Blog Archives

As I mentioned in my post this morning, San Francisco was blanketed by a heavy summer fog today. By noon, the temperature was still in the mid 50’s. This weather is PERFECT for sleeping, but a bit frustrating when you want to work in the garden.

So, we headed south to San Jose where the temp were in the mid 80’s…yes, exciting San Jose. But wait…there is a method to this madness. We wanted to take Matthew to the historic Winchester Mystery House…a bizarre 160-room home built over the course of 38 years. The widow Winchester was clearly driven…or insane…and the result is a beautiful Victorian home, but with a maze of hallways, winding stairwells, doorways and stairs to nowhere, and hidden passageways. Definitely worth a visit.

After the Winchester House, we grabbed what we thought was a quick lunch at nearby Santana Row…a popular outdoor shopping/restaurant area. We were lured into the Consuelo Mexican Bistro, and the fun stopped there. Whatever positive stories I might have shared about the food, have been forever replaced by memories of horrendous service. I’m not talking about incompetence…I’m quite patient with people who TRY. I’m talking about the total lack of attention. At the end of the meal, we sat…literally…for over 20 minutes trying to get our bill. I waved at our waitress…nothing. Jeff asked the hostess to send someone to us…nothing. I rang my fork against my glass…funny…but nothing. I even emptied a glass of water and thrust it out in view of the water-guy…hoping that might bring a human to our table…nothing.

We left a zero tip.

We NEVER leave a zero tip.

NEVER.

After the lunch that became dinner, we decided to stay put for a while and catch a movie. We watched Evan Almighty…because it was starting when we walked up. It was an amusing diversion…not amazing comedy, but then we weren’t looking for that. I could watch Steve Carell and Morgan Freeman and Wanda Sykes in just about anything.

On the way home, we could see fingers of fog creeping over the coastal range along I-280. Its a beautiful sight, and a fitting bookend to our day.

Some quarter-million baseball fans are expected to visit San Francisco this week for the variety of activities leading up to the All Star Game on Tuesday at AT&T/SBC/PacBell Park. Not to be ignored, Mother Nature invited a guest as well…our famous summer fog.

I think its fitting really. You can have a sunny summer ballgame anywhere, but if you want the quintessential SF ballgame, then you should bring your fleece pullover…perhaps from SF’s very own Old Navy…fresh off the container ship from China.

Still…no matter the weather…nobody ever forgets a visit to our cozy ballpark by the Bay. Grab some garlic fries, pull a blanket up over your legs, and watch’em Play Ball.

After traveling the past several days, we decided to stay in this evening rather than wander across the city to watch the fireworks show along the northern waterfront. I don’t feel like I have missed anything…rather, it feels like we’re right in the middle of it. For the past 30min-plus, we’ve been listening to the show’s low rumbles, sharp pops, and thunderous booms. The sounds are bouncing off the hills in all directions, creating the feeling of a dramatic, extended summer thunder storm…one of my most favorite sounds.

Happy Independence Day.

One lingering piece of blog business is a bit of closure on the dead pine tree next door. The tree was fully removed while we were in NYC, and all that is left are some errant spots of sawdust in our backyard. Otherwise, you would never know that there was a tree there in the first place.

The open skyline is surely taking some getting used to, but the view to the south is quite dramatic. One thing we do miss is the shadow that the tree cast on the white house below…if we can just get them to paint the house a more neutral color, then we’re in business.

Nevertheless, I can’t wait for one of our dramatic summer fogs to roll in, so the view can truly be appreciated.

Well, it has sure taken me a while to get to through these shots from NYC. So, rather than try and structure this tale of fun and sun, I’ll try some relative groupings.

First off, some food and restaurant shots…which frankly were like main events each day 🙂 Here, you will see some shots from the Magnolia Bakery in Greenwich Village…where we found LONG lines to get hold of their delectable cupcakes. (We found the line short late one evening and tried these not-to-miss treats.) Then a shot of the live jazz at the Garage restaurant. Next is Jeff’s mouth-watering fritata from the outdoor grill in Bryant Park. And of course, some shots of the amazing Miracle Bar and Grill–can someone say bacon-wrapped shrimp tacos?

Next, we turn to our all-too-brief visit with Cheryl, Curt, and Loren. We got to visit the rooftop of their new building and scope our their unique view of the world…including a peek at the Empire State Building and the Roosevelt Island Tram.

And finally…the mish mash of other photos from around the city. The first one, I should point out, is a Jeff original. Its from the line at the Apple store, and I really thought it captured the sheer lunacy of the iPhone excitement.