Alrighty, I am going to try and make this update quick so I don't miss that much sun - it's so nice out!
Conveniently, Thursday was pretty uneventful during the day... I updated the blog and puttered on the computer for a while, sat around the hostel relaxing for most of the day. I did leave for a short time to help a friend out, but that was about it. After dinner there were options... Karaoke was happening with people at the hostel, but there was a show Daniel told me about on 1015 Folsom as well, plus a man named Jesse from the Alien party told me about "Beat Church" - a weekly dance event. I had ran into him the night before walking to the bar. Between the three, I was leaning towards the first and last option, since the supposed Folsom event was no where on the internet and I was doubting it was actually happening.
A most wonderful woman that I had met from the "Gays and Mormons" party was wanting to do something tonight, so after being indecisive for a while we decided to meet up in between where we both were, so Noelle and I left to meet Laura at a place called "Casanovas" on Valencia St.
The space was pretty; I loved the lighting. Two Canadians were talking to Laura when we got there - both had been to Vancouver before (went to UBC) so that was fun to talk about... the three of us ended up not going to any of the three original options and hung out there for the night. Noelle had to get up early for a photo shoot, so she took off and I went back to Noe Valley with Laura and had my head petted. I was in heaven!!
I woke up late the next day to sunshine and a quaint neighborhood! I was supposed to hoop with Jamie, so I quickly showered (in a real shower! Yay!), ate a piece of bread, and caught a bus to the hostel to get my hoops. Turns out she had some errands to run by the time I got back, so she came by around 430, and we went to the chiropractor/massage place. We couldn't find anywhere to park, so we wedged the car in what could be a parking space and took turns getting treatments while the other was in the car with the hazards on. This took longer than we thought (no complaints!) so we only got about half an hour or something to hoop in the park. It was getting dark anyhow. She had to take off to babysit and I was going to take a bus back, but I never saw one (I found out later that this was because I was on the wrong street most of the time haha) so I walked back. It was a really pleasant walk, minus the inevitable hills.
I had picked up some beer on the way back since it was Friday (usually the hostel staff go do something weekend nights) and looked up what was going on in the evening. Jamie was a huge help with this, I now know that Amon Tobin is playing tonight (Saturday) and was playing last night but I didn't get tickets. I might see if I can buy one today. Other than that, I was kind of feeling "meh" towards the other options. There was a house party kind of nearby that Bobby from the hostel was able to take some people to, so I grabbed my beer and took off to that.
It was a "prohibition" party, so basically dress up 1920's and pretend to be a bootlegger. I of course had no costume, but I found the owner of a bowler hat and he allowed me to take it off it's peg on the wall and wear it. It was convincing enough. The people at the party were super friendly, lots of friendly gay guys that I could talk about sun and moon signs with hehehe :)
We left fairly early by cab, but my half-drunk self had a serious pizza craving. We all got back to find more staff and guests awake drinking whiskey in the kitchen, so Shaun walked me to pizza. We found a fennel on the way sitting on the concrete outside the Hilton, so he carried that around for a while. The pizza was everything I had hoped it would be: greasy. We returned, drank water, ate cookies, and eventually we all fell asleep.
I had been offered a 2 for 1 adjustment/massage yesterday, so I woke up this morning with half an hour to get to the chiro! I jumped out of bed and went straight there eating my leftover pizza. I got there in time, got another massage and adjustment, and walked back in the sunshine! It was excellent. Now I am feeling like a shower and changing, gotta get myself outside!
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Flying Away
I bought my ticket for Phoenix. I am leaving San Francisco on Monday Feb 2nd. I researched for ages... paying 20+ dollars more for a flight was worth getting there faster, especially since I will be on a train for a long time when I go to New Orleans... so I will see Annastajia soon :)
I believe I left off on Sunday evening then. The next day involved a LOT of walking with Noelle and Shelli :) We walked to an art school/gallery, the beautiful city hall:
then another one, then way down into the SOMA area to a coffee shop. We walked for hours :)
Noelle had a friend (Anthony) who worked there so we got some free frapps yumm. Turns out the other guy that worked with Anthony was a dj so he flyered us...
