The Old Man and The Sea

Arroyo Burro Beach

(aka Hendry's Beach)

the only public beach in Santa Barbara County 

where you can take dogs off leash

and

have a drink at The Boathouse

while watching the sun set

(that's the moon just cresting the tree line...)

at almost 13 years old

this was his first time in the ocean

he's no longer a landlubber

we've never seen him have so much fun!

he is SO crashed-out tonight....

Tacos!

Los Agaves

within our first few hours of landing in Santa Barbara

we had an amazing Mexican lunch,

carnitas burrito and octopus tacos

so fresh, so delicious

how could this be beat?

 then we found Tacos Del Rey

heavenly! portobello mushroom tacos

and the carne asada was the best we've ever eaten

proven by the plate on which it was served.

seriously.

and yet, we soldiered on.....

check out that menu

along with beef, chicken and pork

there's

head, cheek, tongue, lip and eye

damned great tongue tacos!

and the adobada was scrumptious as well

for only $1.60 per taco

why go anywhere else?

plus it's next to Home Depot, 

where we end up multiple times a week...

Trail Walk

three blocks from the house

the trail starts off with a shady creek walk

and with a gradual incline 

it opens into stunning views

fields of mustard

almost like Switzerland!

but with the Pacific Ocean and the Channel Islands 

on the horizon

(and the city of Santa Barbara in between)

Cleaning Out The Attic
day 1

holy christmas!

Grandpa Bud's fireman's dress blues

Chuck's childhood toys

silver soldiers

can't wait to get into the blue book!

 the Rudyard Kipling book,

published 1916.

next to the title page is his insignia, 

with a swastika...

?

 .

along with this book on American History,

written in Swedish

along with many other Swedish language book in the pile
(part of Christopher's heritage),

there is this book

"Entered according to the Act of Congress",  1865

and a lovely quilt

Time Warp 1940
(adorable)

the Buddha was an after-market addition

who's high school photo is that?!

why, that would be Christopher's dad Chuck

handsome!

guess who

The Boston Cooking School Cookbook

by Fannie Merritt Farmer

c.1943

how many recipes have the word "queen" in the title?

of course it was open to that page, 

greeting us on the kitchen counter...

the boy loves shag

he literally slept for an entire day once we settled in

(the carpet is already gone!)

Where are we?

we're in the neighborhood of the yellow arrow

Oprah is the red arrow

wine is off the top of the map to the left

Yesterday

sunrise over the neighbor's house

sunset over the grocery store

(a 10 minute walk)

the photos were not altered-

straight from the iPhone

Even with magnolias in January

...it can be hard getting out of bed

Meet Bud and Alice

Christopher's granddad

retired firefighter

gardener and putterer

hunter and fisherman

and the beautiful Alice

homemaker

and daily ocean swimmer