Estival

The past year has been unseasonably and, dare I say, unreasonably cold in Southern California. We basically never had a summer - it was the coldest ever recorded - and there's been an unheard of amount of gloom and rain.

After this weekend, I think we're finally past that.

Recuperation

I just got back from a long vacation with my boyfriend.

Indulgence

Today I made a brunch of pancakes (the classic Joy of Cooking recipe that my dad always made growing up) studded with fresh blueberries (purchased at the Mercato yesterday) and drizzled with real maple syrup (smuggled back on a plane by yours truly from the East coast because they do it better there), plus pepper-crusted bacon (mmm... bacon) and mimosas with hand-squeezed OJ (we seem to have lost our elecric citrus juicer during our exodus for fumigation, which is sad since it's probably the most frequently used appliance in our house)...

All while still in my PJs.

Saccharine

I spent the afternoon volunteering at our local Swedish cultural center. I get to learn about Swedish culture and then share it with the public, which is awesome, except for the fact that I also gorge myself on coffee and sugary-sweet almond bread the entire time. It's very Swedish of me, and the combination of caffiene and sugar is great for the first two hours, but by hour 3 I'm pretty much convinced I'm dying.

(Spoiler alert: I didn't die. But I did feel like crap for several hours.)

Crepuscule

I live near the ocean. Okay, I work near the ocean and live near a bay. Whatever. I get lots of awesome oceanscapes (bayscapes?) driving to and from work (and anywhere else in close proximity). If I time my day right, I get to watch the sunset over the water on my way home.

In fact, I bribe myself into getting up early in the morning with promises of sunsets on my drive home. (That's normal, right?)