May 1 - 6
Tuesday, May 1. Back to work, starting yesterday. It was pretty uneventful except when I went to go to the bank and pick up a few groceries before my shift started and the car wouldn't start. It happened because I left the lights on last night and the battery was dead. Mike came to the rescue and hooked up a charger, so I was able to leave about 20 minutes later and run my errands before work.
It was a beautiful sunny day in the upper 60s.
Thursday, May 3. Its another beautiful morning here in Pacifica, although a bit cool. Yesterday started out rainy but cleared up nicely and got windy later in the afternoon. This week I've been searching for a product called TC-11 that is supposed to clean and protect from rust on the motorhome. The company's website says that Ace Hardware sells it, but I've stopped at 3 hardware stores and 1 auto parts store to no avail. The buildup of rust is a big problem around here and our propane tank is looking real bad. Each time we clean the motorhome and car, we take care of any spots that develop. Kind of a pain - reminds me of the road salt damage up north.
I got my housecleaning out of the way today. I remember when that job took me hours or a full day. Now I can get it done in just over an hour - and that's a thorough cleaning. Just another one of those things I really like about living the "simple" life.
Our workweek is finished and we've got the next 4 days off again. We need to shop around for a cell phone package as our contract expires this month. I've been looking at the blackberries because a phone like that would replace my Palm that is no longer supported by the company. We'll see - there's so much out there.
Savana called this evening and she's interested in coming to visit for a couple of weeks this summer.
Friday, May 4. Our 1st day off started real slowly, with both of us sleeping in, having a late breakfast, reading, and computing. In the afternoon we shopped for cell phones because my battery has been real sluggish and our contract with Verizon is up this month. I've been researching the blackberry's and wanted to get more info on them. We ended up switching to Cingular and purchasing Blackberry Pearl phone/organizer/e-mail/internet devices. So now we have to go through the learning curve on them. We signed up for a class on Sunday evening to learn more. Will send e-mails to let you all know our new numbers as soon as we feel a bit more comfortable with them.
Saturday, May 5. We went to look at a 2000 Toyota Echo this morning - not bad, but we didn't buy it - have another to look at tomorrow. Seems like a nice little car.
In the afternoon, we washed the motorhome and car. It was a beautiful day, lots of folks out and about.
Sunday, May 6. The Toyota that we wanted to see was in Vacaville, a little more than an hour's drive from here. There is just so much traffic on these freeways. It doesn't really make for a pleasant drive. The car was ok but once again, we walked away without buying. Wouldn't you know, the Suzuki just purred. I do think it makes sense to get something different.
|
May 7 - 13
Monday, May 7. The weather for the last 4 days has been gorgeous. It was actually warm enough in Pacifica to wear shorts. At one point this afternoon, our thermometer registered 81 outside. Absolutely perfect but according to what we're hearing, we won't be experiencing too much of it. Maybe global warming will help us out this summer.
What a day, last day off and we had to do laundry and get groceries for the next week. After getting that all done, we drove to Corte Madera where we found just the car that we've been looking for. A sharp, sporty, blue Honda Civic that is in excellent condition. Sometimes, I'm really glad that Mike is so persistent in his searches. This time, I think he stumbled on a cream puff for a very nice price. Since we have to fanagle and transfer some $$$ to pay for it, we won't be picking it up until Thursday evening. Can't wait for the weekend - guess we will be doing some driving.
The next project will have to be to find someone that's interested in buying the Suzuki and hopefully, we will be able to recoup some of the $$ we've put in it lately.
This evening, Gail and Elaine joined us for dinner. Mike grilled some chicken on the new grill and it turned out delicious. I made some seasoned rice, Waldorf salad, and we had cheesecake with raspberries and blueberries for dessert. What a way to end the weekend.
Tuesday, May 8. Nothing really to write home about today, other than the beautiful weather once again. About 8:00 this evening, it all changed and you could see the fog clouds rolling in - it looked like sheets of it. It went from beautiful sunshine to overcast gray in about 5 minutes. Oh, well - no wonder they say, "where in the fog is Pacifica".
Some interest news of San Francisco is that some remains of an old sunken clipper ship, the King Phillip, surfaced at Ocean Beach during low tide. The last time it surfaced was 1985. Check out the photo posted in the journal.
