Golden Gate Park, San Francisco

On Sunday we took our bikes to Golden Gate Park for a day of cycling and a picnic lunch. We had just set off on our bikes when we heard thundering cracking, crashing, splitting, and crackling noises and then shouts. Only a split second later we rounded a bend in the path and were confronted with the sight in the above photo. A huge eucalyptis tree had fallen across the bike path. Dust and leaves were still in the air.

We just missed seeing this happen, and maybe being underneath it! About a dozen people stood around marveling at how this occurred just out of the blue and with no warning whatsoever. Luckily, no one was hurt. Nature is awesome! We rode by the Conservatory of Flowers and admired the early spring garden of purple, red, yellow, and orange. Every time I see this set of stairs I remember the time Michael (our #2 son) was about 14; we took him and his brother bicycling at Golden Gate Park, and Michael rode his bike down these stairs!These flowers are a kind of poppy -- I think -- I've always called them Cosmos. I love their bright orange and yellow color, they practically glowed in the sun.
We ate lunch at Ocean Beach. Those are our bikes parked against the concrete wall. Behind them is the windmill that stands at Queen Wilhelmina's Gardens. It is restored, but not functional. It's one of my favorite sights at GG Park. I want one in my backyard!
We crossed Golden Gate Bridge on our way home. Next time we are out that way we will ride or walk across it. You can see that many people were out taking advantage of the gorgeous summer day!

"Home Is the Sailor, Home From the Sea..."

...(from the poem by A. E. Houseman)...

We got our first view of the Golden Gate Bridge in the mid-afternoon of Thursday, December 13th. What a welcome sight! It was a very cold day and we were bundled up in multiple shirts, sweatshirts, jackets, hats and gloves, and the first thought I had when I saw the bridge was, "Tomorrow I get to take a hot bubble bath!"As we sailed under the bridge it was hard to believe we'd been gone 60 days (!) and even harder to believe that our trip was nearly at an end. We'd logged approximately 2,600 sea-miles in a 34-foot sailboat with no refrigeration, heater, A/C, shower, or flush-toilet. We cooked and ate simple meals and if we were missing an ingredient we substituted something else or did without. Our "stuff" was minimal and what we found was that we really didn't need much. All the things we left behind -- the stuff that literally fills to bursting a three-bedroom home with a two-car garage -- proved to be totally unnecessary. Some stuff we missed, but we sure didn't need it.We saw this mural on one of the buildings on the San Francisco waterfront -- although we've seen it many times, on this occasion I felt it was meant just for us! The sun was going down as we moved through the bay and just as we reached the Bay Bridge it dropped behind the buildings creating this awesome view of the famous San Francisco Skyline:

The story of the huge oil spill of November 7th was (and still is) all over the news. A container ship called the Cosco Busan hit one of the supports on the Bay Bridge which acted like a giant can opener ripping open the side of the ship and dumping 58,000 gallons of bunker fuel oil into the water. We got a chance to see the damaged strut close-up as we sailed under the bridge; I took the photo below. You can see where all the concrete has been torn away and the underlying steel structure is exposed. It's under repair now. The most fortunate thing is that the damage to the support didn't cause any failure of the bridge.

We spent that night on the boat, docked in Alameda. The next morning our housesitters, Richard and Mary, arrived in our car to pick us up and take us home. By that time I was literally counting the minutes until I'd see my cats again! When I did, there was no hesitation on their parts -- they came right up to us, rubbed against our legs, and butted us with their heads. I was so surprised! I was sure I'd get the "cold tail!" All three were fine, a little fatter, and obviously purr-fectly happy.

That was 4 days ago. Since then we have quickly re-adjusted to all of Life's little conveniences! We're cooking in the microwave oven, stocking up our (relatively) huge refrigerator, taking long baths, flushing the toilet (instead of pumping it by hand!), doing laundry whenever we feel like it, running to the store for every little thing, and sleeping in a huge bed with real bedding (and three cats) instead of crammed in the forward berth in sleeping bags!

One thing that travelling to foreign countries always does for me is help me appreciate anew how blessed I am to live here in the U.S., and being without my "stuff," my pets, my family and friends only makes me enjoy them all the more now that I'm home again.