I've now resided at 15 Craigside, a retirement community, for 11 years.   I lived in an adjacent tower ( the brown one in the bac k) for 32 years, and saw my present building coming up.   A few years after it opened, one Saturday morning, I dropped by to investigate my neighbor.   They gave me a tour, and at one point mentioned that an apartment that had long been reserved and never moved into had suddenly been made available.   There are two tall towers on the sea side of 15 Craigside.  That tiny building in-between is 15 Craigside.  However, the apartment shown to me was in between them, the conformation of those buildings was such that they couldn't see my apartment.   Most important to me, I could view the Pacific Ocean. There are graveyards on the mountain side, which I can't see from my apartment.   Most determining of all, if at the beginning, there was a sign-up list to reserve an apartment, this is the one I ...

We sit on a Thursday night dinner table at 15 Craigside, a retirement community.   Three of the seven have birthdays around the same time in September.  Add up our years, and you get 266.  One of our dinner mates, Bob, is currently on the hospital floor, so we went up to his room to start the party. We then went down to the dining room to continue the party. We actually, rarely eat in the 15C dining room, and I usually take-out food to eat in my apartment.  I like to enhance these meals with items like sashimi, truffles and foie gras.  Went to Tamashiro's, and saw this large opah.   Watch this fish being caught in Florida .  Can get up to 600 pounds.  Is a prized fish, with flesh firm and fatty, blend of tuna and swordfish, and rich in Omega 3s. Chicken Kaarage with sesame/miso sauce is one of my favorite lunches. Fish and chips with the latest Stanford Sauvignon Blanc. We have a monthly Sunday karaoke night.  I don't like to use vi...

If you fear black-colored molds, that's good.  While not all of them are toxic, many are, especially  Stachbotrys chartarum . Needs moisture, organic material and oxygen to grow. All molds spread through spores that float, like in a ventilation system. The spores themselves are not dangerous, but the mycotoxins they carry are. The mycotoxins, toxic trichothecenes, are produced by molds.   Only a third of black molds form toxic compounds. People with a weakened immune system or of older age are especially vulnerable. For details, go to a World Health Organization publication-- WHO Guidelines for Indoor Air Quality:  Dampness and Mould  ( this is how they spell mold in Europe ). Microbial pollution can be caused by hundreds of bacteria and fungi, in particular filamentous fungi ( mold ). Mold is associated with building moisture and biological agents. Causes respiratory symptoms, exacerbates allergies and asthma and perturbs the immunological system. 10 warni...