we've been...uhgh..really..busy?!.

we have now been married one year and two days. we got a ton of cards from folks--i didn't even know people did that. it was cool though. it is nice to feel like people remember your anniversary--even if it is not theirs. that is a little cool, or maybe i just like getting mail. probably both. let me tell you about the weekend we just had. it was pretty big. here it goes! it all started thursday (like all good weekends do). dust and i went to bevmo (a huge discount liquor store) and found "das boot" mugs. (andy's birthday was earlier this month so we had reason to buy a few.) the mugs didn't get used on night one due to loud rocking. the new drums arrived earlier in the day, and like all good rockers know, rocking comes before drinking. so we rocked! that new rock band is pretty great. living on a prayer, call me, eye of the tiger, round and round...we already have a plane. need i say more. we rock!! our band is called "grumpy's best day." we are taking this global--FAST!:)
then came friday. andy came over. we went to lunch with melissa who had to work. we got a ticket :( then claudia and hilary and i walked around rockridge (a neighborhood in oakland). claudia and i were beat--from the rocking, of course. so we went home to find dust and andy wailing on the drums and guitar. needless to say, claudia and i felt as if we were not doing our part. so of course we joined in for a bit. soon we got the call that it was time to go to the art museum in san fran called the de young. the place was having a big exhibit by a glassblower named chihuly. now i don't do the description of this guy's art the credit it deserves. so i will make you a link: http://www.chihulyatthedeyoung.org/index.asp the stuff was huge. there were people in crazy costumes, putting on shows (singing and dancing and puppets and back flips). it was mind blowing in the best possible way. we loved it. afterwards, we came back to our side of the bay and ate pizza. saturday brought the boots out after dust worked. now each boot holds more than 40 oz of beer, so tossing back 2+ boots can do some damage. luckily, we all drank enough water to not be dying the next day because two things happened that day. one: melissa and andy found out they got their house. they will be 10 minutes away from us in a little town called albany. it is a really cute house with two HUGE brugmancia bushes and an even bigger lemon tree. andy had to go back up north to pack up their stuff so they can move in next weekend. so we said goodbye to him. the other thing that happened that day (two: , if you will) was that shea came. we were all really happy to see him because last time it took him three months to come the three hours to visit us. but this time we got him early. now when shea is here, we sort of loose dust but we get good food. we get to eat out at all our favorite restaurants like jimmy beans for breakfast, rick and anns for dinner, et c. we have to show off a little for shea because he appreciates good food too. that is nice. also they go record shopping all day. seriously--all afternoon. now i can stay in a record store with the best of 'em, but those two together could shut a store down. it is like they just move in, you know. couple that fact with the fact amoeba music in san fran( http://www.amoeba.com/ )is the size of a full sized bowling alley packed with new, used records, cds and movies. it is pretty much their heaven. so we kissed them goodbye for the day and claudia and melissa and i walked. we shopped (not really purchasing anything), but walking and talking none the less. it was a good day. that was sunday. also that day, melissa took me to costco. ahhh. now many have told me the wonders of costco. i never really doubted, but i never had a real reason to go either. then we needed a bed frame. costco had those metal ones for 35$ (a valid reason to go.) oh my goodness. it was far better than anything i could have imagined. seriously. i had to talk myself out of clothes, snacks, vacuums, christmas lights, furniture. that place should be a mecca to all good consumers. monday brought the first anniversary of the party of the century that happened last year. you all were there. it was great. so we remembered that day. i know the first anniversary is supposed to be celebrated with paper so i subscribed dust to cooks illustrated magazine. it has recipes and stuff. dust got it this summer and used the mess out of it, so i figured it was a go. i don't know how pumped he really was about it, but he put on a good show. i also got him those ferro rocher ball candies because they are one of his favorites and they have a lot of paper on them, too. shea cooked us all dinner and it was the best dinner that has been made in this house yet. (just wait until those cooks illustrateds start paying off. then we'll show him!) he also got us hooked on another brittish show--shameless--put it on your cues. it is funny and insightful and pretty great. we convinced him to stay an extra night so we could finish the disc. you know that is good. so that was the amazing weekend. also we got shea to play the new drums on rock band. he also rocks. so there was much rocking and just living the rockstar life. that is pretty much how we do it out here on the mean streets of oakland. sweet huh. also we are warm and sunny. the idea of fall...not really hit us yet. here it is still summer. and the entire time we have been here, we've only gotten like 6 raindrops. this is the life.