6 days in Costa Rica and I came back with a new look at life. I went 6 days without the internet (except for a 30 minutes I hopped on to check in with the hubby when I arrived and before I left), work, or television. I went 6 days without much of anything but gallo pinto, rum,  and time. Yep.  Nora and I didn’t do much of anything during our trip but relax and go with the flow. We

I’ve done my share of long distance traveling.  Every time some one gasps when I tell them how long it takes to fly to Thailand, I chuckle a little bit inside. “Well, it’s 11-12 hours with a 3-hour layover in Taiwan/Hong Kong/Japan, and then another 4-5 hours to Bangkok. OR I can fly direct for 17.5 hours.” “OH MY GOD! / Da-yam! / Are you kidding me? / I could never do that!?!” Then I will tell them that it’s

I told you about my multi-talented friend Note, the co-owner of Kinnaree Gourmet Thai and tarot card reader extraordinaire.  The latter, at least our group of friends think she is anyway. I promised Note that I would blog about my month-to-month prediction, so that as time ticks on, we can come back to see how accurate she really is. Before we get to that, what she said about my overall future gets me giggling. She said that although I am

Sawaddee from the Big Mango, y’all!  A nice, crisp, 75F “winter” Bangkok, no less.  I am enjoying the cool morning here. I arrived at dawn yesterday and what a day it was!  My brother and sister-in-law picked me up in his brand new BMW X5.  We had breakfast and I was left to myself all morning.  I unpacked, played some piano, and took a crack at the Nikki Heat novel before succumbing to sleep after lunch. My friend Note called

…I’m ready to go. Are you ready for me, the Big Mango? So I leave LAX tonight, arriving in Bangkok at 6 a.m. on Saturday.  (Yes, time traveling. It’s awesome.) Let’s say, I’d probably get home around 8 a.m.  I’d be done unpacking by 9 a.m. and I get to relax for a while. 3:30 p.m. I am off to my friend’s condo for a pool party.  A few hours later, we’ll mosey down to Kinnaree Gourmet Thai for dinner

Well, not EVERY mountain but just the one. It took Brandon and I 7 years of marriage to figure out that we both like camping.  Away from the cars kind of camping. We have been investing in our camping gear.  When we were shopping for a backpack, the staff mentioned that REI does have overnight backpacking classes and that we should check that out. So we did. This past Saturday and Sunday, we were in Mount San Jacinto State Park

Within one week I have been to a cooking demo and wine tasting with a gaggle of girls, to hanging out with furry police dogs, to sitting in a funeral service. Thursday got me into a fun evening sponsored by Fresh&Easy.  Always love it when you put girls together in a room and let the wine flow. Sunday got me into the Orange County Police Canine Association show at the Orange County Fair. If you remember, I go to one

One of those questionnaires people sent around asked, where would you want to live if you can live anywhere. My answer is “out of a suitcase, in hotel room, anywhere in the world.” Some people insist that they sleep in their own bed.  I don’t seem to have that much of an attachment. I like to be somewhere else once in a while.  A change of scenery during the day is one thing, but to have slept somewhere different is

Last weekend in Florida was amazing. The weather was just like Thailand which I totally adore.  A quick change from the dry California heat, I tell ya. We didn’t have a chance to adjust to the time change so we woke up too late each day to try to do anything.  It’s pretty much Coconut Grove and the wedding.  That was it.  No South Beach here. We ate at Green Street Cafe twice. And I would seriously eat there for

On Saturday, I landed in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  Now I have been the most eastern and southern of the U.S., adding one new state to the places I have been. On Sunday, my dear friend Irena got married to a fantastic guy. This morning, I got braces. This will change the way I shop for, eat and cook my food.  And obviously, that will affect how I blog on HmmFoodGood and Temple of Fresh & Easy as I will begin