brrrrrrrrrr

it's FREEZING here ... and i mean that quite literally! it's 39 degrees! i'm sitting at my computer with a blanket over my legs, two sweatshirts and a scarf. the annoying thing about supposedly 'not being here' (attempting to keep my stay in this apartment on the hush) is that i can't ask the buiding manager to turn the heat up! so i have the oven on with the door open and am hoping that it seeps its way into the living room soon. the sun outside the window is deceptive today!

had my last volunteering session last night with kyle. same kid i worked with last week. he was writing a paper on nelson mandela (damn, i wished i'd read the biography i bought a few years ago) - and i'm not sure i was much help to him, but we worked on structure and came up with a few more ideas. he had to relate mandela's work to the principles of his jesuit school. he would get a sentence out, and then get totally distracted. there were a few times when he actually left the room for 5 minute intervals. i seriously thought about leaving ... but then, i'm sure he expected that. so i stayed. and when we finished, he shook my hand and i got a tiny glimpse of appreciation, even if it was somewhat muted. it's a shame they can't have volunteers with more consistency. ah well, hopefully i helped him a tiny bit.

i'm including yet another table picture ... another great one from market street! one for the collection! that's 5 i have now - can't wait to get them framed and on the walls of my new place in boston, wherever that may be!

...and now, i am stuffed

the sunday after thanksgiving and i am stuffed. no more turkey or leftovers for me for awhile. (at least until christmas!) i've had a lovely weekend down in santa cruz. hardly did a thing - which was exactly what i wanted to do. actually, that's not entirely true. i spent most of yesterday taking down boxes from the garage to help dwight 'can you please get your shit out of here' basilius make more room for other stuff. this seems to be the year of de-junking - which is fine with me. i threw out tons and tons of paper, old photos, class notes from college, random toys and posters that once held meaning for me but now are only yellowed and tattered. there were a few boxes i could have cleared out even further, but i just haven't the time to read every single card or note passed in secrecy in the 7th grade - so i kept them. one day, i'll drag these out again an look through them. or maybe my kids will. or (more likely) maybe my dad will just throw them out. to be honest, i wouldn't really know the difference. there are only a few things i really value - a book of fairytales from my childhood, highschool yearbooks, old diaries from the mid-eighties, the baby blanket my mother made me, my holy cross uniform.

i really am paring my life down to the basics - so that what i carry with me, is pretty much what i own and care about. 5 plastic tubs in my dad's garage, 7 boxes in my attic in the UK - 3 suitcases of clothes in san francisco - and that's ME. of course there's my butcher block and my couches ... but slowly i'm removing myself from those, so that, once again, they are simply objects. no more. no less.

but i am looking forward to getting back to boston and investing again. not in the materialistic sense, although of course, with the sales of this weekend, and 'black friday' who can miss the bargains that await? (linens and towels and blenders OH MY) ... but more for the opportunity to be somewhere for a longer haul. perhaps the butcher block was less of the 'adulthood' symbol i once thought and more of a symbol of 'permanence'.

so now back up to the city. to get back into the routine ... to get to the gym to get rid of this gravy boat floating just above my hips.

hope thanksgiving was wonderful whereever you were ... including the brits, who so kindly celebrated the holiday in my absence!

happy thanksgiving to all!

a quick blog before i head home to SC to spend thanksgiving with the family!
i understand there will be a small contingent of brits celebrating with a meal tomorrow ... we'll raise a glass to you as well! gobble gobble.

i had a really interesting experience on monday night volunteering with 'hands on bay area' at a boys home called 'boys hope' ... it's a home for 6 boys who have learning difficulties, or are on probation or for whatever reason, are somewhat excluded from (what we might call) normal teenage life. i worked with the coordinator of the project and a boy named kyle. he was working on sophomore spanish and had to come up with some dialogue for a role play he would be doing in class that week. his vocab words were all about a wedding and he was supposed to be the bridegroom discussing his expectations of marriage with the priest. (at 14!!)

it was really interesting to see his thought process, or lack thereof, and his attention span. it took us 30 minutes to come up with 4 bullet points for discussion and then 4 sentences to match in spanish. we had to keep bringing him back to focus because he would flip through his book mindlessly, delete sentences from the word document on the computer (just for fun), tap on the keys incessantly, etc etc. i can't really say i've had much interaction with kids with ADD (i'm assuming, though could be wrong here) and it was really interesting.