Thursday, May 10. It seems like we are spending a lot of time getting our new phones setup; Mike is making his pretty and adding all kinds of sounds and gadgets while I have been struggling just to get my address book and calendar synchronized. We sure do think differently.
I took apart the ceiling fan/vent in the bathroom today for cleaning. It really needed it. For a while there, I didn't think I would be getting it reassembled correctly, but after several attempts, it worked out.
After work, we drove to Corte Madera, just north of the Golden Gate bridge to pick up our new car. What a change this is going to be - to have a nice, 4-year old car, comfortable, dependable, and reliable car (what we thought we were getting in the Suzuki). Now the Suzuki gets listed on Craig's List - we're hoping it sells quick and for the price we want to get out of it.
Saturday, May 12. Last night we got a call from the guy that we bought the car from. He needed to get cash instead of the personal check that we gave him. So today started with a scramble to meet him at a bank and do an exchange. It all worked out fine and we got it taken care of.
Mike and I were exhausted - don't know why - but we both ended up napping for a couple of hours in the afternoon.
This evening, Ben and Jill, treated us to dinner at the Slanted Door, a Vietnamese restaurant in the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero. It was probably the largest restaurant we have been to in the city. Spacious, modern decor. We shared several dishes including two types of spring rolls, stir-fried chicken, scallops, cellophane noodles with dungeness crab, and asparagus. For dessert, we sampled a strawberry and chocolate dessert and a creme brule. Everything was delicious, another enjoyable dining experience with Ben and Jill.
Sunday, May 13. Mother's Day started with a call from Pat and a nice, enjoyable conversation. This afternoon, we went to Ben's apartment and had some sandwiches out on the patio. After that, we drove to Golden Gate Park where we took a nice long walk, strolled through the Rose Garden and some of the succulent gardens (see photos). I kind of wanted to go to the Conservatory of Flowers, but there was a very long line, so I opted to try that again during the week some time. It got really windy as we headed back to the car.
We decided to do our laundry when we got back to the RV park, wanting to get it out of the way so we could go for a nice, long drive in the new car tomorrow.
|
May 14 - 20
Monday, May 14. Just as we planned, we took a really nice drive this afternoon; heading south on El Camino Real (that wasn't the pretty part of the drive), going west on CA 92, south again on Skyline Drive, and west on CA82 until we came to US 1. The drive took us from the east side of the mountains, along the top of King's Mountain, and down the western side to the coast. What a beautiful drive; hilly, winding, the roadside covered with large Eucalyptus and Redwood trees and a few small communities here and there. After reaching US1, we drove a short way south on US 1 to Pescadero, a quaint little historic village, where we stopped at Duartes Tavern for lunch. The place has been run by the Duarte family for 4 generations. At one point in history, there was a fire in the building, but the locals saved the bar and the backbar (interesting priorities, huh?). Today we sat at that original bar.
After sampling both of their 2 specialty soups, Cream of Artichoke and Cream of Anaheim Chile, we took the bartender's recommendation and combined them. The soup was served with a big chunk of their warm sourdough bread. It was delicious. They are also known for their Olallieberry pie that voted one of the best in the country by Life Magazine in 2005. That also lived up to its reputation.
The menu was real interesting and we would love to go back there someday to try more of their goodies.
This evening, I will be helping Vernon with some more filing and organizing for a few hours.
Tuesday, May 15. The weather has been crappy since last night when the wind picked up and the fog rolled in. We had appointments this morning for our annual physicals - both went very well as we are in good health. Just need to do some follow-up blood tests now.
Our plan was to disconnect the motorhome this afternoon and fill up on propane, run the motor, check the jacks and steps. We decided to put it off until Sunday, our next day off. Neither of us felt like being outside in the nasty weather.
Wednesday, May 16. The marine layer finally lifted this morning and we got to see the sun again. It was back to work and a pretty uneventful day. I did learn that I will be putting in 8-hour days starting on the 25th and working 11:00-7:30 pm - yuck!!
Saturday, May 19. What a week! Its been busy, preparing for Mary and Lance's visit tomorrow, getting groceries, etc. Yesterday was a real bad day for Mike at work - had to do another shi*&y job with no help and that really pi*&ed him off. Sure can't blame him - the opposite shift has 2 people to do the same job that he is expected to do, the management doesn't have a clue, nor do they care. I also saw the manager being real rude to customers - can't believe they don't just tell him off. Oh well, we keep telling ourselves we just need to get through it and if it gets too bad - we will just leave (have a sense of relief there, huh).
