Bam.
Update on Occupy Arrest Status: Still under investigation. I have to call back once a week until they decide what to do with me.
Five day break: Awesomeness:
EBBC Winter party made money and had a bunch of attendees and was really fun this year! Yay EBBC!
SF Bike Party was a blast: Space dress was amazing, the ride was great.
Aaron guided partial tour of the city, hilarious.
OCSC Sailing Christmas Party: Weird, in that I saw a bunch of people I used to know, but didn't get to see the people I most wanted to see.
Pelican Inn beer: Delicious. The band was pretty cool, and they let me and another audience member sing Wagon Wheel and then told me to sing another one and then told me to come back and sing with them again sometime.
Fentons: Deliciousness.
Sunday sleep in, very nice. Picked up some much needed crafty things at the Depot, and then Picked up my own christmas tree makings at the christmas tree place, and then watched braveheart on projector screen.
Monday family shopping trip, also hilarious.
I haven't laughed as much as I did this weekend in a while.
Showing posts with label Adventures. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adventures. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
This Will Surely Prove to my Family I'm a Hippy
Sad news today, Cafe Gratitude is closing it's northern California stores. I didn't know they had so many. But this means an end to the amazing grateful bowl, which fed me a bit when I was very poor, for very cheap, and which I pay as much as I can for now that I have money. I'm probably going to miss the green sauce they make the most. They basically make a rice bowl of black beans, brown rice, kale, and this green sauce, and it's delicious:
It's my favorite. Apparently I need to find the recipe for that green sauce. I think probably it's avocado based. Plus I love Kale. And look! Here's a guy in Vermont who makes Kale and Cheese related T-shirts and hoodies:
Eat More Kale!
I just found 100 Years of Solitude on the bookshelf here at the hostel. I'm stoked. This bumps up my pile of books to 5: Green Mars by Kim Robinson, Feast of Crows by George Martin, South America Lonely Planet Guide, New Zealand Lonely Planet guide, and now 100 Years of Solitude. Yeah, I know, that's a lot of books. I keep thinking they should be going faster, but Green Mars is heavy on science talk, and Feast of Crows is heavy on historical politics, so even though I'm thoroughly engrossed the reading is slow. The travel books are browsers right now. I'll get to the planning later. 100 Years, well now, I might wait to start that one after I've finished Green Mars or Feast of Crows. I know this is all facinating to you.
Maybe more interesting was my reading list for the day. I started at Occupy Oakland on Facebook, out of curiosity for what the movement is doing in my town after reading a synopsis of the minutes of the most recent GA that a friend posted up. I will admit that I'm disheartened by the co-opting of the movement in Oakland by some overly radical characters. We need more balanced view points at the GAs!
My foray onto the page led me to an article talking about the movement getting co-opted for the democratic party. It's decidedly and admittedly one sided, but it led me to an article by a man who used to be an accountant for the IMF, or for those who don't know, the International Monetary Fund. These guys are the biggest bank in the world, and they bail out countries who have no where else to turn. The IMF is also kind of evil on some other levels, but this is basically a general economic and history lesson related to debt laden countries. The quote that led me to this article from the one on Slate?
"Squeezing the oligarchs, though, is seldom the strategy of choice among emerging-market governments. Quite the contrary: at the outset of the crisis, the oligarchs are usually among the first to get extra help from the government, such as preferential access to foreign currency, or maybe a nice tax break, or—here’s a classic Kremlin bailout technique—the assumption of private debt obligations by the government. Under duress, generosity toward old friends takes many innovative forms. Meanwhile, needing to squeeze someone, most emerging-market governments look first to ordinary working folk—at least until the riots grow too large."
Oligarchy: a government in which a small group exercises control especially for corrupt and selfish purposes; also : a group exercising such control (I do the work so you don't have to!)
I read an article on the daily Kos:
"An Open Letter to the Black Bloc and Others Concerning Wednesday's Tactics in Oakland"
My last bit of reading? Well I've been a bit concerned over the National Defense Authorization Act, which is a huge bill with a couple scary small provisions. Today the bill was voted on and passed the senate. Here's a right wing view on what's wrong with this bill from Politico:
"Opinion: Matters of Injustice"
On a side note: I was told once by a friend that the Mahna Mahna song from the muppets was originally a swedish porn song. I told this to my friends after we went to see the Muppets on Thanksgiving, and it turns out someone actually did a whole overview of the origination of the song on Slate. Italian soft core porn about swedish snow bunny babes in a sauna is where the song actually first originated. Good to know weird information for the future.
Snowths & Mahna Mahna photograph by John E. Barrett. © The Muppets Studio, LLC. © Disney Enterprises. All Rights Reserved. (I figured I ought to cover my butt with this picture, namean?) OH! And thanksgiving! So much fooooood! I did lunch with the fam, and got to see my amazing grandmother who I adore, and talk music, bikes, and fantasy fiction with my Uncle, who then gave me a burned CD of an awesome Bob Dylan Bootleg from 1960, Sam Cooke live at the Harlem Cafe (?), and some more Holy Modal Rounders full of bad harmonizing. And THEN he gave me the first two books of the Wheel of Time series, which was recommended by a new friend. After family lunch, I had friend dinner. Two turkeys. at least 15 side dishes, (Highlights? Duck with Pomegranate Sauce, persian, and Mole, mexican) and I don't even know how many desserts. Here's a picture of the desserts for reference on what kind of feast this was:
That's me in the corner photobombing. Three photobombs later of the same picture I managed to get my face shoved into the beautiful bird cake in the lower right corner. And then Doug photobombed the next picture just for good measure. Moral: I love my Oakland people, and I love feasting, and we had a ton of fun at dinner, and always photobomb!
