top five new experiences

1. dance dance
i'm not a gamer, but when a buddy who works at cnet gave me a tour that ended at one of the employee lounges equipped with arcade games, and he invited me to play "dance dance revolution," i figured if librarians at the last few conferences i've attended can join in, so can i. after a few misunderstandings about the dance cues, past gym classes in the 80's where we learned the hustle really paid off!

2. civic duty
for the first time in my life, i was summoned to jury duty. i was very excited, and like most experiences in my life, i was well-prepared. i dressed nicely, i read the pamphlets, i emptied my mind of biases (ha!), and readied myself for days, maybe weeks, of deliberation. you can imagine my disappointment when i was the 2nd juror asked to leave. my bias? i work for a non-profit. in the minds of the plaintiff's lawyers, i'm a classic do-gooder.

3. mt. tam
david and i spent a magical afternoon at a mountaintop birthday party this weekend. our perch overlooked both bolinas and the city. it was glorious.

4. goat farm visit
took a trip to a sweet goat farm, where we watched the cheesemakers frolic and had an opportunity to benefit from their good eats and luxurious lifestyle. mmmm cheese!

5. highway one delight
enjoyed a roadtrip to big sur with a good friend visiting from seattle. as midwesterners often do, we took a weekend drive that led us to sights both remarkable and memorable.

a year in flickr

i'm amazed and perplexed by my friends and family who craft holiday cards that recreate an entire year of events. are their lives that eventful? do they live out the year, taking notes of things worthy of christmas card remembrances? or do they perhaps keep a calendar of these things, and consult it whilst putting pen to paper?

i don't do any of the above mentioned, but since i've lately been of the challenging ilk, here's my go of it:

2007: a walk down memory lane

JANUARY: my good friend hollis and i traipsed barefoot on near-empty kauai beaches. and... in T minus 9 days, we'll do it again!

FEBRUARY: our buddy lee lefever showed up on the scene for a fun, mildly raucous, and thought-provoking visit. mid-month, i left behind my flaneur lifestyle, and entered the world of the workaday set, happily joining the smart folks at techsoup. still happy after almost a year... :)

MARCH: ahhh, ¡España magnífica! david and i traveled to spain, and spent a magical week with friends, learning about food, drink, and history. it was an incredible trip!

APRIL: our good friends jay and anastasia came through san francisco to see old buddies, to catch up on the city's creperie scene, and to support jay's cousin's first novel (read it before the sequel hits!). wine stashes were depleted, new-to-us restaurants were enjoyed, and we now await their next visit.

MAY: this month comprised fun and bittersweet moments. first the fun: a communications conference was held in the city, which meant many colleagues, and most importantly, close friends, showed up in town. on one night, we hosted a dinner party, where we commingled past, present, and future friends. soon after, david and i flew to nebraska to see my sweet auntie lee, who at 94, was just beginning to experience health issues connected to terminal cancer. it was a bittersweet visit, one filled with laughter and tears. i miss her.

JUNE: a much awaited and celebrated visit from mom and dad! we had a terrific time, visiting what seemed like every corner of this urban playland, focusing on what mom and dad termed, "our san francisco."

JULY: a crazy-making and eventful month, we flew to vashon island to see lynne and chris make it official, turned eastward to attend a mini-family reunion, and then moved our belongings and kitty cat to our new pad.

AUGUST: we didn't fly anywhere and no one visited. :)

SEPTEMBER: i took a 2-week trip on a bookmobile!

OCTOBER: lynne and chris visit! as our second visitors to the new pad (mom beat them by 48 hours), they both enjoyed, and played a part in, the demise of our air mattress (public apology to them, and to jay b, who slept on our floor, twice).

NOVEMBER: i traveled to seattle and saw lynne and hollis, my stitch crew, and i met my dear friends' new family. AND, we got married. :)

DECEMBER: after the whirlwind of november, david and i chilled, mostly, in the city. we bought our first tree together, and are enjoying a relaxing holiday at home.

food is fun.

we've had visitors--from mpls and seattle--and with each, we've found ourselves on a culinary tour of sorts, including spots we hold near and dear. we took lynne and chris to zazie and mom to a spot we've come to love in our hood. their first night here, lynne, chris, david, and i wandered to el metate for an authentic mexican meal, and found remnants of a second visit when we returned from work this evening. a weekday breakfast overlooking the gate to chinatown with mom was decadent and quite grown up, and last night, tapas was the focus, so we directed our palate toward a spot jay recommended before we moved to the city. an uncustomary stop at a south indian spot for brunch was superb, and an assortment of california cheeses complemented by a perfectly ripe pear was an apt post-flight snack.

we should have peeps visit more often :)
(read: that's an open invitation!)

buddies visit the city

in the last week, 2 buddies have graced our little corner of the city.

becky and her fam vacationed here for a week. lucky for me, she squeezed me into their busy schedule, which included a long-awaited introduction to her parents and brother. here we are, singing in the rain:



and then my buddy ryan made a whirlwind stop on the most gorgeous of days, which made him a bit teary. our afternoon was spent burritoing and shopping; the former was a success, the latter, sadly, did not pan out as expected. next time we promise to carve out some time to consult sf fashion expert jay f on the best spots (beyond kweejibo, which was an imperfect delight). our day was not without a learning moment: the current trends in the city appeal to the underfed herion chic (didn't we endure that years ago?). here we are, pre burrito and shopping (observe the hunger in his eyes):