Coffee with Friends

Really counting down now. Tomorrow I will be able to see what the weather will be the day we get to Zürich. That means that we are saying Auf Wiedersehen to our dear Claremont friends for a year. Last coffees, dinners, lunches, hugs, e-mail info exchanges, etc. 

This morning as I was waiting for a friend at Some Crust, I noticed this adorable little shelf near the door which can hold a coffee and a pastry while you open the door. I wonder what coffee shop will become our favorite in Zürich....

Miscellaneous Day

L and C are visiting, so we've been out and about. Here are a few shots from yesterdays doings.

Coffee at Coffee Klatch in Rancho

Bumper sticker seen while returning old modem to Time Warner

Looking at the photo from CHS class of 2003 at Patty's

Coffee, Chocolate, California

We checked on Google Maps, and the distance from 91711 to Nevada City said 7 hours and 11 minutes. We took the slightly longer route up the 99 and with a stop for gas and lunch (which we ate in a cemetery next to the gas station), and made it in 8 hours.

Coming home was a different story. We wanted to make better time, so we opted to take the 5. I'm not sure why it took 9 hours to get home, but maybe it was the few stops we made. The first was for gas in Auburn where I spied a Dutch Bros. coffee. Lynn had never heard of this Pacific Northwest chain, so we had to try it out.

Then we had to stop at the Ghiradelli Outlet just south of Stockton on the 5. I know that we did not spend an hour there, but we sure had fun.....

Beach Day!

Today was a day for the beach! Turns out that we are more inclined towards Orange Co. beaches than LA Co., and one beach we've recently discovered is Treasure Island - a Laguna Beach City Beach. After a stop at 85C for our favorite iced sea salt coffees and some breakfast burritos from the Penguin Cafe, we took our blanket and NY Times and set up shop before the heat of the day and the crowds of people.

Before too long, however, a group of teens with several photographers came by for some kind of photo shoot, and since they planted themselves directly in front of us, I thought I would have my own little photo shoot. There seemed to be one girl who was the center of attention (and she changed clothes a few times....) and at one point they threw her up in the air.

Some of the beautiful tide pools at this beach

I thought that the colors of the ocean were particularly lovely today.

One of my many pelican photos. I love watching them fly in formation. This angle does not look like any kind of formation, but they started out in a V.

Klatch Coffee

Ever since I found out about Klatch Coffee I have wanted to try it out. Needing to catch up with my friend, Susan, she suggested we try the San Dimas shop, and I was ready to go! Here is a photo of my chile caramel cappuccino (I think that's what it was called) which was mighty delicious with just the right amount of kick. If you like Mexican hot chocolate, this one will fill the bill.

I know that if it was closer I would go more often, so I bought a pound of sleeping goat blend to bring home. This is the decaf version of the wild goat (maybe that's the right name, maybe not) blend.

Sometimes the Claremont Craft Ales makes a batch of beer with beans from Klatch, and back in February I enjoyed a pint of Coffee Mawes.

Remember back in the day when you just drank coffee and/or just had a beer? Now it's a whole ordeal and a social event!

Wedding Tidbits

Here are a few things about the wedding that were fun. For the rehearsal dinner/picnic, the ladies from Lubbock made 11 pies.  ELEVEN.  Fresh berries and all! Not only were these pies scrumptious, but they sported dinosaur cutouts as decorations since the bride is particularly fond of dinosaurs.

My dear husband found a free app for his phone showing various ways to tie a tie. Not only are there different ways, but you can chose a certain way depending upon your height, face shape, etc. He chose the Kelvin knot which is slightly asymmetrical.

We had lots of fun shopping not only at Trader Joe's for the wine, but also at Costco.  Note the Dr. Pepper - a real must for Texans.

This might be my favorite tidbit story. Kat, the bridesmaid, made the bride and groom cards which said "bride" and "groom". This way they could play the "bride card" if they didn't want to do something, or if there was something they particularly wanted to do. I'm not sure if they actually did use their cards, but I played my hypothetical "Mother of the Bride Card" when we went to Dutch Bros. for coffee on the morning of the wedding. (Notice that it was cool enough to wear a sweater in the morning.) After we hemmed and hawed about what kind of coffee to get, the nice guy in the booth told me that it would come to $7. I looked at him and said, "What kind of discount can I get since my daughter is getting married today?" He thought a moment, and without missing a beat, he said, "That will be $3.50." Needless to say, he got a tip, and then we went back the next morning, too.

Iced Coffee

I love to watch the fluffle in iced coffee.