Oh, and the yucky Pacifica weather is back; high winds and fog.
I'm making lasagna for tomorrow's dinner and it smells delicious in here.
Sunday, May 20. We survived another work week - quite a challenge. My hours change at our next shift - not especially looking forward to that, although it shouldn't be bad as long as I'm kept busy. The really don't seem to know what they are doing, we shall see.
Today we need to disconnect in order to load up on propane again. The last fill has lasted us almost 2 months - not bad, considering that we run the furnace most mornings and use the stove regularly. Also adds a few $$ perk to our income, as we don't have to pay for it. Also need to do laundry and wash the salt spray from the windows again.
We received a call from a person in Hawaii who is interested in the Suzuki. He wants us to arrange for a mechanic to inspect it, wants to talk to the mechanics who have worked on it, will send us a certified check and will pay us to deliver it to the port in Oakland where it will be shipped to Hawaii. Sounds like an interesting prospect.
Mary and Lance arrived around 5:00, got settled at their motel at Rockaway Beach, then joined us for dinner. Mary brought artichokes so we had them for appetizers. The lasagna, strawberries dipped in chocolate and whipped cream dessert, and the company of good friends was very nice and enjoyable.
|
May 21 - 27
Monday, May 21. Today was an enjoyable, very busy day. We joined Mary and Lance at their motel and relaxed on the deck overlooking the coast for a while. Our tour of the city started at Twin Peaks where we got a great view of the city from the top of the hill. From there we went window shopping and had some lunch at Haight-Ashbury, drove through Golden Gate Park, a short stroll on the beach at Ocean Beach (it was real windy and cold), hiked along the coastal trail, drove through the Presidio, checked out the shops at the Ferry Building and had a *bleep*tail on an outdoor patio.
In the evening, Ben and Jill met us at the Beach Chalet for dinner. It was a nice time and a very full day.
Tuesday, May 22. Today, we went to the Cartoon Art Museum on Mission St. Its not a real big museum, just 5 galleries, but has some interesting cartoon art, animation, comic strips, and political cartoons (an international perspective on American affairs). You can check it out at www.cartoonart.org.
From there, we headed to Chinatown where we got off the main tourist area of Stockton & Grant streets and wandered through the neighborhood. Its a lively place with packed streets, street musicians, vendors hawking all kinds of strange looking foods and herbs, roast duck, chicken, and other unidentifiable creatures hanging in windows. We got a recommendation from a local merchant to have lunch at the Great Eastern Restaurant, and the food was very good.
Later in the afternoon, we drove to Moss Beach to have a *bleep*tail and dinner at the Distillery. It was built in 1927 and known as "Frank's Roadhouse", a place for rum runners and other folks to hide out and have dinner along the coast. The patio provides a great place to sit in double rocking chairs and enjoy the view. If it gets cold, they provide heavy blankets. Our dinner was excellent.
The place was featured on the NBC "Unsolved Mysteries" program that recreated "The Legend of the Blue Lady", its resident ghost. A local psychic has had seances where she has communicated with 3 spirits, www.mossbeachdistillery.com.
Wednesday, May 23. Today started with unhooking the motorhome and taking it in for new tires - $1800 worth of tires. The replacement has been in our plan and we knew what to expect - gotta take care of one of the most important safety components of the motorhome. Now we have the freedom to travel on our off days.
We met Mary and Lance at their motel and walked along the beach for a bit (another beautiful day)! We got to see some interesting wildlife in the tide pools; anemones and starfish clinging to the rocks, lots of kelp, and several crabs darting about.
From there, we drove to Muir Woods, just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Along the way, we stopped for sandwiches at a deli and took them to the park for a picnic before hiking the trails. When we left, we were stopped at a stop sign when the car behind us hit our bumper - and now the new car has its 1st. Mike jumped out and was ready to snap a picture of the license plate and the damage to the car, when the frazzled women met him. The damage is a small indentation about the size of a pencil eraser. She was very concerned that he would report it to the insurance and handed him a $100 bill to take care of it. Needless to say, he accepted the $$$ and we all drove on down the road.
