down the coast

Took a drive down the coast last weekend to Half Moon Bay and Pacifica.

green gulch

I ate dinner and visited the grounds of Green Gulch this week. Located in Marin county, the zen center serves as a Buddhist practice center as well as a working farm. Although it was pretty overcast, I really enjoyed the beauty of the gardens.

from the flea: what i saw

Apparently, I wasn't very interested in taking any photos at this month's Alameda flea market, because these are the only shots I have...maybe I shouldn't have left my half drunk coffee in the car (!). Oh, well...

rodeo beach/battery townsley

On a beautiful Sunday in Marin, Jeff and I took a hike at Rodeo Beach in the headlands. On the second Sunday of every month, free tours are given of Battery Townsley, a historic World War II bunker a short walk from the beach. Apparently, they also used to test nuclear devices at the site as well. In any event, on a nice day its a great place to go for a walk and enjoy a tuna sandwich.

from the flea: i only bought turquoise

Apparently I like turquoise. Everything I got at the flea market was that shade, including a cute pintucked shirt (above) and elastic belt (below).

from the flea: what i saw

After missing the last few Alameda flea markets due to rain, travel or just plain laziness, I was thrilled to visit the my favorite treasure hunt this past weekend. My purchases were minimal, but it was great to be outdoors on such a nice day. Some of the things that caught my eye, included this Mad Men chair (above), as well as this fun pineapple platter:

Julie's megaphone:

Danish modern deer portraits:

My favorite - an anthropomorphic hot dog platter!

op shop

Sometime last summer I decided to stop buying new things, or things made new. The idea was to cut down on the amount of stuff in the world, and therefore not encourage, support or contribute to the creation of disposable merchandise (think Ikea furniture, Forever 21, new cell phones every few months). If I want something, I try to find it used or vintage, and most of the time, I find that I didn't really need it in the first place. It's surprisingly easy (well, for someone who likes thrift stores and flea markets anyway) and I'm not a hundred percent strict about it (underwear, yarn and gifts seem to be my major weeknesses).

Through Lobster and Swan, I found KatieCrackernuts, an Australian journalist who has taken a pledge to only wear secondhand clothing for two weeks to possibly win a new Prius. Although I wish the time frame was a little more substantial, I totally get behind the idea of op shopping, as she calls it. Here in the bay area, there are some fantastic thrift, vintage, used and consignment stores where you have a bevy of great options that fit the bill of op shopping. Besides, the flea is this weekend!

maker faire

I lost what was left of my voice working the booth at the Maker Faire on Saturday. I wish I had felt a little better as there was so much to see there - way more than I had originally anticipated, including innovative rides (above) and Victorian-inspired Steampunk cars:

Maybe knitted poo isn't for everyone, but I thought it was hilarious (forgive the use of Papyrus):

I'm always a fan of seeing ArtCars, such as Mercedes Pens:

and the candy house:

This 20' sculpture (the photos don't do it justice) was made entirely of used soda bottles:

Photos by me and Heather.

alcatraz

For anyone that's never been to Alcatraz (especially those that live in the bay area!) it's a totally worthwhile and fascinating experience. I mean, when else to do you get to visit a prison (uh....) that once held Al Capone? The audio tour is especially interesting. Tickets are available here.

a visit to filoli: the gardens

The gardens at Filoli were just as exquisite as the house was. Using traditional English garden styles, the Bourns worked with a team of bay area designers, horticulturalists and botanists to create the varied spaces that are evident today.

This door (above) was originally from the Bourn's San Francisco home.



The Garden House was so sweet (outside is above, interior is below). It looked like something right out of the Sound of Music.