Sunday Sunday Someday!

the SF skyline from Buena Vista park after some serious playing around in iphoto.

Some things that had me smiling on Sunday:

• Making pancakes from a box and grilled soysage for breakfast
• Getting a call from my dad thanking me for his father's day gift
• An afternoon walk to a coffee shop turning into a ferris wheel ride at the county fair (sadly sans camera)
• Finding out about volunteering at the Alamany Farm from someone who happens to take class at the ODC Dance Commons, which is where I work
• Going to my first Sci-Fi book club meeting and not making a fool of myself as we discussed Bruce Sterling's The Caryatids
• Having the person ahead of me in the check-out line at Rainbow compliment me on my wine selection, which to be honest was completely random
• Breaking out the much neglected board games of Carcassonne and Pandemic after dinner

Happy Birthday Krista!

Krista, our cousin Nathan and me when we were much younger.

My one and only sister came to visit me here in San Francisco a few months ago and today is her 25th birthday! Here's a few pics of this crazy chick (she's currently jumping out of a plane for her birthday) who was the perfect minion for her older sister when we were growing up.

Krista posing on top of Tank Hill with San Francisco in the background.

Krista cart-wheeling on a fallen tree in Muir Woods.

Krista ... being Krista.

I promise to emerge soon

But on this oddly balmy evening in SF, my mind wanders and cannot focus on creating a coherent post. That, in addition to our currently wonky internet connection, leaves me with nothing to do but leave you with this absolutely goofy "Menard" moment from Krista's visit.

What happens...

when you leave Martin, Lauryn and a camera in a car for hours?

You get two

Goofy

Wind-blown
Dazed
Squinty
Sleepy
Grumpy (I don't know how he survived that look)
Hungry and Happy

People :)

The Apache Trail

On Tuesday, we set out for the Apache Trail. It was another day of massive amounts of driving interspersed with completely breath-taking views and vistas. The trail ends up at the Roosevelt Dam. Somehow I managed to get Martin to pose for pictures on this day, which is very odd for him. I like the one where he's jumping off the fence towards the camera.

Water, rocks, and feet

Here are some little videos I took while we were hanging out in Sedona.

Martin, Valerie and Sarah discuss his Tuesday socks.


This was a really tall cairn with a top that looks like a little man wearing a hat.


A field of cairns.

Sedona, take two

Monday afternoon, we made it to Sedona. We stopped at one of the trails and stretched our legs by a creek. There were a lot of cairns made by people who come because of the spiritual energy that is supposed to surround the area. There was one very comic cairn that was made to look like a cartoon face. It was really nice to get out of the car and to walk around in such a beautiful place. The last 5 shots were taken with my camera on the sunset setting.

Jerome, AZ

On our way to Sedona on Monday, we stopped for lunch in a former mining town, now tourist town and artist haven - Jerome. It was a really fun town sitting on the edge of a hill/mountain. We had a lovely lunch at the Flat Iron Cafe, and I picked up a whole bunch of cards from the artist co-op. I took a lot of "artsy" shots here because the crumbling, abandoned nature of some of the buildings.

The Desert Botanical Gardens

On Sunday morning, we headed over to the Desert Botanical Garden. There was an exhibit up by Dale Chihuly, a glass artist who actually had an exhibit at the Atlanta Botanical Garden a few years ago. I missed the one in Atlanta, but got to see his work here. It was interesting. I found it most intriguing when I could see the inspiration and connection to the desert plants and flowers.

Settling back in

It's been a busy couple of weeks. Last Saturday, Martin and I took a trip to Phoenix to visit with his sister Sarah and his mom, Valerie. It was Sarah's birthday on Tuesday, so we took some days off of work to hang out and enjoy the desert. I took tons of pictures and a few video clips. I have them set so that they'll post themselves over the next week.

I, unfortunately, got a cold/sinus thing on the plane and have been barely functional this week beyond working and sleeping. I'm starting to feel better, but that may be purely a result of the Sudafed I took earlier. In any case, I hope you enjoy the pictures. Post a comment and let me know what you think. I love reading your reactions and thoughts. It makes it less lonely out here in SF and inspires me to post more often :)

Here we go.

I hope you enjoy.

Our trip to Arizona.