I Rise

 

This weekend I was invited to attend a performance by the GMCLA titled “I Rise” at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.  One of my dearest friends, Dave, has been a part of GMCLA for 20(something) years I am remiss in admitting that this is only the second show I’ve seen.  However, this show blessed me beyond words.

This choral performance centered around the crossroads that most LGBTQ men (and women) face when it comes to their faith vs. their lifestyle.  And the struggles they have faced coming from backgrounds of various faiths – Judaism, Buddhism, Catholicism, Christianity, etc.  We heard testimonies from different members whose faith was at the core of their family dynamic until they came out – and then their worlds were turned upside down.  One gentlemen’s story especially touched me because he was “Patient #1” when the AIDS epidemic first hit the scene and he was given 8 months to live.  He was the first person to be prescribed the anti-viral cocktail to combat his diagnosis and he stood with this chorus testifying some 20 years later that it was his faith in God that got him through the struggle and allowed him to be nearly symptom free in 2017.  God is Good!

As a Christian myself, I often feel torn between what my “religion” teaches and what I believe to be the true testament of my faith – LOVE.   And I struggle in knowing that the people that are associated with my faith, have often been the largest persecutors of LGBTQ people.  For me, Jesus’ greatest commandment was Love God, Love Your Neighbor….period!  I guess I choose to believe that my God is a God who loves and who loves love.  My God wants all people to trust in Him, believe in Him, be saved by Him, love Him.  My God does not put conditions on who He loves or why He loves them.  And so I choose to abide by his commandment to Love.  And if I am wrong, I will have to answer to Him when I face my judgement time.

And I hope that all of my friends – gay, straight or  undecided – know that my love for you crosses all chasms of society’s definition of “Religion” or “Faith”.  You were created perfect in God’s eyes and so you are perfect in mine as well!  God Bless!

March 2016 – Barrell Tasting in Santa Rosa, CA

J Winery – Healdsburg, CA

Sebastopol, CA

Sebastopol, CA

PorchLife – Sebastopol, CA

Our private driveway

Sebastopol, CA

Vineyards for days

Beautiful

Homey fireplace

Holy Wow!

I’ve been MIA for awhile – forgot about my blog!!  Gonna try to get back into this blogging thing although my travels have been sidelined for a bit.  I do have a couple past trips to write about so I’ll update on those soon.  Welcome back to meeeee!!!

Lemonade

I often forget about this gem when I’m contemplating what to do on my lunch hour.  Everything there is good and (mostly) healthy.
L-R: truffle Mac n Cheese, Oxnard strawberries arugula blue cheese & sherry vinaigrette, and pineapple chicken green beans coconut jalapeño & jerk dressing.
Today was a beautiful day to sit on the patio to enjoy the warm sun & cool breeze.
Meal topped off with an ice cold guava limeade – very refreshing!

Aroha – Westlake Village

Aroha is Maori for love, compassion or affectionate regard (at least that’s what the menu says).   It’s been decades since I’ve visited New Zealand but a recent episode of “House Hunters International” brought up those memories.  During my trip to NZ decades ago – I participated in a traditional Maori BBQ and it was wonderful!  I’ve been wanting to try this place out since driving by it several months ago and noticing the “New Zealand  Cuisine” tagline.

The restaurant is clean & bright with a smallish indoor dining room and a large outdoor patio seating area.  Although I was offered the outdoor seating option, the 100+ F degree temps insisted that I stay inside AC buildings at all times.

Aroha offers a lunch & dinner menu, as well as Sunday Brunch and Happy Hour (which is really, truly only an hour 5:30-6:30).

After browsing over the Lunch Menu, I settled on their “One Square Meal” option which comes with a salad, side, main course & dessert for $15.  You can add a glass or wine or beer for $8 more

The salad consisted of mixed greens and was served with red & yellow cherry tomatoes with a mild, not too overwhelming, lemon vinaigrette dressing.  It’s supposed to come with mozzarella bites but I think my server forgot to include those and I didn’t notice until I was done with the salad.   For my entrée, I chose the steak & cheese pie.  It is prepared in a ramekin with the steak & gravy, covered by cheddar cheese, topped with puff pastry then baked and served with a tomato chutney on top.  My side was brussels sprouts – now, I am only a very recent partaker of the sprouts from Brussels so I wasn’t quite sure whether I’d like them or not.  Preparation is key and Aroha did not disappoint.  These veggies were baked along with kale & bacon and served mixed with a creamy sauce which I couldn’t quite put my finger on the taste, but it was good – maybe a little too well done, but still good.  I ate them all so there ya have it!  Finally, the dessert – Lemon Mousse.  This mousse was so smooth & creamy it just melted in my mouth.  It was drizzled with a raspberry compote which brought out the flavor of the mousse just perfectly.

