 
Before you pour sticky substances into a  measuring cup, fill with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don’t dry cup. Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter,and watch how easily it comes right  out. 

  
Foggy Windshield?
Hate foggy windshields? Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car When the windows fog, rub  with the eraser! Works better than a cloth! 

  Reopening envelopes 
If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside, just place your sealed envelope in the freezer for an hour or two. Viola! It unseals easily. 

  
Conditioner 
Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs.  It’s cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth.  It’s also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn’t  like when you tried it in your hair. 

  
Goodbye Fruit Flies 
To get rid of pesky  fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2′ with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well. You’ll find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever! 

  
Get Rid of Ants 
Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it ‘home,’ can’t digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don’t have  the worry about pets or small children being harmed! 

   
   INFO ABOUT CLOTHES DRYERS 
The heating unit went out on my dryer! The gentleman that fixes things around the house for us told us that he wanted to show us something and he went over to the dryer and pulled out the lint filter. It was clean. (I always clean the lint from the filter after every load clothes.) He told us that he wanted to show us something; he took the filter over to the sink and ran hot water over it. The lint filter is made of a mesh material ..  I’m sure you know what your dryer’s lint filter looks like. Well  ..! . the ho t water just sat on top of the mesh! It didn’t go through  it at all! He told us  that dryer sheets cause a film over that mesh  that’s what burns out the heating unit. You can’t SEE the film, but it’s there. It’s what is in the drye r sheets to make your clothes soft and static free … that nice fragrance too. You  know how they can feel waxy when you take them out of the box …  well this stuff builds up on your clothes and on your lint screen.  This is also what causes dryer units to potentially burn your house  down with it! He said the best way to keep your dryer working for a very  longtime (and to keep your electric bill lower) is to take that filter out and wash it with hot soapy water and an old toothbrush (or other  brush) at least every six months. He said that makes the life of the dryer at least twice as long! How about that!?!  Learn something new everyday! I certainly didn’t know dryer sheets would do that. So, I thought I’d share! 
Note: I went to my dryer and tested my  screen by running water on it. The water ran through a little bit but  mostly collected all the water in the mesh screen. I washed it with  warm soapy water and a nylon brush and I had it done in 30 seconds. Then  when I rinsed it .. the water ran right thru the screen! There wasn’t any  puddling at all! That repairman knew what he was talking

OK, now I have heard everything. On the way to Randy’s office a little while ago, delivering 30 homemade enchiladas for him to share with his co-workers, I was listening to the radio. All of a sudden this commercial comes on that asks if sometimes I had the “feeling that my body wanted to sleep, during the hours that I was suppose to be at work?” Well, who hasn’t? It went on to say that this is now a diagnosed sickness which can be treated with medicine, after, of course, consulting with your dr.  about “stress work disorder. So…..I headed home to call my dr. to tell him that there are many times that I am baking, cleaning and hauling grandkids to the park to feed the fish, when it is 100 degrees outside, or cooking for a family of 10 for a memorial service, all the while, unbeknownst to me, Randy has volunteered me to make enchiladas for the office, yes, all in the same day, but, all I want to do is sleep. I cannot believe that I have been under the impression that I was just in overload and needed to be whisked away to the Bahamas for a week. NOW, I know that that is not what I need, I just need to take a pill and I will never be sleepy while completing my chores. How wonderful is this. So am getting off the computer, finish my meal to take to the sweet friends, complete my laundry, go water the plants outside before they wilt, go to Jaden’s awards ceremony at 2:30, stop at the grocery to pick up a few items that I need for the company coming tomorrow night, deliver the meal, come back and make dinner for Randy, fold the laundry, work with him outside tonight in the yard (yes, he likes me outside with him so we can talk) and just thinking about how much more fun  this will all be, after I get that magic little pill which will keep me from getting tired and sleepy….wow, maybe now I can add more activity to my list of chores…….I wonder if I will be so “unsleepy” that I will then need a pill to let me fall asleep at night? Hum……….