IRL at Sonoma Raceway

So on a complete spontaneous weekend, we decided to head up to check out the Indy Car race in Sonoma.  Casey and I aren't huge race fans per se, but I still wanted to check out the track and also thought it would be cool to see the IRL season finale.  Why not?  So we trekked up to wine country, tailgated, and enjoyed some racing. 

The track itself was really cool.  I had never been to a road track for an actual race before.  We were initially confused on where to park for will-call, and then get parking pass.  Once we figured everything out and my stress levels lowered, we had a great time.  It was suuper hot.  In fact it was so hot we found a place in the shade to hang out and watch until the shade seeped over our section. 

The race wasn't particularly exciting.  Early on one of the two drivers in competition for the championship was knocked out for a little bit, essentially ending any championship drama.  Also, Casey and I were pretty disappointed in the crowd.  The attendance was pretty low, and the general enthusiasm for what was going on was less than what we were used to.  Perhaps we've all been spoiled by the atmosphere at the Indy 500 where it is the end all, be all.

All in all it was a fantastic cap to our crazy weekend(the night before we went to a Cards game in San Francisco).  Although we were absolutely gassed by the end of the race(pun intended), we had a blast.  It was really cool checking out a race track in a really pretty part of the country.

Carah Faye and Lindsey Stirling at Mountain Winery

 

In a moment of spontaneity, Casey and I decided to go see Lindsey Stirling at Mountain Winery. We had been to Mountain Winery before and thought that it would be a really cool venue to see a show.  Lindsey Stirling, for those that don't know, is a violinist.  I know...it seems like a really odd choice for Casey and I.  For some reason when choosing a show to go see her name stuck out to us.  I read later that she was on America's Got Talent one season, so maybe we saw her on there.  Lindsey Stirling not only plays violin, but she dances around and mashes a lot of her music with electronica.  It is actually pretty cool, and you haven't seen a show like it...scoring extra points for originality.

Going to a concert at Mountain Winery was interesting in itself.  There is basically one road that winds up...you guessed it...a mountain.  The drive itself is pretty interesting, however, getting a lot of people up one long, winding road isn't the most efficient process in the world.  It was doubly inefficient on the way down.  The amphitheater at the venue itself was spectacular, it is one of the coolest places I've ever seen a show.  The owners of this venue exploit the uniqueness of the venue by charging outrageous prices for food and drinks(wine).  Even the wine that they produce at the estate was extremely up-charged from normal pricing for the concerts.  It was even worse that stadium pricing at huge arenas/stadiums.  Once you get past the sticker shock and general inconvenience of going up/down a mountain, it was all positives.

The opening act was Carah Faye.  I personally hadn't ever heard of her before but Casey and I enjoyed her show very much.  Upon googling her we found out she is the lead singer of a band that Casey has on her iTunes, Shiny Toy Guns, so it makes sense that we enjoyed her piece.  She is launching a solo career so her album isn't even released yet so it was really cool listening to all new music.  I think she has a single out so I highly recommend checking it out.  On a completely unrelated note, the keyboardist looked exactly like Jason Sudeikis...like serious doppelganger.

The main attraction was next:  Lindsey Stirling.  Casey and I had no idea what to expect from the show.  Not having expectations was awesome though, because we were blown away.  It was a combination of incredible musicianship combined with really cool dancing(her and her dancers), dubstep-like mashups, light shows, and even periodic video clips.  It was eye and ear candy for the entirety of the show.  Towards the end of the show Carah Faye even came out and sang a guest spot on a song that they collaborated on.  Another surprise was that Jason Sudeikis was the keyboard player for Lindsey Stirling as well.  He was so goofy.  Anyways all in all it was an incredible show.  I highly encourage you all to try and see her if you get an opportunity.  Go into it with zero expectations as we did and you will be blown away as well.  Just as a fyi, she is primarily an instrumental-only artist, so don't fast forward through songs looking for a chorus lol.  If you are wanting to check out a couple of songs on Youtube try The Arena (instrumental) or Something Wild (someone guest sings on it).



