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I wish I had my new camera (which I'm going to buy as soon as the ol' tax refund arrives!), because there would have been a lot of beautiful photos from the weekend.
Highlights:
- Driving down Highway 1 from Pacifica. We stopped at Moss Beach, Half Moon Bay, San Gregorio Beach, Pescadero Beach, and Santa Cruz (and some others that I forgot). Sandstone caves! 40 seals within eye-contact distance! Agates! Rock-climbing (old school style!)
- Visiting with my Uncle Stan, who lives in Santa Cruz. We got up on the roof to see his new solar panels. We also went out to eat at a yummy little place that I forgot already. Dad and I also had lunch at a great taqueria in downtown SC.
- Hiking/sprinting Huckleberry Park Loop in the Oakland hills. It was misty and foggy and drenched in that bright spring green that I love so much.
- Fixing the car together. I needed a new low-beam bulb in the Honda so we took out the battery (which was blocking the headlight access) and put in the new bulb. Now I know how for the NEXT time one goes out. Cost: $11 plus our time. We also fixed the windshield sprayer and took it in to get fluids changed. Yay, little car. She's had a rough time (getting stolen and all) but we're nursing her back to health.
- Watching Borat. One of those movies that you kind of wish you weren't watching with your parent, but it was still uncomfortably hilarious. We all laughed until we cried. My favorite was the dinner party scene.
A few tidbits about my dad: 1) He has an extremely generous spirit, if slightly misguided. Background: He has about 19 chickens, so he gets a lot of eggs. He said he brought me some eggs. I was expecting maybe 2 dozen. Um, almost. Nine dozen. I didn't think I was going to be able to accept all those eggs (not only WTF do you do with nine dozen eggs, but also I have a small-ish fridge), but he said they'd stay good for 4-6 months (as long as I didn't wash them, which takes off this protective coating they naturally have. So says Dad, anyway). So I stacked them as tightly as I could in the bottom portion of the fridge. Yep. 10 dozen eggs (I already had one dozen in there). Angel food cake, anyone?
2) He takes the 'food as medicine' theory a little far sometimes. He had mentioned that on the drive down, he'd gotten sleepy at one point, so he had some coffee. I didn't think anything of it. I mean, cup of coffee, right? Come to find out, that he had actually put instant coffee in a can of Coke, and drank that. Then, he decided he would like a second 'cup' but was out of Coke. So, he put a spoonful of instant coffee in apple cider. Brown powder + liquid = coffee, right?
I said, "Dad, that isn't coffee. I don't know what that is, but it's another beverage altogether. And one that I don't think I could stomach." He said it tasted "interesting."
That's my dad! Overall, it was a fun weekend and it was great to have him here.
On the stomach note, I've discovered something. I've been eating a high-starch, low-fat, no-dairy, vegetarian diet for the past three weeks. I expected to feel much better. I haven't. My tummy has been upset nearly every day of this darn diet. I kept expecting it to get better, but it didn't. Sometimes I thought it was worse. So while Dad was here, I sort of lifted the restrictions and ate some different stuff: some grilled chicken, a turkey burger, some veggies. Oh, and lots of eggs. And not a whole lot of bread. Results? I feel MUCH better. Hardly an upset tummy all weekend. So I was thinking about this and what I think I'll do now is try this: wheat-free, dairy-free, low-fat, low-sugar, no red meat (but add in some turkey and chicken). Basically just take out the wheat-starch (rice and oats appear to still be fine) and add in some lean proteins. I'll still avoid raw veggies, and I'll probably still snack on rice cakes and such. It'll be interesting trying to cut out wheat. I did it in college (as part of a food-allergy testing), and it sucked. But I think there's more alteratives out there now.
Anyway, let the grand food experiment continue!
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