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| Hot off the griddle at Stumpy's Cafe. |
I wash dashing toward the finish with the lead safely in hand (Until it wasn't). The dismal headline read: Rallying from Behind: Stumpy Thumps Grumpy. Oh, well, tomorrow is another day. Because we were out of milk, we diverged from our normal oatmeal for breakfast. Judy fixed a fabulous feast of whole wheat cakes, little weenies, and an over easy egg. Yummy! I did the dishes because he who does not cook has KP. It's a house rule. For our daily adventure, we took in a small walking tour of Corona Del Mar, a quick beach tour of the historic cabins at Crystal Cove, a HIZOO ($$) lunch at Nick's in Laguna Beach, and a grocery run at Ralph's. And then Judy rested her knee while I took a four mile jaunt into the hills behind the campground. While in Corona Del Mar, we looked at some listings posted in the local real estate office (Run by Berkshire-Hathaway incidentally). The cheapest villa listed was $2, 295,000. But I was especially fond of the waterfront place (Pool and seventy foot yacht included) for $14, 995,000. We plan to take it out of petty cash. Surprisingly, there were several small places for rent or lease $2,400/month + water + utilities. They didn't include waterfront, pools, or yachts. We also saw several young moms pushing strollers (I guess they could have been nannies). And to tell you the truth, this part of SoCal isn't really for us. The old beach cottages at Crystal Cove were pretty cool, though. Built in the thirties, they were getaways for the then rich and famous. Now they've been restored, and they're rented out just like Yurts. Laguna Beach is about eight miles or so south of Crystal Cove. It too, has a hillside speckled with glamorous homes. Highway 101 runs right through the downtown core, and the beach is excellent. We asked Trip Advisor for a good reasonably priced lunch joint. It gave us Nick's at two $$. Over three hundred patrons rated it excellent. It was. We had blackened fish tacos, a cup of spicy lentil soup, and an outrageous banana split for dessert (We couldn't finish it). We didn't even consider the main entrees (The appetizers plus the sugar overload satiated us quite nicely). Our bill came to forty dollars with tip. I would send people to Nick's, but I could make 40 quarts of spicy lentil soup for less than forty dollars. I'm not complaining; I'm vacationing. Our waiter was excellent, the ambience was superb, the food was perfectly prepared, and I was dining with a hot babe. What more could a guy ask for? (I tried to get Stumpy to consider one of the skimpy bikinis in a nearby store window, but she wouldn't even let me take a picture of it, so I guess her trying it on was out of the question). Oh well, maybe if she wins a few more cribbage games. Like I saw on one of the young mom's T-shirts: Dreaming is Free. All in all, I'd have to say once again that life is good, especially today.
The old beach cottages are quaint. Most have dark tongue and groove wood paneling inside.
Thirties humor.
These cottages are literally a stone's throw from the water.
Almost all have exquisitely kept hanging gardens that have matured with the years.
A glance from one end of the cottages to the other.
There's my cute lunch date, right there.
I have to remind myself that it's January.
Hot Rod of the day.
Art shot of the day.
The public beach at Corona Del Mar. Visitors pay for parking.
Blackened fish tacos with a cup of spicy lentil soup served with nicely flavored garlic toast.
Banana split: Fresh home made ice-cream. Home made butterscotch and fudge sauce. Caramelized bananas and almonds. Real whip cream. This ain't you local Dairy Queen, Dewie.
Our campground as seen from my hike up the canyon. Fric/Frac are just right of the bath house in the middle of the picture.
I went four miles, but someone serious could travel much further. A haven for mountain bikers.
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