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Año Nuevo State Park

A couple weeks ago we had family in town and decided to head someplace a little scenic for a hike. Our first choice was to go to Point Lobos State Park, but unfortunately we started seeing smoke from what we think was the Soberanes fire. We didn't know much about the fire at the time so we decided not to risk it and instead decided to head north along the Pacific Coast to find another place to hike (honestly there was no shortage of places to stop). So, we randomly picked Año Nuevo State Park. Going with the flow is easy enough right? Well, the first, I don't know, 30 minutes of our trip were just plain bizarre. First off the park ranger at the gate basically lectured us for being there too early after having let us sit there for about 5 minutes before acknowledging us (I looked up the time they opened at it had been 20 minutes at that point). Then, when we went to pay, our bill was too large because she had not counted her drawer, but between the four of us we came up with the exact amount (again, they had been open for 20 minutes). We were then told the park was known for their elephant seals and how to get there, which included us having to unlatch a fence (weird, but alright). We had a good laugh and drove off to park.

 

With our sunscreen on and water bottles in tow, we were ready to start our 4 mile hike. We were laughing about the events that had just taken place, wondering if we were on a reality show (good thing we all are polite and kept out composure), when the first bout of terror took place. There was a sign warning about the snakes you'll find in the area. I felt my body go cold like I was losing all my blood, surely I was sick and needed to leave (not a "country" girl at all as my husband says). Sadly no one else seemed to share my terror, so three against one, we were back on track. After a lifetime (ok maybe 5-10 minutes max) of screams and jumping from the snakes (I never saw one but Kevin did) we came to our first obstacle. Which way do we go? Apparently we all listened really well, or same logic as before, four against one, it must have been the park rangers fault. I kid, I kid. I'm sure we were at fault. In front of us was a latched fence (promising since we did in fact listen), to the left, a small building with an equally looking small path, and to the right a rope up with what may or may not be a path, but at least 3-4 workers walking around and sitting in a truck. We quickly ruled out option three because it looked like the truck and workers were blocking off what may or may not be a path. We were unsure about the latched fence because it was pretty big and surely it would be open if we were supposed to go that way. So, you guessed it, we went with option one. It wasn't right, but it wasn't necessarily wrong either. It didn't lead us to the seals, but we did get a very short hike to a decent view. Ok, now we had narrowed it down to the other two options with two new friends whom were also wandering aimlessly looking for seals.  With the workers still sitting in their trucks, we all decided to go with the latched fence option because the lady had told all of us that. As we are walking we were passing busy construction workers working away.  We had made it a fair distance when someone finally stopped us and said we were supposed to be there because it was closed off to public due to them working on it. Um, thank you 6-10(if your counting the initial people blocking the other route) for being kind and letting us know. Obviously you know what came next, we went down the path that seemed to be blocked off. It was so odd. We walked past the workers and the ropes like we owned the place and no one said anything so we kept on our merry way. We kept walking and laughing about our whole adventure thus far, going on boarded paths and then sand that left your shoes full and back again when we stared to not only smell the fishy smell, but hear the elephant seals. We were happy and somewhat relieved (hello beginning of a horror movie thus far). We stood around and watched them for a few minutes. Some looked like they were fighting or playing, hard to tell, and others just laid around and threw sand on themselves. I just kept thinking about how I hate to get sand in my bikini lol, but I'm sure they do it for a reason unbeknownst to me.

We were getting ready to leave when we noticed a couple of those viewfinder telescope things (real technical here) and decided to check them out. That my friends, is when the pure terror happened. We saw an island maybe a mile or two away that we later found out was Ano Nuevo Island (fitting). It had hundreds of elephant seals and a couple deteriorating buildings. It was insanely creepy. In fact, there is actually a thriller book written called New Year Island that is set in modern day on this particular island. I have not yet read it, but I think I'm going to have to! After we had our fill at staring at the creepiness that was Ano Nuevo Island, we made the trek back (faster since we knew the way this time). We, well mostly I, had a "snake plan" of attack for the hike back. It was basically stay in the middle of everyone and run like crazy if I had to! Best plan ever! Take that snakes. Though, I'm happy to report that there were no sightings. Overall, I would go back. It's not too strenuous and once you know your way, the outcome of seeing the elephant seals and some of the coast really made it worth it!  



