pokemon go

Just like 90% of the people who are walking around outside right now, I have started playing Pokemon Go. If there's one thing I have learned from the extra exercise, sunlight, and camaraderie, it's that Magikarp really needs to get his shit together.

There was a woman my age in Banana Republic who rolled her eyes at me when she figured out I was playing Pokemon Go while waiting for Nick to try on dress shirts. So there is a slight chance that I may need to get my shit together too.

JUST KIDDING I'M HAVING TOO MUCH FUN

much love,
hedgie

27

This was my view when I woke up.

I can already tell that being 27 is going to be awesome.





much love,
hedgie

juggling june

 This month started with a trip to the Bay Area Book Festival:

We listened to Richard Russo read a section from his latest novel, Everybody's Fool:

And then we almost convinced him to flip off the camera for this photo:

We wandered through the fountain of free books:

Then we cast our votes for the best Sherlock Holmes-themed erotic fan fiction:

The Silent Film Festival played two movies starring my one true love:

And two puppies were pooped:

I felt fancy for an hour:

I received texts from my loved ones calling me a traitor because I was wearing this to the game where The Giants took on The Dodgers:

We had good seats:

I said a tearful goodbye to my running shoes:

But Addie helped me work through it by assisting me in yoga:

We went on a hike that we were told was way shorter than it actually was:

George did better than I did:

Poor Rex needed a little relief from his robot legs:

I saw the most incredible sunset I have witnessed in three years:

BART was a little crowded during Pride:

Adding a little love and color to the world:

Muttville! Thank you for George:

Don't rain on our parade:

Seriously, be nice:

I got non-stop cuddles from this guy:

He and Addie bonded over their love of barking at children outside:

I can't get over how cute these two are:

First road trip with George:

Orange County, we are headed for you.





much love,
hedgie

eating like an author: elizabeth bishop edition

The blanket fort is still up. Adulting is still hard. Time to make brownies. 

Elizabeth Bishop's brownies-

Ingredients:
4 squares bitter chocolate, or 1 cup of cocoa
4 eggs
1/2 cup butter
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup flower
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups chopped nuts

Steps:
1) Build a time machine and travel back to when slow ovens were a thing.

2) If you use bitter chocolate: melt the butter and the chocolate together.
If you use the cocoa: melt the butter and mix in the cocoa, half the sugar, and a little water.

3) Let cool, then beat in the eggs and the rest of the sugar.

4) Mix in flour, vanilla, and chopped nuts.

5) Spread the batter about an inch thick into a thick square pan. The batter is fairly stiff and will not run much.

6) Bake in a slow oven (325° F) for 45 minutes to an hour. They are done when they are dry on top, damp in the middle, and just pulling away from the edges.

7) Get too excited to wait for it to cool and eat it directly out of the pan with a fork.

The result:
Damn, that lady loved chopped nuts.
This came out to be a delicious creation halfway between brownies and fudge. I can see why she was frequently asked to bring 4 dozen of these and a chocolate cake everywhere she went during her time in Brazil.





much love,
hedgie

adulting

I had a very tough week pretending to be a well-functioning adult. To reward myself for surviving, I built a blanket fort.

 BONUS: It is puppy approved!

It will probably stay up for another week BECAUSE I EARNED IT.






much love,
hedgie

richard russo

Over the weekend, I attended the Bay Area Book Festival with Nick and our good friend Katie. We went to Nobody's Fool--Everybody's Fool: Richard Russo in conversation with Lori Ostlund.

I think that the best way I could describe this interview and represent Richard Russo himself is to leave you all with this out of context quote:

"I know what you're thinking: "How could watching a dog chew off his penis be full of joy?"--but it is!"

What a guy.





much love,
hedgie

makings of may

May was full of many wonderful things.

One of which was best friend graduating from Berkeley!:

Nick and I took a road trip, where we visited the Bigfoot Discovery Museum. It was adorned with adorable fan letters:

This man gave us a 30-minute lesson on the authenticity of the Patterson-Gimlin film while standing in front of a painting of himself:

The museum's life-size replica of Bigfoot:

Then we drove down and visited the madness that is The Mystery Spot:

Step this way if you are so...inclined:

Gargoyles and gondolas at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk:

We ate many deep-fried things:

And I kicked butt at this Down the Clown game:

There was a long walk along the Natural Bridges State Beach:

We ate French enchiladas in John Steinbeck's childhood home:

And learned a lot of interesting facts about the author at the National Steinbeck Center:

We sampled at least four different clam chowders at Fisherman's Wharf:

We watched a lady hold a fistful of dead squid and practically shove it into sharks' mouths at the Monterey Bay Aquarium:

I am prepared to pee on him if necessary:

We explored Cannery Row:

And visited Steinbeck's Spirit of Monterey Wax Museum, which is definitely not haunted and does not have figures that are falling apart:

This "family-friendly" wax museum went over the gruesome history of the area, focusing on torture, murder, and prostitutes:

We enjoyed more long walks at the beach:

And we found Kissing Rock:

Nick thoughtfully dressed to match the ocean:

We took a ride down the 17-Mile Drive and pulled over to stare at the Lone Cypress:

We also pulled over to stare at seals on Seal Rock. Rocks are apparently very popular out here:

I surprised Nick with a stop at The Cheese Shop, where we bought an alarming amount of cheese:

Then we camped out in Big Sur:

On the way back, we stopped near Bixby Bridge:

Damn, California:

We explored the tide pools at Bean Hallow Beach:

And stopped for jam samples and strawberry shortcake at Swanton Berry Farm:

We took three dogs to the beach and all three of them tried to eat horse poop:

George was happy despite me not letting him eat poop:

In short, we are tuckered out:

much love,
hedgie