And we're back!

The west has indeed changed our lives for good. Christian has now employed a full-time ponytail that resides on the back of his head (as long as he continues having hair).

Kristin has diamonds on the soles of her hands and Christian living full-time in what was formerly her house.

Which means that all of Christian's stuff has moved in, too. He's not too terribly attached to most of the furniture, which means Kristin and Christian are gearing up for the mother of all yard sales. Those of you who live in Nashville, we'll let you know when it is. Everything must go!

Well, almost everything. There are a few a few choice items, such as his grandmother's antique art deco desk that will certainly have a new life in the co-mingled lives of CK1.

But other things, such as this supa-fly pair of 9-1/2 size snakeskin cowboy boots are no longer welcome around these parts. They're destined for eBay or the yard sale or something like that.

Not only has the move taken lots of free time, but we're also trying desperately to re-brand our blog. Because (sadly - sniff, sniff) we're not out West anymore. So the name CK1-West doesn't really apply. And we didn't really know what to do once we got back here. Of course we could go on and on and on and on about what we did out West, but that's old news. Nobody wants to read about that.

Maybe occasionally, we'll talk about our fantastic voyage out west. It was truly remarkable. But this site is going to go through somewhat of a transformation.

For now, however, take a look at the living room:


And here's a photo of the guest bedroom:


Yep. That's, like, a whole bunch of musical instruments, clothes, a paper shredder, a hat, and a guy who looks like he's about to eat a whole bunch of ratatouille and drink some pinot noir.

Album of the Moment: Richard Buckner, Meadow

Say legs....

We've been back for a week, and we're just now getting back to our normal lives, although Christian refuses to set his watch back to Central Daylight Time.

Ask him what time it is.

"It's 3:30 in San Francisco. And Point Reyes. And Portland. And...."

We still have many stories to tell, and we plan to do it here in this space.

For example:

Before we jetted out of L.A., Christian's dad took us for a final stop at an awesome little out-of-the way restaurant, the Fisherman's Outlet, which serves up generous portions for about $9 or less a plate. You kind of have to know how to get there. It's not close to the touristy, Hollywoody type things. But it's worth the trip because it's so daggum good.

Kristin had the $9 daily special, which was two stuffed crabcakes full of fresh crab meat, served with fries and slaw. (It was supposed to come atop a green salad, but arrived with fries. Go figure.) Christian ordered the daily special "sampler" platter, which was also about $9. It had large pieces of catfish, a crabcake, about eight fried shrimp, and healthy portions of fries and slaw. Christian's father ordered the "4-piece fish only" which is about $6. And the name says it all. You get "fish only" when you order a dish called "fish only."

After the wonderful meal, it was time to go, and then we gassed up the Budget-rental-mobile,
which served us very well along Rt. 1, despite the flat tire. But before we turned in the car, we decided to get a group photo at the gas station for the blog.

Before we continue with this tale, you need to understand Christian's father's philosophy on giving money to the homeless. He will give money to a homeless person, as long as they perform a small task in exchange. That could be jumping jacks. Washing his car windows. Telling a joke. Singing a song. Or whatever. On Saturday, Christian's father asked the gentleman to snap a photo. The man agreed, and a small fee was paid. And after receiving instructions on how to operate the camera, Kristin, Christian and Christian's father all posed and said "cheese."

Snap!

The young man smiled, said "Thanks," and handed back the camera. He didn't run away with it, which is a good thing. And then, thanks to digital technology, we looked at the photo.

All of us, including the young photographer, agreed that we needed a do-over.

That was much better the second time.

Album of the moment: Jean Michel Jarre, Equinoxe

Blogger Meets Blogger (the preview)

We are too busy watching the dissolution of the Cuban empire to write a major post tonight, but we do want to tell you all how much fun we had with our new dear friend, the former Nashville blogger known as She Said What?!? Mr. Roboto of Thursday Night Fever hooked us up, and she's every bit as sweet, generous and fun-loving as he promised. We'll post details of our amazing BBQ dinner tomorrow, but for now, here's an image of the aftermath:

Here's She Said What?!?, Kristin, Christian and Chef Aaron Robins from Boneyard Bistro. The three on the left are very happy and VERY well fed. (And alcoholed....) Aaron is just glad the workday is over so he can go drink more of the ... gosh, can you even technically call what he was drinking "beer"? At almost 12% alcohol, it was more like carbonated PGA, only much, much tastier.

Many, many, many thanks to Aaron, and all the staff at Boneyard, for the lavish star treatment we received. We'll post full details tomorrow, complete with dessert photos that will have all of you on the next flight out to L.A.

Album of the moment: Golden Smog, Another Fine Day.