Then I took the bruise crew in a friend of a friend's van out to the movies. We saw the Muppets. Duh. And it was awesome. I wore an animal costume and scared a very large man behind the snack counter so bad he broke out in a cold sweat and the shakes. I sat with a giant grin on my face the whole movie. Best Thanksgiving EVER.
Work has been easy the last few days, very slow, so lots of laundry has been done. Tomorrow it's bleaching the linens and the mattress covers for the new building. Facinating, no?
Break time was all sunshine today. I threw on my wetsuit, rode my bike down coast trail, right through the giant puddle, skirted up a dune, landed on the beach but didn't swim because i was afraid of the waves and maybe sharks and I was all alone at the beach. If I'd been eaten or swept out to sea no one would know! I played it safe and only went in as far as I could touch, then took off the suit and napped in the sun for about an hour before riding back, just as the fog was rolling in. I love it here. Even on foggy days I think it's super beautiful. It's not the mountains, but it'll do. Update: I just read a blog that told me to look out for stinging nettle jellyfish! The ocean is SCARY!
It's my favorite. Apparently I need to find the recipe for that green sauce. I think probably it's avocado based. Plus I love Kale. And look! Here's a guy in Vermont who makes Kale and Cheese related T-shirts and hoodies:
Eat More Kale!
I just found 100 Years of Solitude on the bookshelf here at the hostel. I'm stoked. This bumps up my pile of books to 5: Green Mars by Kim Robinson, Feast of Crows by George Martin, South America Lonely Planet Guide, New Zealand Lonely Planet guide, and now 100 Years of Solitude. Yeah, I know, that's a lot of books. I keep thinking they should be going faster, but Green Mars is heavy on science talk, and Feast of Crows is heavy on historical politics, so even though I'm thoroughly engrossed the reading is slow. The travel books are browsers right now. I'll get to the planning later. 100 Years, well now, I might wait to start that one after I've finished Green Mars or Feast of Crows. I know this is all facinating to you.
Maybe more interesting was my reading list for the day. I started at Occupy Oakland on Facebook, out of curiosity for what the movement is doing in my town after reading a synopsis of the minutes of the most recent GA that a friend posted up. I will admit that I'm disheartened by the co-opting of the movement in Oakland by some overly radical characters. We need more balanced view points at the GAs!
My foray onto the page led me to an article talking about the movement getting co-opted for the democratic party. It's decidedly and admittedly one sided, but it led me to an article by a man who used to be an accountant for the IMF, or for those who don't know, the International Monetary Fund. These guys are the biggest bank in the world, and they bail out countries who have no where else to turn. The IMF is also kind of evil on some other levels, but this is basically a general economic and history lesson related to debt laden countries. The quote that led me to this article from the one on Slate?
"Squeezing the oligarchs, though, is seldom the strategy of choice among emerging-market governments. Quite the contrary: at the outset of the crisis, the oligarchs are usually among the first to get extra help from the government, such as preferential access to foreign currency, or maybe a nice tax break, or—here’s a classic Kremlin bailout technique—the assumption of private debt obligations by the government. Under duress, generosity toward old friends takes many innovative forms. Meanwhile, needing to squeeze someone, most emerging-market governments look first to ordinary working folk—at least until the riots grow too large."
Oligarchy: a government in which a small group exercises control especially for corrupt and selfish purposes; also : a group exercising such control (I do the work so you don't have to!)
I read an article on the daily Kos:
To the black bloc "anarchists", F*** OFF! This is "Occupy", NOT "Destroy"
Which led me to also read an open letter to the Black Bloc at Occupy Oakland on Indy Bay, which articulated my own frustration with what happened on my side the night of the General Strike."An Open Letter to the Black Bloc and Others Concerning Wednesday's Tactics in Oakland"
My last bit of reading? Well I've been a bit concerned over the National Defense Authorization Act, which is a huge bill with a couple scary small provisions. Today the bill was voted on and passed the senate. Here's a right wing view on what's wrong with this bill from Politico:
"Opinion: Matters of Injustice"
On a side note: I was told once by a friend that the Mahna Mahna song from the muppets was originally a swedish porn song. I told this to my friends after we went to see the Muppets on Thanksgiving, and it turns out someone actually did a whole overview of the origination of the song on Slate. Italian soft core porn about swedish snow bunny babes in a sauna is where the song actually first originated. Good to know weird information for the future.
Then I took the bruise crew in a friend of a friend's van out to the movies. We saw the Muppets. Duh. And it was awesome. I wore an animal costume and scared a very large man behind the snack counter so bad he broke out in a cold sweat and the shakes. I sat with a giant grin on my face the whole movie. Best Thanksgiving EVER.