...with dubstep! Not only dubstep, but it advertised Max Ulis playing with him hahaha. SMALL WORLD! I told him that I was from Vancouver and that I knew Max from back home; this guy (named Daniel aka Dubsworth) was friends with him too. What are the odds that I would walk into a random coffee shop quite a distance from the hostel to visit a friend of a friend, to encounter a show that featured someone I knew. Craziness to the extreme. Unfortunately the show is on the 6th, and I'd already bought my plane ticket. It's kind of a good thing I did buy it; I could see myself getting sucked in here even more and end up spending most of my travel time here haha.
We arrived back in the evening, and I prepared to go out to a thing called Spin Jam (for hula hooping poi etc) - but by the time I was all ready I would be spending just as much time on transit than hooping, plus I was tired from walking for almost seven hours or something ridiculous like that. I decided to just hoop on the roof deck instead. This was satisfactory, but by the end of that I was tired enough that I ended up watching movies lazing around for the rest of the night.
Tuesday consisted of going grocery shopping/eating pastries with Shelli, and online Mahjong which I am now addicted to again. I wrote for a while on this little computer, gave Noelle a massage, watched thinner with Shelli and Noelle in a cuddle puddle, and laughed at random pranks being played. Namely, Noelle putting shaving cream in Brian's (the Scotsman) shoes. He saw it first, but it was still funny. After dinner, a lot of us from the hostel went out to Specs a local piano old school bar... unfortunately I ended up feeling really lightheaded once I sat down so I ended up walking home about five minutes later :p I chilled with Shelli and two french guys (they made fun on Quebecois, African French, and Southern French accents - I had been told some French people do this but I had never actually witnessed it!) The lightheaded-ness started to fade with more mahjong (haha), so then I went to sleep.
Wednesday was fun! Noelle and I went on an Adventure! We took the Muni over to a park named Dolores park. There were palm trees in the middle of the roads, sun in the air, and people and dogs lounging around. I taught Noelle some hooping in the park until we got hungry. The park is sort of between the Castro (gay area) and the Mission (latin area) so there was an excellent burrito place a short walk away (17th and Valencia - I think it might be well known?!)
:) I could only eat half...
A friend of Noelle's named Jeff showed up, then we were off to a coffee shop further down the street. This is a woman's shelter we walked by:
This place had been recommended by a coffee snob, and I could see why...
Not only did the place roast their own beans right there, they had a clover machine (Josef you would appreciate here :p), and no flavour syrups (might ruin the taste?!). The symbol for their shop also looked vaguely communist (which I found funny).
It was here that I SLOWLY drank a latte (and ate a probiotic pill of course) and we waited for another couple people to meet us there. After interpreting paintings on the wall, the five of us then went back to the park and proceeded to play on the kid's playground! It was awesome, I was in leggings so I was able to be a total monkey :D
We hooped for a short time again, I was so happy to be able to be in a short sleeved dress in the night playing on a jungle gym, swings, etc.
All of us took a trolley back down Market after getting lots of sand in my shoes. We met another two people (we snowballed the whole day!!) at a bar not toooo far from the hostel, had one beer. The ATM told me I had an incorrect balance at first, and I nearly had a heart attack. After being reassured by my wonderful mother the one beer felt much nicer. Noelle and I went back to the hostel after this, to discover that we had been out doing stuff since 1 or so, and it was already almost midnight! It was a full day :)
I finished the evening with Kill Bill 2 and promptly fell asleep.
It's kinda cold in here, I'm going to go put pants on instead of a skirt..
I believe I left off on Sunday evening then. The next day involved a LOT of walking with Noelle and Shelli :) We walked to an art school/gallery, the beautiful city hall:
then another one, then way down into the SOMA area to a coffee shop. We walked for hours :)
Noelle had a friend (Anthony) who worked there so we got some free frapps yumm. Turns out the other guy that worked with Anthony was a dj so he flyered us...
...with dubstep! Not only dubstep, but it advertised Max Ulis playing with him hahaha. SMALL WORLD! I told him that I was from Vancouver and that I knew Max from back home; this guy (named Daniel aka Dubsworth) was friends with him too. What are the odds that I would walk into a random coffee shop quite a distance from the hostel to visit a friend of a friend, to encounter a show that featured someone I knew. Craziness to the extreme. Unfortunately the show is on the 6th, and I'd already bought my plane ticket. It's kind of a good thing I did buy it; I could see myself getting sucked in here even more and end up spending most of my travel time here haha.