(on a side note: it was quite funny to be discussing marriage with a 14 year old and i found myself throwing out ideas of topics for him that were far too existential and that he SURELY had no vocabulary for ... 'so how will you deal with arguements, what will you do when things go wrong? and morals with your children? what will you instill in them?' .... i think to humor me he attempted to think about those for a minute or two, but then settled on sentences like 'it is necessary that our children dress themselves in the morning' and 'i want that we live in a big house in the country with goats.' ) two indicators of a successful marriage, surely.

i walked down to the BART station with the volunteer coordinator and she told me she was really impressed by how much kyle opened up with me - apparently he is the most difficult kid there. i was flattered. we also talked a lot about volunteerism and what she does (helps kids 16-24 get jobs!!) and what i do and what i want to do. she was very sweet and very encouraging and actually made me think about how i need to volunteer much more to try out all sorts of things before i make any major life decisions. so i feel much less stressed about having to decide something NOW and more relaxed about taking the next year or so to try out all sorts of opportunities. she said something i thought was REALLY interesting about how when you are really excited about something in life and really want something, the hurdles to getting there don't really seem like hurdles at all. or if they do, you're happy to do what it takes to jump them. i thought that was a brilliant thing to say. and a helpful way to think about determining what is right.

in any case, i must return to work ... happy turkey day to all!
gobble gobble!

weeks whizzing by ...

it's hard to believe that it's nearly thanksgiving already - and it's going to be 2007 soon. where is the time going? i can literally count the number of weekends i have left in the city on one hand. (with christmas and thanksgiving and holidays, etc) a return to boston is immenent. so to those of you who said 'great, you'll be in california for awhile, we'll see you all the time' - GET ON UP HERE!

actually, speaking of, my dad and i are organizing a 'santa stumble' of our own the weekend of the 16th of december - so bring a red hat and join us for a pub crawl in the city. i'll get an evite out soon.

it's been yet another week of meeting really interesting people here (when i leave my apartment!) i had three parties/networking opportunities this week and two lectures at the commonwealth. one of which was on alzheimers which was really encouraging. it was given by one of the nations leading experts/researchers on the disease. i didn't know much about it scientifically, and he explained that very well, and also talked about the future of the disease. i will attach the link when it is available to listen to and download in their podcasts and i would encourage ALL of the toerne's to listen to it. (and everyone else who might be interested). i was sorry no one else was there with me. one of the things he said that i thought was very interesting was that the government is reallocating funding at the moment and that alzheimer's studies/research may not be getting an increase in funding. so he encouraged everyone to contact their government officials to stress the importance of funding for this. he said, sure eating healthily and doing crossword puzzles to keep your mind active was a good idea - but to REALLY make a difference, more research is needed - so to do what you can to contribute and get your local officials involved. he also suggested that local research centers need volunteers for studies ... so to consider volunteering your time as well to participate in trials. food for thought!

i also went along to two networking events. one hosted by the full circle fund - a socially philanthropic venture capital fund started in the late 90s by kids in the tech boom with way too much money who wanted to do something good - so the room was filled with hundreds of young people in their 20s/30s who really wanted to make a difference in the community. very cool people. very inspiring.

and another networking event on thursday hosted by women who run their own businesses where i ran into several of the ladies i'd met at previous events - i think SF is actually quite small.

and last night, i was invited to a party of a friend i'd met at glide last month. it was at a bar in chinatown/north beach and they host this 'harvest' party every year. it was a bittersweet evening because they'd invited over 300 people (6 girlfriends co-hosted it, so it was an amalgamation of all their friends) and it really reminded me of the sort of thing i would do in london (theme parties, friends, bars, drinks, food, etc) but at the same time, the sort of thing i could not do here (yet anyway) because my circle of friends is just NOT that wide. which is OK in and of itself, i'll get there, but starting over in your 30s is tough. her friends were very welcoming and very friendly - but with my impending move to boston, it's hard to attempt to make real friends knowing i'll be packing up soon enough and heading out. i ducked out early though definitely enjoyed the evening. i'm really looking forward to being in one place again.

it's sunday and i'm off to glide for some inspiration!

well, we missed the leaves

i'm not really sure what i was thinking ... leaves in NOVEMBER?
i don't think so!

oh well, it was a great weekend anyway. we stayed at this cute little b&b in chester vermont and wandered through little tea rooms, antique stores, vermont country stores, and other artisan cutsie shops. it was so relaxing to just get out of the city and be in the country - with fresh air, and no smog. it didn't start raining until the drive home on sunday, so we were lucky.

and now i'm back in san francisco. for one week, until i get home to santa cruz for thanksgiving. can't wait for turkey day!!! it's been YEARS since i've been back and i'm so excited. i've had some wonderful thanksgivings in the UK with friends - both american and british - but it's not quite the same as being on market street - with people coming and going all day, wild turkey flowing, cranberry margaritas and of course, all the fixings!

it was a great week in boston and even though it was cold, it was still nice to be there. i'm beginning to get excited about getting back in the new year - to have a sense of settlement, to be somewhere for awhile, to invest again. can't wait to get some pictures up on a wall that is mine! i'm tired of living on top of everyone. i want my space back.

speaking of, i spoke to an estate agent in the UK today and made an appointment to discuss selling my place. or alternatively, having it managed. it's just such a hassle from abroad to try to do this. the boiler is on the fritz this week, and what can i do from san francisco. it's frustrating! the idea of letting that go sounds so liberating right now. we shall see what he says!

