My Thoughts and Prayers for the Hokie Nation

Richard and Bertha, originally uploaded by brrtha.

It's so completely surreal. Every single time ... that I hear 'Virginia Tech' mentioned on the TV/Radio ... it just doesn't make sense.

Here I am ... across the country in California ... not even an alumnus of VA Tech ... yet ... I still can't shake this feeling of shock and despair. I can't even come close to imagining the feelings and emotions of those affected in Virginia.

I am grateful that my brother, Richard, graduated two years ago from VA Tech ... and that his life was spared from this massacre. I shudder to think ... that two of his friends ... still at school ... could have been victims. Richard's friend, Tom ... was late to class ... just across the hall from one of the classrooms that had been terrorized by the gunman. THANK GOD for tardiness!!! Richard's other friend, David ... slept in that morning ... so ... THANK GOD for his lazy ass!!!

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the Resident Adviser, who gave his life at the dorm. This "Marching Virginian" was a friend of both Richard and Dave. I have no doubt ... that it will take years for them to find healing with such a senseless death of their friend.

Virginia Tech ... is a very special place. The university community ... is incredibly tight knit ... and the students wear their Hokie colors with pride. The university receives tremendous support ... not only from the students ... but .. especially from the people of Blacksburg ... the parents of students ... and the alumni.

Maybe it's part 'southern hospitality' ... but ... the Hokie Nation has always been a warm ... welcoming ... vibrant community. Since Dec 2001, I have attended all the Hokie Bowl games with my family. Each time, I was surprised ... and impressed ... by the camaraderie ... the school spirit ... and the friendship ... that each member of the Hokie Nation exuded to all wearing maroon and orange.

It will be this spirit of the Hokie Nation ... that will carry our own nation through this tragedy.

I have no doubt ... that we are all welcome as Hokies today ... and forever ... as we grieve the loss of so many fruitful lives ... and look forward to the future with hope for a better world.

Love and Peace,

Bertha

Big BRRTHA

BIG BRRTHA, originally uploaded by brrtha.

OH YES!!! The weather in Santa Cruz has been so killer for the past week ... that I was finally able to bring BRRTHA out to play! Chris, myself, and Lucky spent a majority of our weekend cruising up and down the coast. It's amazing how easy it is to blow through 20 gallons of gas ... in a single weekend.

I can't wait to do it again this weekend ... I hear that it's going to be in the 70's again ... wooo hooo!

See you on the coast!

- Bertha

Could you imagine her face if she was next to the real thing ..

Chris, Itzhak, and Bertha, originally uploaded by brrtha.

I feel horrible that I nearly went an entire month, without writing about Itzhak Perlman!!!

We had purchased tickets to see Itzhak Perlman in San Jose ... almost an entire year prior to the show. It was a special occasion ... that we warranted in our budget ... as a late Christmas present/early birthday present for Chris. As a child, Chris had opened with the Suzuki Children for Mr. Perlman at the Oakland Paramount. So ... I knew that this would be a very special night.

For more than two years, Chris and I have been members of the Montalvo Arts Center in Saratoga, CA. Our membership is quite dear to us, as we wholeheartedly support Montalvo's mission of bringing the arts to more than 15,000 school children. An added bonus of suporting the Montalvo Arts Center ... we also have the opportunity to see great artists such as Itzhak Perlman. In the past two years, we have enjoyed seeing a variety of artists ... inclucing Bo Diddley ... Seal ... Joshua Bell ... Caitln Tully ... and the Indigo Girls.

To see and hear Itzhak Perlman ... was truly to be in the presence of greatness. From the moment he entered the stage ... I was simply overwhelmed. I couldn't stop the tears from flowing. I wish there were words to clearlly describe the awesome yet simple power that Itzhak was able to manifest in San Jose's California Theatre that night.

It was a perfect night. My gratitude goes out to Itzhak ... of course ... but ... I am also beholden to all the volunteers and staff at Montalvo ... to the magnificence and glory of the San Jose California Theatre ... and especially to the kind couple who sat in front of us at the show ... as they were kind enough to give us their 'dessert/reception' tickets for after the show.

