Blanc

I dashed out of my first SoulCycle class on Friday afternoon (or should I say indoctrination?) still panting and leapt into the idling car where my dapper husband was waiting to chauffeur us across the Bay. One of my good friends and colleagues and her very talented boyfriend were putting on a pop-up at Ordinaire Wines in Oakland, and because there's nothing more appropriate than a rich Italian American meal and a few glasses of wine after a serious sweat session, we simply couldn't miss it! A few naturally-fermented sparklers were truly fantastic with the baked clams, frutti di mare, eggplant parm and veal scallopini, and the canoli John and I shared for dessert took me back to the East Coast for a moment (though the biodynamic Riesling was all California). Best of all, a ton of other colleagues showed up for the event as well, so we took over a farm table and had a blast. More than four hours after we arrived, we finally decided to call it a night and head back across the bridge for home.

John woke us up early the next morning, as he hasn't quite recovered from the change in time zones, and had a breakfast hash topped with poached eggs ready before I knew it. Naturally his early morning wake up lead to a mid-morning nap, but I took advantage of the quiet to get my inbox cleaned up and my to do list drafted. Once John was back in action, we both settled in to our favorite spots in the living room to get a little sun with our productivity. I spent the better part of the day with my head in my books, while John spent his at the guitar, and after a little late afternoon exercise, we dashed out to grab bahn mi and salad rolls at Bun Mee's Fillmore outpost. Paired with a glass of rosé and an episode or two of Mind of a Chef, it was the perfect low-key evening.

John was up equally early Sunday morning, but I had made a plan the night before–an alarm with a time of my own choosing helped me feel like I was in control of our day's start time, too. We decided, in honor of John's recent trip, to enjoy a more European breakfast–croissants, berries, and a bit of Swiss. Then we dove head first into our to dos, including Introduction to Social Media for John. His lunch with a friend meant I had the house to myself for a bit, and in my world, that means quiet time with a dense book. Having finally finished the philosophical tome I've been toting around for weeks, I was able to devote myself to music theory and ear training while John worked through some new pieces. John and I both worked up a sweat, and a piece of avocado toast tided me over when our Sunday Supper was at 8 rather than 5. We hosted my little brother for one last evening–he's moving to Colorado and we won't have the luxury of last-minute dinner plans for quite some time! Then we headed to bed, feeling satisfied both body and soul by a restorative weekend.

Tell me, what were you up to this weekend? Making a spur-of-the-moment trip, perhaps, or enjoying a glass of summer water?

Image by Mary Dougherty Photography, white peony bouquet by Bill Chisnell.