A beach home companion

I'm falling a little behind on my weekend recaps. I probably have more free time now than I did in Delaware -- actually, I'm sure I do -- but it's still getting away from me. I have been putting in a few extra hours of work here and there, but that's doing little more than making up for the commute I no longer have. Maybe it's because I no longer leave the apartment to go to work that I don't have it in me to blog or edit as much from the same seat when the day ends, especially when the weather is nice every evening (although it is getting dark earlier these days). We've also been concentrating on the house hunt. However, that should be ending soon. You can expect an elaboration on that tease in the coming weeks.

Let's get to the recap.

We did a Friday night hike to some old hotel ruins located near the hot springs, but it wasn't as scenic as you may think. (Even the picture above is from the hike the week before.) The spring water came trickling down the rocks but nowhere near enough of it to pool up. This is mainly attributed to the big pipes running through the area. Supposedly the people of Montecito, down the hill, use it for their waste water or something like that. I tell you... those filthy rich. The hike wasn't bad; I just didn't get any blog-worthy photos out of it. Sometimes it's more about the exercise than the awe. It makes us feel better about chowing on tacos and beer afterwards.

On Saturday we had some errands to run and some shopping to do. I found me some new sunglasses. R found her some clothes. The day got more interesting as it progressed. Our early evening was spent at a Newcomers meeting. This is a club of people who have lived in Santa Barbara for less than two years. We joined for the networking and to make friends. Saturday's event included hors d'oeuvres and wine at a house in the hills, with an amazing view of the hills. One interesting woman we met wrote the theme song to the TV series Eight is Enough. Her website also claims she won an Oscar for writing the score to a short film, but I wasn't able to verify this one on the IMDB. There is a lack of information available about short films from the 80s. This woman recently moved into town from Santa Monica, which also fits the story. Anyway, maybe "buying" friends by joining a club is the easy way out, but the club is probably a good idea for us. R's coworkers don't hang out much after work, and my coworkers live on the other end of the country, so making friends the old-fashioned way is off to a slow start. At least we have each other :-)

After the get-together on Saturday, R and I went up to the Santa Barbara Bowl to watch a live Prairie Home Companion show. What a great place to watch a concert/show! A full moon was rising above us and there were fireflies abound. I wish we could catch Radiohead when they play the venue later this month, but that one sold out fast before we even moved here. Garrison Keillor and company put on a good show, one that made us a bit nostalgic for life in Minnesota. I truly envy that guy's storytelling skills. How do you put on a radio show for 30 years and avoid being totally redundant? It takes creative genius. This blog could use some of that.

Sunday was pretty laid back. We went to church in the morning and took advantage of a free trial at a gym in the afternoon. I also had some time to read -- a true luxury in life. I finished, and enjoyed, the sleek piece of entertainment that is The Da Vinci Code. Up next is one by David Sedaris. Then it's back to the Lord of the Rings. I'm definitely reading more these days while the DVD player is in storage.

That's the news from Santa Barbara, where the coffee is strong, the hikes are good looking, and the weather is well above average.