all things Italian

 Of course you remember Cristina, my neighbor who is currently in Italy, and shown here with her mama on the left. Well, my next tenant, Lorenzo, is a young Italian orthopedic surgeon who will move into Emma's Room on Oct. 9th for a month. He came over to visit on Sunday, bringing Italian espresso and he is already in love with SF and I urged him to visit North Beach to visit his country men and women. A very nice guy ~ yes, fortune smiles on me once again. 

let's talk over tea

 Five chatty women for tea and snacks at Heidi's yesterday afternoon. It is so nice to be retired and have time just to enjoy the many blessings in this life. 

big bash birthday party

It was neighbor Rob's special day and Heidi gave him a lovely celebration with both of their sons and their girl friends in attendance, plus Roxie's parents visiting from Lompoc. Lots of good food and conversation until (for me) the wee small hours of 9pm. Again, so grateful to be included.
 

a sterling gift

 My neighbors Rob and Heidi brought this delightful fork to me after their recent road trip across the country. It is just so wonderful that I might have to plan a dinner party just so I can use it. So cool.

the return of good meals

 Heidi and Rob (two doors away) were traveling for two weeks and I lost weight and used Grub Hub a bit too often while they were gone. Last night I was welcomed back to their table with lovely sea bass and asparagus. Their cat, Ozzie, missed them too and exhibited typical "how dare you?" cat behavior.

new boys next door

 As predicted, Cristina adopted two of the seven kittens and now they have names ~ Pippo and Gigetto, very Italian, of course. They are fun and rambunctious and adorable. So glad, however, that my Annabelle is lazy and quiet, like her constant companion. 

my gourmet neighbors

 

Heidi and Rob invited me for dinner ONCE AGAIN last night and yummmmm, he made scallops (!) and pancakes which were made from fresh green peas. The sauce was capers and raisins and all very French and so tasty. I know, I am one fortunate woman.

a beautiful day on the Bay

 Thanks to our neighbor, Cristina (top photo), Heidi and I spent a full day going to/fro Jack London Square in Oakland from which (whence?) we took that FREE yellow boat (aka Velveeta, second photo) over to Alameda where we had coffee at a Target store. Heidi, bless her, provided lunch and you can see that we could not have asked for better weather. ALL the boats were packed with tourists and locals and everyone was just so nice and honestly, it was a day to celebrate and remember. Then Heidi and Rob fed me dinner so who isn't spoiled rotten? Not me. 

the return of the manicurist

 Our next door neighbor, Cristina, was in Italy for two months and we depend on her to clip the nails of Annabelle. Yesterday they relaxed in the warm (!) sunshine and we were all relieved to have short cat nails again. Yes indeed, we love our neighborhood.

dinner with Ozzie

 ...and Heidi, Rob and Lily from Denver. Here is Ozzie appreciating the scarf that Amy gave me about a year ago. Who knew? It was a VERY good paella dinner with lots of happy conversation with me thinking at some point, "so glad I'm not young anymore." Lily is 35, by the way. A lovely evening for all, for sure.

Bay Bridge and beyond...

 Sister Jane and Melinda expressed an interest in Oakland and "the other bridge" so the Blogmaid was kind enough to drive us all over to Jack London Square where we had an unexpectedly good lunch at the Oakland Grill in the heart of the produce market there. All closed yesterday so the restaurant was almost empty, but surprisingly good food and a nice atmosphere. Then back home to chat with my next door neighbor, Cristina, who had one of my wine glasses that somehow strayed over there on Thanksgiving. Such a great photo of her, thanks to the Blogmaid. And also this last sister pic that I think captures both our bloodlines and our mutual enjoyment and appreciation of each other. Sis and Melinda are safely back in Maryland now. I already miss my sis ~ another really nice time. I am so lucky.

holiday ornament sale

 Here is my neighbor Cristina working on her display and photos in order to sell my vintage (very old) xmas ornaments on Facebook Marketplace for me. She has a real talent for this and I only broke one during this merchandising production. I have some very nice neighbors!

Jen with two dogs

 it's been forever since I walked with Jen and Charli and Birdie. The human had Covid and then was out-of-town for a couple of months and so yesterday we reunited for lots of good catch-up chatter. The dogs barked hysterically when I came into view and that made me smile big time. 

and yet more paella

 Neighbor Rob (husband of Heidi) keeps working to perfect his paella and I am a fortunate recipient of his efforts. You can see the giant paella pan alongside our other neighbors (Jerry and Joanne) and we all had a truly delightful and delicious evening.  

new neighbors = celebration!

 This nabe is a nice mixture of young and old and many different races. The way it's supposed to be, right? Yesterday was a party across the street with tons of food and lots of meeting/greeting. Good vibes!

birthday dinner with pasta

 Sorry about the photos ~ by now you realize that I have never quite mastered the editing tools. But hey, I'm a writer, not a photographer. My nice neighbors invited me to join them to celebrate Rob's birthday last night up at Vega on Cortland. Such a delightful family and they are so very good to me. From the left: me, Heidi, Evan, Peter and Rob. A really nice evening.

Sausalito on Sunday

 Yesterday Heidi and I visited our old friends and neighbors, Julia and Michael, who now live across the Golden Gate Bridge in the hills above Sausalito. Tea and brownies and a lot of catch-up chatter. You can probably tell from the photos that they are doing a-ok and yes, we miss them a lot.

city sidewalks

 Did you say Spring? All the most welcome rain has helped everything and we are enjoying unusual color and floral beauty. I admire the ones who plant bulbs back in Winter and then share the results with their neighbors. Walking this time of year is such a pleasure.

and more new art

 Yes! From my ex-neighbor Lynn who now lives in Puerto Rico. I love this young woman with her curly hair and nose stud. Very much like Lynn and greatly appreciated. This was hand delivered by my neighbor Cristina (Italian) who just returned from visiting our friend in PR. Husbando always called next door The International House of Women ~ he got that right. Right?

back to cats (mine)

 My neighbor brought me a morning latte and her cat nail clippers for Annabelle who calmly tolerates the mani pedi as long as I sit in front of them and feed her (the feline) that Churo paste stuff. I just am sooooo fortunate to have the BEST neighbors and we all help each other in big and small ways. So much for those Uncaring Big City stories, right?