Weekend Getaway & Bagels

I'm watching FOOD TV Network at 1:23 am....Giada's Weekend Getaway has taken her to New York City. She's finding the best food at the best places. She just went to a REAL bagel bakery in Brooklyn and bought one along with some salmon spread. Now I'm wishing for a real bakery bagel.






The bagels we now are able to buy are NOT real. They are fluff compared to the real thing. Like Giada said, the crunch outside and the soft inside...oh yes!!! Not the soft stupid bagel in a bag or even the ones in local bagel shops compare to a REAL bagel. Ok Noah's isn't so bad! ;)



This brings me back to a good memory with my former neighbor, Stephanie. She had lived in Berkeley prior to the suburbs where I met her. She lived across the street. She knew where a REAL bagel shop was..down on Gilman Street in Berkeley. I forget the name now. It's probably still there across the street from the Community Co-op Grocery Store.

Most often on Fridays you could count on the fact that the two of us were zooming through the Caldecott Tunnel heading to get our dozen bagels for the week for our families. It was always crowded inside the small shop of course...we didn't mind the wait!

The Salt bagel was my favorite! Big sea salt on the top...perfect on the inside. We would buy a little pot of cream cheese and break into our bags of bagels to eat one on the way home. We usually drove around the neighborhoods so Stephanie could show me the houses she loved best. Mostly she loved the ones with doors that were arched and unusual. There were so many, it was kind of a fun trippy thing to do. Berkeley is a fun place to find such architecture.

There's an area up by University of California that has some very fabulous old homes. The Craftman style are not unusual in this neighborhood. On one street there is one grand home that is known because of the fact that a spy lived and operated out of it during WWII.



I worked in Berkeley for a dermatologist for a couple of years so I knew some of the roads quite well. I also dated someone from Berkeley who lived near the spy house (which is how I know the history).




When we would get back to Lafayette, we'd stop in town and buy fresh Dungeness Crabs at the local fish place. They had them cooking out front..ready to crack and clean for us . Also lines there every Friday when Dungeness were in season!
Lines didn't seem to bother me when I was in my 30s!!!

I might have to head to Berkeley tomorrow to find that bagel bakery and call it a weekend getaway. Thanks Giada!!!

OH NO! Now on FOOD NETWORK TV it's Rachel Ray and her husband on their getaway weekend in the San Juan Islands in Washington State which I also love. Riding the ferries up there is so fun and the scenery outrageous!! I actually have been on 90% of the ferries on different vacations up in WA. Maybe I'll head to Orcas Island and eat whatever Rachel is having!!! (I WISH)!!!!

Berkeley will have to do!

Lassie! Lassie!!! Come Home!

Did you ever watch Lassie? You know they just had to call that dog and she came running! Now I'm a Sassy Lass as you can see by the name of my blog. When I was in college I had to take some math class that was tedious and stupid because I am so lame in math...I finally quit going to class. One of my friends said that the teacher called my name every day as he did everyone else's and then marked me as not in attendance. One day he said my name and then remarked..it's kind of like calling for Lassie but this one never comes running. I thot that was pretty funny.

Now how does that link up to what I am going to blog about you might ask! Well a couple of people have said they check my blog from time to time but haven't found much ...even a very long absence and it's true. I loved blogging and realized once I stopped that it was really because I had used the blog like journaling the majority of time as I processed my grief over Jeff's death.

Oh, yes, I did write humorous blogs, cuz you know, I am humorous! I just can't help it. What is interesting to me is that I still had a sense of humor after that huge loss in my life. I am so grateful that it never disappeared along with my Son. Humor can be a coping mechanism so perhaps thats why ... I don't know. I'm not a sociologist. I'm just me...a Sassy Lass..and only Sassy really when I need to be or think it's fun to be.

Yesterday I had lunch with a fellow friend and blogger...i look hers up every day because I take such delight in them...That Reckless Quilter writes a great blog! During our lunch the blogging came up and she encouraged me to keep on blogging. So that's why I am here. Maybe now that I dont seem to need to process my grief, it will be interesting to see what I write about.

KCP and I had lunch at Havana in Walnut Creek or as she calls it Brookside (LOL - private joke). She loves to eat adventurously (is that a word?) I have been to ChaChaCha in SF so I knew I loved Cuban..done deal.

We hadn't seen each other in a very long time and really hadn't had a chance to catch up ever..we had such a blast. we are very much alike in so many ways..all good of course!! :) We had tons of fun making fun of Olive Garden in particular as far as cuisine goes. We just had a lot of laughs..some at our own expense too! She is just a wonderful down to earth Christian sister who I love and thank God for bringing her into my life and keeping here there no matter where I live..its just like we have seen each other yesterday! (Yes, that is one run-on sentence; bad syntax and guess what? IT'S OKAY!)

Our next adventure is going to an Asian Market where she told me they can cook up a whole fish! That's what I am going to say: FRY ME A WHOLE FISH,PLEASE! I'm hoping I don't have to wait too long to do that...(can ya hear me KCP?)

What else is new with me? My transitioning continues...I'm in CA on an extended vacation and considering staying, but feeling a pull to be with my brother and family in ID as well...hard to say where i'll end up. The Lord knows! So His will...fine with me.

I joined a terrific bible study at my church on Tuesday mornings. Cynthia Heald's study on prayer. Nce nice ladies ..only knew one from living here before.

Taking an online culinary arts class from TopChefUniversity LOL..this is so hilarious I laugh every time I think of it...you can laugh too...especially those of you who know my turkey story or my lifelong condition of problems cooking....what a hoot...but i love the food shows and top chef is one of my favs..hopefully they can teach me something! Its so affordable and payable month by month so its doable too!!!!

I keep threatening to appear on FOOD NETWORK TV...who know's what the future holds for Sassy Lass?

Nice to be back!