The Emersons visit Team Thompson

We couldn't have asked for better weather during the Emersons visit. The sun was out, the wind was down, the temperature was up. Amazing!

After two delays due to low clouds in the Bay, mom, dad and Joe landed at SFO at a time where I was able to go get them vs. them getting a rental car just so I wouldn't have to leave work early. We dined at Casa de Thompson Friday night, watched the opening ceremonies, chatted, laughed and made plans for the weekend.

Saturday we had breakfast at home (heart-healthy steel-cut "Aloha Oatmeal," courtesy of Everyday Food, and then headed to the city for a ride around town on the double-decker Sightseeing Tour bus -- it's a great way to learn about the city and not have to drive through it. We hopped off at Pier 39 for lunch at Fog Harbor Fish House (delish) and then made our way to Golden Gate Park and beyond for some fab shots of the GG Bridge at sunset.

Fog lifting slowly from around the Bay Bridge.

Coit Tower
Alcatraz
The boys climbed down the cliff face to the beach below. Only one minor injury to report.

Sunday we skipped church and had a Valentine's breakfast at Casa de Thompson where we enjoyed heart-healthy pancakes with fresh berries, peanut butter and lots o' syrup. Side note...grocery shopping take a lot longer when you have to read all the nutrition info, but it's definitely worth it to make sure I feel ok about what I'm feeding my own mother!

After brekkie we went to Half Moon Bay to eat at the highly acclaimed Barbara's Fish Trap. This weekend was also the Maverick's Surf contest which happens around this time of year in Half Moon Bay when the weather is just right. Surfers wait for the "go!" from meteorologists and make way from around the world to Half Moon Bay to take in some totally stellar waves. The waves this year were at the highest ever (some as high as 50 ft.) and the winner, so I hear, was a South African man who barely made it on time to the event and had to borrow a stranger's surf board because his got lost in transit.

The sun was out again, it was at least 70 degrees and there were people EVERYWHERE from EVERYWHERE. While we waited for a table at Barbara's, we grabbed drinks across the street at the Half Moon Bay Brewing Co. and chilled down on the beach. All everyone talked about all weekend was how much they wanted crab legs and this place was the jackpot! The restaurant sits out over the water (at high tide) and faces the marina. It's a gorgeous setting!
I took the gang to the airport this morning...I can't believe how fast the weekend passed :( We had a great time and can't wait for their next trip! Mom is doing well...so well you can't even tell the woman had open heart surgery for a 7-way bypass just 2 months ago. Her scar is already healed to the point that it looks like the surgery was preformed more than 10 years ago. She does time on the treadmill every morning, keeps up with everyone during our walks around the city (actually led the pack) and seems to be back to normal, but improved on the inside! Praise God!

Epic Meltdown 2010

• Event: Epic Meltdown 2010
• Magnitude: 7.0
• Destruction: TBD
• Hero: Joe my bro
• Epicenter: San Mateo
• Trigger: Unknown

Boy oh boy...Sunday was interesting. It started out as a normal day...we went to church and then I finished up some snacks to take to our friends' house for a Super Bowl party. About half way through the game, Joe and I start texting, and next thing you know I'm an emotional wreck. Yikes!

Yes, at our friends' house...in the middle of the Super Bowl.

Cell phones don't work too well where we were so I borrowed their house phone, called Joe and began to blub away. This is not normal for me, especially in front of other people, but it happened and there was no stopping it.

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Thank goodness Joe answered the unknown number calling him. Yes, Justin was there, but I wanted him to stay out in the living room with our friends to ensure them I was not a freak, not sick, or that I wanted to leave. I was basically mortified and didn't want to them to see me, but they did. Joe was wonderful and just let me blub away. His words were encouraging, compassionate and comforting. Again...I'm just so thankful he answered the phone! Poor kid was at a Super Bowl party of his own, but talked to me for the better part of an hour or more, and even let me know when the Saints had won the game. What a guy!

Alexis, my new friend, was also great. She came in to the room to check on me in the middle of the Epic Meltdown 2010 and told me it was ok...Joe said she sounded very nice and that I shouldn't worry about what was happening. Though I still did...ugh, it was humiliating, but Alexis, Joe and Justin have all told me over and over again that it's ok - that happens, and that they're happy they could help me through it. Pardon the cheesy song reference, but they all said "that's what friends are for...to help us through it."

Still...my cheeks are burning and bright red just writing this out.

The exact trigger is still unknown, though I think I've narrowed it down to a list of 20 or so things :) Topping the list:

1. My family is coming and I'm excited to see them, though I still get a sad/sick feeling in my stomach and in my heart when all four of us are together and it's obvious Matt is missing. The pain is worse when we're at extended family gatherings like weddings or birthday parties. It's a horrible, empty/sick feeling that I wish upon no one.
   
