California Love

Chapter 1: Blue Crush Wannabes

Ryan and I just returned from another weekend away. This time, we were honored to attend the fabulous wedding of Mike Hilldoerfer and Lisa Guadagnola in Los Altos/Palo Alto, California. Pictures and details of the wedding are below, but first...

After Ryan and I surfed in Mexico earlier this year, we decided to head to the Sunshine State a little early for 2 days of surfing lessons on Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica. We were very excited to get in the ocean, but I have to admit that I was a little worried about being cold. I whined about having to wear a wetsuit and booties. I whined about the air temperature and the wind. Ryan, fed up with my whining, helped me refocus by telling me to get over it. Once the wetsuit was on and we got in the water, my body temperature was fine. Of course, after an hour or so in the water, I took a break on the beach and felt my hands tingling in a desperate attempt to warm up.

Surfing with a wetsuit on was much harder than I thought. I really felt like the wetsuit made the motion of pushing up on the board harder and less fluid. Ryan, however, was able to pop up easily on the first wave of the day--it must be the snowboarding. At one point, a seal swam by as if to show us that navigating waves was easy. I couldn't believe how close and nonchalant the seal was about swimming next to people, but the surfing beaches are so crowded on weekends and good wave days that the wildlife must be used to humans.

On the second day of our lessons, we woke up and immediately felt the fall chill. Air temperatures were in the 40s with significant wind. When we got to the beach, the waves were really choppy and close together making surfing difficult at best. In fact, many of the local surfers already in the water were having a tough time catching waves. Even our instructor suggested that we call it a day as conditions were pretty terrible. Part of me was sad but most of me was happy not to get into the water because I was freezing. Next time, I think we plan on surfing in warm water. Here are two pictures of the beach that we took on day 2:


Chapter 2: This Endless Love

Now for the wedding. Ryan worked with the groom, Mike, at Pratt and Whitney in Connecticut. Shortly after we left for Washington, DC, Mike moved to the San Jose area and Ryan was able to see Mike once a year when Ryan attended a conference for software programmers. I haven't seen Mike for years--probably since we left Connecticut in 2001. We were so honored to be invited to their wedding and had a great time.

The Last Moments of Single Life


They're hitched!!

First Dance

Ryan and I Enjoying the Reception

Some of the Connecticut Crew
Jeff Larsen, Jason Horwitz, and Ryan

Another CT Crew Member, Jeff Lee
He Wears His Sunglasses at Night

We had the best time catching up with friends and celebrating Mike and Lisa's commitment to each other. We hope they have a great time in Hawaii and look forward to the next group get-together!