Month: June 2017

Bogle Vineyard

You don’t need to go to Sonoma County to find a vineyard in California. Right outside Sacramento across the Sacramento River and surrounded by the Elk Slough is the beautiful Bogle Vineyard. Here you can sample one of their many wines, then take a glass or a bottle and sit at one of the tables in the vineyard under the enormous shade trees.
They have a cooler with a small selection of cheeses and crackers for sale if you want to take your picnic to the next level. There is no charge for the tastings. This is rare in a business where I have known wineries who charge up to $50.00 per tasting. Mark was an excellent resource for information about the area, and fun to talk to.
The road to the vineyard is bit precarious so drink responsibly, because even though you want to see the river you don’t want to end up in it.
This is a beautiful place to come and relax, write, and take in the gorgeous California weather, Don enjoyed a restful nap after a long day of fighting California traffic, and I enjoyed a day of sunshine and perfect weather.
And yes the wines are well worth the drive.

The Russian River Rodeo and a New Pink Hat

Because we took the road less travelled and took a right turn to avoid traffic and a stop sign, we found the town of Duncan Mills,California.
Set near the Russian River and nestled in the hills surrounded by majestic trees, we suddenly came upon this lovely little spot that on one side of the road had dozens of shops, vintage stores, arts and crafts and restaurants, and on the other side had the Russian River Rodeo.
We stopped in just in time for the bull riding event and enjoyed watching and talking with the locals about their rodeo and the area.
After the rodeo, we walked around the booths and stores in the area. I was amazed at this little area set in a valley and how its artistic community seemed to thrive in spite of its secluded location.
As we explored the fair grounds we met Lou Lou a traveling shop owner who sells homemade jewelry and other items at the rodeos. I was able to purchase from her a beautiful pair of angel earrings and a new pink hat.
After walking around the fair grounds of the rodeo, we walked into the little village where we saw the work of several local artists, vintage stores, a tea shop, and lots of restaurants and wine tasting spots. We had a delicious meatloaf sandwich at Cape Fear restaurant, checked out the Duncan Mills Museum that was in an old railroad car and took a selfie with a family of wood carved raccoons.
Robert Frost told us by taking the Road less travelled it made all the difference, and though finding the town of Duncan Mills did not change our lives in a permanent way, it did allow us a fun day and an adventure we did not expect, yet enjoyed immensely.

If your looking for unique one of a kind jewelry check out Lou Lou at sweetgingersnap@msn.com or lovemyloulou.com

Della Fattoria Downtown Petaluma California
141 Petaluma Blvd N, Petaluma, CA 94952-2904

Della Fattoria is a cute little restaurant located in downtown Petaluma. With glass counters filled with delicious home baked breads and mouth watering pastries, this place reminded me of a fun Mother Earth type hang out.
There is limited seating that includes 2 tops and large tables that are usually shared by customers. There are also a few outside tables so you can enjoy the beautiful Northern California weather.
They stay pretty busy on the weekends, but people move in out quickly. If it is crowded know they wait will be worth it. I had the delicious eggs Benedict. The bread they use is delicious and their sauces are creamy and flavorful without being overly rich.
They have a breakfast and lunch menu, lots of sandwiches and salads.
Breakfast is served until 11 and they close at 3:00 so go early and be hungry. They also sell bread and pastry to go.
There is some parking in front, there is also a free parking garage 2 blocks away.
Petaluma is a cute little town complete with clock tower and vintage shops. Plan a little extra time after lunch to walk off your calories and shop at the many unique places in the area.

The mood of a flight is always set by the flight attendant, they are like the nurses of a flight, even though the Pilot/doctor gets all the credit and glory, its the flight attendant/nurse who is out with the people making or breaking the experience.

A cranky tired attendant can put the entire plane in a terrible mood.

But a friendly efficient flight attendant can perk up the entire flight and put even the most tense flyers at ease, making a long day of travel day easier and brighter.
Today I boarded my Delta Airline flight in San Antonio and won the flight attendant lottery when Annabel greeted us all with her bright and sunshiny smile and upbeat attitude. The long flight from San Antonio to Los Angeles took on a positive feel from the time we took off until landing. She made the perfect cup of coffee, found me a blanket and could have been the poster attendant for flying the friendly skies.
As I left the plane I thanked her for making my flight such a positive experience, walking away I wished she could be on board every time I flew. So imagine my surprise when boarding my connection for Sacramento and was greeted again by Annabel!
Thank you Delta for hiring someone like Annabel, she is a true gem in the sky, and thank you Annabel for making my long and very early flight experience a positive one!

I have episodes of invisibility. They are few and far between but when they happen it is very frustrating. It never happens at good times like when I’m speeding and there is a state trooper on the side of the road, nor when I say stupid things at the wrong time and wish I could just disappear.
It happens at inconvenient times.   Normally when I am standing in line or I ask people to do chores.
It happened today while Don and I were boarding a flight, I was right next to him and suddenly a woman was in front of me and letting 4 other people in front of her. When Don looked back at me and asked what happened the woman just looked a away as though she had no idea that there was an invisible person behind her who she had just left in her dust.
The other day it happened while Don and I were at dinner, (I guess sometimes it rubs off on the people I am with) Don and I sat there for a long time while the waitress waited on all the other tables around us, one minute (more like for 20 minutes) we were invisible then boom we just appeared when the manager walked up and asked up if anyone had helped us yet.
Maybe some people can see us while others cannot….weird, right?
Being invisible can really suck, especially when you ask someone to finish a chore and 2 days later they reply, “what … when did you ask me to do that.” It must have been one of those cursed invisible spells. People’s phones seem to put them into a daze also and they can see nothing but the phone screen…..but that’s a whole different form of magic.
I wish that I could control this power, I would love to be invisible at more opportune times, like when our bill at the restaurant arrives, or when the lock on the bathroom doesn’t work.
Maybe someday I will learn to control this cursed magic, but in the meantime, that lady who cut me off in line at the airport earlier is sitting directly behind me on the plane…karma perhaps? Who knows, I hope my invisible seat does not bother her when I lean it completely back during our flight.