mexican brunches: best of both worlds.

One of the things I miss most about college are Sunday brunches. The servery opened at noon, so all of us girls would stroll down in sweaters and flip-flops through the already-bright glass staircase and sit, leisurely chatting over croissants and orange juice. We often spent hours recapping last night's events, playing therapist to each others' problems, and whining about the work we had to do that day. Sunday brunches were extra special- the servery even had grilled omelets to order, scones, and warm kolaches.

This morning, I met up with grown-up friends E and L for brunch at La Guadalupana bakery. I'd come here once before to pick up Mexican pastries with the ex-boyfriend, and had wanted to grab breakfast here ever since. I suggested the place to E & L and being the food adventurers they are, they agreed to check it out. The place is on Dunlavy past Westheimer, and it is easy to drive past its hidden strip mall-esque spot especially since this bakery faces north- look for the Laundromat instead.

desayuno. cafe. agua. on a mesa. Limits of my Spanish.

We chatted about grown-up issues and life ponderings over migas (so filling!) and coffee (cinnamon-y delicious).

spicy and savory- delicious

The place is small on the inside, but there are outdoor tables sprawled on the narrow sidewalk, perfect on 80's degree weather-days like today. I loved everything about the place- the wobbly tables, the bikers strolling past, interesting building with a gargoyle across the sidewalk- and so did many others, since this place was crowded with other Saturday brunch-ers.

Beware: more pastries inside, proceed with caution... or not.

It is the kind of leisurely weekend brunches I'd loved and missed. Umma once mentioned that she loves grabbing brunches with friends because conversations tend to be happier and upbeat- I agree. I left brunch feeling excited and ready to face the day ahead.

(I love my family- I cannot fudge anything under their scrutinizing eye...)

Geology trip through Sierra Nevada, part 2

Okay, continuing with the account of our fantastic trip!

typical scene, climbing up steep slopes, whew

Walking along rivers created by hydraulic mining (these things will change the scenery completely), we ran into this little guy on the road. Our professor picked him up and we got to pet him (and snap fotos)- look at his orange eyes.

hello, humans.

Driving across, at one point, we paused at a stoplight with a homeless man with the sign "hungrier than Donner, will take anything". A little graphic, since he was referring to the cannibalistic Donner Party.

Beautiful Lake Tahoe

We stopped at Lake Tahoe (which formed from melted glaciers), where we saw remnants of glacier rocks dragging down, forming streaks on the rock surfaces. There were interesting eggey-cross section ring shapes as well, which we identified as hornblende rings which reacted with the hot magma flowing past these rocks.

We spent our night in Mammoth Lakes (delicious dinner at Base Camp Cafe) & continued onward West to Mono Lake and Yerington Mines.

Mono lake with tufa columns (and baby shrimps in the salty water)

Mono Lake (whose name comes from the fly larvae Native Americans used as a major food source) had tufa columns around the edges, which are solid limestones formed from emerging spring water full of carbonates. Star Wars, anyone?

We stopped at Yerington to look at Jurassic granodierites and quartz monzonites.

The ride getting here was ridiculous. This stop was almost left out of the itinerary because we needed to drive through hilly, bumpy unpaved roads. R and I sat in the back of this bumpy ride, laughing and giggling at how tumultuous this was. We left behind a huge dusty trail- Kasey would have never survived this dangerous (a.k.a. exciting) ride.

deep blue copper azurite crystals- looks like a watercolor paintng

And then, final destination, Reno, Nevada. We hit up the buffet (empty on a Monday night) and walked past the slot machines & flashy lights. Back at the hotel, we watched Death Race & chatted about the trip, school, life. Next day, we flew back to Houston via Denver.

Bruce: "who pays for these electricity bills?"

I had a wonderful time on this trip- it was definitely an eye-opener for me. I was amazed at the amount of amazement geologists felt at looking at "rocks", which are not just rocks for them anymore- they tell a story, a snapshot of the time and place they were created. I can't count how many times someone exclaimed "look at these rocks!" or "these are some beautiful outcrops!" while I tried to figure out why they were so significant.

I think I'll pay more attention to rocks in my landscape when I'm traveling around and also try to identify how & why interesting structures could have been created. To be a great geologist, you need to not only know your stuffz, but also must pay attention to details and be patient. Oh, and being in great shape & an awesome rock climber, in addition to driving over dirt hills and navigating unmarked roads with ease, wouldn't hurt either.

Oh, and passing through airport security took a bit longer than usual because we all had rock samples we were flying back to Houston. The TSA officer had to ask on repeated occasions staring at the X-ray: "are those... rocks?"

Geology trip through Sierra Nevada.