anyhow, hope all are well! must carry on with work!

happy friday from beantown

it's a gorgeous day here in beantown.
i'm not sure if we should be grateful for that or worried because of global warming - i have a feeling 60 degree weather in november is NOT normal. but it sure is nice. this week has been great. it's been nice to be back to the office and to be around people during the day - i'd forgotten how nice interaction can be. :) and my conference presentation on wednesday went very well - much better than i thought it would - lots of discussion and interaction. and quite a few nice complements afterwards, which is always nice.

and now it's friday ... and tomorrow i'm off to chester, vermont to stay in a b&b for the night and to meander around the town and enjoy the last of the fallen leaves. sadly, it's supposed to rain, so i'm not sure how much meandering we'll actually get around to. but the b&b has a fireplace - so i imagine we'll sit in front of that for most of the day/night!

i'm reminded how nice boston is. and in the last week i've met quite a few really neat people - people who i will make an effort with when i'm back in january. so all is not lost in the transition back from SF. i'm sure california will be in my future ... and SF has been a nice taste to lure me back at a later stage, i'm sure!

enjoy the weekend!

the cold wind in the east

brrrrrrrrr ... it is cold in boston!
i got in on saturday morning. fortunately it was a glorious weekend - the sun shining and beautiful sunrises and sunsets. but it is definitely autumn/winter here. i don't actually mind it yet. there's no snow. it's just crisp with a small bite in the air.

i had a great weekend. alex and i went to brunch with some really nice friends of his. then walked around newbury street on saturday and got him into verizon (hooray, he's IN) and then had some pizza. and then i went out with the girls from work for a birthday party of one of their friends. and i sat next to a really nice girl who was very sweet and could certainly be a new friend when i return. except for the fact that she lives in new hampshire ... but she's in boston for work every day, and obviously understands that she needs to make the effort to get into boston. and sunday alex and i went to the gym and then cooked a roast chicken and caught some of the pats game at his friend's house out in newton. i chatted with his girlfriend while the guys watched football. i don't understand football and i don't think i will ever really care to.

well, it's monday morning and i'm at the bagel shop next to work waiting for someone to arrive and let me in because i stupidly forgot my keys. i must get preparing for a meeting i have in 25 minutes!

happy monday!

back in the air again ...

i'm off to boston tonight until the 13th. can't wait!
i've actually got a really busy week next week with work - we're bringing the new hire to boston for some training with the team (better than starting his first day working from my living room! wanted to show him we're legit!) and i'm presenting at a conference next wednesday in rhode island.

this week has been really fun. tuesday night, i drove down to santa cruz with my sister and her friend to surprise my parents for halloween and see my little cousins trick-or-treat. we drove back that same night - imagine - being an hour away from santa cruz! i have to take advantage of this while i can. my mom kept saying she was so happy we were down and not at a party in san francisco. i guess there were some gang-related shootings in the castro (where the big party happens) so i can see why she was relieved.

and wednesday i went to a lecture at the commonwealth club by malika oufkir, a woman who had been adopted by the king of morocco at the age of 5, and then her father tried to kill the king in a coup and she was thrown in prison with her mother and sibings (her father was killed) for TWENTY FOUR YEARS ... so she came out at the age of 45. imagine, being locked up for twenty four years. i would like to read her book. i just can't imagine.

and yesterday i went to another lecture by deepak chopra, who talked about life after death, and got very existential and theoretical about how our thoughts are always either choices or interpretations ... very miracles like (i can see why he always writes the intros for a lot of the miracles books) and the space/time continuum and lots of other stuff i had to think VERY hard about in order to understand. he's a really good speaker, so it was entertaining as well as intellectual. i wished i had someone to debrief with afterwards, because i'm not sure how much of it i'll retain.

and then last night i went with my aunt lynne's friend carol and her friend willie to dia de los muertos celebration in the mission. VERY VERY COOL - although carol was totally underwhelmed in comparison to years passed. apparently this is the day that people traditionally dress up like skeletons to confuse the dead souls so that they don't change their minds and decide to stay and inhabit the earth - rather than going onto the afterlife. so there was a parade of people dancing and singing and beating drums and playing horns, all dressed in skeletons with white faces and black teeth and eyes. and the procession led to a park where people had placed hundreds of alters to the people they love who had gone. suitcases were laid out and packed for their journey to the afterlife with momentos and pictures and candles and food. it was AMAZING. really neat to see such tradition, and so many people getting into it. (although a skeleton in a top hat we met at the bar said that it had turned a little political this year and that people were protesting the war, etc which kind of ruined it for him) in any case, it was great. and then carol and willie and i went to dinner at a tapas place which was delicious.



i got home around 11 and fell straight to sleep after the red wine. apparently i had a little too much because the building manager knocked on my door this morning and kindly told me it probably wasn't a good idea to leave my keys in my door overnight! doh!

anyhow, a few more hours of work and i am off to boston!