museum people

Carlo, Ruby and Monkey

Have you met Carlo? He is the most talented display manager at the
deYoung and Legion of Honor. Carlo met Tanya, Scott, Ruby and me
downtown and we gently hit the SFMoma after lunch. It was a
delightful visit and the sun came out (!) just as we gathered after a
heavy morning rainstorm. Very telling, I thought.

remember Ruby?

My dear friend Tanya returned to SF last night. I miss her so much.
She and her husband and this live-wire Ruby are staying with Frances
and Donna and I was invited for dinner last night. We had a lovely
time catching-up and observing Ruby dash about in her world of
real and pretend. And I hope to see them again today...

an East Bay Day

new from the San Leandro BART station

veggie lunch with Meriel and Barbara

Meriel met me about 11am yesterday after I emerged from BART to
admire this brand new statue. She drove me to her all-time favorite
store (Potpourri) in Oakland where we met her friend Barbara.
Then off to lunch at Italian Colors (Oakland? Berkeley?) and by
the time I got back home it was almost 5pm. Strange that I wasn't
all that hungry for dinner, isn't it?

a walk in the rain

It just made me so happy to see folks lined up at 2:30pm yesterday

for Swan Oyster Depot on Polk Street. When so much is changing in

our city, I love that the old restaurants are still loved ~ and enough

to stand out in the rain for a seat at the counter. Me? I headed for

a warm, dry coffee shop and some latte with crumble cake. 

the Man Booker Prize

When I was in the book biz this award always indicated the BEST fiction
(to me) and of course we always ran out of the book the first day of the
announcement. This year an American won ~ Paul Beatty wrote The
Sellout and I've already ordered it on my LindaKindle2. Congratulations
to Mr. Beatty, what an incredible honor.

a SoCal photographer ~ here

Anthony Hernandez was born and raised in L.A. ~  SFMoma exhibits the
first retrospective in his 45-year career. He is a street photographer with
an amazing eye and most of the photos are really large so the viewer doesn't
have to crowd in and squint to see his work. It's a big show ~ 160 photos,
so plan accordingly.

I met Frances here yesterday because she hadn't been to Moma yet after
the re-do and since we are members I ordered tickets for us. It is no longer
over crowded, I'm happy to report,  and we wandered and talked and had
a waaaaaaaaay too expensive snack in the downstairs restaurant. Sheesh.

dog and cat talk

"Pebbles is finally getting friendly, Snowball needs a walk..."

Acrobatic cat and the W ~ as in MEOW 

I haven't posted about the SPCA recently, so here goes. The 24 French
Bulldogs have all found their forever homes and there is only one Whippet
remaining of the five that came in together. His name is Finn and he is
exceedingly shy and just had dental surgery. Above you will see my fellow
Monday morning volunteers and they are talking about the dogs in MY
kitchen area. They are so dedicated and concerned and knowledgeable
too. Below, a sampling of the many cats and kittens available to go
home with you NOW.

who's sorry now?

Some jerk (male) in Barrington, Rhode Island wrote a letter to the editor
of the local paper suggesting that women over 20 should not wear yoga
pants. Yesterday hundreds of women descended for a happy little parade
and marched right in front of this guy's house. They wore all sorts of
strange items, carried signs and had a fine, free time. Where has this
man been for the past sixty years?

I hear the cold breaking

This morning was the coolest since our new fireplace arrived. I am
reading poetry this morning ~ how could life be any better? Enjoy ~

Those Winter Sundays

Sundays too my father got up early
and put his clothes on in the blueback cold,
then with cracked hands that ached
from labor in the weekday weather made
banked fires blaze. No one ever thanked him.

I'd wake and hear the cold splintering, breaking.
When the rooms were warm, he'd call,
and slowly I would rise and dress
fearing the chronic angers of that house.

Speaking indifferently to him,
who had driven out the cold
and polished my good shoes as well.
What did I know, what did I know
of love's austere and lonely offices?

