urban remedies

 What a day. Karen returns to NYC today, but yesterday was very, very nice with lunch at the Ramp and then a walk down at Salesforce Park which has reopened and is prettier than ever, or so it seems. Of course the weather could not have been better. Lovely Sunday!

the writing tribe reunites in the fog

 Of course today is sunny and beautiful, but that's SF. Almost six hours of food, talk, laughter and even some tears (mine, naturally) as the Tiapos (aka Fluf) group met over at Doug and Barb's yesterday. So wonderful seeing everyone again. Fabulous food, as per usual. And we can write, that's for sure.

Van Gogh as an Event

 It's called Immersive Van Gogh and it is quite wonderful to behold. One huge room with walls in constant motion and music background. Ginger and I had timed tickets for yesterday and we spent an almost overwhelming hour enjoying every moment of this spectacular must-see event. All very well organized and even the crazies left us alone as we had lattes on Market Street afterwards. Delightful experience.

book club women in the sun

Back to Chouquet's for outside dining and book reviewing yesterday. Lovely sunny day and we discussed "News of the World" from every angle as we chowed down on French toast, French fries and a good old Ameican latte or two. The book for June looks interesting too....

 

reunion in the Grove

 Pat's Grove kept us sane last year and we gathered yesterday to recall a few memories and celebrate the fact that we are all vaccinated and safe. Everyone is busy again, but it was such a lovely day that I'm glad we got together to enjoy our lunches and each other. 

did you ask about Tuesday?

 

Back to Crissy Field with Ginger yesterday. I don't think I have shown you the fishing pier before, but it is well used and for some reason was busier than usual yesterday. And by now I'm used to folks asking me to take their photos in front of our iconic bridge. I just love that all iPhone (and other brands) cameras are so very easy to use, but I do ask if they want my finger in with their keepsake pictures. 

saving democracy

 Sister District asked me to do another postcard project. This time to voters in West Virginia. We ask them to call Sen. Manchin's office and urge him to protect our freedom to vote by passing S1 ~ For the People Act. This is a much easier script than the ones we did back in good old 2020. Fingers crossed!

impossible to believe

 Today is Bob Dylan's 80th birthday. Such a genius poet and song writer. One of my favorites is this song from Wonder Boys movie in 2000. SHEEEESH, did you say 80? 

IT'S NOT DARK YET

Not Dark Yet

Song by Bob Dylan

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Shadows are fallin' and I've been here all day
It's too hot to sleep and time is runnin' away
Feel like my soul has turned into steel
I've still got the scars that the sun didn't heal
There's not even room enough to be anywhere
It's not dark yet but it's gettin' there

Well, my sense of humanity has gone down the drain
Behind every beautiful thing there's been some kind of pain
She wrote me a letter and she wrote it so kind
She put down in writin' what was in her mind
I just don't see why I should even care
It's not dark yet but it's gettin' there

Well, I've been to London and I been to gay Paris
I've followed the river and I got to the sea
I've been down on the bottom of the world full of lies
I ain't lookin' for nothin' in anyone's eyes
Sometimes my burden is more than I can bear
It's not dark yet but it's gettin' there

I was born here and I'll die here against my will
I know it looks like I'm movin' but I'm standin' still
Every nerve in my body is so naked and numb
I can't even remember what it was I came here to get away from
Don't even hear the murmur of a prayer
It's not dark yet but it's gettin' there

and more cats in Bernal

 Okay, this will finish my animal-filled blog posts for the week. Top photo is 17 year old Gingi who lives right next door. She is dependent on Lynn, the wonderful woman who feeds me. Ozzie belongs to Heidi and Rob, two doors down. He is a bit of a terror who brings all sorts of little critters into their home ~ a real show off. Yes, Heidi and Rob feed me too. Ozzie is named after the baseball player. Ever since our orange cat, Uncle Junior, I have come to believe that these are a superior cat sub set. Right, notthat?

Mr. Handsome

 That is what the vets named this two year old mountain lion who was roaming around Bernal Heights last week. Beautiful creature who somehow got here from the south. (Probably faster than the always clogged freeways.) He is gorgeous but I'm glad I didn't encounter him as I walk the nabe. 

cat treats

 Annabelle and I are delighted that the fog is gone (for now) and we are enjoying this sunshine so much. It's still cool enough in the morning to turn the fireplace on, but only for a very short time.

mouse treats

 I will forward this to Doug and Barb who are always trying to catch Harvey, their resident mouse. Or a part of Harvey's family? Back in Pompeii they used to toss the mice into this big clay urn and fatten them up with nuts and other nibbles ~ the mice would run around, not able to escape and then the Romans would BBQ them to perfection. Quite a few of my friends have mouse guests due to all the construction here in SF, but I have Annabelle and she is not to be rented out. (Error correction: NOT the final Warriors game this season, even though they lost last night. Drat.)

BIG game tonight!

 Warriors vs. Lakers 7pm. ~ do-or-die playoff game, always fun. I haven't exactly been a devoted basketball fan up until now, but for sure I will watch tonight. Go Dubs!

and from Libby at the Library

 I'm a fan of the public library as I spent much of my youth at the one in Pasadena, CA. A friend recommended this book and since he does the audio thing, I borrowed it for my jigsaw puzzle time. I have gotten used to reading two books at a time now: one on the LindaKindle and now the audio. The Library Book tells the story of the 1986 fire that devastated the Los Angeles Central Library. Susan Orlean, the author, reads her book. I believe that one of the reasons I don't mind paying is taxes is because of my love for our libraries. 

what's on my LindaKindle #4?

