Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Clocked Out

VAYCAY 5403

Hey Y'all!

Just wanted to let everyone know that RANCHO COCOA is going to be off on vacation until next week...so be sure to check back with us then. We'll have tons more stuff and photos to share with you then. Until that time, here's a photo I took yesterday on our roadtrip of Missy posing outside of the MR. WAFFLE, in Gaffney, South Caroline. Summer fun!

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Weekend Wind-Down #148

DECATUR 5058

DECATUR 5057

DECATUR 5056

DECATUR 5054

(the colorful "INSPIRE EACH OTHER" MURAL we saw in Decatur, Georgia)

Yesterday, Missy and I headed out to Decatur, Georgia, to spend the afternoon with our friends Marla, Lance, and their daughter, Ruby. Missy first met Marla "back in the day" at the BEANTOWN ZINETOWN zine and small press convention in Boston...way back in 2000. They are both old school "yankee zinesters" who somehow found their way to the DIRTY SOUTH.

We never really explored Decatur that much, so we were looking forward to having Marla and Lance show us all the cool stuff there. They live just a short walk from the downtown area, so after taking a walking tour down some charming residential streets, we headed to RAGING BURRITO, a Decatur institution, for lunch...

DECATUR 5014

DECATUR 5017

DECATUR 5018

DECATUR 5019

Of course, no trip to the Atlanta area is complete without stopping at a KING OF POPS cart. Even though I was filled to the rim with mexican food goodness, the KEY LIME PIE popsicle was a nice antidote to the spiciness of my dinner:

DECATUR 5022

DECATUR 5023

Missy swimming around in LITTLE SHOP OF STORIES, a kid-friendly bookstore:

DECATUR 5025

I was tempted to steal this poster for the ATLANTA ROLLERGIRLS. You know I'm a big fan of STAR WARS and I really liked the way the artist re-made BESPIN (a.k.a. CLOUD CITY), from The Empire Strikes Back, into the shape of a ROLLER SKATE:

DECATUR 5028

We went to this cool little gift shop called HOMEGROWN, that carried a lot of handmade items from local artisans, artists, and crafters. In the back corner of the store, there is an ever-growing SHRINE devoted to the incomparable MR.T - I genuflected and then pitied the fool:

DECATUR 5031

DECATUR 5033

DECATUR 5034

DECATUR 5035

DECATUR 5038

DECATUR 5039

DECATUR 5044

Not wanting to disappoint Mr.T, I ended up buying this POSTCARD featuring an illustration by local Atlanta artist, R.LAND:

DECATUR 5059

"Welcome to Atlanta..."

DECATUR 5041

These cute CAT LOAVES looked like TOFU BABY's cousins!

DECATUR 5042

After touring the downtown area, we went back to Marla and Lance's place and hung out with their cat MIKKO (their other cat was too shy to hang out). He played some CAT GAMES on the iPad, and then let Missy groom him...lucky guy!

DECATUR 5013

DECATUR 5046

DECATUR 5047

DECATUR 5049

After we cooled off and rested, we all drove over to the nearby OAKHURST neighborhood, to try out a new bakery called SUGAR MOON. It was the perfect way to cap off a fun afternoon...

DECATUR 5053

DECATUR 5050

DECATUR 5051

DECATUR 5052

DECATUR_n

FAVORITE MOMENT OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - I liked hanging out with Marla, Lance, and Ruby and checking out Decatur!
RAOUL - Yep. Hanging out in Decatur with Marla, Lance, and Roo.

WORST MOMENT OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - Oh, I didn't sleep good almost the whole week.
RAOUL - Finding ants in the garbage.

FUNNIEST MOMENT OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - Dropping the medicine in the car.
RAOUL - I'm sure it was something I heard on the Professor Blastoff podcast.

WORD OR PHRASE OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - "Bunny Yummies"
RAOUL - "Moose Knuckles"

FAVORITE MEAL OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - Dinner at Gymnopedie. Sooooo good.
RAOUL - It's a toss up between dinner at Gymnopedie and the spicy chimichanga from Raging Burrito. Two different ends of the spectrum.

FAVORITE THING ABOUT DECATUR?
MISSY - I liked how everything was close and walkable from Marla and Lance's place.
RAOUL - The "walkability" of Decatur, yes. But also, I got some pretty sweet deals while we were out shopping.

PERSONAL RESOLUTION FOR THIS WEEK?
MISSY - Ummmm...get up earlier?
RAOUL - Make a time budget and stick to it. Posting this Weekend Wind-Down on a Sunday night is a good start. It's been a while!

PERSONAL SOUNDTRACK FOR THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - Leslie Gore, The Great Lakes, Rachael Dadd, Rose Melberg, Sleater-Kinney, Calvin Johnson, Ruby Fray, Tiger Trap, Professor Blastoff podcast.
RAOUL - Brown Recluse, The Hidden Cameras, LAKE, of Montreal, The Ladybug Transistor, Laura Veirs, Little Wings, Thao with The Get Down Stay Down, Gigi, Glo-Worm, Tiger Trap, Polvo, Marriage Records' "Is Orange Birds" compilation, Professor Blastoff podcast.

SOUNDTRACK 5062

SOUNDTRACK 5064

SOUNDTRACK 5065

SOUNDTRACK 5072

SOUNDTRACK 5074

SOUNDTRACK 5076

SOUNDTRACK 5081

SOUNDTRACK 5085

SOUNDTRACK 5087

SOUNDTRACK 5091

SOUNDTRACK 5092

SOUNDTRACK 5094

Castle Park

CASTLE 9809
(image not INSTAGRAMMED. Southern California just has a way of looking like that, naturally)

CASTLE 9812

Speaking of fathers on Fathers Day - last October, Missy and I had the pleasure of going to CASTLE PARK, in Riverside, California, with my brother-in-law, Shawn, and my nieces and nephew, Julia, Lillian, and Evan. We were in California, to celebrate my birthday with my family, and I wanted to hang out with the kids, but also, I wanted to share with Missy a place that I would frequent during my junior high and high school years. There's not much in Riverside, but there is Castle Park...arcade, amusement park, and most importantly, one of THE BEST MINI GOLF COURSES in the country. As is the case with awe-inspiring landmarks, pictures just don't do it justice, and certainly, not these...

CASTLE 9816

CASTLE 9818

CASTLE 9819

CASTLE 9826

CASTLE 9825

CASTLE 9824

CASTLE 9827

CASTLE 9830

CASTLE 9833

CASTLE 9834

CASTLE 9835

CASTLE 9837

CASTLE 9838

CASTLE 9839

CASTLE 9843

CASTLE 9844

CASTLE 9845

CASTLE 9841

CASTLE 9849

CASTLE 9850

CASTLE 9847

CASTLE 9851

CASTLE 9852

CASTLE 9853

CASTLE 9856

CASTLE 9858

CASTLE 9860

CASTLE 9861

CASTLE 9863

CASTLE 9864

CASTLE 9865

CASTLE 9868

CASTLE 9866

CASTLE 9867

CASTLE 9870

CASTLE 9871

CASTLE 9872

CASTLE 9875