caracolina

We just got back from S.B. where we visited our Aunt and Uncle for the first time since last year. We felt a little nervous about how they’d be but were pleasantly surprised how well they were doing given the circumstance.

We left Phoenix Friday midday and reached La Casa B. around 10.15 PM, a fast drive with a gas stop in Quartzsite and dinner at Mix Bowl in Pomona. Needless to say, only minutes after exchanging hugs and hellos, the unavoidable cheesecake was pulled from the fridge, this time it was key lime.

On Saturday we had breakfast at Cajun Kitchen (right when they opened at 6 AM, of course), walked Sophie the dog, then returned to the house so John and I could take a quick nap before driving over to St. Rafael’s for the traditional Easter blessing of animals. I was somewhat disappointed because I had hoped people would show up with snakes, parrots or lizards, but with the exception of one bunny it was all dogs and cats. Although there was one gorgeous bengal cat that caught our attention. He was nonchalantly draped across his owner’s shoulder and when we went over to say hello and pet him we found out the reason for his calm was that he lost his hearing! After the ceremony we dropped Sophie off at home and, instead of the usual Costco run, drove down to Oxnard for a visit to Hometown Buffet and Wal-Mart to check out shrubs and blouses (our Aunt works in a hospital) and pick up a tan colored garbage can. Apparently all the store in S.B. only carry white. I also snuck into Joann’s because I needed a knitting needle but that place wasn’t well stocked at all. On our way back we struggled to keep our eyes open and the oldies took a short nap. John also swung by the Samy’s Camera in S.B. to pick up a new polarizer for the camera, then we returned home. For the rest of the afternoon we just hung out, chatted, watched a bit of TV, and John eventually bbq’ed up some sausage (from Buffalo, NY). Eventually, our Uncle shuffled off to the den to go to sleep and the rest of us settled in front of the TV for a rerun of the Ten Commandments. Our Aunt and I pretty much fell asleep right away, John held out a little longer. We pushed off to bed between 9 and 10, I believe.

Sunday breakfast was at McDonalds since Cajun Kitchen was closed due to the holiday. We walked the dog again, then headed back to the house to load the car and talked until it was time to leave at noon. Lucky us managed to see a pod of dolphins and a sea lion at a spot where we hadn’t ever seen anything other than surfers and the occasional swimmer – John pulled onto the shoulder overlooking the beach (probably illegally) and we stood there for a while, watching the dolphins swim back and forth. For the rest of the trip, traffic wasn’t so great and we stopped at Shakey’s in Redland for dinner. We skipped getting something to drink so we could pay with cash and surprised ourselves by eating a large pizza! Shakey’s just rocks. We got home just before 10 PM.