Robert Hayden

we be social

blue here, blue there

Venice by Bert Monroy

Last night Nancy's college pal Zozia came for dinner with her husband Bert
Monroy, an artist who works in the digital realism field. Amazing. Nancy
is one of those smooth, easy cooks (unlike yours truly) and the only thing
I helped with was a walk to Dianda's for dessert items. That I can do.
Zozia and Bert live in Berkeley and are well traveled so the discussions
were varied and always interesting. They hate Trump. Odd, no?

gathering for dinner o-u-t

Nancy, Scott and Mrs. Plotnik

To celebrate the birthday of The Great Plotnik (not shown) and because
daughter Nancy and her husband Scott are in town, we went to La Ciccia
last night. The food is inspired by Sardinia and it was delicious indeed.
This is one of SF's best restaurants (or so the experts say) and we would
agree. I recommend the lamb and the pasta was also quite tasty. Nancy
and her father (my Husbando) both had the shrimp and both eat it the
exact same way ~ very messy, not leaving even a smidgen of shrimp meat.
The way it should be consumed.

season three

Oh, boy ~ the return of a great one. Black Mirror will be on the Flix®
again tomorrow night. The title (we think) refers to our television set ~
aka the media, technology, the future. Scary stuff but so very well done.

a brand new book

I like to test a book on my LindaKindle2 and The Nix passed with
flying colors. I'm not quite sure what the premise of the plot is yet,
but it is beautifully written and I am happily lost in a new fictional
world with some engaging characters. Fireplace worthy indeed.

from BBC and Amazon Prime

Last night we finished the 6th and final episode of Fleabag ~ how come

the Brits always get it right? Funny, sad and shocking with a good strong

feminist touch. Phoebe Waller-Bridge is the writer and star here. I love

Fleabag's sister Claire and their relationship and her best friend Boo

plays a major role in the series too. This is not for the squeamish, but 

it is so rewarding that I feel just fine recommending it to you.

badass

I spotted this poster in a bookstore window on 18th Street. I like it.
I'm with her.

Potrero Hill

This is the next hill over from ours, about a 7 minute drive. Husbando and
I used to have an office here and we have many good memories. Friend
Karen H. loves Farley's and I always think of her when I see her place.
Yesterday I met Neti and two of her friends for lunch at Aperto and we
had a fine time ~ I enjoyed a yummy pork belly sandwich and news of
all sorts. Oh, yes, my parking karma is currently s-t-r-o-n-g.

happy rainy day

Before

After

We haven't used our fireplace in quite a few years. It seems like every other

day here in SF is a "no burn" day and Husbando's sinuses attack him much

of the time when our neighbors have a REAL fire. But we missed our 

fireplace and we have been working for the past six weeks (or so) to have 

a new gas line hooked up and then yesterday Blaze installed this great

log set. There is some warmth too and I can't tell you how wonderful it

it to sit here in front of the fire with my laptop this morning. Funny, we

had predicted the hottest day of the year for the final installation, but

yesterday was gloomy and rainy ~ a perfect fireplace kind of day.

a notable omelet

Yesterday I met my friend Pamela for lunch at La Note on Shattuck Ave.
in Berkeley. Such a charming, bustling restaurant, very close to BART.
We had much to discuss because Pamela is a writer and we both keep
up with all the museum gossip where she also used to work. I do want
to recommend the ham and cheese omelet and a latte in a bowl, of course.

to cleanse my palette

Nothing like a good and bloody murder in Dublin, Ireland to take that
bad baseball taste away. The Trespasser is helping me heal. I read
it on BART yesterday when I went out to Pleasanton to visit Ginger
and we talked about everything except our beloved Giants.

it's just a GAME

So how come I have this achy breaky heart thing going on? Congratulations
to the Cubs who won last night in the 9th inning. Our poor bullpen has a
history this year of giving it up in the late innings and the Cubbies have a
history of winning in the final hours and so that was that. I still think Bruce
Bochy is about the BEST manager in baseball, but he will get a lot of
criticism for wrong decisions. He can handle it, so can we. This too shall pass...