Leonard visits during Thanksgiving wkend

Leonard came by frm Thurs-Mon, so I brought him to places that I wanted to go to before I left the bay area...
On saturday, we went kayaking at Elkhorn Slough. It was awesome. Sometime between 2004 and now, the resident population of harbor seals and sea otters had been busy pro-creating, because it was even better than I remembered. Sea otters are really cute, especially when they're floating on their backs, munching on crabs and other delicacies from the river bed. Unfortunately, they tend to get scared and dive down when they see leonard enthusiastically paddling towards them on his kayak.

On the way back we stopped by the Gilroy factory outlets, to do our part for the US economy. They were having thksgiving sales, so stuff was cheaper but harder to find than usual.

The next day, we met Lennon and April in SF. We strolled down Haight st, walked into funky stores selling rubber chickens and staggeringly overpriced Japanese dolls, and had brunch at the Pork Store Cafe. The Cafe reminds me of Pete's Grill in Baltimore-- seating at the counter, staring in fascination while the cooks juggled hashbrowns, eggs, burgers, grits and pancakes on huge grills. We walked out replete, filled with food and kindness towards mankind. We also smelled like grease, but that's ok.
Next, we headed for the Sutro baths and the Land's End trail. It was a fabulous day-- great weather, amazing views of windswept cypress trees, ragged rocks, and SCARY waves. The trail was quite a trot. The first part was paved and full of families. The second part was less wheelchair-accessible, and definitely more quiet. 2 miles later we emerged at Eagles Point, next to beautiful and opulent houses. We walked back through city streets, with Leonard n Lennon discussing property prices and the impossibility of buying an apartment in SF.

Leonard's last day, we went to the San Jose Tech Museum. It was underwhelming. Too many kids, and not fun if you're over 12 yrs old. The 2 cool exhibits were 1) the robot that can draw you after taking a webcam pic; 2) the computer where you can design a rollercoaster ride, then 'ride' it in a stimulator. The best part of the trip was going back to Mt View and having ramen at Maru Ichi.

Beloved Ramen!
Thy scrumptious broth seeps inside
Bringing blissful thoughts

Stuff to do

I've been trying to keep busy. trying to sort stuff out.

My to do list:
1) decide on the plan for bolivia.
2) work on hfb website
3) enjoy the bay area
4) work on publishing those papers
5) check out possible labs in singapore
6) make my keystone poster
7) finish reading my books on the portrayal of women in the media in the 1960s, and green economics
8) get over my current QE obsession

so far, I have
1) made a list of possible labs
2) watched many drama serials
3) looked at random bolivian websites

conclusion-- supremely unproductive. I think i will make a good vegetable. no wonder i find myself gravitating towards those 10 pound bags of potatoes at the supermarket. clearly, i recognize them as kindred souls.


The darkness beckons.
Land of opportunity
or enticing trap?