At gun point:

The neighborhood we live in is neither great nor awful. It's not a high income neighborhood, but aren't really high-income people.

But it's comfortable. Not a place you really feel unsafe in.

Last night Elizabeth and I were robbed at gunpoint.

We're both okay. The guy didn't get much: My cellphone, her purse, bank card and about $30-$40 in cash. As you would expect the pyschological effects of having a gun pointed at you are much worse than any property loss.

I never really felt that our lives were in danger. The guy didn't come off as a psycho, he was nervous and wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.

Despite the fact that I wasn't nearly as scared during the robbery as I thought I would be, I still find myself in a lingering bad mood, alternately angry and depressed.

I'm pretty sure that if I ever saw the guy again, I would do something stupid, like try to run him over.

Eliz is pretty rattled too.

The police say that there's been a recent spree of such incidents in the area from Fulton and Hurley up to our Alta Arden and Fulton neighborhood. Now we know.

Moxie: get there early

On saturday, the girl and I finally got around to trying Moxie.

Moxie has a reputation, and a good one. Next to Biba's, it's probably the most well known temple of high-class foodstuffs.

And I like me some food. Fancy food, exotic food and plain food. I'm slightly more fussy than a garbage disposal, but I will pay for the good stuff. But we're not wealthy people, so we've had to wait quite a while to take a taste of Moxie.

So yeah, the food is good. Moxie does not dissappoint. I still prefer The Mustard Seed over in Davis. The Ahi was particularly delicious, and the mashed potatoes easily take the prize for the best mashed potatoes in Sacramento.

The service there goes by the philosophy that, the most important thing is that the experience be memorable. Our dinner started after 8, and our waiter seemed to be quite drunk. His exploits were impressive enough to warrant a bulleted list.

• He mixed up our order of ahi spring rolls with fried calamari.
• We ordered our entrees, but asked for a second to settle on our wine. After a moment, he came back with two glasses of someone else's wine, then asked what we would like to eat.
• He forgot we were there when it came to the bill, then asked me if had got it yet. When I said no, he asked if I would like another bill. Everyone was confused.

We were having a good time, and he was a friendly guy, so none of it was a big deal. Fact is, we were more entertained with every new blunder.

Plus, he gave us extra mashed potatoes.

leave burrito guy alone!

Sigh . . .

I live in the wrong country. Sacramento City Council, having triumphantly solved all of the other problems in our fair city, is now going to go after mobile street vendors.

While, of course, some of the food proffered at these "roach coaches" is downright awful. But some of the best food I've ever had was gotten from some guy cooking on the side of the road. The best burrito in Sacramento can be gotten from that one guy on I Street.

Street vendors are often inexpensive and delicious. Cutting them a break can offer residents plenty cheap tastiness. You can even encourage them, like Singapore does (yes, that's the only time I'll say those three words).

Hopefully the city council will spend their time on more obvious ways to improve the quality of life for its constituents.

that's MY hobo urine!

Yet another round in the amusing fight between Moe Mohanna and city hall over the uriniest piece of real estate in all of Sacramento.

Hat tip to Central City Op.