F is for Fine Dining

I'll admit it. I am a food and wine ho (as if you didn't have some indication of this from the name of the blog). This is something that I aquired growing up in a family of foodies and wine-o's, and has been both a blessing and a curse.

See, when I was in college, what did you think I was spending my money on? Thankfully I hadn't discovered knitting yet, because every spare dollar I had went into buying nice bottles of wine and dinners at my favorite Santa Barbara locals. Some people may call this over-indulgent, but that was my reward for getting my butt out of bed at 4:45am to go make smoothies 3 days a week.

Then I graduated and got my own place, complete with a full kitchen and access to killer food. I used to walk down to the harbor on Saturday mornings and buy fish right off the boat, then drive down to Watsonville and get fresh fruits and veggies from roadside stands. Then of course there was wine tasting and at literally hundreds of vineyards within a short drive. Of course this was a lot more work, but I was actually saving some $ and feeding (no pun inteneded) my fine food fetish.

Today, cooking every night I am home something I do for fun and leisure, not a bothersome chore. Sure, I still probably spend too much $ at the grocery store every week... but what can I say... blame my mom ;)

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Speaking of fine dining, wait till you see what SP sent me yesterday.... must.. find...camera....