November Round Up

November just WHOOSHED by. It was a month ago that I was riding the Giro D Vino. Geez. I little bike ride, a half marathon, a stupid cold that knocked me on my arse, some good dinners and get-togethers with friends, and wham-o, a month goes by.
This morning, I was riding to work in the thick, thick fog, it was 33 degrees outside (yes, that's Fahrenheit -- it does, in fact, get cold in California), and I kept reminding myself that time passes so quickly, I'll be peeling layers and sweating before I know it. In the meantime, I need to find some warm gloves to bike in. I've been a little lazy about pulling out the winter clothes (or maybe that's called "denial").

I'm counting down the days to the Solstice when the days start getting longer. I can relate to the people in the days of yore who had big festivals and offerings to the gods in order that the sun might come back. Lock up your pets -- who knows what I might offer as a sacrifice in sun-deprived desperation.

So -- a glimpse at what happened in November.

Ron and Jen had a birthday, so a selection of the West Sac gang (not to be confused with the Broderick Boys) took a little trip to Streets of London for dinner and drinks and pumpkin muffins with a cream cheese frosting. Mmmm.

Ron and Christine -- how cute are they? They just celebrated their 10th Anniversary, and despite any disturbing dreams I might have had about Christine's philandering, they are gunning for another 10. Happy Birthday Ron!

Jen's bday is the day after Thanksgiving this year. Nice to have a little vacation time for your birthday. I would think. Here's me and Vanessa and Jen.
The lot of us. This was kind of cute. Jen set up her timer, but then some woman was walking by and decided the set-up wasn't quite right, so she decided to take the picture herself. Truth be told, her effort was a little more centered.
Ron and Jen blowing out their candles.
Okay, you got me, this is totally posed, and we didn't get the actual blowing out, so we made them sit there with puffed cheeks until someone took a picture. You can see how Ron is trying not to smile.

Fun times!

Oh, and look at this! I found tucked away in my camera files a photo of the acorn squash soup (so yummy!) with some pomegranates sprinkled on top.


How I spent my Thanksgiving weekend:
We had a little party for Jen on the day after Thanksgiving (she had a lot of partying this month), and I told her I would make any kind of cake she wanted. She said, "I like pink cake with white frosting." Mmmhmm. So -- pink and white it was.
Awwww.

Quite pink -- pureed Strawberries makes it pink.
Not posed. An actual candle-blow-out.
More fun times, and great to meet some of Jen's friends of whom she speaks highly and often.

Earlier in the month, Jana said she had to pick up a wine shipment, so off we went for some wine tasting at Bogle and the Sugar Mill. Last time we went, we asked Todd Taylor (wine maker at . . . Todd Taylor!) to take picture with us. This time, we just asked him to take the picture.
Cute shot down the bar with a ghosty Jen.
All smiles.
Vanessa took copious notes after each taste. I hope those notes serve her well at some point. Like maybe she'll be at a party sometime, and someone will say, "what do you think of the Muscato from Bogle?" And she will whip out her notes from her bag (that also has a pencil case in it) and proclaim, "Well, I'm glad you asked. I found that wine to be not too sweet, a little nutty, and just the right price!" [$6, in case you were wondering]
Glittery Jana. Jana actually glittered all day with her lotion or perfume or eye make-up or whatever makes girls glitter, though she tried to convince us it was her sparkley personality incarnate. She did drive all day though, so if she says her personality makes her sparkle, then darn it, her personality makes her sparkle.
All of us at Bogle -- the first stop, and still under control.
Well aren't we glad that Jana said, "No, no -- clink them this way!" Fabulous shot!
November is going to be hard to top, but I'll give it a go.