sung + ryan.

Yesterday, Sung and Ryan tied the knot in a beautiful, windy ceremony overlooking the pacific ocean.

Yes, here at this location: The Cliff House

(photo credit: www.staysf.com)


It was dreamy and breathtaking and lovely and classy. It was the perfect wedding to celebrate the happy couple. I met Sung through my small group at church. And even though our lives are on separate tracks, we nevertheless have found things in common to keep our friendship moving forward. Sung is probably one of the most genuine people I know. She is approachable and engaging. And, Ryan, well, he pretty much does the same thing as TV's Dr. House (minus the drug addiction & tv make-believe), which makes him awesome.

Side story: Micah and I were running a little late. After getting on a bus and realizing it wasn't going to take us where we wanted to go, we got on another bus. Unfortunate for us, the bus dropped us 12 blocks from the Cliff House. So, here we are, running down the sidewalk (mental picture: I'm in heels), hoping not to miss and/or interrupt the grand entrance of the bride. Thankfully, when we got there, they had decided to do a mini-cocktail time before getting the ceremony in full swing!

Without further ado, here's the photo recap:



Sung looked BEAUTIFUL!







After the ceremony, we partied it up inside with a fabulous meal and hoppin' music! They definitely set a high bar for June 20th.


The morning after, Micah and I were invited to continue the wedding festivities at a Dim Sum brunch. Yum!



Congratulations Sung and Ryan! I wish you all the best for your future together. Happy honeymooning on your Alaskan cruise!

my new friend.

Dear ibook G4,
We've had a good four and a half years together. You were there when I graduated from college. You stood beside me when I moved to San Francisco. You listened as I abundantly poured out words onto your screen. You watched me grow and provided me with endless hours of rockin' tunes, internet highlights, and typing possibilities. We have had our ups and downs. But I, for one, have enjoyed this long and windy road we traveled. About 9 months ago, you started nudging and encouraging. You told me, "I'm not the only fish in the sea, look at all your options." You, not so discreetly, told me you have aged (by completing shutting down, unexpectedly and without reason). You have fought the fight and now it's time for you to have a little more R & R in your life. Don't worry, you're not retiring quite yet, I know you've still got some spunk! You're just moving from a full-time position to a part-time. I know you'll train the next guy just fine and we'll be one big, happy family!


Yours truly,
Cg



Bloggers...(and ibook G4), let me introduce you to my new friend/full-time employee/grad school companion.







New friend, say hello to everyone!

my life has been taken over by...

wedding favors.

super delicious raspberry buttermilk cake.

I've dreamed of this cake all weekend since I made it Thursday night after getting home from work. After an evening full of hearing DV, there's nothing quite as soothing as baking a cake. AND, given just a quick stop by the organic store, I was well on my way to dessert bliss.

The line up:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 stick (56 grams) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup & 1 and 1/2 tbsp sugar, divided
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1 large egg
1/2 cup well shaken buttermilk**
1 cup raspberries (about 5 ounces)

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle. Butter and flour a 9-inch round cake pan.

2) Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside. In a larger bowl, beat butter and 2/3 cup sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy (about two minutes). Then beat in vanilla and zest, if using. Add egg and beat well.

3) At low speed, mix in flour mixture in three batches, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour, and mixing until just combined. Spoon batter (it will seem pretty thick) into cake pan, smoothing top. Scatter raspberries evenly over top and sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar.

4) Bake until cake is golden and a wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes (if you can contain yourself). You can either keep cake in pan or take it out to cool on a rack then invert onto a plate.

**Supposedly you can make your own buttermilk at home (although I have not tried). You add one teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice to one cup of milk and let it sit until it clabbers (anyone know what that means?), about 10 minutes. Then, Voila, buttermilk!

ONE month.

ONE month from today this man will become my husband.


Remember when he grew out a beard? When he looked like a lumberjack? When I could point out crumbs from a meal he had eaten 2 hours before? When it felt like a thousand spears stabbing me when we kissed? Well, even if YOU don't, I do.



ok, well, actually now he looks like this (sorry ladies, he's taken). So much cuter than zac efron.





BUT, after all is said and done, I would still love him if he looked like this (micah, let's not test that theory though).

Acknowledgement is always the first step to recovery.

Hi, my name is CG and I have a celebrity crush on Zac Efron.


I know, I know, it's embarassing. I mean, I'm 25 years old, not 12! Anyway, my fiance has now become my enabler, because he took me to go see Zac's (yes, we're on a first name basis) latest movie last night.



(photo credit: www.newfulllengthmovies.com)


I know, I know, it's absolutely ridiculous that we spent $22 (+ embezzled snacks) for the two of us to see 17 Again. We both knew going into it that it was lacking in plot and was most likely going to be two hours of horrifyingly, mushy-gushy teen drama. But, I went anyway, willingly; excited even.

And...I admit I liked it. It met all poor expectations, but at the same time it succeeded in having funny moments (no, really, parts were actually funny). I couldn't help but wish just a little bit that I were back in high school watching this movie on a lame friday night with heather and mary kay.

I'm not proud of my celebrity crush, but like I said earlier, acknowledgement is the first step to recovery. Right?

the stats.

Bay to Breakers: 12K Race (approximately 7.5 miles)

CG's Bib Number: 13383

CG's Finish time: 1 hour, 37 minutes, and 1 second

CG's Rankings: 10773rd (overall)
4258th (female)
1375th (female, age 20-29)

Micah's Bib Number: 13382

Micah's Finish time: 1 hour, 37 minutes, and 1 second (yes, we did hold hands as we crossed the finish line)

Micah's Rankings: 10774th (overall)
6591th (male)
1470th (male, age 20-29)