 Dancing Jen recommended We Begin at the End and I appreciate her and this novel. We are having grey and foggy weather lately (hello, is it June?) so I have some very pleasant fireplace hours with a certain snugglebutt cat on my lap. 

yes, they are still here

 Sometimes I hear the parrots squawking when I'm out walking, but they blend in so nicely in the trees that I don't know how many or if they are happy and healthy. Thanks to the Blogmaid, who sent me this photo from her friends Elizabeth and Colette who live on Telegraph Hill, we can appreciate these wild birds again. The documentary was released in 2003 and was an instant hit. SF also has foxes, skunks, coyotes, possums, raccoons and somehow they all do just fine. Amazing.

Mr. Mayhew

 My amateur iPhone photography does not do Richard Mayhew justice, but I especially loved these two from the SF Moma visit on Thursday. Mayhew is a Black artist, born in 1924, and still producing beautiful and dramatic landscapes today. I was so delighted to discover his work ~ intense, powerful. 

Andrea from Hailey, Idaho

 Andrea is a writing partner and was a huge help to me when Bill died. Her husband died about a year before mine and she guided me through the process and understood when I burst into tears over the persimmons in Whole Foods. We met for lunch yesterday at the California Pizza Kitchen and then spent a few happy hours at SF Moma. There is an artist on the 4th floor that I wanted to see and I will post about him in a few days. His name? Richard Mayhew. So that's a promise.

and here in Jerusalem

 Friends have been talking about Shtisel on Netflix and I finally succumbed. There are three seasons and I am brand new at this point, but lordy, such a family. The ultra right of any religion anywhere is a pain in the ass problem and the Hassidic Jews are no exception. Great drama, however. Check it out!

a win all around!

It was a beautiful day at the Jewel and so nice to be back after being away for more than a year. I met Ginger and Amy at the Willie Mays statue and we proceeded to our seats in the Arcade Vaccinated (ahem) section. The well regulated small crowd was spaced nicely and we never felt crowded, and our Giants played nicely. That Texas team made a couple of errors that helped our win. A very good day, all in all.

our low tech city

 Barb sent me this photo from her walk about ten days ago. All these goats are ironically doing their clean-up assignment right below Billy Goat Hill. 

not a fan

 Step daughter Nancy sent me this beautiful bouquet for Mother's Day. Women without children don't get too excited about this Hallmark Holiday, but I do appreciate the gesture and the flowers. To see Facebook or Instagram this weekend, which I avoided this year, one wonders if there are no bad mothers anywhere.

Friday dinner = a delight

 Same place, different people. Karen fed Suzy and Floyd and myself in Doug and Barb's home and it was a lot of fun and delicious food. And last night my neighbor Lynn brought over a plate piled high with tri tip and luscious rice and beans and I am all set for a walk by the ocean today.

back to Italy

Yesterday I enjoyed my first visit to the Legion of Honor in a long time. The exhibit is a dramatic reminder of how fragile life is ~ Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD but quite a few beautiful pieces remain and they are still finding more and more in Pompeii. The top photo is mosaic tile ~ gorgeous.

poet, friend, house sitter

 

Karen Hildebrand	Tue, May 4, 8:22 AM (3 days ago)
to Doug, me, Will, Suzy

My happiness is nearly boiling over this morning. I promise not to send you a poem every day, but here's my first ditty witten from Sanchez Street.

Setting the Table

If the air smells sweet
enough for dessert spoons
it means you're home. Tonight
there will be pie thick enough 
to eat with a putty knife, this lemon 
tree near the asparagus patch.
I'll lay the table with pearl handled
pistols—not loaded, this serving
is pure pleasure. Here, where 
every walk is uphill but leads 
to an open door and the sunshine 
tastes like green tea. Nasturtium 
grows wild at my table, snow peas 

hide beneath. If you pick 'em, 

I'm told, they'll just keep giving. 

Go ahead, put your hands in the plants.
Close your eyes, you'll find them.

Karen lives in a high rise in Brooklyn. She is staying at Doug and Barb's for the month. She

used to live here on Potrero Hill and her memories run deep. 

the grandsons did good

This exhibit of two of the most innovative modern artists is a collaboration by the grandsons of Alexander Calder and Pablo Picasso who met a few times in the 1930's and admired each others work. I enjoyed this so much and was struck my the many similarities of ideas, forms and concepts. It is an inspiring exhibit and I urge you to see it before the May 23rd closing date. De young ~ first floor. Excellent.
 

coffee by the sea

 Crissy on Tuesday with Ginger. Another gorgeous day on the bay. You can see that we had our usual front row seats for coffee and a sweet. Perfect walking and talking weather. 

all grown up now

 Who could ever forget Anna Paquin in The Piano (1993) when she was eleven? Here she is again in this strange, intriguing drama on Amazon Prime. These women are no-nonsense public relations professionals based in London. Flack is just plain fun.

back to Berkeley

 Finally we three could meet again ~ this time to celebrate Pamela's birthday. Brunch at ZUT and some good talk over French toast, bacon, eggs, etc. Lots of coffee too, of course. Fourth Street is back to business ~ lots of people in stores and restaurants. Joe was good enough to drive us from SF to meet Pamela who lives WAY over there. A lovely Sunday indeed. 

MATS meets again

 Only three this time for the Mullen Avenue Tea Society ~ with gallons of chai thanks to Ian. Lynn provided sushi as she was the official hostess and I brought the Dummies book for Ian. And yes, it was cold for Spring but a good time was had once again.