Summerized

Dolores Street

Yesterday, we saw a small grey rat walking in brisk circles on the sidewalk. "A rat!" cackled a wheelchair-bound woman with large, pink bare hands and feet, and cat-lady hair. "Someone must have poisoned it. I wish I had something to hit it in the head with."

Other stuff I should have blogged about sooner...

My sister and Michael got married this summer. The wedding took place on my parents property -- a beautiful wooded hillside with views for miles. It was a gorgeous day, and everyone had fun, enjoying the wonderful quirkiness of their wedding. Boston terrier Rufus was one of the groomsmen. Brittany and Michael played paper rock scissors to decide who said vows first.

Everyone danced at the barn reception.

Dad got to show off progress on his Germanic chalet.

And Dan wore a praying mantis.

Jason and I went to Ireland briefly this summer too. We visited Newgrange, a Stone Age burial and religious site with Adam.

The swirling carvings on parts of the structure were very interesting. They may symbolize multiple things, including being an abstract map of the local geography.

Toward the end of the summer, we camped near Santa Cruz with Lisa and Wai, and several of their friends.

With that many foodies, there were lots of tasty things to eat, like Tom Yum chicken skewers, salmon grilled on a flavorful board, and sour plum filled rice balls.

Wai showed us where he surfs every weekend too.

Found 2 blocks away from home: Braided, soiled and discarded weave

Maker Faire '09

Jason and I went to the Maker Faire last weekend. There was less steampunk than last year, and more rapid prototyping. I'm so excited about that technology, and have been wanting to work more with it.

And I totally want some of these jumping stilts.

Hikes

We've been doing a lot of hiking lately. There are so many wildflowers out this time of year. This hill was quite a schlep.

And when we don't get out of the city, we take stairway walks. Most of them can be reached from our front door. The Vulcans Stairs are one of my favorites. They're the length of a city block; in fact they are a city block -- an official street comprised only of stairs and lush gardens. The gardens are gorgeous, and are maintained by neighbors. Quaint old houses along the Vulcan Stairs have no other access than the stairs, so residents must carry everything they bring from up or down the stairs.

22 Bus

Rode the 22 bus to my new gym today. It was absolutely packed, with standing room only, and the driver was a student bus driver, with his teacher leaning over him, giving him nuggets of wisdom like "Watch out for these people poppin' out like cockroaches!," in reference to wayward pedestrians.

When I got to sit down, there was a guy sitting next to me; I could feel his body trembling. He was having a phone conversation, saying things like "I told him I'd mentioned him at the meeting and he was upset about it. I told him, well, you're a part of my life.... my counselor told me I have some profound things to say."

Skyline Ridge with Lisa and Wai

It was a gorgeous day yesterday. We hiked on Skyline Ridge with Lisa and Wai.

Sojourns

I've been taking more walks around the neighborhood in the last weeks. Kit and I walked to a holiday fair one day, and saw the above sign: "What is impossible today, that if it were possible, would transform you?" Heavy. We also enjoyed seeing some homemade bag dispensers made of cut up plastic milk jugs, nailed to trees, with signs encouraging people to pick up after their dogs.

Walking around my own block, I was accosted by a tallish woman with a wobbly walk, wearing a North Face puffer vest. As I passed her, she said "Eat sh*t and die and stay out of my f$#ing forcefield. Karma will get you with a big fine."

On a happier note, Thorough Bread has a holiday bread tree up.    

And someone Rudolphed their jacked up truck.

And I climbed Randal Rock.

Just another day in San Francisco...

Napa Schmap

My photo of the gardens at Indian Springs in Calistoga has been included in the Schmap Napa Valley guide. Just looking at it makes me long for warmer days.