Merry Christmas!

Another festive Christmas was enjoyed here on Mars.

As usual, we began our Christmas decorating by hanging Momma Arave's festive glittery bough:

And Mama O'Brien's stockings:

More holiday doo dads:

AJ's special purple lights:

And our traditional set of winter-themed paper cut outs on the dining room table:

On Christmas Day, our friend Brian came over, bringing his famous homemade cranberry-chocolate rugelach for breakfast:

We went out for a movie, and then returned to Mars for lunch, and started cooking dinner.

Delicious cheese, crackers, pickles, and nuts to tide us over:

For dinner this year, AJ made a crab curry, accompanied by slices of the world famous king of all breads, the Tartine country loaf:

The finished crab, potato, okra, coconut milk curry, complete with crab meat piled on top:

For dessert, AJ once again made a salted honey pie, with homemade crust:

Thank you for all that effort, AJ, and thank you, Brian, for your usual sharp wit, good company, and delicious rugelach!

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and a very Happy New Year to everyone! Looking forward to seeing what 2017 has in store!

Five Years On Mars!

This week marks five years since we moved into our Martian palace!

Reflecting on the five years of posts here, we're feeling proud and grateful -- proud to have worked hard to make this place our own, and grateful to have had the loving support of our family and friends throughout. Particularly after a terrible rain storm last week, and with nights dropping into the 30s (a rarity here), we are so thankful to have a warm, dry, safe place to call home. Thank you!

We are grateful, just as Pickles is grateful to have happened upon this pile of blankets to rest her head and paws on, in high Princess & The Pea style:

Happy dog, and happy people.

Thanksgiving 2016

This year, instead of having Thanksgiving on Mars, we took on the horrible, arduous task of staying at Jon's gorgeous new getaway home to help him make sure it's ready for guests.

It certainly is.

Here are some photos of this little slice of heaven:

Sorry, we had already ruined the lovely pillow arrangement by the time I took the photo

The above is Pickles going to the giant deck doors to admire this view:

At sunset:

Almost as soon as we got there, Chef AJ got to cookin' her famous apple pie:

Pickles dutifully helped keep the floor clean of any food debris:

Then it was on to crab, greens, and mashed potatoes.

Here is the end result of all her hard work:

It was a wonderful meal, and a relaxing few days in Jon's perfect little cottage. We are thankful for Jon's generosity, thankful that crab season opened this year after not being able to open in 2015, and most of all, thankful for the love of all our friends and family.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Surprise! Wall! Fence!

This week the cinder block wall dividing our property from our neighbors' was replaced!

We had been hoping to do it this week for a while, but weather and uncertainty about Mr. Bunkport's schedule had us crossing our fingers. The finger-crossing apparently worked because it happened (this is how science works, right?)!

Here are some photos of the wall. It's unreinforced masonry, which in earthquake country means "uh-oh."

(If you're wondering, the boards and tile shards to the left in the photo are just an attempt to keep the dog from getting muddy in the rain we had recently.)

There was a good jolt in October of 2011 -- just before we moved in -- that put a crack right in the center of it. It was barely visible when we moved in in December. Over just five years, it has opened up this much:

Here are some photos of the brick retaining wall at the base of the cinder blocks. It's a little tough to show just how screwed up this thing was. Try to look for the very wrong angles and the empty spots where bricks have popped out. Basically, the retaining wall failed some time ago and there appeared to be nothing but a mighty little snowball bush holding it in place.

 

Mighty snowball bush on the left.

This little arrangement of bricks supporting the end of the wall was here when we moved in:

So, increasingly a hazard for people and dogs named Pickles, and also a haven for our friends, the mice. You could watch them scamper around in there all day long. It was one of Pickles' favorite spots in the yard for sniffing and barking.

Needless to say, as the Mars Safety Marshal, I have been dying to get this thing replaced. And as the Mars Landscape Architect, I have been dying to get this thing replaced -- it's holding up things I want to do on that side of the yard. Anything I did or planted would get destroyed by the construction, and also, it just seemed like a really bad idea to dig around and loosen up the dirt right there.... 

We've been talking about doing this project all year with the neighbors and with Mr. Bunkport, and finally calendars aligned.

Demo on November 1:

Pickles perched herself on a tiny pillow to register her protest at the eviction of the mice.

The fact that it was completely unreinforced worked in our favor for the demo -- it all got done in one day, and cost half as much as it would have if it had had rebar in there:

The height differential between the yards is about three feet. Steep hill.

Pickles mourning the fun hunting times that would no longer be had in this spot.

November 2, a guy with a shovel dug 30"-deep post holes all day long in the hard, dense clay soil:

Poor bastard.

November 3, posts and the retaining wall went in:

November 4 -- finished!

The neighbors, inspired by fences they have seen in wine country, had the idea to use corrugated steel in between the posts instead of planks. It looks very cool, and the shiny finish will give the lemon tree that I'm going to plant over there a little extra oomph.

It's about two feet taller than the wall, as well, which gives us all a bit more privacy.

In the back corner, you can see how far out the wall had moved by the dark patch on the back fence:

We have all kinds of plans for this side of the yard. Plants, a brick path, a tiny patio for the tiny grill, and a swing back there by the panda. Stay tuned for big stuff over the coming months.

But first, we need to celebrate our anniversary this weekend. Eleven glorious years!

Todos Santos 2016

This week we have been celebrating Todos Santos, a time to remember and honor our loved ones who have passed away.

As always, we put together an altar of photos and momentos:

This year, AJ also made her famous pan de muerto, a sweet bread made with oranges:

Pickles got to enjoy some too this year, when she stole the slice off the altar when we weren't looking.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from Pickles Stumpf, former CEO of Wells Picklesgo bank!

Kitchen & garage: getting back to normal

The hard work in the kitchen is officially done!

While I was out of town, Mr. Bunkport came to wrap up some odds and ends, including fitting this nice collar to the top of the vent hood:

The past week has been all about dealing with the mountain of debris in the garage. Believe it or not, getting rid of the stove and 50-pound cast iron sink were the easiest part. The trash collection company gives us two free "bulky item" pickups per year, so all we had to do was schedule the pickup and drag the things out to the curb.

I spent a day breaking down the rest of the stuff and moving it all to where the stove had been so that we can load it in a pickup truck and bring it down to the city dump.

I spent another day setting up this bank of cabinets for the workshop area:

That vise on the left side of the counter was left in the house by the previous owner. It's at least sixty years old.

I also decided to reuse the rest of the upper cabinets:

Better to put things away where they won't get dusty, I say.

So now the garage is tidy again, and the workshop area is ready for me to start using, as we figure out what the size and shape of the remaining kitchen furniture should be. I think I'll be modifying one of the old lower cabinets this week, to fit in next to the sink.

Both rooms are once again really nice to use. The kitchen is warm and mouse-free, and the stove is a pleasure to cook on. The garage is clean and easier to work in. And the total cost came in at 30% under budget. Definitely a successful project!