Peppy's Dream Moving Adventure Blog

Eric and I woke up at about 10:00am.  We decided to go to breakfast at CAFÉ 976 in Pacific Beach, so we showered, dressed and were out the door before 11:00am.  CAFÉ 976 is such a fun place.  There was a crowd waiting outside, but the place is so big that we only had to wait about 5 minutes.

CAFÉ 976 was a house transformed into a restaurant that serves healthy breakfast and lunch fare.  They have indoor seating, in different rooms, but the outdoor seating is much nicer.  There’s a covered balcony that provides lots of shade, and that’s where we sat.  There’s also an outdoor garden with tables of different sizes and shapes surrounded by blooming flowers of every description.  It’s so pretty and colorful and it’s just a pleasant environment to hang out and relax.

I had the Spicy Eggplant Breakfast Burrito – eggs, eggplant, 3 cheeses, tomato, onion, & cilantro.  It was SO good.  Eric had the Portobello Mushroom Sandwich – marinated Portobello served with mozzarella cheese, spinach, onion, green chile, roasted red pepper & jalapeno mayo.  He loved his, too.

We sat next to a young couple with a baby in a high chair.  She looked to be about 10 months old. We were there for an hour and she never smiled, but she never cried or whined either.  Eric and I were doing everything we could to get her to smile or laugh, but she just looked at us with these big chubby cheeks.  She was very content – she played with her plastic keys, ate her baby food, and grabbed all the cheerios that were put on the table.  We really enjoyed watching her while we waited for our meal, and then while we ate.

After lunch, we were going to drive back to the apartment and I was going to run some errands, but I saw a little bird looking for food right by my feet.  I told Eric that I really want to get a bird and he said we’d go back to the flea market right away and buy one.  So, we did!

We walked around the flea market for a few minutes until we found the “bird guy.”  Our old friends – the big parrots – were there, and as usual the place was packed with people buying and admiring all the feathered friends for sale.

I told the vendor that all I wanted was a tame, friendly bird.  I didn’t care about size or color.  He told me that the smaller parakeets are easier to hand-tame, but they are very noisy.  The other type of parakeet, which is much larger, are much quieter.  I immediately opted for the quieter bird, since I remember how annoying it was to be woken up at dawn by a singing parakeet!  He showed us a gorgeous blue male and a typical green female.  We chose the male.  I then chose a beautiful black metal cage and we bought a big bag (over 6 pounds) of parakeet seed.

When we got home, we set him up on a snack table right next to my bed.  That’s where I always kept my parakeets, so they could keep me company when I watch TV.  I left Eric with him and ran my errands – card store, PETCO (to buy a toy and another food dish for fruits and vegetables).  Then, I went to STARBUCKS before heading back to the apartment.

When I got home, we watched the original episode of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE (which was called "NBC'S SATURDAY NIGHT") from the early 70s, which was on last night in honor of GEORGE CARLIN who passed away this past week.  He was the first person who ever hosted SNL, along with music by BILLY PRESTON and JANIS IAN.

I'm sorry to say, it wasn’t very funny at all.  It’s amazing how much our sense of comedy has changed in the last 30 years.  George Carlin wasn’t in any skits, as the current hosts are.  He just did his standup, then Billy Preston played NOTHING FROM NOTHING (a great song), then some skits, then more GC stand-up, then Janis Ian singing AT SEVENTEEN (another great 70s classic), then more GC stand-up, then another comedienne, who really just did a skit (not funny), then more skits and that was about it.  The best part was CHEVY CHASE doing the news.  Now I know why they don’t rerun the early shows more often!   I guess you REALLY have to be a fan!

I saw an early episode of SNL when I was in college.  The guest host was SHELLEY DUVAL and the musical guest was Joan Armatrading.  It was very exciting and I always wanted to see it again, especially more recently with the great casts they’ve had in the last 10 years.  Unfortunately, I never got to go again.

Eric made us a delicious dinner of MORNINGSTAR corn dogs (our new favorite!) and a veggie wrap.  We gave Conrad some grapes we cut in half, but although he looked them, we didn’t see him eat any.

The vendor gave me a sheet of instructions and said the bird may be nervous and wouldn’t eat or drink for a day and may not sing or chirp.  This baby was chirping and eating his seeds within a few hours!  He’s REALLY beautiful.  His color in front is a pale blue and he has the cutest white face.  On the back below his wings, he’s almost a periwinkle blue.  I don't know why, but it doesn't show that color in the photographs.

He’s very curious and watches me and Eric as we move around the bedroom.  In honor of the show we saw last night, and because I think it’s a clever name, I decided to call him CONRAD BIRDIE!  It suits him!

I bought an extra perch, which is 12” long, so that I could use it to train him.  They say to give the bird time to get used to his surroundings, but I could see that he was already investigating every inch of his cage and was happily swinging on the swing within a few hours.  I opened his cage and he flew a few feet onto the bed.  I took the perch and he went right onto it and I was able to put him back in the cage.  He did this 3 or 4 times and, the last time, I used my hand to pick him up – instead of the perch – and he came right on my hand.  He sat on Eric's hand, too!

Then, I took a chance and tried to pet him, by touching the feathers on his back.  Not only didn’t he fly away, but he didn’t even try to bite me.  He just sat there.  He seemed nervous, and I could see he wasn’t thrilled with the idea, but he just sat there.  Eric couldn’t believe his eyes.  This bird really IS tame and friendly!  I told Eric this vendor at the flea market was very reputable.  I told him I wanted a calm, friendly, easy-to-tame bird, and he gave me the best of the lot!  I've had 4-5 parakeets in my life and this is the fastest I've ever been able to touch one.  Usually it takes WEEKS to get a bird on your finger!

Eric and I watched the new MILLION DOLLAR PASSWORD.  It’s pretty lame – even with Regis hosting.  I’m pretty sure no one will win more than $25,000, but – hey – I could be wrong!

I have a lot of ironing to do tonight, so I’m going to do that while I watch DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES and Eric works out in the living room.

Tomorrow is my last day at my original position at this firm – which I’ve had for five months.  Tuesday I start my new job – working 4 hours in HR and 4 hours in KRM (Key Relationship Management – whatever THAT is!).  My goal at these jobs is to do as great a job as possible while understanding as little as possible about what they’re all doing there.  I have NO interest in finance, but I DO love HR!  At least it’s all about people – not money or equities or fixed income or pensions!

Eric and I had a great weekend.  The show was great, and buying CONRAD and bringing him home today was a thrill.  I know he will be our new buddy and will keep me company for years to come!