The Santa Barbara Dossier

[mrkilborn]

paltrow is in LA and staying with affleck, which is where I picked her up for our day of relaxation and fun up in Santa Barbara. Gwyn and I had been planning this for... weeks! Finally, we got it all arranged and we were able to get out and get going!
It's always a good idea to escape the city every now and then, and SB is an idyllic, almost perfect little town nestled right above LA, and yet nothing at all like anything else you'll find on the California Coast.

We left at about 9:30 to miss the morning rush (the only thing "free" about freeways during rush hour is the smog!) and we drove right up PCH, always a lovely drive on a typical SoCal day. We arrived at about 11am.

This is The Mission:


As many people know, the Franciscan order of Monks built many missions throughout California. And as you can see, this one is among the most peaceful and tranquil sanctuaries you can find. I believe that it set the tone for the entire day.

We stopped for a late brunch at Cajun Kitchen, since we had heard how great the food there is. Trust me, it's fantastic! There's nothing like hot cornbread with butter melting and chilled apple butter spread on it!

After brunch, we ventured down to the Waterfront and Stearns Wharf:



Guess who's going in for some wine tasting!

We sampled some very fine vintage, and made nice with the seagulls.

Gwyn and I had a chance to talk for a while and just unwind. She's been so busy with her career, she's nearly burned out on a social life and that bothers her a bit. In fact, she has been so busy, she didn't even realize how tightly wound she actually is!

But after a few glasses of wine, and the relative desertion of the area we were in, she got to open up to me. I, being the designated driver, made do with just a sniff of the aroma of the bouquet and small sip to taste the succulent tang of the body. Oh, and I tasted some wine as well. It's a joke, people! Honestly.

We walked along the shore and hung out by a pier for a bit, in a comfortable silence. We sat down in a secluded area by a boathouse and I started to tell this story about a fishing trip my father took me on as a kid. I took the moment to tell her that I was interested in possibly doing more things like this in the future. Mr. Dork, Mr. Awkward, Mr. "Something Stupid."

She smiled her 1000 watt smile and waved her hand, slapping it across my back, breaking the tension (and nearly my 7th vertabrae) and shouted "Let's go to the zoo!" then laughed and ran off down the pier." she giggled, and we went off to look at what they do on the Discovery Channel.

The Santa Barbara Zoological Gardens are very nicely arranged and well planned out. It seems comfortable for both humans and animals.

The highlight was seeing the newest members of the Zoo family... two Palawan Peacock pheasant chicks were born just this past Sunday! The docents wouldn't let us take pictures of them, but they were adorable and even Gwyn was making like a mom when she saw them! Awwwww!!!

All too soon it was 3pm and we were both wondering where the day went! We made the drive back down the coast and by nearly 5pm we had returned.

I didn't do our day justice. It was so much more than just the things we did... the places we went. I didn't capture the true sense of frivolity, the silly moments that were scattered throughout the day. I didn't capture how Gwyn was smiling until her cheeks hurt, or how she would sneak her hand in mine every now and then. I didn't explain some of the silly looks we gave to each other, like when a boat captain on his small yacht started singing the theme to "Gilligan's Island" for absolutely no reason at all! There were so many moments like that, I can't even begin to describe.

It was delightful.