Of course no meal is complete without a glass of wine so I chose the house chardonnay which was good.  I’ve had better, but any meal with a glass of wine is a good meal.

What I appreciate about this menu is that the chef uses fresh & organic ingredients and the entire menu is geared towards allergy & gluten free options.  I’ve copied a little snipped from their menu below

While a typical United States kitchen relies on pepper and other strong seasonings, the Kiwi chef prepares dishes designed to emphasize the natural flavor of the food and allow those flavors to pop. 

Chef Thomas’s concept is to promote healthy eating by combining delicious ingredients that provide energy and aid in the digestion process.

I found this to be absolutely true as I did not have to ask for any salt or pepper to season my meal.  It was perfect as plated.

I’d encourage you to stop by and try out any of the dishes as they all sounded amazing.  It was hard for me to choose one, but in the end I wanted the authenticity of the “kiwi pie”.  Didn’t stop me from salivating over some of the other dishes like: Crispy Pork Belly, Roasted Peaches, Strawberry & Goat Cheese Salad, Cloudy Bay Clams….oh, the whole menu who am I kidding!

Have you eaten here?  What was your experience like? What was your favorite?  Let me know in the comments.  You can find the menu at http://www.aroharestaurant.com

SCOTUS Ruling – June 26, 2015

Today is a historical day in our country.  Today the Supreme Court voted that marriage equality is to be extended to all human beings.  Today love won!

I’ve kept quiet on this decision most of the day because I really wanted to absorb all it entails – to me and me alone.  I know & love many people who identify LGBT – my life would be wholly incomplete without them.  Those people also know me as a Christian.  It is from those two harshly opposing views on this subject that I find my voice.

I am not one of those Christians that is “in your face” or “fire & brimstone”.  I am one of those Christians that follows Jesus’ Greatest Commandment – LOVE!   Yes, I know what the scripture says about “man laying with man” (Old Testament, BTW) but I also know what Christ said – and that, to me, is the most important of all.  Many will disagree with me, many will want to admonish me, many will spew venom & hatred – and to those people I only have love to offer.  I’m not interested in your opinions, I’m not interested in your comments, especially if they are hateful – this is about me and how I feel about today’s historical decision.  Your opinion is not required or desired.

My faith, while many may not know or realize this, is my driving force.  I trust and believe in God,  He is my healer & my protector.  I believe with all my heart, mind & soul that He has a plan for my life and He will make everything happen in His time.  I also believe in a loving God who wishes the same for all His children – to be able to love freely without judgment from others.  Because after all – when all is said and done, it is only God who will judge each of us when our time comes.

I believe in Jesus Christ – I believe he died for my sins because he LOVED me without condition.  And because He loved me – I am called to love others unconditionally without regard to any persons race, religion, creed, sexuality, etc.  Others may be more vocal & more “flamboyant” about their Christianity and maybe that works for them.  I, however, prefer to show my faith by loving not judging.  I find it impossible to hate someone because they love.  I love love, God loves love!  I’m always brought back to a bumper sticker I purchased 100 years ago that was stuck on my dashboard – it was small & discreet but the message was loud & clear….

HATE IS NOT A FAMILY VALUE!

God Bless everyone who was granted freedom to love by today’s decision!

Random thoughts on a Friday afternoon….

Today has been….it’s just been one!

1.  Had a meeting scheduled for noon today on what we Valley people like to call the “West Side”.  Since Mr. Obama was in town I planned accordingly for hellish traffic on the 405 freeway and gave myself  an hour and 45 minutes to drive 25 miles.  TWENTY-FIVE MILES!  Fortunately for me, I missed all the Presidential hoopla and arrived an hour early for my appointment.   Unfortunately for me, I had to find a way to kill at least 30-40 minutes before I could go to the appointment.  I managed!

2. On my way home from said appointment, I spent my commuting time catching up with one of my dearest friends on the east coast.  It’s been a minute since we’ve had an actual phone conversation instead of a text one…although those text ones often get off the hook.  Incidentally, he’s coming for a visit in exactly 5 weeks & 1 day and I don’t think I can contain my excitement.  I saw him in April and even though he’s here for “work”, we always manage to get in some seriously good QT.  And….we live too far from each other! But…if we lived closer to each other it might be trouble!  A pic of our shenanigans…glam squad!

