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One of Matthew’s projects while he was with us this summer was to build me a new computer…complete with a big ole screen for editing photos. Well, this thing is awesome, and a big bright screen has just made me appreciate pictures with color.

Anyhow, that is just my excuse for posting a couple of the pics I took in the Marin Headlands the other weekend. Matt, Jeff and I went adventuring on the cliffs above the Pt. Bonita lighthouse.

Today is an amazing day in San Francisco–a perfect day made even better by the Tuesday farmers’ market at the Ferry Building. I was tempted by the smells of Prather Ranch’s open grill, and decided to try their organic, sustainable, humane hot dogs. Yes, they were quite good…and guilt-free?

I bought a few summer items for dinner this week, including some BEAUTIFUL heirloom tomatoes and a couple of summer squash.

And then I topped off the lunch hour with a smooth latte from Blue Bottle Coffee.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

[FYI, I failed to report the OPPOSITE of guilt-free dishes. It was reported to me that a join in Oakland called Spettro serves up a peanut butter, bacon, and cheddar pizza.]

We bid farewell this morning to Matthew, who returns to Michigan to un-pack, re-pack, and drive to Michigan Tech later this week to begin his freshman year. We really had a fun time with Matt in the house this summer, and it has been hard adjusting to the silence!!

But as we were driving back to our empty nest, we received a call from my Mom telling me that my brother was a proud papa. Cliff and Jody gave birth to Benjamin Michael Coe last night. I’m THRILLED for my brother, and can’t wait to meet my first nephew.

As a send off to Matt, here are a few pictures from yesterday’s road trip to Pinnacles National Monument. Pinnacles has two sides–East and West–which are not connected by roads. In February, Jeff and I visited Pinnacles East, so we decided to try Pinnacles West with Matt.

As you might expect, Pinnacles is strikingly difference between rainy winter to sun-beaten summer. We took plenty of water for our lower-90s hike. Our hike took us along the Balcony Cliffs for some sweeping vistas of the park, and then plunged down into the Balcony Caves. The caves were short, but a nice cool break from the heat. Along the hike, we ran across many piles of dried animal scat…since it hasn’t rained in these parts since April.

I had my fastest business trip today: down to and back from LAX before lunch! Other than not being able to carry my precious latte (aka, the sweet nectar of the gods) onto the plane with me, the new carry-on restrictions had no impact on me…and the lines were nice and short. I had a perfectly uneventful trip, complete with a celebrity sighting…although he had to be pointed out to me. Yes, Mr. Art Linkletter was at LAX this morning. He looked…old…but quite honestly, both my manager and I thought that he was no longer alive…so kudos to Art.

No photos from this LA trip…so here is one from our flight home from Europe. I believe this is the ice breaking up in the North Atlantic nearing Greenland. Very cool shot.

Well, I was PLANNING to work on some photos this evening, but I got distracted playing with iTunes and this whole new computer setup that Matt created for me.

So…I’ll just leave you with a ‘what the…’ moment. I believe this is probably an evil Stanford mascot, or something. From the Marin Headlands this weekend.