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Well, the dead pine tree is still here (and still dead, for the record). The winds have died down, so we’re not quite sure what happened to the axe-man.

So, in lieu of tree removal stories, I present a photo from my latte-run this morning. The photo doesn’t really need explanation, although I am curious if there is something intentional about the car and its banged up state. The car has been in the same spot for a few days, so I’m suspicious that it was planted there for some artistic or commercial reason. Perhaps I’m just trying to stretch this rather mundane story into an entire post 🙂

After weeks of anticipation, this tree was NOT cut down today. It was NOT carefully disassembled limb by dead limb. It was NOT lifted up over nervous rooftops by a skillful crane.

Nope. After our neighbor notified us that this dead pine tree would come out starting at 8am this morning, we returned home to a view of a dead pine tree.

The world’s events do not seem to be aware of my blogging needs.

[Update: Our theory now is that today’s periodic high winds most likely squashed the tree extraction. Tonight, the gusts are particularly strong…as we listen to the dead limbs creak. We’re sure glad that OUR house isn’t downhill from the tree!]

I have been wanting to eat at Town Hall in SF for quite some time. Its one of those cozy SF restaurants that written up in every foodie magazine. The menu is a broad range of comfort-inspired foods…highlighted (in my humble opinion) by their fried chicken. Nevertheless, its also on the pricey side ($20-25 entrees), so its not an everyday stop.

So, when some of my dear colleagues dropped in for a meeting–welcome to Karen and Ed and Ken and Sandy–then I jumped at the excuse for a fun evening out. There wasn’t a disappointed palette at our table. In short, the fried chicken was amazing, which means that I’ll have to have a runoff with Firefly’s fried chicken, which I raved about in a previous post.

The great thing about having friends visit is that conversations go quickly beyond the normal work chatter and into the bizarre corners of our personalities. Last night was no exception. The conversation ran the gamut from the code of ethics for evil beings (yes, apparently they live by a code of conduct) to the monetary cost of sin (a 12% surcharge according to one private school).

Hmmm, perhaps that was the mojitos talking 🙂

One of my odd evening rituals is to fall asleep by reading the Yahoo news headlines on my Treo. Believe me…a few short pages and I am out like a light.

But one of tonight’s headlines was truly blogworthy: “Squirrel goes on rampage, injures three”. This story from the Reuters desk in Berlin told the riveting story of “an aggressive squirrel [that] attacked and injured three people in a German town” before being killed by a 72-year-old man’s crutch.

Although…in all fairness…this was closely followed by “Toddler served margarita in a sippy cup.”

I love getting my news from the Internet. Global warming? Never heard of it. But I do know that one of Milan’s airports was closed when its runways were overrun with mating wild rabbits.

In pleasant contract with Saturday’s cool foggy weather, today was brilliant from start to finish. Sure, you could quibble with the slight lingering haze, but that’s for glass-half-full types.

We ventured across the Golden Bate Bridge and into the Marin Headlands to visit a craggy piece of land that sticks out into the entrance of the Bay. Firmly atop this sliver of rock is the Point Bonita lighthouse. Built in 1855, this lighthouse was originally accessed via a natural rocky path, which eroded away. In 1954, a suspension bridge (below) was constructed. Today, the Park Service tightly controls foot traffic over this creaky bridge…only two people are allowed on the bridge at once…which can lead to some queues at both ends.

After our visit to Point Bonita, we drove into Sausalito for lunch at our favorite waterfront restaurant–Paradise Cove. We got a perfect table right on the water, looking out at the sailboats.

On the drive home, I spotted this rickety old VW van being carried home to roost in San Francisco.

I also had to share this shot of Matthew catching a cat nap as we sat in a tiny bit of bridge traffic.