3.  After getting home & changing out of meeting clothes, I enjoyed a FB Messenger conversation with my cousin in Mississippi – the one who met me in Nashville a few months back.  This one, remember him…

..ain’t he a cutie!  We caught up on life’s moments and I did my best to convince him that a trip to SoCal is just what he needs.  It really is EXACTLY what he needs!

4.  During that FB Messenger conversation, I was also having a texting conversation with another BFF in Atlanta.  Last time I saw her was also in April, for her wedding – she looked beautiful by the way, in case you wondered.  Don’t believe me….look for yourself!

And even though I was only an “honorary” bridesmaid (I’ve forgiven her, it’s no big deal, really – it’s cool – LOL) I didn’t get to spend much QT with her so I miss her!  I mean she was kinda a little busy getting married and all so I don’t blame her!  And her wedding was the last time I saw ^^that friend^^ since he was my “plus one”.  I did my best to convince her that a trip to SoCal is just what she needs, EXACTLY what she needs!  Hmmm…..I’m sensing a theme here?

5. Finally, I read something on FB that just F’d with me psychologically while I was in the midst of talking to/catching up with all of the above.  I can’t get into what it was mostly because this blog is posted on FB, but it affected me more than I thought it would, or should.  And then I realized, I have so much love in my life to be grateful for that this small incident doesn’t define me.  And I have so much love to give freely to others that who cares about that psychological bullshit that’s randomly thrown out there.   I’m really very grateful and blessed by the friendships that I’ve made over the course of my life.  And the far away ones, like the ones mentioned above, that remain strong despite the time & distance between us – those mean the world to me because it takes a lot of effort to maintain a long distance relationship – even if that relationship is a friendship…ESPECIALLY if that relationship is friendship.  Our lives can get caught up in the every day mundane tasks that we often forget to reach out and let those far away people know that they’re important, and that we love & miss them.

So Ryan, David & JB – thanks for being my long-distance blog inspiration today.  I love you all so much!

Flashback Friday to WW 2012

I recently posted a #tbt photo (the one above) and it brought me back to that wine tasting weekend with my girls – one of the many we’ve taken to Russian River.  On this particular trip we were joined by my very dear friend, Dave and his partner, Evan – who have since become a part of “the girls”.  This picture was taken towards the end of our day as evidenced by the amazing sunset in the background however — that is not what makes this picture epic.

As we stood in front of this vineyard, trying to capture not just the sunset but the 25+ years of friendship that has bonded us all together as sisters — making sure every pose was perfect, every smile was stunning, and that we all looked 10 pounds skinnier — THIS happened and it captures us in the most perfect way possible.  What you don’t see is that this picture is probably the 5th or 6th attempt (at least) of getting that “perfect shot”.  God Bless Dave & Evan for their patience with our high maintenance-ness (if that’s not a word then it should be!).  Do you know how hard it is to get 6 women to agree on ONE good photo???

It was at this moment – gathered in this beautiful Northern California Vineyard and all just a ‘wee bit’ tipsy from a full day of wine tasting that the magic happened.  Angela & Robin have their poses down pat, Wendy & Gladys are having a love fest and Julie’s purse (which was adorable, btw) came unhinged and all her worldly belongings – tampons & all – came falling out.  Since I was right next to Julie – my reaction was “oh shit” as seen on my facial expression, but “lemme still try to pull of this pose right here”!

Here are a few more pics to enjoy from that weekend~

A lil o’ this; a lil o’ that…

My cousin doesn’t know this (or maybe he does), but he often inspires me to be more creative when I cook, which let’s be honest – my favorite thing to make for dinner is reservations!  Not really, but it’s not one of my ‘hobbies’ so to speak.  But when I see some of the gourmet shiz that @senatortso throws down in his kitchen with random ingredients he has laying around I’m in awe.  Like jaw-dropping…how dafuq…where did he…I can’t even…

For example – here’s one of his recent FB posts:

Roommate: Hey, can you come up with something to do with the liver we got from the quarter steer?

Cousin: Uh…. ::opens fridge:: Okay… Tomorrow. Saute shallots in olive oil and butter, then plate. Cut bacon and liver into strips saute in same oil and butter, then add cooked shallots and some white wine. Serve with some potatoes or something.

Roommate: Uh… you just came up with that?

Cousin: It’s things we have in the fridge door.

It’s that kind of randomness that inspires me to be more daring, more creative, more open when I do make attempts in the kitchen.  I mean he just opened his fridge door for chrissake!

