It’s a ritual that Moto and I hit up the beach whenever her expatriate ass comes back to the Bay. Winter visits are no exception. (In fact, we’ve definitely driven through a dark and stormy Half Moon Bay on a weeknight.) This time, before scarfing down a loaf of freshly baked artichoke bread, we saw a flock of seals!

"Doode, this rock is beachin'!"

Then went up to Tahoe for a couple of days with my mom and her old lady friends. Never again will I do such a trip. I loved the snow and the general excuse for a change of scenery, but in all my 26 (!) years, I have never so fiercely needed ear plugs to drown out the snoring. Also, old ladies are really bad at packing light.

Billiam arrived back in the Bay on Wednesday night. (I left to get him at 6:30, but we didn’t actually get him home until 11. That was fun.) The next day was New Year’s Eve, my (and my twin’s) 26th birthday, and Billiam’s and my belated Christmas. Played some Little Big Planet (but played more Bejeweled…), lit up a fire (Every day, I am grateful for our place.), and popped in A Muppet Christmas Carol.

Minus Le Colonial losing the reservation I had made a week in advance of my own birthday dinner (Yeah, I got sensitive about that.), it was my favorite birthday, because Billiam was home!

In the off season, that Urban Outfitters tree serves as my "jewelry stand."