pickin', pooches, and perserverence

summer is finally here!

seriously. whilst some of you are facing the rainy season doldrums, and others have the white stuff in their near future (or already experienced it--yow, jewlee!), sf is in full summer regalia = sunny and 70's.

this past weekend, sf had a free bluegrass-ish festival in golden gate park. i planned to go solo, and then my new friend (via lisa!) called me up and i suddenly had a play date! :)

the fest is pretty huge, and finding a spot in which to settle down was tough. we opted for a druid-like existence under the trees:



pretty sweet, huh? after a bit, we blazed a trail to a better spot from which we could actually SEE the Big Event: billy bragg. i wasn't much of a bb fan before the show, but all that changed. i left the fest energized and saddened and bolstered by his performance. you see, bb is a progressive--a socialist, really--who speaks the truth about our current state of affairs with intelligence, wit, and passion. hearing a non-american speak about such topics really affected me... it's one thing to banter with your friends, and another to hear a brit spout, "you americans are smart enough to be doing better things than blowing people up!" (not to say that he didn't admit his own country's complicity in the whole affair) and "it's not the religious right or neocons that are the real problem. it's cynicism that will destroy your soul." that last one resonated with me quite a bit. clearly, he enjoyed the liberal-leaning californians' enthusiastic responses to his words.

here's a sneaky shot of my buddy erica listening to bb:


this weekend we also attended the first ever canine film festival. the opening night included hob-nobbing with fred willard, one of the stars of the night's flick, "best in show." we opted against hob nobbery, and instead heard him answer a few questions before the film. BUT, the best part according to david, was the fact that behind us sat a very sweet and calm weimaraner watching the show--> in a theater seat! no barking! we were impressed.

and then, the--whew--perserverence. i've been meaning to get on my roller skates and shake some booty since well before i moved. i decided that i'd take advantage of the roller disco sunday afternoons in the park and see if those short shorts-wearing kids really ARE my people.

well, they are and they aren't. it took me a while to muster up the moxie to step out onto the smallish outdoor rink. when i did, it wasn't all that pretty. respectable, for sure--no falling--but definitely grooveless. sigh. my skates, although dang cool, are pretty heavy. most peeps at golden gate are wearing old skool white boots which may be part of my problem; it's hard to boogie in leaden skates! the other part is practice: outdoor skating is a whole different mode than indoor rink skating. practice is what i need, and i'm checking out the smooth paths at the panhandle later today!