Welcome to the World

People. Something very wonderful has happened. No, many wonderful things have happened.

It was Thursday night, and I was out with some friends testing some ramen at Saiwaii. The ramen odyssey in Japan last September pretty much ruined me for ramen, and I had been desperately trying to find a place to get my noodle fix. I was really enjoying my bowl of chicken broth ramen with a perfectly cooked soy sauce egg when I got a call from my mom announcing that my brother and his wife gave birth to Raidin Jack Woolley!


8 lbs. 2 oz. of pure cuteness. I skyped with them all weekend, in between feedings and naps.

On Friday, I bolted out of work to squeeze in an hour of kickboxing before spending dinner amongst friends. For the record, Elianna + Jesse + Jason + Doctor James + Chris + Eric + Neil+ Emily make for the very best dinner company. And a glaring sign that Doctor James and I are the only people left in the world who are not connected to Twitter accounts.

On Saturday, I went to the Berkeley Farmer's Market and discovered pretzel croissants made by the wonderful Bavarian joint called Oktoberfest Bakery in downtown Berkeley. It's pretzel-y aroma and salty twang made my mouth water as I sank my teeth through folds and folds of buttery croissant. I also purchased a cherimoya that was grown locally in Ventura County. You don't find these beauties often in the grocery store. This fruit has a tender creamy white flesh that tastes like a cross between a papaya, apple, and pear.

Then, I headed to Berkeley Bowl West and found some popped quinoa! Perfect to add to popped amaranth. I've been hooked on this breakfast for awhile now. Quinoa + Amaranth with some flaked coconut and a spoonful of nut butter and almond milk keeps me full for nearly 4 hours!

Sunday morning I woke up early and headed to the gym. I jogged for 3 miles on the elliptical and then swam laps for a solid 30 minutes. I am glad I got a nice workout in before I tested my chocolate limits at the San Francisco Chocolate Salon. Turns out, my limit is about forty pieces of chocolate, toffee and truffles. While there were some excellent highlights, notably some fantastic toffee from Toffee Talk, I am not sure it was worth the stomach ache and sugar daze that ensued.

I came home to rest my tummy and zone out watching Koyaanisqatsi.