Shando’s best friend since fourth grade in Ohio now lives in San Francisco, so we were able to have dinner with him in North Beach for his fiftieth birthday celebration.
Category Archives: Birthdays
My 54th Birthday
Sagi & Ido, our friends from Seattle (originally Tel Aviv) who we met (of all places) in Iceland, were in town for my birthday weekend, so it worked out well that they could join us for a road trip. We had a terrific day going around the North Bay, where Shando and I were so glad to buy a home and move to a few years ago. So much of what we love in the Bay Area is in this area they call the Wine Country, even though we don’t drink!
Our first stop was at my favorite winery, Viansa, which has lots of delectable food and fantastic views. This is something that I had done with my mom and it reminds me so much of Italy. Their winery is up on a little hill and usually it’s overcast when I go there. However, today the air was crystal clear and the weather was just perfect.
Later we went to Bodega Bay where it was colder and windier than usual. It isn’t always overcast, but the views were still stunning, and our guests enjoyed it. This was the first time I ever walked down to the beach there. Shando shot the first of this footage from up on the cliff.
Loop Around Lake Tahoe
We stopped by Camp Richardson on the southern side of Lake Tahoe where I used to camp as a kid in the 1970s and 1980s. My grandfather worked there from the late 1960’s to the Eighties.
Coyote puppy and mom when we were hiking near Nevada border in South Lake Tahoe.
Downtown Truckee:
Nevada City Trip
Shando found a rental in Nevada City so we decided to explore this corner of northern California that we weren’t that familiar with for a long weekend in celebration of his 50th birthday. It turned out to be a lot more interesting than we could have imagined with a very gay-friendly atmosphere. The entire downtown area was swarmed with rainbow flags and great little shops that we enjoyed patronizing. Shando took some great portraits of flowers and the park and we took some nice ones of ourselves if I do say so myself. I’m using some of the ones Shando took of me for my profile pictures.
Shando Turns Fifty
We stopped for lunch in Rocklin to see our friend Michael and Chris and their fabulous new place.
Shando’s birthday dinner in Nevada City:
Joe’s 53rd Birthday Party
Shando arranged a cake, catering, and he sent out invitations for my 53rd party, which started to really feel post-covid!
Happy Birthday Gaia!
Gaia is my cute little cousin (once removed) in Italy who is studying English and who we got to spend a lot of time with during our last trip to Italy (before Covid). She has been good about sending us voice messages on Whatsapp and staying in touch even though she was painfully shy when we first saw her. Here is our video message for her birthday, which I understand thrilled her: