Monthly Archives: November 2009

Planet 51 and Macy’s SFSPCA Window

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Ron and I went for a matinee movie at AMC Metreon, only $6! We went to see Planet 51. It’s one of those cute feel-good movies with a plot that you would expect. For me, Rover was the best part of the movie.

A movie that I’m looking forward to seeing is Alvin & The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel. I loved Alvin when I was little, I begged my parents to get me a stuffed animal which I still have (in storage). They had life sized Simon, Alvin, & Theodore at AMC so that you could take and send a holiday photo with them.

I spent the rest of the afternoon walking more around downtown (my NP said I should walk at lest 30 minutes a day) so stopped by the Macy’s window again which had some new kitties.

Here is a little orange tabby, reminds me of my kitty Junipurr who had to be put to sleep because of kidney failure. This one was a bit more fluffy but very cute.

Two kitties all tired out near the end of their day.

I will be passing by this window again during my daily walks. I can’t resist those cute kittens.

Union Square Macy’s, Bar Tartine, Bi-Rite Creamery, and Jeremys Department Store

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This morning I went for a walk to Union Square and did some shopping at Macy’s. They were still having some Black Friday deals this morning so I found some good gifts. While there, I came across one of those electronic vending machines that sell iPods, the Sony eReader, headphones, USB drives, etc. Unfortunately it was out of order or else I would definitely get one of these! I just may have to go back to get one.

The San Francisco SPCA has set up their pet adoption windows so I went to take a peek at the kitties and puppies. I took a few pictures with my iPhone.

This kitty was exhausted but not too exhausted to look cute and pose for the camera. Check out the tiny paws underneath the chin.

There are siblings in this window, the one on top was meowing for attention.

This is Fiona, a 3-month old little tabby taking a nap.

This poor kitty looked upset and squished itself in between the glass and the candy cane pole.

Macy’s had their tree lighting ceremony on Friday night. I took a rest on a bench in Union Square and did some people watching while waiting for Ron to pick me up for lunch; there were tons of people out shopping.

We went for lunch with friends at Bar Tartine. They take reservations but for a maximum of 6 people. They have a great weekend brunch menu.

I started out with a very refreshing Dry Soda Co. Cucumber Soda. It’s like sparkling water with a strong cucumber flavor with a bit of sweetness. It’s a bit expensive though, $4 in the restaurant, not sure what retail price is but I’ll be on the hunt for it.

The bread and butter so yummy. The bread toasty on the outside, chewy and a bit sour on the inside.

Ron ordered the open faced pork belly sandwich with avocado, egg salad, pickled jalapeno and shoestring fries ($14). The pork belly had a bit too much fat so Ron had to cut it off. The pickled jalapeno gave the sandwich a good kick. The shoestring fries were delicious with the accompanying aioli.

I ordered the Sonoma foie gras panini, blackberry jam, brioche, rocket and green salad ($16). This was really rich. We wished they had seared the foie gras because it was kind of mushy overall especially with the blackberry jam. The flavor was great and the brioche was nicely toasted. I would love more of that blackberry jam.

The other dish tried by our table was the country bread french toast with raspberries and maple syrup (plus some little currants). I didn’t try this though.

After our very filling lunch, we walked over to Bi-Rite Creamery for some dessert. This time the line wasn’t that long so we decided to wait the 5-10 minutes. We walked over to Dolores Park to sit on the grass and enjoy our ice cream. I tried the Earl Gray and Roasted Banana. The Earl Gray really tasted like the tea with a hint of floral aftertaste. The Roasted Banana just tasted like banana but perhaps the Earl Gray overpowered it.

Then I went shopping with Virginia at Jeremy’s Department Store. She went yesterday and got some good deals. They started their black friday sale yesterday where everything is at least 50% off. It’s through the weekend so ends on Sunday night at closing. We spent like 2 hours there shopping and I bought two pairs of shoes and some dresses. I’ll take some photos later. If you’re looking for a good deal on wedding gowns, they have some beauties priced below $600 and with the additional 50% off, it’s a steal! This is the best sale I’ve been to but they do have sales every weekend, just sign up for their mailing list to get notification of what’s going on sale.

It’s been a nice relaxing Thanksgiving holiday… I’m glad tomorrow is still Sunday, one more day of rest.

Bar Tartine
561 Valencia Street

Bi-Rite Creamery
3692 18th Street

Jeremys Department Store
2 South Park

Thanksgiving with family

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So we spent Thanksgiving dinner with my parents in San Ramon. Our contribution to the evening was a pumpkin cheesecake from Zanze’s. It was so delicious, much better than pumpkin pie or a pumpkin cheesecake. My mom also cooked up a ham, a rib roast, Chinese sticky rice, and green beans. We also brought mashed potatoes and my brother brought Caeser salad and chocolate chip cookies.

After dinner, we rested in front of the TV and played with the dogs. My dad found out that Buddy is actually a Bichon Frise and not a poodle. Apparently his former owners gave him up not because they were just tired of him but because someone in their family became ill so they couldn’t find the time to take care of him, almost the same thing I guess. He would only be fed once a day and no one really wanted to walk him or play with him so he’d be stuck in the garage. Such a sad thought. He’s really friendly and playful but still has to learn some manners, he tends to bite or try to nip you while playing and doesn’t know how to sit still. He’s also quite needy because he will whine when my dad leaves the room and go a bit crazy trying to find my dad. After only a week and half, he’s already very attached to my dad. Both dogs are vying for his attention.

Buddy is so cute, I’d take him home if I could. It seems like Happy and Buddy will get along eventually but actually Buddy is quite the butthead, he’s like our cat Misu who is very curious and acts like a dumb oaf and tries to be super friendly. Happy doesn’t like Buddy invading her personal space. It’s a good thing they’re about the same size so can’t really hurt each other. They are slowly learning to tolerate each other.

Week 26 Check-up

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I had a check-up this morning and the NP told me I’m gaining too much weight… not good. My regular NP called in sick this morning and I must say, I’m impressed that Kaiser gave me a call in the morning to let me know and was able to schedule me in with another NP. But my point is that the scale I was weighed on was different than the one I usually get weighed on so I blame that partially for my recorded 9 lb (!) weight gain in the last month. But according to my scale at home, I’ve only gained about 6 lbs since my last appt…

Oh well, so more walking and smaller meals for me. With the holidays it’s going to be hard to cut down on sweets and baked goods but must have will power because I don’t want to have to try to lose too much excess weight.

Baby is kicking a bit more vigorously these days, usually after I eat and especially if I’ve had something warm or spicy. We’ve been thinking up some names but didn’t realize it’d be so hard.

I’ll try to post some pictures soon, apparently I’m really starting to show because people are giving up their seats for me on the bus. I still get the occasional dirty look by older ladies and men because I sit with my bag on my lap so it hides my stomach but I’d rather have that than keep my bag on the ground, who knows what’s been on the floor of a Muni bus.

Pho 2000

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http://www.yelp.com/biz/pho-2000-san-francisco

Ron and I went to dinner at Pho 2000 because I had a craving for pho and it was the only place we could find that was open after 8pm in our neighborhood.

I ordered their bun bo hue, the usually spicy rice vermicelli noodle soup. I’m used to it having pork blood in it but this one did not. The noodles were good, like a rice spaghetti but it wasn’t spicy enough for me. Perhaps I’m more used to the version they make in a different region of Vietnam because this one used the red chili flakes in oil as the spice, I’m not used to having the flakes in the broth. But it satisfied my noodle craving.

Ron had the five spice chicken over rice.

I’m still in search of a good bun bo hue…

Pho 2000
637 Larkin Street