I'm sorry to those of you that regularly keep up with my travels...I've been being a bit of a bum lately where the writing is concerned. I left San Francisco a couple of days ago to come back to Tucson for a week and a half before returning to the LA/San Diego area. I'm not sure what prompted my 3-days-early departure, but I think it had something to do with the weather. After spending so much time in Tucson where it's constantly hot and sunny, the clouds and dreary cold of SF started to get to me. That, and I'm beginning to get worn out from all of this traveling. Now, don't get me wrong - I'm grateful to have the opportunity to be doing all of this, but the tired feeling still creeps in at times.

Anyway, a quick recap of the last days in SF...

Last Saturday, Devin and I went into the city for another day of sightseeing, except that this time we drove his Volvo instead of taking the BART. We crossed over the Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate, then drove up into the Marin Headlands for a different view of the city. There are a lot of abandoned bunkers and batteries in the area that were originally built to keep bad guys out of the bay, and they certainly make for an interesting photo op. Most are covered in graffiti and now simply serve as a weird place to wander around or walk your dog in. If we'd had more time, I would have loved to stay longer, but it was foggy and cold and we were trying to make it into Sausalito for lunch.




After munching on some yummy pizza and tiramisu in Sausalito, we drove back across the Golden Gate, parked, and then walked all the way across to the north side of the bridge and back. It took a couple of hours, but by this time the fog had cleared up and we had nothing but sunshine and puffy white clouds, as well as a clear view of downtown SF.


From there, we drove out to the Haight-Ashbury area and found some fun stores to look around in for a couple of hours. We went back into Amoeba records, and I opted to buy a t-shirt since I couldn't easily transport a record in a hot car all the way back to Tulsa.

(A crazy-cute sign along Haight street that I couldn't resist getting a picture with. Yeah, I chose the [vegan] taco...I think it's healthier than the fries.)

There weren't many other major events that happened for the remainder of my stay. I'd like to say that I went out on my own on the days that Devin was at work at the bike shop and did more sightseeing, but I did not. I just had an odd feeling for a large part of my stay that didn't really go away until I left. There were many nights spent just lounging around listening to Logan, Katie and Devin play music (which was totally awesome - they're all such talented musicians).

(Devin on the left, Logan on the right)

Katie and I did go out together once on the day before I left. She brought me to this crazy place somewhere in Oakland (or was it Berkeley...it's hard to tell) that is essentially some person's house that has a backyard dedicated to welcoming people who wish to use their hot tub in the nude. It's the ultimate hippie experience, to be honest, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. You enter through a gate (that has a lock code) at the back of the house, and there's just the yard with all of the beautiful foliage, some benches, a dressing room, shower, bathroom and the hot tub. There was even a sweet little Siamese cat wandering around that I played with for awhile. So, the idea is that there's this relaxing place in the middle of the city that's intended for girls (although girls are allowed to bring male guests with them) to use to hang out nude in this hot tub, then just be able to meditate and rest in the wooded area by the patio. No talking is allowed, and the code for the gate isn't supposed to be shared with just anyone. It's strange, but there's a sheet of rules available in the dressing room, and people are expected to abide by them. I guess it's pretty successful, because I do believe the guy who owns the place has had it available and in use for many, many years. I probably wasn't supposed to take these pictures with my phone, but since there aren't any naked people in them, I assume it's acceptable. :)


So, I left SF to drive down to Oceanside 2 days ago. I had the intention of at least staying overnight at Carita's place, but since her mom was in town visiting from Alaska, I opted to just drop in for dinner then finish the 7 hour drive from there to Tucson overnight in the same day. Since I never drink coffee, all it took to keep me awake all night was one large cup. I was actually quite proud of myself once I arrived in Tucson at 4AM. It's good to know that if I have to do such a long drive at some point in the future, I'm actually capable of doing it. :) Nothing really worth mentioning happened on the road trip back here, except that I will say that driving on highway 5 through the middle of Los Angeles between 4 and 6PM is the most frustrating thing EVER. Gross. Don't do it. I wish I had timed things better, but since I didn't I'm simply happy to have survived it without any major mishaps or accidents.

(entering the mountains outside of LA on Hwy 5)

(Some annoying traffic that this picture doesn't do justice to)

(Ahhhh, Pacific coast)

I'll be heading back to San Diego and LA in 1 week, so my next update may not come until then. I hope everyone is doing well!