2. The last few weeks at work were outrageously stressful and the boss has been out.
3. Losing Steven in October, followed by mom's surgery, put me through the wringer.
   
4. I had one and a half, yes just ONE and a half! margaritas
5. I've been grumpy lately and am not sure why.
   
6. Church/Sundays always get me all emotional. My husband can vouch for that. Sorry, love.
   
7. I was with two people that Justin and I can now call our friends...being comfortable with these two great people brought my guard down a bit.
8. Joe was being so great and I was so comforted by that there was no stopping that train.
9. It was just time.

I remember once, when I was still too young to "get it," we were expecting people for a gathering at my parents' house, and one group called last minute to say they couldn't make. I remember wondering why and that I was disappointed they weren't coming. Their reason was because, even though it'd been years since they lost someone unexpectedly, one of them was having a meltdown that hit out of no where and therefore was in no shape to come. If you're reading this, and know who you are, I TOTALLY get it now. Meltdowns suck.

Yea!!!

The family is coming! The family is coming!
They'll be here Feb. 12 - 15th.

Were you a musical or otherwise talented child (or did your parents think you were)? Well, both Justin and I were involved in music as youngsters, and I was also in baton and attempted various sports. Both of us, when younger, were conned into preforming for family and visitors who would come for the weekend. Grandparents, aunts & uncles, foreign exchange students, 2nd cousins, mom's college roommates, Justin's dad's friend from Japan whom he met during his master's program at Central...all of them had to sit through a piano recital, baton performance, guitar solo or softball pitch. I'm sure they're all still talking about the talented "Emerson kid" and "Thompson kid."
I was thinking today that I'd con Justin into putting on an embarassing recital for my parents and Joe when they're here. He's getting pretty good at Jailbreak by Thin Lizzy on Guitar Hero ;) Just kidding, honey!

We're looking forward to the Emersons' visit!!!

Adventures in Santa Cruz

Two weekends ago, JT and I were invited to join a group of couples from church on a weekend day trip to Santa Cruz. We met these couples at church and at a recent new-comers dinner where one of the gals invited me to join them for a weekly girls' night to watch the Bachelor!

We're making progress in the friend department...finally!

Sooo...the trip to Santa Cruz. We both had a great time - the weather was gorgeous, especially after a dreary week of heavy rain. You could tell by looking at the beach there had been a huge storm - the beach was littered with driftwood and kelp where it's normally just beautiful sand.


After brunch at a great little haunt called Linda's Seabreeze Cafe, which is known for its cinnamon rolls, we wandered down towards the marina and its neighboring jetty, complete with a lighthouse. To get to the lighthouse you need to climb up some rocks...a few people scurried up ahead of me as I sized up the rocks, looking for an easy route. I spotted one and stuck my foot out to take the first step. At the moment I began to put my foot down I said out loud, "oh...this is a fury rock," and sort of swept my foot across the top of it instead of stepping down to go up. At the same time, one of the other guys turned around and said, "I don't think that's a rock!"

BAH! Thank GOODNESS he said something. It was a dead seal stuck in the rocks...it looked exactly like a rock. Blurg...can you imagine if I had put my foot through it. That's all I kept thinking about all day...well that and...

The fact that Justin got unexpectedly doused by a huge wave. He was soaked to the bone.

We finally made it up to the lighthouse, took a few pics and then walked past the lighthouse to the end of the jetty to watch the surfers. I stayed on solid ground...we all know I'm not the best with walking or climbing...but Justin jumped over onto one of the "jacks" to take some more pictures. The sea was still a bit angry from the week of storms, and the waves were huge...great for surfers, not so great for curious and adventurous husbands. Next thing you know I hear is a giant splash and people saying, "ooooooohhhhhh no, hahahahaa ohhh no." I turn around to find everyone staring at Justin who is dripping with sandy ocean water. Poor kid. I looked at him and knew we're both thinking the same thing: if it were just the two of us at the beach, we'd already be on our way home.

Justin was a good sport about being all wet and sandy. We all left the jetty and started walking to the boardwalk to check out the rides. Of course the boys went to check out the dead seal and poke at it with sticks. It proved to be not as exciting as they hoped so we continued on the journey across the beach. Now, the storm, as I mentioned, had washed up a lot of debris on the beach. Soon we came across something else that looked dead and the boys again picked up sticks to poke at this new-found, pink mystery item. I glimpsed at it and thought, "humm that's a funny looking thing...nah...it can't be..." I thought silently it may have been part of a manikin. Others said it couldn't be an animal or fish...it looked like rubber. Eventually, one of the boys realized what it was and announced, "Ohh. Um, this is something you'd find at an adult store...." Everyone promptly dropped their sticks and walked away.