Our field trip began Friday evening when we met up by the loading dock and flew into San Francisco. We landed around 11PM Houston time, so we checked in and slept until the next morning. We stayed at a place which was divided by railroad tracks cutting through the motel. We dutifully woke up early to meet at 7AM for a little bite & first day on the road.

railroad tracks cut through the hotel- California sunrise

In our two sorta-matching SUV's we drove through San Francisco downtown. Hilly, sightings of people walking around on a Saturday morning, lots of Chinese restaurants, trams going to and from, and fog covering the buildings in the distance making reality seem surreal.

driving by the San Francisco city hall

And of course, we crossed the Golden Gate Bridge. There were people jogging along the sidewalk, and I was immensely jealous, like "I jog on the GGB every morning, yep".

crossing the Golden Gate Bridge

Our first stop on the hill along the side of the road at the Marine Headlands Chert. The professors unfolded a geological map of California to point out where we were, and what we should expect to observe here. Then we crossed the roads whose curves were obscured by the giant hill we were supposed to look at. First of many dangerous j-walking on this field trip.

unfolding of the geo-map by the road

It became foggier and foggier as the sun came up, until the GGB was almost completely hidden and the rest soaring above the foamy fog.

alternating silicate and softer carbonates

Golden Gate Bridge in rising above the fog

We went up the Ring Mountain to look at Eclogites with had garnet and omphacite, where we also made an unexpected discovery (science is everywhere!).

Next stop, we went to the Point Reyes Lighthouse where we saw sandstone cliffs and pillow basalts.

lighthouse on the beach- windy!

Point Reyes lighthouse- vertebrae of white shark (temp 50-60!)

We spent our second night in Sacramento, continuing across California on our way to Reno:

We looked at serpentinites, amphiboles, then climbed up this dangerous slope- three of us that took a different path almost fell off- at one point I was standing on a slipping rock, three feet down from the road yelling out "help!" at a stranger walking his dog until M came and pulled us back up.

"chemistry as a religion" (before SN...)

One of my absolute favorite passages from Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn:

Francie came away from her first chemistry lecture in a glow. In one hour she found out that everything was made up of atoms which were in continual motion. She grasped the idea that nothing was ever lost or destroyed. Even if something was burned up or rot away, it did not disappear from the face of the earth; it changed into something else - gases, liquids, and powders. Everything, decided Francie after that first lecture, was vibrant with life and there was no death in chemistry. She was puzzled as to why learned people didn't adopt chemistry as a religion.

I had the most delicious lunch of spinach, corn, and squash I picked up from the farmer's market. Thrown in the oven for a few minutes and sprinkled with salt, so simple and just perfect. Speaking of perfect days, I made it to yoga this morning & Zumba straight after work. &&& (those up in NE will be jealous) wore a T-shirt and shorts the entire day today (high 70's in Houston- I can't make up my mind about Houston weathers...).

trekking across California

Flying out to San Francisco tomorrow afternoon. It seems like most schools have breaks this week, so enjoy your breaks, lovelies! I'll bring back muchas fotos and stories (spending our last night in Reno!).

Packed and ready to go!

repetitive motions.

Snow cones- when's the last time you had one?

This weekend was the busiest I'd been in a while. I spent my entire Saturday babysitting (8AM: woke up to literally run out the door) and helping out at a local event. The weather this weekend was absolutely beautiful (high 60's!), but spending hours trying to catch up to young ones really wore me out.

because everyone wants to be velcro-ed to a wall

Sunday morning, I woke up at six to make my way over to Sugar Land for my first novice row at 7:30AM (rowers are early risers). I was put in a quad with one other beginner where I caught three crabs and was almost knocked off the boat (I have the bruises to show for it!). But I had such a great time. At the end, we "full power"-ed it 1500m back to the boathouse.

The beautiful boathouse

I must note that the repetitive rowing motions- leg, back, arm, release and repeat- almost made me... nervous. The rhythmic motion of sliding back and forth, and the coordinated sounds of oars splashing into the water, the click of the oar squaring against the edge... I had to distract myself from the robot-like motions and not think too much about them, because the moment I began noticing everything I had to do, I became overwhelmed by the movements and fumbled. 

A conversation I had with my cactus-loving friend Lobo made me think about the repetitive daily events I go through. I had been feeling a little uneasy about my everyday life, because it is so regular and predictable; it is so okay. Not ohhhh-I-got-an-A-on-that-essay or holy-shmoles-I-have-five-exams-next-week extremes, but a stable ongoing rhythm of work and everyday happenings, a simple contentment. I must admit it sometimes makes me uncomfortable to feel this way, after a whole lifetime of squeezing in extra commitments and strong emotions associated with little successes or failures. Another question Lobo talked about has me thinking: what is happiness? And the biggest question that follows: what am I doing to achieve that happiness right now?

A regular life may be something I am simply not used to, but the more important question must be: am I happy? (or becoming happy?)  I have lots to think about as I drift off to sleep clutching my aching back from carrying 50-pound-kiddos.