"and i've working on my game because life is taxing, got to get it together and see what's happening"---the beastie boys

so we make our way to san francisco!

we immediately go to fisherman's wharf and check out the goings on. it was pretty cool...and i got a handful of candy for ninety cents.

driving in this city is pretty crazy with the hills and such, but really, it is parking that would keep me from making this city my permanent residence. i imagine you would find other methods of transport cuz it really does suck. we meet up with thomas and eileen and their adorable baby, james. i got them out to their first visit to the loving hut....and in chinatown no less!

thomas grew up in the neighborhood, so it was really cool to get such a full exposure. he provided some great history. i am so amazed by the architecture here, i was not expecting it to be so...captivating. i find it hard to walk around, i am constantly distracted by something...amazing.

insert old chinese men playing ancient instruments on the corner,  i love this picture

thomas was so kind, he got us set up in a hotel for the night. he wanted to offer his home to eric as he had helped him in the past, but with a new baby, a hotel was his offer. we accept! and instead of exploring the town, i fight with the wi fi in the hotel attempting to get the last blog uploaded...and was so exhausted that i fell asleep. every now and then i have to remind myself how much of this is new to me...and what a lifestyle change i have made. it is not all rainbows and butterflies, kids. but it sure ain't bad either...

the next day, we went to the 'crooked street'. i guess you have to do the 'tourist-y' stuff when you are visiting somewhere for the first time...but what i have realized: i don't like tourist-y stuff. it turns out, if everyone else likes some shit, i probably won't. and that is cool, cuz that is just me.

i think segways are retarded

we then trekked on to coit tower. the murals were really interesting. it was a lovely day...and walking in this city is pretty much just like hiking, so it meets the one-hike-a-day requirement.

as the prior night was kind of rough for me, this afternoon saved me. a dear old friend, parker, invited us to a backyard cook out at his house in oakland. we head over the bridge...and i immediately feel that oakland is way more suited for me than frisco. which is great because we get to spend the next day there too! i didn't realize how much i needed an afternoon of relaxation. parker to the rescue! his home was lovely and his friends made feel completely comfortable. everyone was super nice and it was an awesome afternoon. i instantly feel re-charged.

a totally awesome dude!

our time is too shot as parker has to go off to work and we have to meet nic for dinner. we go over to nicole and greg's house, also in oakland. it has been a few years since i have seen these peeps, but my girl ash seems to remember:

it was so nice to see nic and greg....and over a beer i have flashbacks of their deck in gahanna. what a lifetime ago that now feels like? i feel like i have had a few reincarnations since then and still growing. i feel good seeing nic as she was always someone i confided in...spilling my inner thoughts and secret dreams. i feel as if i am finally starting to do some of them...

we then go out to a fantastic dinner at mua. seriously, one of my favorite meals on the trip. the food. is. so. good.

Vegetable Ragout | polenta, kale pesto (wild rice, green lentil, kale, carrot, turnip, beet, shiitake, portobello mushroom, vegetable broth)

we get up the next morning to take the kids to the dog park. it was awesome! their have been so many times on this trip that i wished i had a dog and this sure was one of them. maybe the best dog park i have ever seen? 

again, the time with nic seems to go by too fast! a lovely visit for sure though. back over the bridge to frisco!

this is the part of the story where san francisco becomes a lot cooler for me. we go over to a wine tasting to meet up with friends from columbus. it is so great to see familiar faces! and i sure do love sarah and orron! we have a little hooping party in the parking lot! thanks again for the hoop, kat!

then elam show up and gives us a great picture!

we all head over to the brainwash cafe for the gig!

this might be the best gig ever! the brainwash cafe is a fantastic place. they give each performer a $50 bar tab (and they also have kickass food!) plus FREE laundry! and in perfect timing because i aint got no draws! 

elam starts it off and is so lovely.

i throw a load of laundry in, order a delicious veggie sandwich in perfect timing to enjoy another wonderful set by my sweet baby, eric nassau.

it always amazes me how charismatic eric can be on stage…as he quickly wins the crowd over. the amount of courage it takes to do what he does continually blows my mind.

i sure do love this man

thomas plays an awesome set and i am anxiously awaiting the arrival of trull train!

woot woot, jenny trull train!

it is so good to catch up with this fantastic lady, it felt like no time had passed at all. she reminded me of the days of 'fresh pants' and long bus rides. the time spent with jenny is so enjoyable…and i love it when eric gets to meet my peeps! especially good ones such as this! woot! woot!

the rest of the evening passes so quickly. i walk trull to the subway and amazingly find my way back, in perfect timing to figure out where we are going to stay for the evening. during this discussion, elam models the merch: eric nassau beard shirts! on sale now!

orron and sarah treat us to a room at the good hotel. it is moments such as these that my faith is restored in humanity. kindness and generosity are alive and well, folks. it was nice to have a bed and a shower…this hotel is pretty cool, in a totally hipstery (what-i-would-never-spend-money-on) kind of way. i am grateful for the experience though. and i better be practicing gratitude as the following morning, i get to realize a dream of eating at cafe gratitude. of course, i had been informed of all the scandals but after seeing 'may i be frank' i just couldn't pass up the opportunity for this experience. the potential of cult standing hasn't kept me from eating at places before (ahem, loving hut)

we ride our bikes from the good hotel, which was a thrilling experience to ride through this city. we lucked out and it was surprisingly flat! 

