One Short Day in the Bay

West Coast Jetlag is amazing: woke up at 8am. Cup of hotel coffee fueled a sun-soaked run along embarcadero, with views of Alcatraz. Feelings of Freedom, Talking heads in the background. The Pacific ocean smells different.

Bagels in the mission.

Work work work...

Met up with J1 and J2, old friends from high school. J1 lives in denver and randomly called me 20 minutes before my coffee time with J2.

BART to Berkeley. Little train, cloth seats, pleasant..

People in SF dress relatively well. More casually than in NY, laid back.

Dinner at Chez Pannisse with H, an old friend from the past. Great tomatoes and local wine. 

Tea next door with R, entrepreneur who has started a green consulting firm. 

Walk with B through Berkeley. Quiet and leafy streets.

BART back to SF.  

Three City Day

5:05am EST. I wake up in DC.

7:30am CST. We land in Chicago. Meetings and stuff. I eat two lunches, both of which are pretty good. 

6:50pm PST. I land in San Francisco and drive off into the sunset. 

9:15pm PST. Dinner at IHOP near Fisherman's Wharf. I am initially ignored for what seems like 20 minutes, but then the server is highly attentive. I eat a spicy chicken sandwich with provolone, which is delicious. Also, an Avocado salad (1/4 of an Avocado on lettuce for 2.49) and a crepe with blueberry sauce and vanilla ice cream. I consume an enormous amount of ice water and feel cold. The server asks me how I liked my food, and seems to really care. I experience a flashback to a movie that involves ordering ice cream in a diner in California.  

I notice that almost everyone around me is dressed informally, compared to DC. This strikes me as odd/good/slightly sloppy. 

10:00pm PST. A man in the hotel elevator asks me where I am from. A short conversation occurs whereupon I claim exhaustion. I don't think he was wearing shoes. 

Road Trip

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With E.

1. Ferry to Hyannis Port.  4:30pm.
2. Taxi to Barnstable Airport. 5pm.
3. Rent Blue Prius from Budget.
4. Drive to Brookline. Pick-up clothing from Cambodia, courtesy of Toro 7:30pm.
5. Dinner on Tremont Street at Pop's. WTH is Lobster dust? 8pm.
6. Drop off pots and pans in Cambridge.  11:30pm.
7. Drive to the Berkshires, during a thunderstorm.  Mass. Pike is desserted. We stop at a Mcdonalds for Coffee. I complain about the weather and am informed that it hasn't rained all summer.
8. Arrive in the Berkshires. 3:30am
9. Arrive at JFK: 5:30pm

National Airport,

It  is amazing how busy Reagan-National airport is at 5:45 am. I pass an entire boyscout troop, and then they pass me. Outside it is a cool rainy blue. Good morning, America.