hey everyone! good day.

A whole boatload of good today. We have a new President, holy moly. We don't have to say we are Canadian anymore when we travel (thanks, BillS, for that observation). I bought an awesome new jacket. I also purchased wickedly cheap tickets to see Sarah in London and go to Scotland in March. Last weekend in the Sierras was way fun, even if snow was actually ice and stairs were evil. Oh, and also ---- Tara passed her Professional Engineer exam! Go tara! see?.... miss smarty pants herself. No longer is there a need for her to carry around books that weigh more than she does. We went out to dinner last night and good news compounded good news when I saw these: Mini mini donuts. Amazing.

pretty is where one finds pretty

Met up with Meg last night and meandered around the Mission, stopping at Four Barrels to grab some coffee. The inside of the cafe is open and airy and rustic--- oak beams cross the ceiling, boars heads line one wall, and the roaster machinery is evident in the background. Small tables are fixed against a wall; there are no outlets and the cozy table size encourages more book reading and chit chatting than the opportunity for a fixed gear mac ad. It occurs to me that I actually sound like a Four Barrels ad, hmmmyeah, but I just really liked the simplistic vibe of the place. Besides, the bathroom is amazing. Like really really rad. See here: That's the wallpaper. That's the bathroom floor.

for once, let words tumble out and fling them like beads

"Who Killed Amanda Palmer" Video Series - Part 4: Runs In The Family from Amanda Palmer on Vimeo.

gottanewcamera

this year

I wish everyone health and peace and integrity and jobs and less net loss and more net love and no hangovers and strength and willpower when needed and less cringing and more smiles and some pensive moments and a little reflection and maybe some rock climbing and definitely some yoga and, well, some moving forward. Happy New Year!

may we all be

merry.

A sad thing. A sign of the times.

I just got off the phone with Bill Laube, manager and previous owner of the Pleasanton Hotel. I was trying to schedule a 40th wedding anniversary dinner for my parents on the 3rd of January; Mare and Gare LOVE the Pleasanton Hotel. The building is such a fixture in Pleasanton, and while the old fashioned yellow was much more appealing to me, it remains a historic part of the town complete with that renowned underground tunnel to Gay Nineties Pizza.

The hotel is closing. The news made me want to cry. If his voice on the phone was any giveaway, Bill Laube is pretty distraught as well -- he has been at the hotel for 25 years. As of Janurary 1st, in her quest to sell the business and building in the declining market, the current landlord is closing it's doors. Permanently.

I know a lot of us don't go to the Pleasanton Hotel. There are many more "hip" places in Pleasanton to have a drink. I just ask you, at some point before 2008 bids adieu, to pop in, have a drink, and give a kind word to Bill and the staff. This really is a sad thing.

(for more info on the history of the Pleasanton hotel and current staff, go here.)

(a)Musings

10:32 AM Co: how are you this week?me: good, busy, but functioning and I'd say 85% pleasant. :)

Although there was a crying baby in Ross a couple days ago that almost made me lose my shit. Thank god our emotions don't show themselves like boners.

Co: seriously, emotions are more like incontinence...concealable for a limited amount of time

me: YES

Co: sometimes i feel like i need black pants for my feelings

Gluttony Named Desire (also known as holiday cookie extravaganza)

Click collage to enlarge.

i have been running around, running amuck

I read the other day that blogs are cluttering the ether. It made me think of all the little wooden boxes I had on my vanity and how last night I literally slid them off with a sweep of my arm and then hid them inside a closed bookshelf. The vanity looked open and calm.

I worry about clutter, since I clutter so easily.