San Rafael Visit

On Sunday, John and I went to visit Rosemarie and Dana in San Rafael. It was a beautiful afternoon, especially after a week of rain. Soon after we arrived, we all went for a walk around their neighborhood.

Rocky came with us, and loved exploring a new place and meeting new people. We talked about how Mom loved taking Rocky for long walks, and that he would often get tired and want to nap halfway through the walk.

We walked through their neighborhood, which has many old, beautiful homes. We stopped at Dominican University, and sat on a bend facing a grassy plaza on campus.

It was a nice visit, and Mom would have loved taking a nice walk through the pretty neighborhood on such a nice day.

Tower Cafe Turns 20!

Today, the Tower Cafe celebrates its twentieth birthday. Over the years, mom and I shared many meals at this restaurant. I have many fond memories of the decorations, the tea, the old record player in the ladies' room, and of course the food. I think the last time I visited the Tower with mom was for her birthday.

When I visit the Tower Cafe, or the Tower Theatre, it brings back fond memories of growing up, and fun times with mom. Happy birthday, Tower Cafe!

Photo from Tower Cafe Gallery (http://www.towercafe.com/TowerGallery.htm)

Condolence Letter from the Governor

In today's mail, I received a letter from the Governor's office. Campaign mail? Job announcement? Response to a letter I wrote that I don't remember writing? Nope. It is a condolence letter. It reads:

"I was saddened to learn of the death of your mother, Charlotte, and I send my heartfelt condolences.

In this time of grief, I hope that you can find comfort in the company of friends and family. It is also my strongest hope that memories of your mother will sustain you and live forever in your heart.

Again, I offer my deepest sympathies. You and your family are in my thoughts and prayers.

Sincerely,
Arnold Schwarzenegger"

River Cats Home Opener

We went to the River Cats home opener against the Reno Aces last Friday, April 16. Despite being cold and windy, it was a fun night, complete with $1 hot dogs. The Cats won, 8 to 4.

Mom worked at Raley Field during River Cats games and other events for the past two summers, and really enjoyed watching the games. She would excitedly tell John about the games, and do her best to get the baseball lingo correct.

Many of her friends and co-workers at Raley Field contacted me after I published the notice of her passing in The Bee, and they were all so kind and had such nice things to say about her. The River Cats administration even sent a card, and called to express to me that it was tough to lose two members of the River Cats family in such a short amount of time (the owner, Art Savage, also died in November). I'll be supportive of the River Cats not only because mom loved them, but also because of their kindness.

Photos by Ron Nabity, Sacramento Press
http://sacramentopress.com/headline/25063/River_Cats_win_home_opener

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday, mom!
I'm thinking about you a lot, and wish you were here.
(I did not bake this cake. I copied an image from a food blog, toxobread.wordpress.com)

Peeps!

I saw an article today about Peep art, and had to post it here. I always remember eating Peeps when I was growing up. We even put them in out cocoa. Talk about sugar overload! I thought a happy memory would be nice to post. Here is the Washington Post page for the Peepshow 2010 contest, which is also the source of the above image.

Mom and baby me

Here are some pictures from when I was a baby. I love how happy mom looks.

In this one, I think Rosemarie has a toy I want:

Mom when she was young

Here are a few pictures of mom when she was young. :)

Love the glasses!

Clockwise from top left: Mom and Rosemarie, Mom in high school, Mom and her father.