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local union 271, Palo Alto

 You probably know this by now but if not, know that Casey and I love going to brunch.  It is something that we dabbled with in Indy, got obsessed with in Jersey, and constantly seek out in California.  In Jersey we had clear established favorites.  In California we have made a conscious effort to try more and more places.  On a whim, we decided to try local union 271.

Local union 271 is in downtown Palo Alto, a place we like to frequent as it has tons of restaurants and bars.  We found local union 271 through Yelp(I know...how hipster of us) and we were glad that we did.  The first thing that we noticed right away is that they have multiple types of mimosas.  They had mimosa flights even.  It was called "The Tree" and it gave you six 4 oz. samples of various mimosa types, including a jalapeno one which was actually our favorite.  If that isn't a good sign right off the bat then I don't know what is.

There were so many things sounded good but we both ended up getting the same thing, which was a berry French toast dealio.  The restaurant is a farm-to-table, so from the fresh squeezed oranges in the mimosas to the berries in the French toast, everything was so fresh and delicious.  They also had outdoor seating which even "sweetened" the experience even more so.  Nothing but positive things to say about this place.  We will definitely revisit at a later date.

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MLS All-Star Game 2016

So one of the perks of being a season ticket holder of the San Jose Earthquakes is getting first access to tickets at Avaya Stadium where the Earthquakes play.  It just so happened that the MLS All-Star game happened to be taking place in San Jose in our first year being ticket holders. I love checking out these kinds of things so naturally I had to snatch up the tickets as soon as they were available.  I honestly was never familiar with how all star week worked in Major League Soccer, but it is interesting to compare it to the NBA, NFL and NHL; which most sports fans are familiar with. 

The MLS all star week and game are an entirely a different concept from the other major American sports leagues.  In the more popular American sports leagues, all stars are chosen either based on performance or fan popularity and play other all stars from the same league.  The teams are usually based on conference or geography(or both).  The MLS takes a different approach.  They do choose a team which is based upon performance and fan popularity.  However, they fill a single MLS team and take on a top team from a top international league, which is in stark contrast to what was aforementioned.  In this case the MLS all stars took on Arsenal from the Premier League.

I have to admit it was a pretty cool concept.  For starters, it gives American soccer fans the opportunity to see a more "popular" club in the United States in Arsenal, but it also provides the MLS the opportunity to validate itself against more prestigious soccer leagues.  From what I've been told, the MLS players actually "try" (I use try loosely because it is still an all star game so I'm sure it's not their 100%) to help validate their league and themselves also which makes it cool in that sense.  It was also nice to see the who's who in the MLS as Casey and I are somewhat new to the MLS scene. All in all it was a really fun time with great soccer, cool pre and post game activities, and the opportunity to see a premier league team live in person at our home stadium.  Unfortunately the MLS lost(shockingly, it was a rare loss for the MLS all star team to lose to an European team), but it was still a great time!

Gilroy Garlic Festival 2016

Last week we attended a vampire's worst nightmare, the Gilroy Garlic Festival! Seeing as we literally just celebrated our 1st year anniversary of being Californians, it was our first time attending, but the festival marked its 38th year of pure garlic mayhem. Being first timers, we had no idea what to expect, but our first impressions initially were skeptical at the very least. We had to park in a huge lot and then be taken by bus to the actual festival, then for the two of us (and parking) it came to $50 admittance. Then, we started walking, and at first, we looked at each other and thought, this definitely  was not worth the money! However, first appearances were extremely deceiving.    

As we kept walking (and walking, and walking), we realized how ginormous this festival actually was. Every direction you went there were more and more different things going on. From booth after booth of food, featuring...duh...garlic; to different vendors and shows, the possibilities for all ages were really endless. Our day started off with a blended mimosa. Now don't let the 'blended' part throw you for a loop (I sure did), it was just crushed ice.  However, apparently the earlier in the day you get one, the better the pour (wink, wink). Now we were off to conquer this garlic world!

