Birthday Weekend Getaway

Hello and how do you do?

So, it has finally happened.  I have hit the big

It's not as all bad as television makes it seem.  I still feel young at heart.  ^_^  On the actual day, my brother took me to a stellar place in Little Tokyo where he treated me to some top notch sushi.  TOP. NOTCH.  It was really good.  Thanks, Brother!  ^_^

Then, on the weekend, Mr. P took me on a mini-getaway up the coast to Santa Barbara.  We went walking on the beach, squiggling our toes through the sand, and enjoying the sights of the Pacific Ocean.  I particularly enjoyed thinking that Taiwan was only on the other side of the Pacific.  Then I got to thinking about the March earthquake and tsunami in Japan and I prayed for their survivors and those who were lost.  We saw some kids on their skate boards and bikes doing tricks on a course.  We wondered if any of them would ever make it to the X-Games and thought that it'd be cool if they did.

Carpinteria, CA

Mr. P treated me to my very own whole lobster at a restaurant on the wharf called Moby Dick.  The lobster was simply DIVINE!!!  My favorite part was the claw!  Mr. P ordered a chili burger but was so disappointed when they brought it out.  The restaurant had basically disassembled the burger and oozed chili over the entire thing!  You couldn't eat it like a burger, you'd have to use a knife and fork... and maybe a spoon as well.  *snaps finger*  I should have taken a picture of all this!  Why didn't I?!

After our Santa Barbara tour and meanderings, we went to Carpinteria where we stayed the night.  We saw a local concert in an old movie theater.  It was $5.00 to get in to see 3 high school rock bands performing.  We finally realized that they mostly played covers of hit songs, but one band in particular (Jaded Cloud or Faded Cloud) had ORIGINAL SONGS!  That really excited Mr. P's inner musician.  I was quite impressed that these high school kids had the nerve to form their own bands and perform their own music live!

We also bought some frozen yogurt and ate it on the beach.  The oil rigs off the coast look like alien space ships when they're all lit up at night.  The best thing about getting away from Los Angeles is that there is less smog and pollution in the air, so we actually saw A LOT OF STARS.  Actually, we saw the

MILKY WAY GALAXY!!!

This picture from usbible.com

What we actually saw was much more muted than this picture, but nevertheless we saw it!  Again, I wish I had been able to take some pictures, but I didn't think to whip out my camera or my cell phone or anything like that.  But this was the best birthday present - to be able to see something so spectacular with Mr. P.  ^_^  It is tied with the time we saw a lunar eclipse together at around this same time back in 2007. 

The next morning, we checked out and started our search for breakfast.  Mr. P and I have this thing for good American breakfasts.  We were going to go to the Worker Bee Cafe but we walked past a place called Cajun Kitchen.  You can't get any more American than Cajun food, so we went in and sat down to some good coffee and a hearty breakfast.  I had my phone on hand so I snapped a couple of pictures.  Let this whet your appetite!

Cajun Eggs with Home Fries

Really moist corn cake and whipped butter *nyum nyum nyum*

Crazie Suzie with hash brown

Salsa and Apple Butter

Buttered wheat toast

 So, after another brisk walk on the beach and admiring Nature's Grandeur, we decided that we should get back to our kids (cats & hamster).  I love the California coast and these next pictures don't do it justice.  However, I just have to share.  ^_-

PCH/101

PCH/101

PCH/101

I have some pictures coming up of some presents my Kindred Spirit sent me from San Francisco.  I haven't taken the pictures yet, but I'll edit them into this post later.

All in all, I had a spectacular birthday.  I'm most thankful and touched that the people who are most important to me wished me a happy birthday.  ^_^  I'm going to end this post with a picture of Mr. P and me.

 Thanks for reading!