List 59

Love: Old-school roadside fireworks, from harmless snakes and smoke bombs to the more dodgy roman candles - all the things we'd light up and blast off growing up before there was such a concern as "child safety."

Like: X's classic "4th of July."

Discovery: The Napa County Fair, which takes place July 1st-4th in Calistoga. It's a cocktail of old-fashioned sweetness mixed with white trashiness, complete with rides, games, giant livestock, and all sorts of food served on sticks.

Obsession: Scopa, in Healdsburg. We've never been, but our good friends have been raving about it for ages and swear it will knock our socks off. We're finally trying it Sunday night, and looking forward to sampling their chanterelle mushroom arancini and grilled romaine salad.

Complaint: Summer fog, which I can almost guarantee will obscure the Berkeley Hill's view of the many fireworks displays over the Bay Monday night.

List 58

Love: The Utilitarian Franchise's surreal silk-screened canvas pillows, which I found when poking around Etsy.

Like: The rustic + industrial feel of CB2's Victory Pendant, which is now hanging in the backyard studio.

Discovery: Ohmega Salvage. Discovery is pretty much the name of the game here. I always like looking at the sea of pastel-colored tubs, toilets and sinks, and all the old leaded-glass windows. It was a good place to find old doors and hardware for out back.

Obsession: Martha Stewart's paint colors at Home Depot. So many great colors, so little square footage.

Complaint: That my friend TG scored these vintage chairs at Urban Home Consignment Furniture before I did. They are in his office at work and I'm jealous.

List 57

Love: The original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. I love its combination of magic and madness, and Gene Wilder's performance is perfect. Friday night I plan to introduce the movie to Stella. I hope she listens to the Oompa Loompas' views on what constitutes good and bad child behavior. And that the trippy boat scene doesn't prompt a week of bad dreams.

Like: Mid-Century Modern Finds. I've been trolling their site regularly looking for things for the studio. Like this bar cart (which I think Erich is vetoing.)

Discovery: Bocce ball before dinner. Our go-to regular restaurant, Oakland's Pizzaiolo, has a bocce ball court on its lovely back patio. Nothing like a game and a Negroni as a warm up to their Greatest Of All Time meatballs. A friend told me about Bar Bocce in Sausalito, which throws a fire pit and a view into the mix as well. I'm anxious to check it out.

Obsession: Avocado salads. Not avocado in salads, mind you, but avocado as the main event - sliced, drizzled with a bit of oil and sprinkled with sea salt. Wayfare Tavern's version with hearts of palm kicked this fixation off. But I've been gathering versions to try at home this summer.

Complaint: Why did I stop playing tennis? I grew up playing and watching Borg and McEnroe and Evert. I played on the team in high school. But sometime in adulthood I stopped. This past weekend I picked up a racket again. It was fun. I'll continue. But I completely suck. Time for lessons.

List 56

Love: Funny, smart women. In the past week I saw Bridesmaids and read Bossypants and could not have laughed more.

Like: I confess to having the capacity to appreciate a good old fashioned rom com. Particularly when I'm on an airplane. The meet cute, the ridiculous obstacles in the couple's paths, their adorable jobs (running a cupcake store, designing cards), their fabulous clothes and apartments that said job would never actually afford them, the finale where their love is declared publically (often at a stadium of some sorts)...the formula works when done well. But I can't recall seeing a satisfying one since, maybe, Fever Pitch?

Discovery: Perhaps the greatest I've-Had-It-With-Him song ever, Erykah Badu's Tyrone, from 1997, is just as good when done by the decidedly unwomanly (aside from the hair) My Morning Jacket. Side by side comparison here: http://rhymeswithmusic.com/?s=tyrone

Obsession: Frances, young star chef Melissa Perillo's intimate and personal restaurant in the Castro. It is booked out 2 months to the day but worth the trouble and the wait. The dinner was spectacular, especially the chicken liver mousse served with toast spread with Medjool date butter, the best halibut I've ever had in my life - crusted with bits of bacon and served with an English pea and morel ragout, it looked as good as it tasted (alas, I have no picture)- and the apple and date Lumberjack cake with Humphrey Slocombe's Maple Walnut ice cream for dessert.

Complaint: Weinergate. Kristen Shaal's analysis of Weiner, Favre, etc. on The Daily Show's put it well: "the sending photos of your penis craze can be chalked up to the age old misconception that women want more information about your penis."

The Daily Show - Rash of Penis Photos
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