No Boots, No Camp

It's called "Boot Camp," but it's really just organized exercising outside at the crack of pre-dawn.

As you probably know by now, Jesse and I are getting hitched in January. You may or may not know that I've already ordered (and paid for) the dress. Since it's already on its way, I am doing my very best to make sure that it will fit when it finally shows up on January 10th. I still have a little ways to go and I have joined a Boot Camp to keep me motivated as we near the Big Day.

Anyway, the camp is on Monday Wednesday and Friday this week. I survived Monday, and today I'm very stiff and the ol' muscles are fairly sore. I guess that's what I get for basically never exercising prior to joining a BOOT CAMP. Tomorrow, we're meeting at a high school track -- I think there will be some bleacher-climbing in the near future. Wish me luck!

Out on the Bay

Jesse and I went out to dinner tonight at Skates on the Bay. Now, for those of you who are used to going out to dinner often, and who may even frequent upscale joints, maybe this restaurant would be "just another restaurant." For Jesse and I (we eat at home nearly every night and bring our lunches to work almost every day), it was really great.

I'll go into detail about what we had: Baked brie with macademia nut crust for appetizer. Caesar salad for Jesse, mixed greens w/Maple vinaigrette for me (with pears, candied pecans and bleu cheese). Then Jesse had the New York Strip for his entree, while I had something that would normally be considered his "usual" -- some parmesan crusted chicken with mashed potatoes and arugula. Yum! And we also had dessert -- Jesse had "original burnt creme" (custard) and I had the apple-walnut cobbler. Holy moly! Everything was really yummy.

The only thing I think I'd hesitate to order again is the brie... brie is really yummy on its own, and it didn't need all the extra stuff they added to it (the macademia nuts, plus balsamic vinegar reduction, plus honey, not to mention apple slices, all served with herb foccacia) ... anyway, it was a little overdone.

So, if you'll be in the area for our wedding in January, this place is located about 10 minutes from the reception site in Berkeley. If you're looking for a nice place to have dinner, this place was great. It sits right out on the bay, with huge picture windows in 3 directions (we couldn't see much at night except lights and water, so I couldn't tell you much more about the view than that). I'm sure it's lovely during the day.. not that there will be much daylight in January.

It's nice to see that a restaurant with such a nice location (including great views, presumably) still keeps up the quality of their food. So many places in the city let the quality go when the location is so valuable on its own (a disgustingly overpriced lounge called "The View" in SF comes to mind).

Anyway, don't go to The View. DO go to Skates on the Bay. Enjoy!

Presidential Tag Clouds

This came around in an email at work today, just as a "this is interesting" note...

Presidential Speeches Tag Cloud

And it did not disappoint! I think you'll agree.