So in a ‘tip of my hat’ to him – here are some of my recent experiments:

Sautee onions & chopped bacon in a deep pot, throw in some minced garlic once the bacon is cooked – add a package of sausage tortellini, 2-3 cups of chicken broth & bring to a boil for 5-7 mins.  Add about 1-1/2 cups of shredded cheese stir together and serve with shredded parmesan cheese.  I wasn’t sure how this would turn out so I also heated up some Barilla red sauce (olive oil, garlic, basil flavor) and spooned it over the pasta before adding the parmesan.  I could have served it either way – it was good with and without the red sauce.  I cooked for my hairdresser/BFF, Angela since she comes to my house to do my hair and she LOVED it – she had 2 servings – so I guess it was a hit.

My other “throw it all together & hope for the best” experiment was the last time Angela came to do my hair.  (I’m sensing a theme here and am hoping she’s cool with being my guinea pig).  That time it was pasta again, but angel hair this time:  minced garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, sun dried tomatoes & spinach sautéed & then tossed with spaghetti, fresh spinach and rotisserie chicken. BAM!  Even I had to admit – that was pretty damn good!

Finally – this was a ‘just for me’ dinner – marinated 2 chicken breasts (for a couple days because I ended up going out to dinner the first night I planned to make them) in Trader Joe’s Organic Sriracha & Roasted Garlic BBQ Sauce (yes, it is as good as it sounds!).  I cooked mine in a skillet after I sautéed onions & minced garlic but would probably be just as good or better on the grill. Served with salt & pepper & fresh avocado.

So Matthew (@senatortso) – thank you for your inspiration & I look forward to your next masterpiece.

Nashville, TN (aka Music City USA; aka NashVegas)

Leave it to my girl Jackie to pick the coldest weekend in history to celebrate her Bachelorette Party in Nashville.  As I flew into BNA it looked like the whole state was covered with snow & frozen over.  This SoCal native was skurred but excited to check another city off the bucket list.

I arrived at the airport and picked up a shuttle to my hotel, The Aloft Hotel West End.  Since I had taken the red-eye I arrived well before check-in time so I hung out in the lobby while waiting.  This is a cute, fun little boutique hotel with a trendy vibe.  The woman at the front desk, who’s name escapes me at the moment, was so sweet & accommodating and was doing her best to get me a room ready.  No worries, I got to sit and people watch in the lobby and eavesdrop on some conversations about music careers taking off.  There’s a pool table and bar in the lobby and they also host live music when the bar is open (which it wasn’t while I was waiting unfortunately – a bloody mary would have been amazing!)

The rest of the bachelorette party was driving from Atlanta, so I just waited on them to arrive.  And as an added bonus, my cousin, David, from Mississippi was able to drive over and spend some quality time with me as well.  When I finally did get into a room it was very nice – spacious with 2 Queen Beds and still plenty of room to move around and the bathroom was spacious as well  (shower only, no tub).

Our first night in town we were scheduled for drinks at Acme and dinner at Pub 5.  Due to the weather and the forecast for more snow/freezing rain we got started early – which means we got drunk early.  After drinks, shots and Moonshine slushies at ACME, we walked to Pub 5 for dinner which was out of this world delicious.  Once we had finished dinner the rest of the girls were ready to call it a night, but not this girl!!  I wanted to hit a couple more famous Broadway bars and my cousin was waiting for me at Tootsie’s.  We closed down the night there and had a great time bonding and spending some quality time over more cocktails.

Day 2 was a bachelorette party at Meredith’s home in Nashville which was themed around the bride-to-be’s favorite things – which of course meant all of us in attendance! ;o)  Kidding!  She had a good day and received lots of memorable gifts.

Night 2 was sushi dinner atVerago followed by drinks at Soulshine Pizza Factory.

Day 3 I was left to my own devices since everyone had to head back to their respective homes and my flight wasn’t until 6pm.  So after brunch with the girls and a much needed 2-for-1 mimosa special, I headed back down to Broadway to do some sightseeing and listen to some honky tonk.  I did a lot of walking, a little shopping and my fair share of beer drinkin’.  I though about picking up a pair of authentic cowboy boots until I realized how much they cost – holy shit!  Maybe next time – this girl was on a budget!

Nashville was a blast!  Wish I’d had more time to sightsee around town – visit the Grand Ol’ Opry and the Opryland Hotel (which I’ve heard is beautiful).  I’m happy to have checked it off my bucket list because now I know I want to go back sometime and maybe meet me a nice honky-tonk cowboy.  That was one thing I did notice, the men down south are Southern-licious!!