Work has been easy the last few days, very slow, so lots of laundry has been done. Tomorrow it's bleaching the linens and the mattress covers for the new building. Facinating, no?
Break time was all sunshine today. I threw on my wetsuit, rode my bike down coast trail, right through the giant puddle, skirted up a dune, landed on the beach but didn't swim because i was afraid of the waves and maybe sharks and I was all alone at the beach. If I'd been eaten or swept out to sea no one would know! I played it safe and only went in as far as I could touch, then took off the suit and napped in the sun for about an hour before riding back, just as the fog was rolling in. I love it here. Even on foggy days I think it's super beautiful. It's not the mountains, but it'll do. Update: I just read a blog that told me to look out for stinging nettle jellyfish! The ocean is SCARY!
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Twain Harte
 |
| Gates to the wilderness, somewhere between the foothills and Twain Harte |
 |
| Home for sale or rent! The lovely mountain home of the Williams family. Pond included. |
 |
| English Geese, owning the pond |
 |
| Elzy's Eagle, looking out over the pond from the deck |
 |
| Mallards mate for life Jon. |
 |
| Basement bikes in the woods |
 |
Can you name this plant? It was basically growing wild as a ground cover, smelled sweet and was sticky. |
 |
| Big sky. |
Monday, September 26, 2011
Money Be Tight Yo.
Whoo boy, it's been a while since I posted anything up.
Things have most definitely led me down some crazy paths the last few weeks. From laughing with a family in Carson City, feeding cows and wine tasting in Placerville, to night time hikes with old and awkward friends, piano and big fire in the old lodge out at camp, lake sunrises and jumps, hitching a last minute ride to the Bay Area and changing ALL my plans in less than a minute, getting a job 3 days after arriving back in the bay, riding a bike 30 miles to pick up some stuff, then hitching a ride with a surfer/stoner/burner kid from Ukiah who got lost looking for the San Pablo exit in Oakland off of 80, to spending a night in Twain Harte with the pretty cool and very loving family of a man who is a very dear friend of mine.
I have joked with friends recently that my life has become a "Choose your own adventure" story book. I managed to hit a pile of vipers and got sent back to the start to try again, so here I am, back in Oakland, and working no less. (There's a lot I could say and won't about this situation. My best friends know what's up.)
To top it all off, Back in July I had applied for unemployment, and got rejected. Up in Tahoe, I reapplied, figuring it couldn't hurt to try again. Well, tonight I found out I was approved, finally, after three months and hardly any money. I should get my check at the end of this week if all goes according to plan.
Speaking of funds, here is the break down of my recent costs and bank account:
Medical Supplies: 140.00 (This is about what I paid when I had health insurance too, and might even be less than I paid when I had insurance, since I was also paying for insurance at the time. By the way, this is a scary position to be in, since I cannot get health insurance due to my pre-existing condition until 2013 unless my employer provides it, but that's a conversation for another day.)
Cell Phone: 52.00
New Cell Phone due to lost Charger: 12.71 (I could not find a charger for my old phone, and besides, all the chargers I could find cost 25.00 or more.)
CA ID: 26.00 (Mine has not been valid for a year and I lost my passport in Utah. If I want to get a real job, I'll need a valid ID, and a Social Security card, both of which are cheaper at the moment then replacing the passport.)
1 Coffee: 1.50
Total in Bank Account today, after all was said and done:
91.52
Bills that aren't getting paid this month:
School: 152.00
ER Bill from Kidney Stones: $2500 (It's unlikely this bill will get paid for sometime yet. And in the mean time it's accruing interest)
Things I cut out of my budget last month: Netflix and Drop Box for a total of 32.00.
Other things going on: I found holes in the one pair of jeans I own. My sweatshirt smells bad because I've worn it every day for the last two months (I wash it frequently). I lost my glasses in a lake in the wilderness. Well, lost is not really the right word for it. My glasses are sitting at the bottom of a lake in the wilderness, waiting for me to retrieve them some day. If anyone has a wetsuit and the ability to freedive to find them, please let me know.
Just a short comment on job applications: I've been sending several out in chunks when I have internet access. It's hard to do when you don't have a computer you know?
Things have most definitely led me down some crazy paths the last few weeks. From laughing with a family in Carson City, feeding cows and wine tasting in Placerville, to night time hikes with old and awkward friends, piano and big fire in the old lodge out at camp, lake sunrises and jumps, hitching a last minute ride to the Bay Area and changing ALL my plans in less than a minute, getting a job 3 days after arriving back in the bay, riding a bike 30 miles to pick up some stuff, then hitching a ride with a surfer/stoner/burner kid from Ukiah who got lost looking for the San Pablo exit in Oakland off of 80, to spending a night in Twain Harte with the pretty cool and very loving family of a man who is a very dear friend of mine.
I have joked with friends recently that my life has become a "Choose your own adventure" story book. I managed to hit a pile of vipers and got sent back to the start to try again, so here I am, back in Oakland, and working no less. (There's a lot I could say and won't about this situation. My best friends know what's up.)
