Bunco with friends at Ron and Susan's

Well, I shared the "biggest loser" title with Stella, fellow Bunco player and friend.  We both won $5 for having lost the most rounds.....18!!! 

I did chuckle a bit this morning when putting the pictures together......of all the pictures taken at "Bunco" night, I didn't take one picture of us actually playing the game.  Here are some pictures of the food and people of Bunco......everything was as wonderful as it looks.....glad I took the before/after picture of the salmon so John can replicate!

By looks of it, all we did was chat, have fun, and eat great food!  Well, that's sort of why we do this.....what a great evening with friends!  In the picture above, Ron and Susan are featured in the center....John is standing with Fawaz and Ron in upper left.  Carolyn is with Mary, Steve, and Lou in upper right.  Mary Ann, Stella, Lou, Susan, and Steve are grouped together on the left.....Jeff, Carolyn, and Connie are grouped on the right.....lower right features Dina, Stella, me, and Mary Ann.  John and Lou grew up together and that's how we met all of these wonderful people!  Thank you, Lou and Mary!!!

Thank you, Ron and Susan, for hosting us!  

Weekend in Monterey

Just returned from a fun weekend in Monterey.  Spent Saturday and the night with friends, Becky and Paul Tag.  After lunch in Salinas and a visit to the Steinbeck Center, we enjoyed the remainder of the day/evening at their lovely home in Monterey.  While we don't see Becky and Paul often, when we do see them, it's like we just spoke yesterday!  I LOVE that about great friends.  

In addition to a yummy salmon dinner with salad and roasted vegetables, Paul set up a fun taste test with 2 Malbec wines.  We tasted Wine "A" and Wine "B" without food and then with our meal.....3 of the 4 of us selected "B", which was the $15.00 90 point Wine Spectator wine, while "A" was the $8.00 Kirkland brand.  Both were good, but "B" really was a bit smoother.  After we enjoyed blackberry shortcake, we retired to the "theater" room to watch "The A-Team"!  Fun action movie.  Here are some pics from the evening....

Today, we enjoyed a scenic (and a bit strenuous) walk around the neighborhood.  After our walk, we drove in to Pacific Grove for breakfast at The Victorian Corner (http://victoriancornerpg.com/aboutus.htm) .  Delicious!!!  We said "goodbye" to Paul and Becky and scooted over to see Susan and Eddie (Wilson) for a bit.  They were both under the weather from a nasty cold, so we didn't stay long.  Brinton's, The Travel Bag, and Carmel Hat Company were next on our agenda....then we finished up the day with dinner at Phil's Fish Market in Moss Landing.  So delicious!!!  We are back home and thrilled that we still have tomorrow (MLK day) as a vacation day!!!

Oh, I'd like to include a plug for our friend Paul.  He's an author of some great action/thriller novels.  Check him out at http://www.paulmarktag.com/

Women on the Way Fundraiser

What an evening!!!  Last night John and I attended a fundraiser for Women on the Way - a faith-based recovery center.  Here's the link:  http://www.wotwrc.org/.  The event was organized by Diane Oliver (sister of Curt Hinrichs brother-in-law).  Her daughter struggled with meth addiction, had been through several programs, and "Women on the Way Recovery Center" is the one that worked. Women on the Way is an effective, faith based program based in San Leandro that helps women turn their life around and recover from addiction.
Diane has been organizing fundraisers to give back to the place that saved her daughter's life.  We were so honored to be a part of this amazing outpouring of love and support by family and friends.  Here are some pics of Curt and Christine, Steve and Patty, us, and Carl Hinrichs and friends.