Willi’s Wine Bar

The atmospheric river definitely had us in its sights today as it poured relentlessly and unremittingly all day. We can now hear the creek roaring when we open the front door.

The four of us...Rick, Meg, John and I wound up going to Friedman’s, a local, family owned version of Home Depot, where John bought himself a power saw and a foldable work bench. He already has a work bench in the garage but he insists that it is ‘for the tomatoes’ I didn’t ask....he doesn’t want much, so when he’s willing to drive through the pouring rain to buy something, who am I to say no?

With Meg and me perched somewhat uncomfortably on top of the folding work bench we then went to a family owned kitchen gadget store in search of seasonal cookie cutters. We came home with a star, an ornament, a snowflake and a snowman, not to mention a Bundt pan, a can of cooking spray with flour, a little medallion magnet to stick on the dishwasher to tell us whether the dishes within are clean or dirty. The magnet wouldn’t stick to the dishwasher but it sticks to the range hood where we will surely never remember to look at it....

Since Rick and Meg had a 6pm flight, we decided to go to Willi’s Wine Bar for whatever you call a meal at 3:30. Dana and Jim met us there. It worked out very nicely. Willi’s specializes in ‘small plates’ which are always delicious no matter when they are eaten. I mentioned to the waitress that we had been dining at Willi’s for many years-and she passed the word to Rafael, our favorite waiter, who came by the table when he arrived. Hugs were exchanged all around. His house burned down along with Willi’s, in the Tubbs fire in 2017. Willi’s is now in a new location and Rafael said his rebuilt house should be finished in a couple of months.

It was a delightful way to finish a nice visit, and although it is small plates, we ate more than we usually eat with ordinary size plates. And although the timing worked out beautifully for Meg and Rick to make their flight, we’re now ready for bed and it’s 6:47!

I can’t neglect to mention that today is the anniversary of the surprise Japanese kamikaze attack on Pearl Harbor which took out a large part of the Pacific Fleet which lay at anchor there. My father was a naval officer stationed there and commanded a net tender. My mother went to pick him up that Sunday morning over seventy years ago and they both witnessed the attack although in the ensuing chaos , they never found each other that day. They both survived but my father rarely spoke of it. My brother and I took a moment to talk about it and wish we had taken the time to hear more of their stories...

‘It is a day that will live in infamy....’
—Franklin D. Roosevelt