Newport Beach

We had a marketing meeting down in Newport Beach, which sounds swanky, but was mostly sitting in a conference room, except for the hour-and-a-half boat ride we took and the harbor-side dinner we had right afterwards.

Clark + Kensington Now at ACE

Check out this exclusive line of paint and primer in one, with the not-so-exclusive price. Now at ACE.

http://youtu.be/_jGQu7B4RNY

Palo Alto ACE Harware Remodel

If you're a regular customer, you've seen us tear up a bit of the old floorplan and make some changes with the layout of the Palo Alto store.

We're really excited about the remodel, in part because it will soon be finished, but mostly because it will be easier to shop and easier to help you find what you need.

I'll be posting some side by side before and after shots, but thought I'd post a few while we're still changing things around.[gallery link="file" orderby="rand"]

Locally and Sustainably Sourced Meat at Chipotle Restaurant

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I missed it at the Grammy's, but came across this sweet little video yesterday. It's a Chipotle ad, but the message is so poignant and simple I wanted to share it with you all. It's a short look at how we as a country went from independent farming to factory farming and how it's imperative that we move forward into independent, antibiotic-free, free-range meat farming.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMfSGt6rHos]

-Jocelyn Broyles

Last Minute Valentine's Day Ideas

For those of us who are procrastinators, here are some last-minute ideas for Valentine's Day:

1. Stay in. Go to a specialty store, pick up some fabulous picnic-y yummies like summer sausage, fine crackers, french bread, marinated olives, goat cheese, brie (triple cream, of course), chocolate, pears, apples, figs and wine if you like. Fix a picnic by the fire, in bed, on the deck, or take your sweetie to the park, the beach or the mountain top.

2. Make something, anything. A card, a poem, a bouquet of wild flowers, a heart shaped from leaves or petals or rocks (whatever is handy will do) and create it at the entry way as a surprise when your love comes home.

3. Leave a balloon (or many!) on your sweetheart's car. Whether they are boy or girl, 25 or 63, this will make them smile and laugh and will make them feel loved.

4. Tell your love why they are special to you - from your heart, even if it's scary. The returns will be worth it.

5. Pamper your Valentine - it sounds simple, but drawing a bath and washing their hair is a lovely way to give (and receive) attention.

Happy Valentine's Day!

-Jocelyn Broyles

Monthly Home Maintenance: February

[caption id="attachment_134" align="aligncenter" width="529" caption="Image © Anemone Projectors"][/caption]

The Mercury News published an article in their Home+Garden section back in January that I thought I would share with you all. It's a list of ways to keep up with your house's maintenance needs, a little at a time. If you're planning to sell or if you're planning to stay until you're 80, these tips are relevant to your home.

I'll be republishing these, once per month, just as they were written in the original article by Joan Morris. I tried to find a link to the article online, but to no avail. If you find it, please let me know!

"FEBRUARY:

Think "roof". Check the roof of your home for loose or missing tiles, trim branches to prevent damage and to cut off access routes for various critters, and check your chimney for cracks. You can avoid a trip to the emergency room if you actually keep off your roof, though. Stay safely on the ground and use a pair of binoculars to inspect the area. Only go up if you absolutely have to, and make sure someone is nearby to keep an eye on you."

Transcribing this made me think of a less litigious time when I was a child and my dad would get out the old aluminum ladder, the top step of which fell about a foot short of the gutter on our roof, climb on up with his "garage knife" and start cutting the moss off the edges of the shake shingles. This, to me, was a dream job and if he was in a good mood (or maybe it was if my mom was in a good mood, since I'm sure my dad wasn't worried) I could go on up there and help! It was like being in a totally different world. I hadn't yet experienced hiking, rock climbing, surfing or scuba diving, so I didn't get that were were lots of different vantage points of our world, but I did immediately get that I really liked being up in the Sycamore and Oak tree tops, looking out across the other roofs, down to my best friend's house and out at the foothills. A whole new perspective, and hence a whole new world, opened up to me from the small mountaintop of our single-story house. And neither my father or myself ever got hurt up there on that roof. In fact, I would venture to say to we got a little free and little refreshed and a little bit more whole.

- Jocelyn Broyles