Now, anyone that knows my hubby, knows that he just can't lay off the sauce.........the dipping kind that is. We always end up with the most random assortment of sauces in our house that he picks up from different places. So when we passed the Torchbearer Sauces booth, I knew we were going to have to stop. Good thing I still had that delicious mimosa! Kevin tried sauce after sauce and loved them all! We actually made a HUGE mistake and didn't purchase any right then and there. Not wanting to carry stuff around all day, we said we would come back on our way out and completely forgot (the crowds were getting massive at that point). Luckily, not only can you of course purchase online, but you can also look where they are sold close to you!  Kevin's favorites were Oh My Garlic and Chipotle Wing Sauce but like I said he liked most of them.

Next up was some actual grub. First we headed to Gourmet Alley (not without a few smooches first so we wouldn't subject the other to our heavy garlic breath) pick up some shrimp scampi with a piece of............garlic bread. I told you, vampire's worst nightmare here. I don't really know how it could be anything less, but it was pretty scrumptious. Now before you start criticizing, this isn't the only thing we ate, though it is the only picture.....for now. The rest of our eating adventures took us to a whole other area (this place really did go on and on) where there were some of the best BBQ places competing against each other for the people's choice Garli-Que challenge. Our favorite competition team, The Bad Boyz of BBQ, were there so we of course had to sample theirs, but felt they deserved their own post instead of a little snippet here (start salivating now, but maybe stop because that's just weird if you keep salivating until I get it posted). 

Needless to say, the whole festival was fire (get it, picture below, lol). There were things to do for everyone, no matter your age. A whole kiddie land with rides and face painting, live cooking demos and cook-offs, multiple areas with every type of vendor you could think of, plus all the food and wine/beer. It really was worth it, just get there early if you want to avoid the massive crowds (plus things can sell out). See you next July Gilroy Garlic Festival!

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de Young Museum-Oscar de la Renta The Retrospective

"What I try to do in my design is to make a woman dream."

-Oscar de la Renta (Fargo 2009)

A few weeks ago my main man and I headed to the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park for the Oscar de la Renta exhibit. We had yet to explore the de Young Museum, so what better excuse than the de la Renta retrospective. Needless to say, I was like a kid in a candy store. I could barely contain my excitement just walking into the museum.  You would think I was getting ready to meet the Queen of England (on my mind since we are going to London soon....yay!) who was gifting me my own Oscar de la Renta gown! I've always loved fashion and paid attention to designers, but always seemed to be drawn to Oscar de la Renta because of the femininity and detail of mainly his ballgowns.

So, speaking of getting "gifted" a dress, I'll take the one on the left hand side above......thank you! Dream big right! Honestly though, these dresses and gowns were absolutely beautiful in person. The subpar iPhone photos just don't do them any justice. The intricate beadwork and fabrics used alone were nothing short of amazing! Over the decades, yes you read that right, decades, de la Renta drew inspiration from everything (travel: Asia, Spain, etc. to gardens and everything in between) which really can be seen in the details of his work, which I was blown away by seeing in person. I literally don't remember speaking once inside the exhibit.  

Oscar de la Renta has never had a shortage of beautiful and prestigious women lined up to don his wears. He's dressed everyone from models (obviously, can you say runway shows and pictorials in little magazines such as Vogue) to first ladies and many celebrities and actresses, etc. In fact, the gowns below are just a tiny representation of those worn by celebrities which you may or may not recognize. The dress pictured in the bottom left was worn by none other than Adele for Vogue in 2012 with a fierce red lip of course. Recognize the dress on the bottom right? It is the dress worn by Sarah Jessica Parker to the 2014 Met Gala complete with de la Renta's signature, apparently requested by her! The second dress in that picture, though it is hard to see, was worn by Taylor Swift also at the 2014 Met Gala.

If you aren't big into fashion, it may not be the exhibit for you, but don't write it off just because of that. Anyone that appreciates art and the history behind these garments may still find enjoyment checking them out.  

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