Chris and I took FULL advantage of those reception tickets ... as we tasted all the desserts ... and drank more wine!!! Fortunately ... there was also coffee to assist me with making the drive back over the hill to Santa Cruz. Another key part of this reception ... was that Chris and I made two new friends ... a mother/daughter pair ... Shelby and Wendy.

We enjoyed their company as we talked about the show ... and laughed about lots of other fun stuff. We look forward to having them over for brunch ... SOON!

- Bertha

http://www.brrtha.com

Happy Birthday to Chris

Girls at the Beach, originally uploaded by brrtha.

This weekend was one heck of a celebration for Chris' 43rd birthday! I had such a great time ... it felt like it was my birthday!

Bettina still has pictures on her camera that we need to upload ... but ... in the meantime ... you can check out all my pictures on my .mac photo album ... or my flickr album.

The celebration was kicked off on Thursday night ... when Chris picked up her best friend, Bettina at the airport. Bettina was kind enough to leave the sunny weather in Seattle ... to commiserate with us in the rain in California. After weeks and weeks of beautiful ... dry ... sunny ... weather ... Mother Nature decided to let it pour for our friend from Seattle. Fortunately ... we did have some breaks in the rain on Sunday .. which allowed us to be extra obnoxious in the sun ... as we cruised the coast in the Caddie.

As is typical ... Bettina came ... bearing all sorts of gifts for Chris, myself, and Lucky!!! The favorite gift of all ... had to be the entire Season 1 - DVD Set - for the "Girls Next Door"!!! Now, Chris and get her "Kendra" fix any day ... anytime.

The next day, Friday ... I headed to work ... while Lucky, Bettina, and Chris headed to slothville. They napped the entire day!!!! Which I guess ... was a good thing ... because it allowed them to have all the energy they could muster ... to deal with my hyper ass when I returned home from work.

Saturday we did what we could ... to take advantage of the breaks in the rain ... yet we had to pace ourselves so that we wouldn't be RUINED before dinner at Shadowbrook that night. Chris made us a fantastic breakfast ... and picked up coffee at Coffeetopia ... while I went for a champagne/wine/vodka run at Albertson's. After breakfast and booze ... we headed out ... to make the most of the day. The weather couldn't stop us ... as we took pictures and strolled through the "Casino" at the Boardwalk. Afterwards, we enjoyed lunch and drinks at Cafe Palomar by the Harbor ... and then ... it was time to go home ... so that Bettina and Chris could enjoy a final nap before dinner at the Shadowbrook.

For those of you who haven't been to the Shadowbrook in a while ... lemme tell you ... this place is better than ever!!!! Props to our server, Phillippe, and the rest of the staff at Shadowbrook. The service ... the food ... the wine ... the ambience ... were absolutely superb!!! Moreover, the restaurant was absolutely packed ... so ... the fact that they were able to give us such a special night ... while so completely slammed ... was quite impressive.

Needless to say ... we didn't make it to church the next morning. Even still ... we felt quite blessed ... as the SUN finally came out!!!! We didn't waste much time ... piling in the Caddie ... so that we could soak up the rays ... as we cruised up and down Santa Cruz ... from Capitola Village to Natural Bridges. One of the most magical times ... we when we frollicked with the Monarch butterflies at Lighthouse Field.

Monday was a SAD day ... as it was time for Bettina to head back to Seattle. We will miss her ... but ... we can't wait for her next visit ... or better yet ... Chris and I can't WAIT to head up to Seattle!!! ROAD TRIP!!!!!

- Bertha

This will be the last beach picture on this blog ..

Good grab!, originally uploaded by brrtha.

From now on ... i'm going to save all my 'pleasure point' ... beach ... ocean ... 'santa cruz' pics ... for my new blog ... http://blog.coastal-local.com.

I posted this particular picture on both blogs ... and starting tomorrow ... all my 'beach' pictures ... will be posted to the Coastal Local blog.

I figure that since Coastal Local celebrates life on the beach ... then ... I might as well utilize my 'santa cruz' pics for that blog.

So ... what's going to happen to blog.brrtha.com???? Good question. This blog certainly isn't going anywhere ... but ... I definitely want to work on a new direction. Perhaps I'll focus on all the other joys/quests in my life ... music ... family ... running ... work ... etc ...

Stay tuned.

Bertha

Winter is BACK!