To top it all off, Back in July I had applied for unemployment, and got rejected. Up in Tahoe, I reapplied, figuring it couldn't hurt to try again. Well, tonight I found out I was approved, finally, after three months and hardly any money. I should get my check at the end of this week if all goes according to plan.
Speaking of funds, here is the break down of my recent costs and bank account:
Medical Supplies: 140.00 (This is about what I paid when I had health insurance too, and might even be less than I paid when I had insurance, since I was also paying for insurance at the time. By the way, this is a scary position to be in, since I cannot get health insurance due to my pre-existing condition until 2013 unless my employer provides it, but that's a conversation for another day.)
Cell Phone: 52.00
New Cell Phone due to lost Charger: 12.71 (I could not find a charger for my old phone, and besides, all the chargers I could find cost 25.00 or more.)
CA ID: 26.00 (Mine has not been valid for a year and I lost my passport in Utah. If I want to get a real job, I'll need a valid ID, and a Social Security card, both of which are cheaper at the moment then replacing the passport.)
1 Coffee: 1.50
Total in Bank Account today, after all was said and done:
91.52
Bills that aren't getting paid this month:
School: 152.00
ER Bill from Kidney Stones: $2500 (It's unlikely this bill will get paid for sometime yet. And in the mean time it's accruing interest)
Things I cut out of my budget last month: Netflix and Drop Box for a total of 32.00.
Other things going on: I found holes in the one pair of jeans I own. My sweatshirt smells bad because I've worn it every day for the last two months (I wash it frequently). I lost my glasses in a lake in the wilderness. Well, lost is not really the right word for it. My glasses are sitting at the bottom of a lake in the wilderness, waiting for me to retrieve them some day. If anyone has a wetsuit and the ability to freedive to find them, please let me know.
Just a short comment on job applications: I've been sending several out in chunks when I have internet access. It's hard to do when you don't have a computer you know?
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Mountain Places
Today we hiked up to Aloha and Jabu through the Desolation Wilderness, which is the back border of SSCC. Pictures are not mine, since I didn't have a camera, but just to give you an idea of where I spent my day:
Neither of these pictures can completely do the places justice, but you get the idea, yeah?
On the way back we the Echo Lakes trail, which is part of the PCT, and then took Tamarack trail, which is not marked on the maps, and follows a water flow down from Angora Ridge. It was tough and gorgeous.
I was tired at this point and was trailing with Jared, and we had about 20 minutes of improv play after climbing through a vortex tree, which turned us into wild mountain creatures discovering our world for the first time, and we found a stick and made it into several things before it's final incarnation as a laser gun.
Needless to say: I had fun. Jabu lake is cold and clear right down to the bottom. Aloha is gorgeous and quiet. I swam in Jabu, had some filtered Aloha water after wading in knee high, and did some trail running. My body hurts in the best way.
 |
| (The trail marked on this map covers part of what we did today. If you follow the red line from the bottom of the map, you'll see that it passes by Jabu, around Aloha, and past Heathers. We actually took a loop that started out by lilly lake and went around, decending down Tamarack. The yellow line shows a trail up to Mt. Tallac at 10,000 feet. I've done that climb, many years ago, but I went up the Fallen Leaf side. I'll probably take the Glen Alpine Springs Trail next time, which I think will be next week before the snow comes. Map Credit: Stanford.) |
(Lake Aloha, Photo Credit: Flickr Member Slang4201)
(Lake Jabu, Photo Credit: Flickr Member PaloJono)
On the way back we the Echo Lakes trail, which is part of the PCT, and then took Tamarack trail, which is not marked on the maps, and follows a water flow down from Angora Ridge. It was tough and gorgeous.
I was tired at this point and was trailing with Jared, and we had about 20 minutes of improv play after climbing through a vortex tree, which turned us into wild mountain creatures discovering our world for the first time, and we found a stick and made it into several things before it's final incarnation as a laser gun.
Needless to say: I had fun. Jabu lake is cold and clear right down to the bottom. Aloha is gorgeous and quiet. I swam in Jabu, had some filtered Aloha water after wading in knee high, and did some trail running. My body hurts in the best way.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Tahoe Pt. 3
Spent:
6 on breakfast
5 on lunch (peanut butter sando and a hot cocoa.)
5 for a monthly bank fee
6 dollars on a bank fee I was not aware I was going to be charged.
Total in bank:
324.22
Total in pocket:
10
I appreciate the sounds of this place:
The look and color of the leaves of the Aspens
Lake waves at Kiva:
Wind blowing between the moraines and peaks and brushing the needles of the pine trees
Update: I am in a friend's home looking to leave tomorrow for a few days. I miss Matty and Jared, but Becca is here, and I love her so much, and am so grateful for her and Tom for letting me stay a few nights with them. I've been to two open mic nights since I got to town, spent a day out at Kiva with the boys, spent a day watching movies with Becca. I heard yesterday that there was an opening at camp, so I gave Brian a call to let him know I was still very interested in working out there, then spent today waiting for a call back, looking for other jobs, applying to other jobs, though what I most want is camp.
I got a call from Cyndi and talked plans (on her side) and ideas (on my side).
