This must be one of our busiest Junes ever with the least amount to show for it, but we're just a day away now from our much-needed vacation to France, where we'll challenge our endurance by flying 14 hours and getting straight into a rental car from Paris to Tours. Once there, ahhh... let the vacation begin.

Amidst job dilemmas, another lost house bid ($40k over a fixer in Glendale this time), BBQs with friends and colleagues, etc., etc., etc., our second anniversary crept up on us this week. Two years, already? Feels like one! Here's me on anniversary, with custom wrapping paper for my traditional cotton gift: an LCD monitor.


Meanwhile we're keeping it interesting, at least on the weekends. One of our recent L.A. finds: the house on Lyric Ave. in Silver Lake that Walt Disney lived in with wife Lillian from 1927 to 1933. Here's a photo, but there's a great piece on the renovation you can read here. Drool away, SoCal house seekers -- purchase price? $200k.

Last week we drove to the top of Mt. Wilson, which is a quick 20 mins. up the Angeles Crest Highway, but for some reason we'd never done it before. Worth the trip for some great views, but next time we'll go when the observatory's open.

Bon Voyage until after the 12th -- and Happy Fourth!

We may be nuts, but are we crazy? We booked some flights on a whim last week to go see Lance in France. Of course, that also means we get to spend a week in the Loire Valley as he flashes by with the smelly peleton (we hear the B.O. reeks from a mile off) in Tours, in Blois, and again, perhaps, in Nancy, way up in Lorraine, three hours east of Paris. Nancy, of course, the city in which I spent one of the best years of my life, would be a rather surreal experience for me. It's like I dreamed the whole thing, 1994.

Which reminds me, Khanh has inspired me by taking up cycling, begun at first for raising money for MS in the two-day tour taking place next weekend, but now, she's all buffed up and getting in like 60 miles a weekend! Go Khanh! Lance would be much more impressed with her than with me, or with Akhil for that matter. The girl bought her FIRST BIKE EVER just for this event.

Heather and Jon have departed, Craig and his family are back in New York, and our overly social weekend is behind us so we can once again concentrate on "normal" -- whatever that is. Happy Flag Day everyone!

What a crazy week, trying to regroup and settle back into life in L.A. -- we're in a twilight zone, having discarded quite a load of junk including furniture, clothing and knicknacks, bought and sold cars, rearranged our spaces. But here we are, same old surroundings. Everything's different, somehow.

Heather is back again too, this time with her companion Jon, a very charming and sweet guy who got her (and me) interested in the Congress for the New Urbanism, national conference to be held this week in Pasadena (that's partly why they're here).

I survived drinks and dinner at Mezbaan in Pasadena, Thursday, yummy cakes and treats at the Alcove again on Friday, then Saturday the four of us started at Pedals in Santa Monica, braved a stand-up burger dining experience at Father's Office, and finished up at the gorgeous bar called Toppers at the top of the Huntley (formerly Radisson), also in Santa Monica, which has a killer view of Santa Monica, Malibu, and the ocean. We drove all the way back out on Sunday for breakfast at the Georgian, where they were staying, to revisit our wedding night digs!

Sunday afternoon, Akhil and I konked out for naps but made it back out for Star Wars: Episode III. Gotta see it, whether you think Lucas is FX-loony or not.