So this morning, I decided to cruise in flip flops and a jacket ... because the weather has been so mild this week. Let me tell you ... I was wrong!!! It's freaking cold today!

In my house ... the temp was 46 degrees when I got back from the beach ... so ... who even know how cold the blessed water was in the ocean! Even still ... it doesn't seem that this guy seemed to mind as he caught this sweet wave at It's Beach.

On the other side of the Lighthouse, Volcom was sponsoring a surf competition. Despite the cold weather, there was a pretty good crowd ... the waves were pushing pretty strong ... and of course ... the tent were blasting some sweet tunes.

Definitely a great morning. Now I gotta get ready for work.

- Bertha

p.s. If you want to see more pictures from my morning .... just click on the pic ... and you'll be taken to my flickr site.

Happy Groundhog Day

The view from Lighthouse Field, originally uploaded by brrtha.

It sure has heck doesn't feel like February ... but hey ... I'm not complaining. The weather today ... and lately has been so mild ... it's difficult to realize that it's WINTER!!!

I feel so blessed ... because I turned on the tv this morning ... and saw the stories about all the beautiful homes that were destroyed in Florida overnight. Crazy!!! Thank goodness we don't have 'earthquake season' in California!

Have a great Friday!

- Bertha

One of Lucky's Greatest Gifts

Morning World, originally uploaded by brrtha.

Another beautiful morning ... hanging out with Lucky and Chris at 27th Ave. It's been so warm lately ... that today ... we decided to take the trail past Moran Lake ... to the beach at 27th Ave.

If it wasn't for Lucky ... I would never take the opportunities to witness such beauty on a daily basis. I love my dog.

- Bertha

Pleasure Cruise

Pleasure Cruise, originally uploaded by brrtha.

Oh my goodness ... what a beautiful day it is today!!! I love how the rain just seems to clear everything bad out of the air. Pleasure Point ... is literally off the hook today ... at "The Hook" ... there's an NSSA surf competition ... up and down East Cliff, people are everywhere ... cruising ... walking ... drinking ... surfing ... it's incredible!

I hope everyone has a great day today!

Bertha

http://www.brrtha.com

A Stick Does the Trick

A Stick Does the Trick, originally uploaded by brrtha.

Another excellent morning for Lucky and his mommas. We took a chance that 27th Ave might be open ... but ... it was pretty closed out. Even still Lucky had a great time playing with his stick.

A storm definitely seems to be coming in ... as the waves were surging in ... and surfers were jumping in the water to take advantage of the swells.

We drove past Pleasure Point ... and it saw plenty of peeps enjoying the surf. The waves weren't necessarily high this morning ... but ... the tide was in far enough ... that the surfers didn't have to paddle too far out to get a fun ride on a fast moving swell.

January has been such a mellow month as far as weather is concerned ... it's nice to chll out in the sun ... but ... it would be even NICER if a big ass storm would come in ... and bring in a big ASS swell ... hopefully big enough to warrant a call to start the Maverick's Surf Competition.

- Bertha

http://www.brrtha.com

A Great Way to Start the Morning

A great way to start the morning, originally uploaded by brrtha.

Thank GOD for our mornings! Every day ... it truly is a blessing to go to the beach and play with Lucky.

Peace,

Bertha

http://www.brrtha.com

2007 - So Far ... So Great

Thanksgiving at Pleasure Point, originally uploaded by brrtha.

Here's a pic of me ... Chris ... and Lucky ... in Pleasure Point. We love our new neighborhood so much!!!

Even though the weather has been BUT ASS cold lately ... the skies have been crisp and clear. Every morning has been simply beautiful. Today was particularly cold ... as there were sheets of ice on Moran Lake. I'm kicking myself for not taking a picture ... but oh well ... I'll try to remember my camera next time it freezes in Santa Cruz.

After several stressful months ... it seems that we finally have time to enjoy ourselves ... and our new 'hood. Whew! Thank goodness!

- Bertha
http://www.brrtha.com

Honey Bear and Lucky Get Their Chew On ...

Honey Bear and Lucky get their "chew on", originally uploaded by brrtha.

Nothing major to comment ... just wanted to share this pic of Lucky and his neighbor, Honey Bear ... enjoying their 'bully sticks' yesterday.

If you have a Costco membership ... I highly recommend purchasing your dog treats there!!

- Bertha