Dragonboats!

Here's a link to what i've been up to this summer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwTQxZJKqms

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Labor day weekend

Lance and Caia got married this weekend in Iowa! Josh and I made the trek out to join them on their special day. It was loads of fun, and I found myself enjoying the cornfields and the countrysides quite a bit.

We came back to the Bay on Sunday to give ourselves one day to relax. We ended up riding all over Oakland on our bikes -- down and around the lake, then through west Oakland and out to the Bay. We rode up the Bay trial to Berkeley and then headed back home through town. Here are some pics we took along the way. Actually, the first one is of Josh and me sitting at the airport in Nebraska.
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Apparently you can take pictures in MOMA...

...or, you can't but everyone does it anyway. ?

We saw the Richard Avedon exhibit today. He has a way of capturing so much about a person in his photographs. Incredible detail and emotion. Such a wonderful exhibit.

Now, we're sitting down at Maritime eating clam chowder and watching the kids play in the Bay. It's a perfect summer afternoon.

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Sebastopol and Angie Pants

I'm so tired and so behind in posting...

Tonight, Josh and I made the jaunt up north to see the one and only Angie Pants, whom I adore. SO MUCH FUN - love that girl!

I can't wait for the weekend.

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Camping!!

When I was growing up we would camp in the mountains throughout the summer. Lots of hiking, 4-wheeling, motor cross bikes...we watched a lot of sunsets and did a lot of star gazing. At night, we'd sit by the campfire singing and telling stories, and we'd play in the woods doing our best to scare each other to half to death. I'll never forget the ax murderer or bigfoot (stories for another time).

We headed up to Auburn last weekend with Adam, Abby, and friends for camping and rafting and had the most amazing time!

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The famous fish ukulele!

Josh got to play the famous fish ukulele tonight...!!! It was so pretty and the sound was incredible.

Then off to dinner with Roland. What a great Wednesday night. :)

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Montezuma death flu... and deer!

Last Monday morning at about 5am, I was hit with the worst stomach pain I think I've ever experienced... It turned out to be some bizarre stomach flu that lasted all day Monday and into Tuesday. Completely wiped me out.

By Wednesday, the pain had subsided, but I was still in a bad way -- although, starting to get some energy back. On Thursday, I headed back to work. Sometimes you just gotta fight it.

Unfortunately, this week was kind of shot because of the death flu... Fighting or no fighting, if your body say no, you gotta listen. The only thing I really did this week was head up to Maureen and Dave's for a BBQ on Saturday night! They have such a great place in Mill Valley and this time when we were there, there were three deer running around in their backyard. :)

Ah, nature and good friends...but my stomach bug wasn't done with me... We headed out early from the BBQ, and no dragonboat practice for me today.

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Bakesale Betty's

After dragonboat practice. Yum!

For those of you who don't know, Bakesale Betty's is a tiny unmarked bakery in Oakland that serves baked goods and chicken sandwiches. You get in line, get your goods, and then head out to the sidewalk to stools and ironing boards to get your grub on.

Today, we discovered that if you come at the time when they run out of sandwiches and are about to close up, they give away all of their extra desserts. ! Although, maybe we just caught them on the right day...

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Birthdays everywhere!

So many great people were born in August. I don't actually know this guy that well, but he seems like he would be great.

This party doubled as a UFC night!

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Oakland art murmur

On our way into the madness. I had no idea how crowded it would be! I took some pics of it, but they're all blurry...like this one!

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Happy Birthday, Michael!

One of my most favorite people -- with a beautiful cake and a giant grin!

Happy Birthday, Mikey!

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Oakland Grill

Food after dragonboat practice! :)

Mental note. Don't plan things on Sundays after dragonboat. (I mean, after food after dragonboat.) After being in a boat on the bay, using the muscles in my upper body that I don't actually have for about two hours - i'm pretty useless for the rest of the day. Also, I seem to think i can still feel the motion of the water for about 8 hours after we've returned to shore....which is weird, right?

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Maureen's birthday!

What a stressful week! It started with me getting in a car accident... And ended with me at Maureen's birthday party with a new car. :) woohoo!

In between, I researched the car market like crazy while trying to juggle a completely full week of museums, music, and friends, not to mention a busy week at work, and negotiations to sell my wrecked car.
But, a new car, and a night in Marin to celebrate a good friend, washed away all of the challenges of the week pretty quickly.

Happy birthday, Maureen!!

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The Uptown

Ha! My flash blinded Matt. :)

The Uptown is in Uptown and is a wonderfully re-invented little venue full of art and rockers dropped in downtown Oakland exactly where it should be. A Mezzanine and a back patio finish the space off beautifully.

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