There are many more ideas, as change of location is bound to bring. Matty gave me his guide to short term job adventures to go through, and I'm finding a wealth of outdoor education jobs. It's making me so stoked to get out and apply for them. A lot of them require previous experience, so I'm trying to get on this path so I can go work these awesome jobs.
I have to say that I'm incredibly grateful for the wonderful men in my life that are based out here for the moment. Jon has been incredibly generous with food, and has stuck with me through movement, driving us around and offering really awesome conversation and encouragement, since we're both homeless right now. I feel protected and less lonely with him around, plus he's hustling sleeping spaces and has way more connections out this way then I do. Matty has been generous with the mobile space he owns, and I'm glad David and Jared are out here because they make me laugh a lot.
Then there's this, which was a Becca gift tonight:
6 on breakfast
5 on lunch (peanut butter sando and a hot cocoa.)
5 for a monthly bank fee
6 dollars on a bank fee I was not aware I was going to be charged.
Total in bank:
324.22
Total in pocket:
10
I appreciate the sounds of this place:
The look and color of the leaves of the Aspens
Lake waves at Kiva:
(Photo Credit: Jon Green)
Wind blowing between the moraines and peaks and brushing the needles of the pine trees
Update: I am in a friend's home looking to leave tomorrow for a few days. I miss Matty and Jared, but Becca is here, and I love her so much, and am so grateful for her and Tom for letting me stay a few nights with them. I've been to two open mic nights since I got to town, spent a day out at Kiva with the boys, spent a day watching movies with Becca. I heard yesterday that there was an opening at camp, so I gave Brian a call to let him know I was still very interested in working out there, then spent today waiting for a call back, looking for other jobs, applying to other jobs, though what I most want is camp.
I got a call from Cyndi and talked plans (on her side) and ideas (on my side).
There are many more ideas, as change of location is bound to bring. Matty gave me his guide to short term job adventures to go through, and I'm finding a wealth of outdoor education jobs. It's making me so stoked to get out and apply for them. A lot of them require previous experience, so I'm trying to get on this path so I can go work these awesome jobs.
I have to say that I'm incredibly grateful for the wonderful men in my life that are based out here for the moment. Jon has been incredibly generous with food, and has stuck with me through movement, driving us around and offering really awesome conversation and encouragement, since we're both homeless right now. I feel protected and less lonely with him around, plus he's hustling sleeping spaces and has way more connections out this way then I do. Matty has been generous with the mobile space he owns, and I'm glad David and Jared are out here because they make me laugh a lot.
Then there's this, which was a Becca gift tonight:
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Tahoe!
I made it.
Money spent?
30- Rideshare (Amtrak takes 50$ one way from the East Bay. Greyhound doesn't stop in South Lake)
3.77- Belt, Pair of Shorts, Hat from the Attic, which is a local thrift store.
This money was spent out of some extra I had from selling my Bed and Dishes, so I'm not yet digging into my $355.
The ride up took 5 and a half hours. It was like driving up the mountains in a snow storm, only with less cars sliding around the road. My ride share girl was pretty rad, she'd worked in Vail for 6 years before moving to Tahoe and working here for a couple years. She lives in SF now, going to school and working full time. She seemed to know a ton of people up here which could be good for me. Mostly I'm exhausted though. Between having my plans change almost hourly, getting my stuff out of the house, whether it was being sold or given away or stored, choosing the stuff that I would keep vs the stuff to get rid of (Art, costumes, sticks and rocks got kept. Almost everything else? Gone.), interviews, job applications and budgeting, I've been pretty stressed out the last few weeks. My wit has gone up, my language skills have gone down, and my memory is reliably unreliable. I'm starting to catch up on sleep, but it's still going to be a while before I'm at 100%.
I cooked a skillet pizza last night for the boys.
I'm staying at a house in town populated by camp people, and sleeping in the RV with Matty and Jon.
The traffic is crazy in town right now. I'll be glad when the tourists go home and I can ride my bike around.
Jared is getting out to camp tomorrow sometime, and Ficke is heading out on Tuesday.
Right now my plan is to do a couple open mic nights in town and meet some musicians. I'm going to go to the EDD in town and talk to them about getting unemployment, (I applied and got turned down, I'm going to see about an appeal) and I'm going to go visit Heavenly. I am pretty sure this is not where I'm going to end up in the end, though I think I'm going to spend the winter up here. There's a migration to the central coast, but that isn't where I want to be, and one of my most favorite people is moving to Upstate New York, but I don't want east coast winters.
Before I left I got a package from my dear friend Cyndi, containing the clothes I left at her house in Utah, and three CD's. One was a Mason Jennings CD. This is the song I listened to on my way out of Oakland, and it's been stuck in my head:
Money spent?
30- Rideshare (Amtrak takes 50$ one way from the East Bay. Greyhound doesn't stop in South Lake)
3.77- Belt, Pair of Shorts, Hat from the Attic, which is a local thrift store.
This money was spent out of some extra I had from selling my Bed and Dishes, so I'm not yet digging into my $355.