now cafe gratitude definitely has that 'way far out there' feel to it with it's excessive server participation. (our servers name was 'kid') but i must say, the food is fantastic. all raw, all vegan and actually all good. i am sad to report no pictures, we just gobbled that shit up! i finally understand the raw craze…its because you feel amazing when you consume such foods! my raw buzz couldn't keep some loser yelling at us from his SUV about what he thinks the bike laws are from bumming me out though. it never ceases to amaze me how people can justify their own behavior. dude, we are on bikes, you in a gigantic car…give me a fucking break. the fact that you feel the need to pull over towards us and yell some bullshit…pathetic, mate. eric bears the brunt and returns the middle finger gesture. it is at these times i realize how sensitive i am…the need for thicker skin for the morons i must share this planet with. le sigh…

we check out of the good hotel and meet up with sarah and orron. we grab some munchies and head to delores park. what a cool place! this is the most lovely afternoon and totally needed. attention all readers: make going to your local park a part of your life. it is something that is so easy,  but feels so good!

and this particular park is better than tv. such entertainment all around. we are serenaded by a lovely singer/songwriter we just meet, eryn from humbolt county. she is great!

she was such a trooper when crazy, fucked up, heckler man was on a rant in between us. delores park also has one hell of a badass playground. eric and i can't resist!

a great time and great company!

we then get our caffeine on and play a little flux of course!

 then we went to get our favorite, indian food at Udupi Palace.

indian food always has a way of restoring my sensibility. orron got a 2 foot dosa i couldn't believe it!

we had the most amazing day with sarah and orron. it felt indulgent, whimsical and fabulous in every way. i just love these peeps!

we then head over the bridge to marin county! we go to elam's house in san rafael. he shares the home of ryan…a very nice and hospitable guy, who welcomes us into his place. this home has some really interesting things and we sleep in his childhood bed that was once part of a ship!

a restful night sleep was very needed and a slow start the following day even more so. elam sent us on our way, en route to see and stay with his mother, miriam in fairfax, ca. before we left , we went to cataract falls for a beautiful albeit very strenuous hike. this place was gorgeous. i mostly daydream about what life would be like when you have so much beautiful nature all around you. how easy it would be to get out in it? 

this hike was basically just straight up. nassau even lied to me and said that it would eventually flatten out. (i have taken to referring to eric as 'nassau' when he is silly or i am unamused. i must have learned this from my mother) this is my 'when the fuck does the trail even out face' and eric's amusement at my fatigue. this is also when he coined my nickname 'complain-y smurf'.

but i am le tired...

we make our way out and then are off to fairfax! we immediately post up at what will be my savior for the next few days: lydia's! some of the most amazing raw food i have ever had. it was so nice to have some good, healthy, quality food. a little regrouping was just what we needed. i enjoyed reading 'positive news' while eric did some computer work.

raw crackers for the win! damn, i miss my dehydrator.

i think even if i did have time in my former life, i never could enjoy a cafe like i can now. and it really is the best! 

i then add fairfax to the list of places i now want to live. their was something so intoxicating about this little town. maybe it was the massive cycling community? (it is the birthplace of mountain biking, after all) or that is seemed to have a spiritual awakening? or that people just seemed to get it: don't be an asshole and trash our planet. whatever it is, i feel quite at home here. 

we met up with eric's friend, james and walk the town a bit more. this guy is intense and interesting. we share a love of tim ferris and he trumps us with hanging out with him! i get a taste of california hospitality on the back patio and the boys catch up. we make an early night and agree to catch up more with james in the morning over coffee. we head to miriam's house! i have no idea why i don't have a picture of this awesome lady? she was so welcoming and enjoyable. she often host couch surfers, so she seems well versed in housing strangers. she has the most wonderful cat, a burmese named tashi. he has so much personality with this bizarre regal quality of a creature thrice his size. miriam builds a bridge for me for the generational gap between my parents and myself. through our discussions we end up watching the documentary 'commune' the following night. it is based on the blackbear ranch…a commune started in 1968. it was very interesting and would dominate my thoughts for the following week.

the next day, wanting to explore the area a bit more, we head to the sleepy town of bolinas. miriam told us it was quite the 'hippy' town and it didn't disappoint. we walked around a bit….their are so many awesome qualities of california, like amazing co-ops and something like a free store! it was a little shed outside of the co-op that people could donate whatever they wanted and it was FREE. the idea is that you exchange, leave some, take some. either way, i think their needs to be more things like this across the country.

bolinas is pretty sleepy, so we amuse ourselves with various photoshoots throughout the day. we head to the beach, which is so chilly it is kind of ridiculous. a bunch of surfers congregate in the water. i don't know how they do it….the water is freezing.

and clearly, they have a sense of humor as well!

on our way back from the beach, we find this little book shop that is all donation based. the sign reads: a good book: $5. a great book $10. an extraordinary book: $20. you decide what you would like to pay. um….awesome! eric picks up a book about road trips, very fitting and i find a vintage-y book of western massage techniques. with eric's back causing him trouble, i better get the learning! 

we notice how easy/normal it would be to sleep in our van just about anywhere in this town, but miriam insisted that we stay with her again. well, ok! 

i have become the crazy cat lady, it's cool. i just miss olive so much!

before heading back, we decide to have a drink in the oldest bar in california, smiley's.

we have a relaxing night with miriam and then a light breakfast and tea in the morning. we head out to a coffee shop to do some work. i leave eric to the planning as i head out to do some errands. mission: find new water container, the cheapest organic produce of miriam's suggestion. i collect eric and we head out of town. we make another stop at trader joe's to replenish our stock and get ready to go to the farm in oroville!

cheers and beers!