When we got back to Pacifica, we picked up the motorhome and got it set up. Mary and I went to the farmer's market and bought a roasted free range chicken, some veggies, salmon spread for an appetizer, and thats what we had for dinner. We sure have enjoyed their company and being back in vacation mode - gotta get back to our "perma-vacation" lifestyle.
Thursday, May 24. Back to work. Mary and Lance stopped by this morning before heading out of town. The day was pretty uneventful - the first time I didn't balance at closing since I started. It was a mis-counting error and not a big deal, but took a while to figure out.
This weekend is Memorial Day and we are expecting 53 check-ins tomorrow. It will be a real busy day and I will be working late.
Friday, May 25. Today was a busy day, starting with a meeting with Vernon this morning just after Mike left for work. He has some more accounting type stuff for me to work on. I got back home with an hour to spare before starting my shift at 11:30.
The afternoon was busy checking folks in, I had extra help later in the afternoon and we stayed open until 7 pm. A check-in error on my part resulted in a problem with closing, so it was close to 8pm when I left work. I really don't like the late days. Afternoon tea and some coffee insured that I didn't get a good night's sleep. Will have to avoid that from now on. Just gotta get through the next 2 days and look forward to the break.
The marine layer is back and it looks like the next 10 days are going to be foggy. Today, we saw the sun for about 30 minutes and the high was around 60 degrees. We've been hearing that this is typical summer weather for around here. Hope we can cope. Might just have to go over the hill to see the sunshine.
Saturday, May 26. Ben dropped Ruby off this morning for the weekend and we had a sandwich and a nice visit together. He and Jill will be spending the weekend (their 10th anniversary together) at Tomales Bay.
Not much more to write about today.
|
May 28 - 31
Monday, May 28. We survived another workweek and woke up to beautiful sunshine. Ruby and I went for a stroll this morning and it was beautiful, unlike the last 4 days when we had dense fog almost all day. I love it!
Big area news May 13 has been the story of a mother and her young whale that got off track and ventured some 90 miles through the Sacramento Delta and up the Sacramento River. Various agencies have been involved in trying to get them back to the bay. They were stalled for nearly a week upriver from the Rio Vista bridge. Everything they tried to get them to move past the bridge resulted in the whales coming to a stop and circling above the bridge. Yesterday, they made 17 miles progress toward the bay. I posted a couple of pictures in the photo journal.
Ben and Jill came by this evening to get Ruby and to have dinner with us. Jill fixed us Margaritas to toast their engagement. Ben proposed to her yesterday when they hiked to Arch Rock on the coast near Point Reyes. CONGRATULATIONS BEN AND JILL! (see photos of the happy couple)
Tuesday, May 29. Not much happening today. We delivered the Suzuki to a mechanic for a safety check (required by the prospective buyer). Walked to the Bay Coffee Company for a great cup of coffee and tea, then walked back.
Mike had a dentist appointment, so I washed the motorhome when he was gone. The salt air and s*It from the seagulls made a mess of it and it looked real nice when I finished. Its not a bad job, now that I have the right tools (long handled brush, adjustable spray nozzle for the hose, and a squeegee). I planned to do the car when Mike returned, but he stopped at the carwash on his way home, so saved me the trouble.
The news is telling us that the wayward whales have made considerable progress and are within 20 miles of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Pacific. They have been treated with antibiotics for wounds from boats and seem to be feeling better as they are very active and moving quickly (about 3 miles per hour). It's been kind of a fun story to watch.
Wednesday, May 30. I spent the morning working at Vernon's house and got a parking ticket 10 minutes before I left (street cleaning violation). What a drag.
The word on the whales today is that they can't be found - it is assumed that they made it out of the bay and to the Pacific during the night.
Thursday, May 31. Time flies - her it is, the last day of May. We drove to the Sacramento Delta today to check out an RV resort where we made reservations for getaway on our next days off. We weren't real impressed, so have decided to go back to the Ponderosa where we spent a few days with Patty and Roger in April.
Driving around her is not real relaxing, as it is mostly freeways and heavy traffic - not quite like our Miata drives on the backroads of Wisconsin.
|
Created on 05/01/2007 09:58 AM by bridge
Updated on 06/19/2007 10:13 AM by bridge
|
|
|