The ride up took 5 and a half hours. It was like driving up the mountains in a snow storm, only with less cars sliding around the road. My ride share girl was pretty rad, she'd worked in Vail for 6 years before moving to Tahoe and working here for a couple years. She lives in SF now, going to school and working full time. She seemed to know a ton of people up here which could be good for me. Mostly I'm exhausted though. Between having my plans change almost hourly, getting my stuff out of the house, whether it was being sold or given away or stored, choosing the stuff that I would keep vs the stuff to get rid of (Art, costumes, sticks and rocks got kept. Almost everything else? Gone.), interviews, job applications and budgeting, I've been pretty stressed out the last few weeks. My wit has gone up, my language skills have gone down, and my memory is reliably unreliable. I'm starting to catch up on sleep, but it's still going to be a while before I'm at 100%.
I cooked a skillet pizza last night for the boys.
I'm staying at a house in town populated by camp people, and sleeping in the RV with Matty and Jon.
(Abiyoyo. Photo: Jon Green)
The traffic is crazy in town right now. I'll be glad when the tourists go home and I can ride my bike around.
Jared is getting out to camp tomorrow sometime, and Ficke is heading out on Tuesday.
Right now my plan is to do a couple open mic nights in town and meet some musicians. I'm going to go to the EDD in town and talk to them about getting unemployment, (I applied and got turned down, I'm going to see about an appeal) and I'm going to go visit Heavenly. I am pretty sure this is not where I'm going to end up in the end, though I think I'm going to spend the winter up here. There's a migration to the central coast, but that isn't where I want to be, and one of my most favorite people is moving to Upstate New York, but I don't want east coast winters.
Before I left I got a package from my dear friend Cyndi, containing the clothes I left at her house in Utah, and three CD's. One was a Mason Jennings CD. This is the song I listened to on my way out of Oakland, and it's been stuck in my head:
Thursday, September 1, 2011
I Am On a Journey
So I had a lot of ideas of what to make this last post in Oakland.
It started way back in July with this picture. This was up at July's art murmur. The photo credit goes to Jon Suzuki of The Missing Link, who takes excellent photos. The story behind it is this: This young man found this old book in his grandfather's attic. The book was published in 1925 and is called "Who Made Oakland", written by Florence B. Crocker, and published by Clyde Dalton, in Oakland, of course. When asked, the guy explained that he hadn't been able to find another copy of the book, so he was working on getting it reprinted, and in the mean time, had made prints of some of the images and pages, this being one of them. He said that he'd read through it and it was amazing how much of it was still relevant today. Me, I'm just glad he found it and is doing something with it.
As for me, it is up to me what my future will be, and that's exciting. Talking to a friend this evening, I mentioned that I applied for a job today at an outdoor school that I'd applied to several years ago, and got offered a job at, that I declined to take for several reasons. If I get offered it again, I will not turn it down, and that would be a little bit of a circle back to another life path.
It started way back in July with this picture. This was up at July's art murmur. The photo credit goes to Jon Suzuki of The Missing Link, who takes excellent photos. The story behind it is this: This young man found this old book in his grandfather's attic. The book was published in 1925 and is called "Who Made Oakland", written by Florence B. Crocker, and published by Clyde Dalton, in Oakland, of course. When asked, the guy explained that he hadn't been able to find another copy of the book, so he was working on getting it reprinted, and in the mean time, had made prints of some of the images and pages, this being one of them. He said that he'd read through it and it was amazing how much of it was still relevant today. Me, I'm just glad he found it and is doing something with it.
Anyways, here's the deal. I've got 355 dollars to my name. I have a great resume, but no job. I have wonderful friends, but no home, as of tomorrow, I have a cell phone, but it's not smart. My ultimate goal is to get to the east coast any way that I can by Thanksgiving, to see my family, and then get back to the west as quickly as possible to have a job.
How does one do that on 355 dollars? The ultimate, of course, would be to have a job that will pay for this, but, in the mean time, with no job forthcoming, I'm going to turn this into an adventure, and in true Ashley style, a little bit of a community effort. Sitting around was never my style, after all. Though I have to admit it's been nice to take a breather.
So here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to document to you every adventure I have, and every penny I spend of my 355 in cash via my blog. I'm going to utilize friend connections, ride shares, my bike, and couchsurfing.com to travel. I'm going to be trying some pretty unconventional things along the way. I'm pretty sure this is going to be worth it. Let's see how far I can get, yeah? I'm starting on Friday.
I've applied to a lot of jobs. I'll continue to apply to jobs on the road. There's not much more I can do to make them happen, other than to keep my cell phone connected for as long as I can. I have a handful of quarters for doing laundry along the way, and I've packed a nice shirt.
I'm starting in the bay area, and I'm heading towards Tahoe. Do you know bands on tour I can hitch a ride with? Do you know couches I could sleep on? Do you know cooks I could eat with? Let me know!
Here is what I have to offer in exchange for any of these things (You can tell your friend this when you tell them what I'm doing and why I need their help):
I will sing a song
I will cook a meal
I will do your least favorite chore for you
I will do the driving
I will make something
I will walk the dog
I will organize something
I will be a roadie
I will take your picture or the picture of a loved one, to be printed and sent to you after I have a job. (I will take your picture anyways, for the blog, but this offering will be a special picture just for you.)
