I had to leave....Los Angeles

So, last night, while waiting for the traffic to die down for my journey back to San Diego, I cruised around L.A. I got out my van and walked around a little. I tried to snap off a few more photos, but the golden hour had already vanished.

I might add, that while I was trying to take these photos, some passenger in a passing cargo van screamed right behind me. He was trying to make me drop the camera into the L.A. river. My senses were already on high alert, however, and much to said passenger's hopes, I didn't drop it.

BACK IN SUBURBAN BLISS

We'll we are back at home...the house once again a mess with our luggage and boxes and the other personal items. I drove up to LA yesterday for business and I saw the fires along the 5 at Camp Pendleton. I don't know if they were controlled fire line burns or not but it did look pretty cool.

In LA, the air was little better but not much. I wanted to stick around in LA but my showbiz friends shined me off for drinks and pointless conversations....but that is another story...

IT'S ALL GOOD...

The house is still there..I'm still here...my family is still here. So hey, what can I say? Hopefully our house doesn't get jacked while we're gone.

ESCAPE FROM POWAY!

This photo was taken from our back window.

So yes, the last 24 hours have been pretty insane. One moment we were having a great time together as a family at Lego Land and the next day we are trying to evacuate and figure out what we should take and what we should leave behind. It's not easy and I never thought I would be in situation that you only see other people in on the news. As the hours go by, the possibility that you could lose everything grows and grows and grows. I have no idea what is going through the minds of people who are watching their homes burn on TV.

Our van and car are loaded with clothes and we are staying with friends in the lowlands of Poway.

And our Business, well that is another story, we invested a lot in our costumes and now a week before Halloween, traditionally our busiest week for the whole year. business. It doesn't look good...but things could always be worse. I will post again soon.

Isss my Birfday! Isss my Birfday!

yes... I am 39 years old today. How do I feel being this old? Well, I still very much feel the same way I did when I was in my mid twenties on the inside however I my body doesn't work the same way it used to and when I look at myself in the mirror, it's like I'm looking at some strange middle-aged man. Wait a minute...I am a strange middle-aged man!!

Well for my Birthday, my wife and my family chipped in to buy me a new camera. They got me a Canon PowerShot S5 IS camera. It's a great camera so far. I am very thankful for them. Here's a photo I took of the Chinito (my son) tonight.

Anyway, we took some family portrait photos at my son's school and then we had a nice dinner at an Afghan kabob restaurant in Poway called Pamir Kabob House. Great food, I will have to write them up in Yelp. It was a little pricey but the food was great and it was my birfday after all. The owner also did me up with a birthday baklava. It was warm, homemade and melted in my mouth with the taste of honey.

FINALLY, DECENT MEXICAN FOOD IN POWAY

Poway is great place to raise a family but it's a terrible place for food. It's mostly your standard typical , corporate chain restaurants where flavors are watered down to accommodate the lowest common denominator of suburban taste buds, but growing up in San Francisco and living in Los Angeles has really spoiled me when it comes to authentic ethnic foods.
Aside from my favorite drive-thru taco joints like Molcasalsa, I hadn't found a place that serves more traditional Mexican food in Poway until I finally walked into Lupe's Cafe on Poway Road, just west of Carriage Road.

It's small place that probably once was a coffee shop/ diner. It's seems as if it's family owned and I think the owner is from Jalisco, Mexico. I originally stumbled into the place because I had a hankering for some caldo and I couldn't find it at the the other taco places. Since finding this place two weeks ago, I think we have been like 4 times. We've had the caldo de pollo, caldo de camarone, the chicharrone de res, mole pollo. I haven't been disappointed yet. The taste is authentic and flavors are spicy and full. Nothing is held back. Most of the patrons are actually Mexican, which is always a good sign but I have seen many other gabachos there, like me, feeding their faces. I also like that they have about about 4 different hot sauces at the table. So if you consider Chevy's Mexican food to be Mexican food, then this place just isn't for you, but if you want down home type Mexican food, then this is the place for you. The Guero says check it out!!!

The family and I just there last night, so here is snapshot of the caldo de pollo.

Our New Bliss Store in Carlsbad

So here is our new store at Plaza Camino Real in Carlsbad. Were are in #137 downstairs next to the Sweet Factory. It's a lot smaller than where we were but it will have to do.
Here is a link to the slideshow with more photos: BLISS PCR SLIDESHOW

the guero's guilty pleasure

So to start of my first blog entry, I thought I would just start it out light and throw out a recent guilty pleasure. When driving I some times listen to Spanish radio stations and whilst doing so, I discovered this little ditty. No some of you, assuming any one is even reading this, may say, "Hey Guero...what the hell are you listening to?" I can only answer that I don't know...the song is quite infectious and I can't look away....although I do close my car windows so no one can hear what I am listening too. So without further ado, here they are: Belanova and their hit single "Baila Mi Corazón"...