Joe Moses and Gina's Wedding

Yesterday Jodi and I drove to Pasatiempo in Santa Cruz for Joe and Gina Moses's wedding. When we showed up I was handed a cool PBR and embraced in drunken hugs. I was not sure of the atire for the wedding so I wore a suit and tie. I should have known better. Most of the crew was in their best pair of Dickies/Ben Davis pants and a short sleave surf shirt. Everone with the exception of Mike Mass who brought out his always entertaining 3 piece 70's suit.

The wedding was at an amazing house, which I found out later belonged to Joes new wife. There were pranks and wise cracks through the whole cerremony. We were so far back (and thank god) the SC crew lost interest fast. There was the old pull the chair out before someone sits down trick and lot's of groping.

I could go on and on about all the details but I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. It was great seeing all the guys and it was a really fun, funny, and entertaining wedding.

Yesterday I took my team to a community service event at the Presidio in San Francisco. As part of our company policy each employee needs to give back 1% of their time to the community. I've been trying to plan 2 of these event a quarter because they make great team bonding events. Yesterday we we combed the cliffs of the old Battery bluffs. Here is what it looked like in 1890 during the Spanish American War.

Years after they turned this area into various landfills and at one point had a large incinerator on the cliff edge. After use as a landfill the Army pushed the large incinerator over the cliff where it lay until last year when the Precidio used a grant to have it removed. Why the people of San Francisco back then put landfills and cemetaries in some of the most scenic areas is beyond me. Todd, what are you talking about? Check out this podcast/website I am obsessed with lately, Sparkletack. This site is dedicated to revisiting the history of San Francisco and it will make your skin crawl at times.

Anyway, back to community service. We were supposed to be on the lookout for 4 plants on the cliffs, English Ivy, Cape Ivy, Iceplant, wild radish, and mustard. These are non native invasive species that wipe out native plants on the bluffs. Below are pictures from a great day out in the Presidio.

Pictures from Tahoe

Sunday Cooking

Every Sunday Jodi and I cook a big meal to carry us through the first part of the week. Tonight we are staying true to summer. First we have a vegetable medley seasoned in lemon juice, garlic salt, pepper, fresh herbs and olive oil. I'll grill these in the pan you see behind the bowl. If you don't have one of these pans I highly recommend one. This particular model has a handle that you can remove. This is ideal for grilling in case you want to put the cover down. Second we have skinless, boneless chicken thighs. I like thighs because they are full of flavor and they don't dry out like breasts. Tonight I'm trying a new marinade. Lemon juice and zest, garlic, ground fresh Rosemary, minced sage, olive oil, sea salt, and pepper. Lastly we have fresh strawberries from the Burlingame farmers market.

I'm hoping the chicken turns out. I typically use a marinade that I learned from an old friend, it is bullet proof. In case you want it here it is.

• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup oil
• 2-3 cloves garlic minced
• 1-2 tablespoons dried oregano
• Marinade for as little as 1 hour, max 1 day

I've found any marinade with soy sauce makes a great chicken marinade because it really penetrates the meat fast. Enjoy!

Pictures from 4th of July

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Fun with Photo Booths

The wedding we went to in Newport had a photo booth where all the guests could take pictures and get a print out right a way. Here was the little montage we put together.

This weekend is the first weekend we've been at home for 3 weeks. Time to catch up on laundry and to-dos.

Uncles and the 4th of July

Jodi and I are up at Tahoe this weekend celebrating the 4th with my best friend Mike Allegri and his sister and brother in-law Niki and Matt. Between the two families there are 4 boys under 4 which makes for lots of excitement. For simplicity I'm uncle Todd, and it's kind of funny hearing the kids call me uncle Todd. Speaking of which Kacie send out some more pictures of my niece Taylor. I like the one below.

Speaking of uncles, today would have been my uncle Bobs 63rd birthday. I love the 4th of July because it reminds me of him. Seeing all the flags and fireworks just adds to the memory. Last night we went down to Kings Beach to watch the fireworks with the kids. There were hundreds of boats on the lake and it was a great show, Tahoe is truly a beautiful place. Happy Birthday Bob, we miss you.

From Just Bob