I will watch your kids for a day, so you can go on a date with your spouse, or take a nap.
I'm sure I will think of more as I go along, but this is what I have for now.
Much love to you Bay Area, and especially you, Oakland. It's been rocky and beautiful and hard and lovely. I will surely miss all of your faces.
Friday, August 26, 2011
Harry Potter Sticks
So, yesterday I found a Harry Potter wand. I'll admit that it's a little long, but I'm pretty sure it could "stupify" an elephant. Of course I picked it up and carried it home, using it as a strut cane through the worst neighborhoods along 27th and San Pablo (in Oakland, you gotta look tough, and carry a big stick.) I was prepared to whoop some butt, if it got too close.
What I really wanted to do with this post is tell the story of my amazing day Wednesday, since yesterday was just ok, I mean, outside of finding a Harry Potter stick. (And yes, I went from an exciting day to a day where finding a stick was the highlight of my day)
Wednesday started off with a dog walk. I would just like to take this moment to say I hate dog leashes. Dogs like to sniff things, people like to get places with out stopping. Leashes do not equal fun for either party in this equation.
I had a job interview that went really well, and then had some amazing sushi in celebration, and from there, went to Berkeley to hang out with some people I hadn't hung out with in a while.
We went to Venus where one of them works, and by the way, Venus is lovely and the head chef Kevin is a super nice guy. They also make beautiful cocktails. Well, specifically, Lauren, who is one of the servers there and happens to be my friend, makes beautiful cocktails. On our walk back to the Ashby heaven that is James and Lauren's apartment, we were gently accosted by a small quiet asian girl, asking for donations for world peace. Yes. Give a dollar for world peace. None of us had any cash on us, so we politely declined. As we walked, she followed us, and ended up coming across one of the addicts that sells the addict newspaper for a dollar on the street. In a serendipitous moment, they happened to ask each other for a dollar at the same time. It was picture worthy, and is still making me giggle.
After the Tahoe crew drank lots of whiskey, and I took over the kitchen to make dinner, and many things were discussed on the porch, (including near dead languages, obscure middle eastern countries, and other things I don't necessarily remember) we retired to the dining room to play a Russian card game called Durok (and of course in Russian it's spelled differently), and it was fun, and complicated, and really hard, and did I mention fun? Because it was. Then somehow I ended up on an air mattress in the empty room of the neighbor's house to sleep. The next morning we took a breakfast walk, hustled me to my JFK session, and finally the finding of the Harry Potter stick before taking a shower and a nap.
So what's the point? The law of attraction, if you must know. Because for a minute there, it felt like I was just manifesting all the things I wanted in life, coziness, food, Tahoe friends, ice cream. All I had to do was mention it and like magic it was there. I wasted at least one of my manifests on ice cream. So what happened yesterday? Yesterday I did not get hired. Though really in the grand scheme of things, maybe manifesting ice cream is not the same as manifesting a job offer.
Not that this is all that different from the rest of my days this summer. I've spent an entire summer not getting hired! Only this time, my references got called, and said they gave me good reviews, but still, I did not get hired.
Law of attraction says I want something more than these jobs. Or, perhaps that something wants me more than these jobs do. Logic (at least mine) follows that this must be mutual. If that's the case than the mutual pull is warping the universe and keeping me really poor. And I wish I knew what that something was. Suspense and me don't get along very well. Dear something! Reveal yourself to me!
(Here is where I was going to insert a hand drawn picture by me, of the universe warping, but it turned out very poor and nothing like what I had envisioned. Instead I give you this:)
(image was found on Quest.)
I think the G on the left is the mystery something, and the g on the right is me? That's how I'm choosing to interpret this. Regardless, I'm no closer today than I was yesterday to figuring out what that "something" is. I see my role in this whole law of attraction thing as the choice maker. I choose where to apply, each being something I would like to do or am qualified to do, in places I would like to live. The universe decides which one of these places is right for me. In the mean time, all my money exists somewhere between the up vector and the down vector. Or something. Either way it's not in my pocket. Or my wallet. Or my bank account.
What I really wanted to do with this post is tell the story of my amazing day Wednesday, since yesterday was just ok, I mean, outside of finding a Harry Potter stick. (And yes, I went from an exciting day to a day where finding a stick was the highlight of my day)
Wednesday started off with a dog walk. I would just like to take this moment to say I hate dog leashes. Dogs like to sniff things, people like to get places with out stopping. Leashes do not equal fun for either party in this equation.
I had a job interview that went really well, and then had some amazing sushi in celebration, and from there, went to Berkeley to hang out with some people I hadn't hung out with in a while.
We went to Venus where one of them works, and by the way, Venus is lovely and the head chef Kevin is a super nice guy. They also make beautiful cocktails. Well, specifically, Lauren, who is one of the servers there and happens to be my friend, makes beautiful cocktails. On our walk back to the Ashby heaven that is James and Lauren's apartment, we were gently accosted by a small quiet asian girl, asking for donations for world peace. Yes. Give a dollar for world peace. None of us had any cash on us, so we politely declined. As we walked, she followed us, and ended up coming across one of the addicts that sells the addict newspaper for a dollar on the street. In a serendipitous moment, they happened to ask each other for a dollar at the same time. It was picture worthy, and is still making me giggle.