Talk about awkward. The girls were all laughing hysterically. I'm still laughing, actually.

The boardwalk was being repaired so we went to the Natural Bridges beach park to take in the sights before going to the Mystery Spot, "a gravitational anomaly located in the Redwood forests just outside of Santa Cruz." It's hard to explain so check out the Web site for more info...it definitely is a weird feeling when you're in the little shed and leaning off-balance, but balanced at the same time!

Natural Bridges -- see the hole in the rock?

Afterward we went for ice cream at Marianne's -- a famous old-fashioned ice cream parlor that's practically a landmark and a must-do when in Santa Cruz. In fact, the store where I work partnered with Marianne's last summer to make a fresh cantaloupe ice cream. Delish!

We did have a great time with the gang and are thankful the weather held up for us until we all called it a day! We're also happy nothing else weird happened to us during the outing! Here are a few other pics at the Mystery Spot:

Justin was in such disbelief about the mystery of this spot that he couldn't keep his eyes open!

Leaning but standing straight!

1 year anniversary

Today marks one year since I started my new job, in a new state. Crazy how time flies! I'm still amazed by the fact that I started a new job exactly 1 month to the day that I left my job in Seattle. Talk about a blessing!

What a load of bologna

During a quick trip to the grocery store Monday night, Justin and I spent an unusual amount of time perusing the deli meats. We get meats for sandos about every other trip to the store...yet I somehow manage to forget that I threw out what we purchased previously because it expired before we used it.

I don't know what it is about the idea of sandwiches that makes us buy deli meat. I take leftovers to work for lunch or throw a bunch of odds and ends in a tortilla, and Justin's boss usually gets the team lunch, so there really isn't a need for sandwich makings. Or bread, for that matter, but we'll talk about that another time. There is just something about sandwich meats that calls our name and makes us think there will be a beautiful, already prepared sandwich waiting for us in the fridge in the morning.

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Reality seemed to smack us square in the face while looking at deli meats Monday, but just as we were walking away from the section, deli-meat free, Justin said, "ohh bologna! My mom used to make us bologna sandwiches!"

To which I replied, "mine did too, and I remember peeling the ring off from around the edge of the bologna..."

"Ooo me too! I remember that," said Justin, with a sudden look oo-can-we-pleeaassee-get-some in his eye.

"I have a nasty confession to make," I continued. "When I was really young I used to make bologna sandwiches with grape jelly...I'm sure my parents thought it was extremely weird, but apparently I used to like it."

Then we stood there for another minute. Looked at each other, then back at the bologna. Then I picked one up and tossed it in the cart.

So tonight I got home and Justin asked me, with a slight look of disgust on his face, "do they make hot dogs out of the same stuff used to make bologna? I just had a slice, and it tastes exactly like cold hot dog."

I guess we'll just wait until we have kids of our own to try out the bologna again. Needless to say, I think we'll be tossing out an almost full container of bologna in about 3 weeks. I also noticed, to my utter disappointment, there is no ring to peel from the edge of the bologna...There's nothin' like the good ol' days!

(And yes, I sang the Oscar Meyer song while spelling out b-o-l-o-g-n-a.)

America's 75 Worst Commutes

Dear followers - I'm not joking when I say traffic is a pain here. Traffic is a pain when present anywhere, but now I can prove my point while pointing to expert data as printed in the

The Daily Beast
America's 75 Worst Commutes
1/19/10
LINK

They are the highways to hell in the country’s most gridlocked cities. The Daily Beast crunches the numbers to determine your ultimate morning nightmares. How did your commute in rank?....

#11, Bayshore Freeway (US 101), San Jose
Weekly hours of bottleneck congestion: 231
Worst bottleneck: Northbound, Old Middlefield Way
Length of worst bottleneck: .34 mi
Weekly hours of congestion on worst bottleneck: 27
Speed of worst bottleneck when congested: 20.2

Commuter Buzz: “There are stretches that look like a fault line with jagged edges,” says Mike McPherson.

This, my friends, IS WHERE I GET ON THE FREEWAY EVERY DAY. I would also like to note that #7 in Seattle was the closest on-ramp to I-5 for me when I lived in Fremont, but thank goodness for Hwy 99. I'm sure that ol' eye sore saved me from throwing a shoe at someone while driving down the road.

Ever wonder why there are shoes scattered on the roadways? I believe it's due to road congestion. And I wouldn't be surprised if I come home one shoe down one of these days.

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