beautiful and sad

 The Berkeley City Club was designed by Julia Morgan and it is stunning. Yesterday I went to a memorial service there for the daughter of friends who died of cancer waaaaay too young. It was also the 4th anniversary (aka Tender Day) of Bill's death so there were a lot of public and private tears and that is just how it is. Today is fog (so far) and the Pride Parade which I will watch on TV. I am OK, worry not.💗

Roe v. Wade overturned

 A dark day for women (especially the poor) in America. There will always be abortions but now there will be danger and a huge loss of privacy in some states. I almost said "backward states". Gloom.

two doors down

 This is a view from Heidi and Rob's who had a dinner party last night and I had a good time. Note the little slice of fog rolling in from the ocean. Most welcome. 

enough? yikes!

 Doug and I were able to walk to/fro our homes and meet at Emmy's on Mission Street last night. It was cooler but we sat outside and, as you can see, had waaaaaay too much to eat. Good old fashioned meatballs and spaghetti ~ cheesy garlic bread, cesar salad. Excellent food, great service and (for SF) very reasonable prices. 

way too hot

 

SF is not used to this hot weather (95º) so the Presidio was a good choice for Ginger and my walk yesterday. Lots of shade and peace. Today will be cooler, thankfully. 

the BIG parade

 Huge success yesterday ~ millions of fans lined Market Street. I watched on TV and cheered them on. Our writing prompts this week are Steph's tattoos:

• Love Never Fails (in Hebrew, right wrist)
• TCC Trust Commitment and Care (left wrist)
• > < (He must become greater, I must become less, on left bicep)
• WOE (working on excellence, right bicep)

Mexican pizza?

 Yes, yummmmm ~ the roasted corn kernels. Barb is out of town and Doug pulled me out of my comfort zone last night for an early supper at La Vaca Birria on 24th Street. Delicious and enough for tonight's dinner too. And we parked right in front (free on Sunday) and Bill was smiling his approval.

fifty years of Perry's

 I know, hard to believe, isn't it? Perry's on The Embarcadero is such a treat with reasonable prices and lots of good people watching in the patio right ON the street. The distinctive blue and white Perry's tablecloths and terrific service. I drove (!) and met Pamela here for lunch yesterday and since I was early I had a lovely walk before she arrived from Berkeley. Gorgeous weather, as you can see. 

beyond words, but I'll try

 This small and powerful exhibit is on tour from the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. Don't miss the video when you visit. I think my favorite part was reading about the two black artists and how they worked and what they felt as they painted these two iconic leaders. The two reference photographs (top) are fascinating too. At the deYoung ~ go.

and soon...a PARADE

 Well, that was fun last night. The fireworks in SF lasted until sunrise, or so it seemed. The Warriors were bound and determined to win in Boston last night and so they did, with a little drama and lots of joy.

the June book club yesterday

 Thanks to The Fevered Brain I selected this delightful novel The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot and the book club women loved it too. Connie and I blinded the world in our bright yellow and a good time was had by all at Chouquet's, our book club default restaurant. 

almost too beautiful

 Yesterday Ginger and I had our walk and coffee down at Sutro Park on the edge of the world. We could see forever and the weather was perfect ~ not too hot, no wind. Delightful.

nerves of noodle

 The Dubs won last night and now back to Boston to see if they can sew it up there. If not, back to SF for (yikes) a Game 7. And our Giants swept the blue scum sucking Dodgers over the weekend and then beat Kansas City last night. The stars are aligned, or something like that. Win, win, win.

fields of beauty and sorrow

 THE AIDS MEMORIAL QUILTS

The weather was perfect yesterday for walking slowly through the hundreds of quilts

in GG Park ~ heavy, misty and mournful. This was only a two day event and I needed

to pay our respects to those men and women who died way too young.

Thirty-five years ago Bill and I toured the memorial AIDS quilts display and I will

never forget that day. I needed to return yesterday.

My friend Terri told me where the quilts she made for her brother Frank (photo) and his

partner were and I wandered for quite awhile looking and weeping quietly. I was

surprised by how powerful these memories remain. And they should.

a giggle before sleep

 

There are dysfunctional families and then we have the previously wealthy Rose family who move to this depressing little town aptly named Schitt's Creek. When I scroll around before bed I stop at once when I see Dan or Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara (mom) or Annie Murphy. 

the important things

 So nice to escape to baseketball with a win like last night. Steph Curry is amazing. LeBron calls him "Chef" and was also overwhelmed by his 43 points. The 4th quarter was exhausting.

the hearings = riveting

 And here I thought I knew most everything about that horrible day. The committee did an amazing job and this is really Liz Cheney's moment. This is critical stuff.

DRAT

 The Celtics won again last night even though I wore my Dubs shirt all day. No fun. NO FUN.

wild irises in bloom

 The June Swoon fog (Karl) spend most of yesterday morning with Ginger and me out at Stow Lake. It was still a good walk and we warmed up with coffee. Fun to watch the summer kids' camps and try to help the tourists. The sun came out, of course, when we got home. 

it's a wrap x two

 Last night after my delicious post-graduation-party leftovers I turned off all electronics and finished The Perfect Mother (Netflix) and Hacks (HBO Max). Very satisfying indeed. Now I need something new. Feel free to send suggestions. I'm not wild about the new Stranger Things, btw.

a very special day indeed

Congratulations to Ryan and her wonderful parents! RR is with her friend Bella in the top photo and of course Mr. and Ms. Blogmaid in the middle. Lots of food and fun yesterday at the graduation party. So privileged to be part of this family. 💔
 

the Grove and the Grad

 Yesterday we met for hot dogs and all the fixings at Pat's Grove where we spent so many happy hours during the pandemic. It was good to catch up and eat too much. Today it is all about RR and her graduation ceremony and party. There was a gentle rain last night and the world feels fresh.

baklava anyone?

 Most of the parklets from the Great Pandemic of 2020 remain because we feel safer outdoors. The Vax cards are needed for indoor dining (thank goodness) but I prefer being outside. Here I am Thursday afternoon at "the Arab place" on 25th and Mission, waiting for my latte and baklava. The dessert was extra sticky and delicious and the sunshine most welcome. Life is good. Now let's ban assault rifles, ok?

hmmmmm, and so it begins

 Ooooops, so much excitement here in SF with the NBA playoffs beginning last night. The first quarter was great fun. The last quarter was a disaster. Back to the drawing board, Dubs.

dinner at Nopalito

 Nopa = North of the Panhandle. Great Mexican restaurant and lovely time. We are getting to know Leah who is marrying Britney, Barbara's niece, in September. Doug and Barb are so good to me. I skipped lunch yesterday because I wanted to overdo at Nopalito on Broderick Street. Done. The joint was jumpin'.

the ocean heals

 There were very few of us strolling along the ocean in Pacifica yesterday. Ginger and I had a fine walk and then some coffee and a sweet. We stared at the waves and talked about nothing/everything.

a sign in my neighborhood

 Walking, thinking, taking a photo here and there. Inspired.

Memorial Day 2022

 I am much more solemn about Memorial Day now than I was when I was young. It used to be a good old 3-day weekend. Today I think of all the young men and women who gave their lives so that we could say and do non-patriotic things which are necessary in a Democracy. Gratitude.