After the Tahoe crew drank lots of whiskey, and I took over the kitchen to make dinner, and many things were discussed on the porch, (including near dead languages, obscure middle eastern countries, and other things I don't necessarily remember) we retired to the dining room to play a Russian card game called Durok (and of course in Russian it's spelled differently), and it was fun, and complicated, and really hard, and did I mention fun? Because it was. Then somehow I ended up on an air mattress in the empty room of the neighbor's house to sleep. The next morning we took a breakfast walk, hustled me to my JFK session, and finally the finding of the Harry Potter stick before taking a shower and a nap.
So what's the point? The law of attraction, if you must know. Because for a minute there, it felt like I was just manifesting all the things I wanted in life, coziness, food, Tahoe friends, ice cream. All I had to do was mention it and like magic it was there. I wasted at least one of my manifests on ice cream. So what happened yesterday? Yesterday I did not get hired. Though really in the grand scheme of things, maybe manifesting ice cream is not the same as manifesting a job offer.
Not that this is all that different from the rest of my days this summer. I've spent an entire summer not getting hired! Only this time, my references got called, and said they gave me good reviews, but still, I did not get hired.
Law of attraction says I want something more than these jobs. Or, perhaps that something wants me more than these jobs do. Logic (at least mine) follows that this must be mutual. If that's the case than the mutual pull is warping the universe and keeping me really poor. And I wish I knew what that something was. Suspense and me don't get along very well. Dear something! Reveal yourself to me!
(Here is where I was going to insert a hand drawn picture by me, of the universe warping, but it turned out very poor and nothing like what I had envisioned. Instead I give you this:)
(image was found on Quest.)
I think the G on the left is the mystery something, and the g on the right is me? That's how I'm choosing to interpret this. Regardless, I'm no closer today than I was yesterday to figuring out what that "something" is. I see my role in this whole law of attraction thing as the choice maker. I choose where to apply, each being something I would like to do or am qualified to do, in places I would like to live. The universe decides which one of these places is right for me. In the mean time, all my money exists somewhere between the up vector and the down vector. Or something. Either way it's not in my pocket. Or my wallet. Or my bank account.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
The Alameda Beach Fiasco
Or: The Fine Line Between an Adventure and a Fiasco...
Adventure: Noun: An unusual and exciting, typically hazardous, experience or activity.
Fiasco: A thing that is a complete failure, esp. in a ludicrous way. (Ludicrous: Causing or deserving laughter because of absurdity)
This was my day:
Wake Up at 10:30, groan because I didn't go to sleep till 6:00AM, nap till 11:15, open eyes, sit up. Groan more. 11:45, get text that says meet at 1:00pm instead of 12:00. Much better. Get up, get dressed, make Dark Wizard Lemonade, pack up the bike, ride to Mosswood, almost get killed 2 blocks from my house when a lady runs a stop sign and only sees me at the last minute, be real scared for a minute, logically think I should wear a helmet more, illogically think I'm invincible. Bottom line: Today was not my day to die, however Death, you're getting a little too close for comfort. Step off bro.
It was ridiculous and fun, and I'm glad I was with everyone I was with.
Adventure: Noun: An unusual and exciting, typically hazardous, experience or activity.
Fiasco: A thing that is a complete failure, esp. in a ludicrous way. (Ludicrous: Causing or deserving laughter because of absurdity)
This was my day:
Wake Up at 10:30, groan because I didn't go to sleep till 6:00AM, nap till 11:15, open eyes, sit up. Groan more. 11:45, get text that says meet at 1:00pm instead of 12:00. Much better. Get up, get dressed, make Dark Wizard Lemonade, pack up the bike, ride to Mosswood, almost get killed 2 blocks from my house when a lady runs a stop sign and only sees me at the last minute, be real scared for a minute, logically think I should wear a helmet more, illogically think I'm invincible. Bottom line: Today was not my day to die, however Death, you're getting a little too close for comfort. Step off bro.
Meet up with the peeps at Mosswood, ride to the tunnel, ride through the tunnel, find route to Park ave, Devin gets a flat, Devin fixes the flat, Devin gets a flat, stop at Stone Cyclery to fix the flat, walk through the food and wine festival for a block, decide it's hell, ride up a block, meet the rest of our group at Trader Joes, ride to the beach, a block away, find a spot, eat hella good food, drink tecate, run into the ocean, dry off in the sun, 
discover that Celina has two flats and Devin has another flat. Send an exploratory group to Big 5, while the rest of us decide to drink the bottle of wine while we wait for the return of said exploratory group. Wine drunk in 10 minutes, group migrates to Big 5 where we hang out in the lounge chairs out front until the flats are all fixed, ride home.
discover that Celina has two flats and Devin has another flat. Send an exploratory group to Big 5, while the rest of us decide to drink the bottle of wine while we wait for the return of said exploratory group. Wine drunk in 10 minutes, group migrates to Big 5 where we hang out in the lounge chairs out front until the flats are all fixed, ride home.It was ridiculous and fun, and I'm glad I was with everyone I was with.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)