May 20, 2013
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Weekend Recap: A Very Long Blog Post
It’s been super sunny and warm here in the Bay Area. I spent all last weekend running around and loving the weather.
Friday
Friday my good friend Angel came into town. She and I both arrived in the Bay Area at the same time, both moving from Texas to come out for grad school. We both only knew one other person–Dean. And Dean had a life of his own so he introduced us to one another.Angel and I spent our grad school years running around SF trying to see and do whatever we could on our limited budgets. We once volunteered at a crab festival (which was hectic and poorly organized) so that we could get in free. We once found $20 on the ground near a bus stop and promptly took ourselves to dinner. We once couldn’t escape Halloween in the Castro and I fell down when I tripped because earthquakes can lead to broken up sidewalks. Angel looked down at me and asked in a lackluster tone that cracked us both up, “Are you alright?” We once got a sugar high at Happy Donuts and cracked up at the drawing of a pot leaf accompanied by “I love pot” that someone wrote on the wall there. We immediately crank called Dean. We spent many a Thursday night dancing to 80s music at the Cat Club. It was a fun and pretty carefree time for both of us, before graduation and the return to the 9 to 5 grind.
Some guy drew this picture of us and then sold it to us. I framed it.Angel now lives in Florida, but that didn’t stop her from flying out to celebrate her birthday. So on Friday I took a half day off from work and we had lunch followed by tea above Yerba Buena. It was great. A little one-on-one time before her Saturday birthday party.
Saturday
I went grocery shopping first thing in the morning because I wanted to catch an early afternoon CalTrain to Redwood City for Angel’s party. I found what I thought was a small watermelon (turns out it yielded quite a bit) to make tequila-soaked watermelon slices.It was sunny and warm on the peninsula. Me and my watermelon arrived around 3pm and I didn’t catch a train back until 9:41pm (CalTrain is not only precise but on time–nice!).
The party was at the home of Angel’s brother who moved out to the Bay Area right after Angel and I graduated. There was food, drink, watermelon and lots of sunshine.
It was a good day. I got home close to 11pm or so. So it was a long day.
Sunday
Sunday I got up early to take a phone call. I sit on my alma mater’s Alumni Council and was chatting with another alum because I unfortunately was going to miss the afternoon call the council had scheduled.After my chat I started getting ready because I had a ticket to see the final performance of The Dead Girl by Ann Brebner. Both Ann and I were in AlterLab last year together when she wrote The Dead Girl. I had meant to go up sooner but I had been sick during the first two weeks of the run. So there I was headed to the North Bay worried that somehow the Bay to Breakers run was going wreak havoc on my ability to take public transit.
But first I headed to the book store. You see, for Angel’s birthday I had bought her Let’s Pretend This Never Happened (A Mostly True Memoir) by Jenny Lawson aka The Bloggess. And after watching this YouTube clip I decided I wanted my own copy.
I laughed so hard!
So my plan was to swing by Green Apple Books on my way to the bus stop to buy the book only on my way to Green Apple I realized the shirt I was wearing was too heavy. I was hot. It was hot out. I was sweating. And my flipflops were kinda not good for all the walking I needed to do today. Plus I could so see myself getting sunburn on my feet and that happened once when I was in high school and isn’t terribly fun.
Change of plans. I bought the book and immediately returned home to change my shirt and shoes and then hoofed it to the bus stop.
Now, usually I’m terrible at timing this trip. I realize that I won’t make it to the Golden Gate Bride in time to catch the bus to San Rafael and in a panic call a cab. Well, Sunday I was on top of it. I early. If I was lucky I might catch the 1:19pm bus and get to San Rafael a full hour before I needed to be there. Then I’d be able to read the book I had just bought. And being at the bus stop a good hour before I normally would be there was my way of compensating for the Bay to Breakers Run which I figured might affect how the buses were running.
So there I am waiting for the 28 (the bus that takes me to the Golden Gate Bridge where I catch the Golden Gate Transit bus to San Rafael) at 1pm with the 28 about 17 minutes away. So, I figured I wouldn’t make that 1:19 bus. Oh well, I’ll take the 2:19 and still arrive in time for the show.
The 28 arrived in 17 minutes and promptly took us to the bridge. I think the bus arrived early because we arrived at the Golden Gate Bridge and it was close to 1:20 and I thought well, sometimes the buses are a few minutes late I might get lucky and catch that 1:19pm bus after all. When we got the bridge I ran to my second bus stop and picked up a pamphlet for the bus schedules. Interestingly enough the pamphlet said my bus would arrive at 1:26pm! So much for the internet.
I even had time to snap a quick picture. Gorgeous! I love this city.Lo and behold an express did arrive close to 1:30 and I hopped right on it.
I got to San Rafael a good hour before the show so I headed to Starbucks to read my book, but while I was there I ran into Richard. Richard is AlterTheater‘s Literary Manager. I hadn’t seen him for a while so over iced coffees we caught up and talked about theatre.
Before we knew it, it was almost 3pm so we headed over to see Ann’s play. It was great to see Ann’s work realized, especially since I’ve heard early drafts of it and even once gave her a writing exercise for a monologue that ended up in the play. I’m not a reviewer, but you can read what this one said about the play (spoiler alert: he liked it).
After the show Richard and I were invited to have dinner with the cast so we went for drinks why the set was struck. Richard introduced me to the Midori Sour and we continued our conversation about all things theatre.
Neither of us could stay long after dinner as we both had respective buses to catch. We talked about plays we’d send to one another and parted ways at the transit center.
I jumped on a bus that took me through Sausalito before heading over the bridge. Let me just say, there’s a reason why people pay top dollar to live there. The water was lovely in the rays of the setting sun. With the fog beginning to make its way in I preferred the ocean side to the view of the city.
I transferred to the 28 and got home just at the sun was dipping below the horizon. A long, lovely day.
-M
