Day Seventy-six: Bay area dining

I conveniently had everyone scattered all over the Sacramento area that was coming to the bay area meet us where I was staying. Well, since I was staying with my youngest daughter and her husband, synching up there was the best place because everyone wanted a tour to see the barn owls and most importantly, the canoe they refurbished.

Due to late arrivals, we got started late to my house in Pacifica. But, we went there anyway. Then rushed to have lunch from El Toro Loco so we could make it to Beach Blanket Babylon on time. This is a must see by every vistor and resident of the San Francisco Bay Area at least once. This made my fourth or fifth trip in twenty years and each of them have been worth it, although the ones paid for by my employer were cheaper. Even the two of my brothers-in-law who were able to attend were "singing" its praises.

They weren't so praising of my dining choice after the show, but I felt it was also an experience they should have. I took them to Cafe Gratitude. It probably wouldn't have been so bad for them if we hadn't had such a long wait outside the restaurant, allowing them to enhale many lung fulls of the next door's pizza smells.

Not everybody had to put on a game face. We vegans and vegetarians truly liked the food, particularly the no milk milkshakes and the desserts. While my father didn't particularly like the "live" bread, he seemed to put away the cashew butter icecream just fine.

Even though there were 13 of us at the table, I don't think it was my, or anyone else's at the table, last supper. It certainly wasn't my last vegan supper in this Life-after-Layoff.

Day Seventeen: Sheds, shirts, and strawberries

Today was an "s" shopping day. In addition to the list in the title, I also bought salad and shorts, the kind that come in a package of six.

As reported yesterday, I shopped online for sheds and found two that were roughly comparable in price at two stores I could easily get to. So, this morning I hopped into my now starting truck and drove first to Costco. Costco had a different shed at the store with just a slightly reduced price so I got it. I also got a couple dark micro-weave T-shirts, and four pounds of organic strawberries.

Now that I've had two meals with strawberries and haven't made any noticeable dent in the remaining amount, I realize that I wasn't thinking. I guess that combined with them being organic, my wife loving strawberries, and a brain burp, I loaded up on the things. Perhaps it was the memories of the very non-vegan strawberry shortcake my wife used to make. I am searching for a substitute in my Veganomicon, which is supposed to be the Joy of Cooking for vegans.

Now, it took three of us to load each of the three shed boxes into the back of my truck. So, there they have sat since I got home. I guess figuring out how to do things by myself is just part of my Life after Layoff.

The big accomplishment today was not the shopping but rather starting on the boxes of books in my bedroom. So far I have books in stacks by author over a good portion of my floor; books in drawers; books in five boxes to give away/sell; and books in boxes destined for my new shed.