the weekend

got to tour the loomis basin brewing company 

eat at the high hand conservatory in loomis

discovered the crescent club in old sac

got my bangs cut

was lacadia's +1 to sacramento fashion week's finale show 

+

 watched the oscars with some lady friends

________

oh, and most importantly - omar turned 3 years old yesterday!!

coolest kid i know ! 

i wish i could have been in minneapolis to celebrate...

happy birthday lil man 

bursts of color for a cold + wet + drab friday

image via kate spade

image via life.com

image via immigrant news

image via nannygoatsinpanties

that third image down of the hands is from a phagwah festival which is a hindu celebration of the arrival of spring.  what a beautiful way to celebrate spring. i'm so very ready for it...

O M G

best news ever:

remember this obsession of mine ?

well - my palm springs fantasies are playing out in just a couple months

and i cannot wait !

image via take sunset

thank you, gay bars!

i totally needed a long weekend

to relax

catch up with friends

check things off lists

cook

nest

take photos

celebration plan

read

catch up on the ever growing pile of new yorkers stacked on the coffee table...

which has been mocking me for weeks

highlights from this weekend...

having z + dom + dad over for dinner

pops

dom took part in a duathalon in granite bay, we hung out after in folsom before they took off to reno

z surprised me with this creamy cheese spread that we grew up eating... 

so good! 

trish and i indulged in a major funday sunday - which included much needed catch up, fancy cocktails,  and a side of dancing at badlands (at 6pm on a sunday...)

thank you, gay bars, for providing a platform for those who feel the urge to boogie in the middle of their sunday !

we woke the next morning totally motivated to hit the goodwill 50% off sales

but the lines were SO ridiculous - we traded it in for breakfast at pancake circus

i can't believe this was the first time entering this establishment in my whole sacramento life

it was everything i had imagined plus some

we ate at the bar - which i have to say, i love doing when dining with two

fyi - they serve dinner.  but non-meat eaters beware - only meat options :)

i thought it was awesome.  i'd totally go back when i'm itching for some greasy country potatoes + 

some good people watching

delayed valentine's post

"this is your valentine's text"

that's the text i got from eli this past valentine's day
it made me laugh out loud

 eli is not a fan of valentine's day at all

i know not to expect flowers, or gifts, or dinner reservations

it's not that he isn't romantic - he is incredibly romantic

i think he just prefers to do sweet things on his own time 

not on the day every other dude is out scrambling for flowers or something

i'm cool with it

it makes me like him even more

plus - years back i was involved in a miserable relationship 

he was a bad boyfriend all around - but always sent me red roses on valentine's day
looking back at that particular situation - it was such an empty gesture

my mom, on the other hand, takes care of business on valentine's day

i can always count on her to give us a sweet valentine's card and treats

 and i like the idea of celebrating the one's you love

so, happy love day

every day should be love day

love.

speaking of love... have you seen this supercool project:

Photographer Irina Werning's project "Back to the Future"
recreating scenes of our youth - to the t.

so amazing!
i've been wanting to do something similar - but recreate pictures of my mama
from back in the day - but with me or my sisters as the subject.
like his one right here in particular.
i love everything about this photo
and i want to be just like her in it
the dress. the hair. the shoes. the expression. the way she is sitting.
i wonder what she was saying.
perhaps it was "i'm the cutest mama ever"

request marriage sacramento

A couple weeks ago I attended my first Equality Action Now meeting.  EAN is a local, grassroots, gay rights activist group working diligently towards spreading the message of and achieving equality for all. We met in the back room at Hamburger Patties.  About ten of us gathered around a large table - a diverse group overall, a broad range of ages and backgrounds. The group all seemed to know each other quite well.  They were incredibly receptive, welcoming, warm and friendly to their newest member, and I felt comfortable and part of the team within minutes.

Among many agenda items covered that evening, was the event called "request marriage sacramento."  I had never thought about Valentine's day being a popular day for couples to go to the county clerk's office and request marriage licences.  I guess it makes perfect sense, I just never really thought about it.  I also learned that the LGBT community and it's supporters take action on this day every year.  Same sex couples go to the county clerk's office and request marriage licenses knowing wholeheartedly that they will be turned down.  This blatant portrayal of unequal rights is on display for the community to see, including the straight couples whose requests are accepted and are allowed to breeze right past the same-sex couples who are being turned down.

So, this all went down yesterday.  I really wanted to be there - but they held the event from noon to 2pm, and there was no way I could get out of my meetings.  I was disappointed to miss this event, but based on FB status updates and pictures posted, it looked like a great turnout.

Isn't it crazy to think we live in California, it's 2011, and equal rights DO NOT exist for all.  Weird.
We've got to keep fighting.  And the straight allies need to come out of the closet and fight this fight!

Since I was unable to attend - I do not have any photos from yesterday's event.  But below are some of my photos from a prop 8 rally back in February of 2009.  The pictures may be outdated - but the message is not...

this saturday !

hey!  there's an art show going down on saturday at bows and arrows.  20+ local artists!  

i'll be contributing a piece to the show

i'm working on a painting.  it has been a while since i've painted

and i forgot just how much i love painting

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

nice stems.

happy friday!

a pretty collection of legs.  easy on the eyes.

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putting it out there.

hey. 

check it out.

i'm finally using that flickr account i created years ago...

ihardlyknowher/sarahbarkawi

  

cutest parents.

Over the weekend we took Mom + Dad to the mansion to check it out... 

Here's my pops attempting to take a photo of me and Eli, he has no idea he is accidentally video-taping...

"it's blinking... whatever that means...."

hahaha... I have the cutest Dad ever!

hummus + beet salad at The Press 

Then we went to The Press Bistro for dinner, which was fantastic!

Their hummus was pretty legit, and Dad and the owner nerded out over what it takes to find the perfect tahini.  The owners were charming, the food was incredible.  Yay!! for another great midtown restaurant.