Dog Days of Summer

I'm kind of obsessed with my dogs.

It's a real problem. At work, I daydream about cuddling with their fluffy little faces and when I'm at home, I can't stop bugging them. They are the most hilarious, adorable little nuggets in the world and that makes it hard to ever leave them.

Unfortunately, during the summer, we have to. A lot.

Between weddings and vacations and concerts and weekend getaways, we find ourselves scrambling constantly to try and find friends to dogsit them or making boarding reservations. And because they're rescue dogs, I always feel guilty bringing them to the boarders. So last night, we decided to do a trial run of something different.

Missing Sayulita

It's shocking to me that we were only in Sayulita five months ago. It feels like it's been years since that trip... in some ways, maybe it has. I left my job, started a new job, left that job and came back to my old company in a new job. I started, suffered through and finished another MBA class. I did the Fast Metabolism Diet, went to Coachella, attended two weddings and threw a baby shower. All of these things required so much planning and time and sometimes effort that looking back, I can't believe they were all crammed into the past few months.

My body believes it though. I woke up today and I just felt tired. And tired had me craving Mexican beaches and lazing around town, downing cervezas. Sayulita was so perfectly relaxing and Ryan and I had such a great time there. Today, I missed it so much that only one thing could cheer me up: photos.

A Visit From The Goon Squad

There aren't many novels that I'd recommend to everyone. Sure, there are novels that I'd recommend to some people and novels that I'd recommend to others, but only a handful of novels meet my criteria for across-the-board recommendation. One of these is the 2010 mega-hit, "Freedom" by Jonathan Franzen. And it just so happens that the latest novel to make my list is the other 2010 mega-hit, 2011 Pulitzer Prize-winner "A Visit From the Goon Squad" by Jennifer Egan.

I've spent the last couple of weeks tearing through Goon Squad in progressive stages of discomfort: sweating on the bench in my yard with a breeze, sweating on the bed with a fan, and sweating on the couch with no fan, respectively. It's been humid here.

Or rather, I should say, "humid." My friends in the Northeast would probably hit me if they caught me complaining about what humidity is to me these days. Regardless, this book does what any ideal summer reading should do: it makes you completely forget about how hot you are.

Orange Is the New Opening Day

God, I love Opening Day! For those of you non-San Diegans, Opening Day is the first day of the race season at the Del Mar racetrack. It's also one of the biggest social events of the summer, complete with fancy dresses, big hats and lots of champy. And I love that you can bump into at least a handful of people you know... further proof that San Diego is the smallest big city there is. 

This year we headed to the track with Ryan's parents and their friends and had an absolute blast, as was to be expected. As they say, there was a winner in every race and for all the races I bet on, that winner was me.

Shopped: Oakley Gaslamp

For most San Diegans, the Gaslamp (aka Downtown) is for tourists. To them, it's the equivalent of going to Times Square in NYC or Grauman's Chinese Theater in LA. And the Gaslamp in July? You can't throw a craft beer without hitting a bachelor/ette party, a group of foreigners, or a man in a Marvel costume. If you live here, it's to be avoided at all costs during the summer.

Which is really too bad, because there are tons of great restaurants and shops in the Gaslamp that we should be taking advantage of. And one of those shops is the Oakley store on Fifth Ave.

A lot of girls seem to have the wrong idea about Oakley. They think it's just another Billabong or Roxy surf brand style of apparel. Which couldn't be further from the truth: Oakley is a performance sports apparel brand. Sure, yeah they have the SoCal vibe; after all, they're headquartered just up the 5 in Orange County. But Oakley is for athletes. And with easy access to their new collections at their Gaslamp store, it's a shame more San Diego runners don't know that.

Motivation Monday: Neon Dash 5K

I think I'm finally starting to get this whole "fun run" thing. Yes, for most people those two words don't belong next to each other. But even for runners, for the people who actually like running, I don't feel like those people (listen to me ... "those people") run for fun anymore. They run because they're training for something or because they're trying to lose weight or because they need to de-stress. That's not fun, that's work. 

Saturday night I did my first real "fun run" ever. The closest I've ever come to a fun run before was the Aloha 5K last September which for me was all about getting back in the running saddle post-marathon. For everyone else though, it had the intended purpose: dress up in silly costumes and go get some exercise with your friends before brunch. However, I ran it and wrote my whole race review from a runner's perspective: too many kids, not enough room to get around people, where was the runner's etiquette?, etc. 

Jeez, lady, get over yourself.... 

Well, I did. And that led me to the Neon Dash

Shopped: Free People Fashion Valley

Say what you will about their prices, but I love Free People.

I love their clothes, I love their ads, I love their blog, I love their stores. They just provide such a great shopping experience: a respite from the doldrums of my daily corporate existence, made out of the same stuff as my boho daydreams. Their clothes are gorgeous and unique, combining femininity with a wild independence. And their store installations.. I mean... really. I die.

I was ec. stat. ic. when I found out they were opening a new store in the Fashion Valley mall, the mall that's closest to my little San Diego home. And even more amped when they told me I could visit before the doors opened to the public last Saturday.

Star Spangled Rice Krispie Treats

I don't think there's anything more American than Rice Krispie treats. Except for maybe football and reality television. But if you're still looking for something to make for your 4th of July BBQ tomorrow, look no further.

This recipe will make about 9 star-shaped Rice Krispie treats. A couple of years ago we made 3 batches for a total of 27 treats and there wasn't a single one left over!

Star Spangled Rice Krispie Treats
(adpated from this recipe)

• 6 cups of crispy rice cereal 
• 4 cups miniature marshmallows
• 3 tablespoons of butter
• White frosting
• Blue frosting
• Red sugar
• Star-shaped cookie cutter
• Wax paper
• Cookie sheet
• Rolling pin

1. In a saucepan, melt the butter over low heat, then stir in the marshmallows until completely melted.

2. Add the crispy rice cereal and stir until coated.

3. Place wax paper onto a cookie sheet and pour mixture onto paper. Place another piece of wax paper on top and roll out mixture with rolling pin until the mixture is flat and about an inch thick.

4. Use the cookie cutter to cut out the stars. Combine the scraps and roll out again to use as much of the mixture as possible. Note: This part can be tricky especially as the mixture cools. 

5. Decorate with frosting and sugar. 

Saltwater Buddha

For the past decade, ever since I worked in a bookstore, I've promised myself about once a month that I'm not going to buy any new books until I read the ones I own. Naturally, it hasn't worked out that way. 

Which is why I was so proud of myself when I finally picked "Saltwater Buddha" up off my bookshelf a month or so ago and started reading it.  I've had this book for what seems like forever, but Amazon tells me that I bought it in July of 2012. 

So, I mean, it only took me two years to get around to reading it. 

#TacoTuesday: Sayulita Tacos Roundup

Mmmm tacos. When we were in Sayulita we made a valiant effort to try as many taco places as possible. We asked for recommendations from locals, we researched online, and we stumbled into places. Our goal was to try at least a taco a day. 

Sadly, there's only so many tacos a person can eat over the course of a week. No matter how delicious most of them were.