across the famous bridge

 Yesterday I met four friends for lunch over in Mill Valley at The Redwoods Community Senior Center. I drove because Waymo doesn't do the bridge and Lyft is rather expensive. Everything worked out perfectly and we all enjoyed ourselves. This is a well run facility, but you know I was happy to get back to my little home in Bernal Heights.

so much beauty

 Amy had never been to Tunnel Tops and so yesterday we went in the morning to celebrate the burning off of the almost endless summer fog. You can barely see the Golden Gate Bridge emerging, but it did. Honest. 

photos from Dale

 My writing partner, Dale, lives in Massachusetts now, but he used to live here and would walk the Golden Gate Bridge early in the morning. He is a wonderful photographer and these are from ten years ago. A lot of his writing is about SF. Dale and his wife moved East to be with family ~ he is a bit homesick.

blue skies, clean air

 Yesterday Ginger and I walked along the Marina Green and admired the odd fog "spray" at the bridge. We then had our coffee and sweet inside Fort Mason (top photo) where we snagged a picnic table in the sun. Slowly life is returning to our city. The day was topped off by a fine state of the union speech from President Biden last night. The Ukraine has brought America some togetherness, or so we hope.

bonus from Friday photo!

Back to Crissy Field with Ginger where I snapped our famous bridge and inadvertently captured a racy (I hope) tattoo on this young woman in the short skirt. I can't quite read it. Surprisingly, I appreciate all sorts of tatts from my working days at Borders and Barnes & Noble. My friend Marsha spied the tattoo which I had missed, being so overjoyed with the splashing surf, bright blue sky and aforementioned bridge.

opened last July

Thursday was the first time that we had been on the new Doyle Drive and
my, it was quite wonderful and easy. For one thing they have strict 35 MPH
speed limits and there are two short and easy tunnels, then expansive views of
the Presidio and the bay before we smoothly reach the Golden Gate Bridge.
It had been difficult before, almost like a narrow freeway, horrible. Coming
home was also easy with clearly marked exits, posted in advance (what?) and
without the toll takers the cars zip through. Most locals have the FasTrac®
and visitors get billed for their toll as cameras snap our progress. I was not
looking forward to driving on our trip to Marin, but this could not have been
easier and we salute the progress.

across the bridge

It was a smooth ride yesterday over to Tiburon (quiet) and Sausalito
(packed with tourists) and then on to Fort Baker for a more peaceful
look out over the bay. Lovely lunch at Poggio in Sausalito, our
friends do love the food here, especially the fresh seafood. We dropped
them off about 3pm and then the long and difficult drive from Fish
Wharf to Bernal - it should take 20 minutes, but due to impossile
traffic it was about an hour. Oh, Friday afternoons in my city...
Today, back to normal - but it was such fun being with Olga and Sam again.

everyone loves our bridge

Shoes represent the GGBridge suicides ~ 1598

75 years of grandeur

Impressive fireworks last night

We could see the tall fireworks from our back window last night, but
the celebration from Crissy Field had to be spectacular. The Golden
Gate Bridge is universally loved and admired for its durability and
amazing beauty. Sorry to put the shoe pic first, but it has to be painful
too, because our bridge is a magnet for suicides. And odd, the jumpers
always face the city when they leap. But yesterday was an all-day
celebration and people from all over came to marvel and enjoy the
75th bridge birthday.