Girl power - times two!

Kristin and Michelle

If you think I do a lot of stuff, you have to meet my friend Kristin from Tampa. She makes me look lazy. She works full time at a high stress job, but yet checks out concerts, sporting events and triathlons – plus, she still has time to watch every episode of Gossip Girls.

So when she called and told me she had a 12-hour stopover in Sacramento, I knew we were going to have fun. I’m talking Drew Barrymore and Cameron Diaz girl power fun – without the tons of money and the adoring fans.

Of course, before we went out, we had to do a quick 4 mile (she did 5 miles) run just to warm up and then it was time to hit the town.

For those who have been following my blog, don’t worry…I was a good girl and didn’t go off my training schedule. I kept to my no alcohol, no fattening food diet, which also meant I was the designated driver.

Michelle and Kristin’s Night of Fun:

1) Eat like Queen: A girl’s got to eat so we started with a light meal at Red Lotus. Love that place. You have to get the eel and shrimp dumplings if you go. They are soooo good. I got the lemon grass soup - also good and low in calories.

2) Be a Rock Star: We then wandered over to Blue Cue and discovered on Friday it’s karaoke night with a LIVE rock band. Whoo Hoo!!!

Yes, you get to sing with an actual band. Naturally, we had to do it. But what should we sing?

At first we considered “Hungry Like the Wolf” – until we realized we only knew the chorus. In the end, we belted out a really bad version of “Sex on Fire” by Kings of Leon.

No recording contracts for us.

3) Go Country: After being a Rock Star, it was time to get a little bit country at Bulls – where they have a mechanical bull in the middle of the bar. You know we HAD to try it, just because it was there and Kristin was certain the bull was sad no one was riding it.

4) See a Mermaid: Kristin and I have been friends for years, but I had no idea she always dreamed of being a mermaid. In fact, it’s her dream job, AND if she lived in Sacramento, she could apply for that job as Dive Bar has a girl dressed up as a mermaid who swims back and forth in big tank.

Kristin spent about an hour staring at her and wishing she was the mermaid. Maybe one day...

5) Hang with Queens: A night on the town is not complete unless you visit at least one gay bar. I’m not sure which one we went to, but it had great music and the bartender made Kristin a special fruity cocktail called a raspberry lemon drop. Her review? Five out of five stars.

6) Wind down with Munchies: Ink is a late night staple in Midtown Sacramento. They are known for their Mac and Cheese, egg sandwiches and ice cream brownies. They also serve food until 4 a.m. which is why we were there at 3 a.m.

With no place to sit, we shared a table with a bridal party. When Kristin asked the bride for her relationship advice, she said, “Don’t get mad if they aren’t perfect because you aren’t perfect either.”

Now that’s good advice.

7) Sleep - kind of: Our night of fun ended around 4:30 a.m. and by 7 a.m. Kristin was on her way to catch her plane back to Tampa.

I don't know how she did it, but she got home late in Tampa on Saturday night and then did the Dirty Double mud run early Sunday morning and came in second.  She might not be a mermaid, but she is a rock star when it comes to doing stuff.

Sigh…sometimes I miss my gal pals.

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A night of ghosts and romance in the Old City Cemetery

In honor of the latest Twilight movie, I decided to do something a little supernatural and checked out "Spirits with the Spirits" tour at Sacramento's Old City Cemetery. It was pretty cool and not a bad deal for $15.  I mean, where else can you listen to ghost stories in a moonlit cemetery while drinking wine?

 I wasn't the only one who thought this. Hundreds of history buffs and ghost lovers gathered at the graveyard on Saturday night -- but sadly, this was a one time thing.


“This is the first time we’ve done a tour like this in June,” said Dr. Bob LaPerriere, Director of the Old City Cemetery Committee. “We usually do daytime ones every second Saturday of the month.”

Too bad, because I would recommend it. Not only did we get wine (which I love), but along the way, we encountered actors dressed up in period costumes who shared their stories about how their characters  lived their lives…and how they died.

There was Simon, who was shot back during the gold rush days, a woman who ran the temperance movement, an alleged prostitute from British Columbia who blew pepper in a woman’s face and was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, and a bartender who got hammered –literally. He was killed when a couple of thugs hit him in the back of the head with a blacksmith’s hammer. Now that had to hurt.

NOT EVERYONE LEAVES THEIR HEART IN SAN FRANCISCO

I'm not really a romantic. In fact, roses and candles are completely wasted on me, but I do like a good love story -- and the finale of the "Spirits with the Spirits" tour was just that.

The final guest of the night was Maria. Dressed in a long gown complete with a little parasol, Maria told her tale while standing by her gravestone.  She was a 25-year-old woman who was killed by another man just two months before her wedding.

While that's pretty tragic in itself, the most romantic part of the story has to do with her fiancé. Apparently, he never got over losing the love of his life.  According to Maria's story, he lived in San Francisco and died a few years after her murder. Upon his death, he donated all of his body parts to science – except for his heart.  This was buried beside Maria in the Sacramento cemetery so that they could be united in death. Aww...so sweet.

Of course, the moral of the story was that he truly did not leave his heart in San Francisco.

MORE TOURS FOR THE GHOST LOVERS

Establishment in 1849, the Old City Cemetery is the resting place of many Sacramento mayors, California governors and other historical figures. If you check it out, you'll see the grounds are immaculately landscaped, but according to LaPerriere, they weren’t always like this.

“Back in 1971, it was all weeds and twigs,” said LaPerriere. “I first came with a group who were looking for physicians of the past. Back then, it was in disarray.”

LaPerriere, along with a number of concerned citizens, stared the Old City Cemetery Committee to restore the site to its original glory in 1987. They love giving tours and sharing the history of the place with people.

“Our next tour will be this tour held on July 17 at 10 a.m. and will be about baseball and beer,” said LaPerrier. “It will feature baseball players who played ball on the West Coast and back East in the Major Leagues.”

For more information, visit http://www.oldcitycemetery.com/PlayBall.htm