We arrived back in the evening, and I prepared to go out to a thing called Spin Jam (for hula hooping poi etc) - but by the time I was all ready I would be spending just as much time on transit than hooping, plus I was tired from walking for almost seven hours or something ridiculous like that. I decided to just hoop on the roof deck instead. This was satisfactory, but by the end of that I was tired enough that I ended up watching movies lazing around for the rest of the night.
Tuesday consisted of going grocery shopping/eating pastries with Shelli, and online Mahjong which I am now addicted to again. I wrote for a while on this little computer, gave Noelle a massage, watched thinner with Shelli and Noelle in a cuddle puddle, and laughed at random pranks being played. Namely, Noelle putting shaving cream in Brian's (the Scotsman) shoes. He saw it first, but it was still funny. After dinner, a lot of us from the hostel went out to Specs a local piano old school bar... unfortunately I ended up feeling really lightheaded once I sat down so I ended up walking home about five minutes later :p I chilled with Shelli and two french guys (they made fun on Quebecois, African French, and Southern French accents - I had been told some French people do this but I had never actually witnessed it!) The lightheaded-ness started to fade with more mahjong (haha), so then I went to sleep.
Wednesday was fun! Noelle and I went on an Adventure! We took the Muni over to a park named Dolores park. There were palm trees in the middle of the roads, sun in the air, and people and dogs lounging around. I taught Noelle some hooping in the park until we got hungry. The park is sort of between the Castro (gay area) and the Mission (latin area) so there was an excellent burrito place a short walk away (17th and Valencia - I think it might be well known?!)
:) I could only eat half...
A friend of Noelle's named Jeff showed up, then we were off to a coffee shop further down the street. This is a woman's shelter we walked by:
This place had been recommended by a coffee snob, and I could see why...
Not only did the place roast their own beans right there, they had a clover machine (Josef you would appreciate here :p), and no flavour syrups (might ruin the taste?!). The symbol for their shop also looked vaguely communist (which I found funny).
It was here that I SLOWLY drank a latte (and ate a probiotic pill of course) and we waited for another couple people to meet us there. After interpreting paintings on the wall, the five of us then went back to the park and proceeded to play on the kid's playground! It was awesome, I was in leggings so I was able to be a total monkey :D
We hooped for a short time again, I was so happy to be able to be in a short sleeved dress in the night playing on a jungle gym, swings, etc.
All of us took a trolley back down Market after getting lots of sand in my shoes. We met another two people (we snowballed the whole day!!) at a bar not toooo far from the hostel, had one beer. The ATM told me I had an incorrect balance at first, and I nearly had a heart attack. After being reassured by my wonderful mother the one beer felt much nicer. Noelle and I went back to the hostel after this, to discover that we had been out doing stuff since 1 or so, and it was already almost midnight! It was a full day :)
I finished the evening with Kill Bill 2 and promptly fell asleep.
It's kinda cold in here, I'm going to go put pants on instead of a skirt..
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Aliens and Mormons
Alieeeeennnnnssssss was awesome! We set up the upstairs with lots of mylar (thin metal what looks reflective and trippy):
holographic mylar:
portholes made of fuzzzzy fabic, aliens:
mirror drawings:
posters, anal probe stations (yes that's right):
and of course the anal probes themselves hehehe....
Here are a few...
The show itself started late, but that gave us lots of time to set it up - even got pizza in the process :) The music was better in the rooms we decorated, so we stayed there mostly and rocked the fuck out for hours! I have been dancing so much here it's ridiculous - it's going to get me in shape so fast! My tattoo goes over well with people when I wear my backless shirt and I am loving it :)
A woman in neon saw my hoop that I had brought (I was only able to use it when we were alone in the back rooms before they were open - no space) and got a guard she knew to let us in a space fenced off to hoop some more for over ten minutes!!
After dancing for hours, I asked if Jamie needed help tearing down after... she did.. so we sat and talked till the place shut down and managed to get it all done pretty quick - got back after 5am though, had to be super quiet...
I slept in the next day. I had only had one beer that night, but the physical activity had me sleepy till past noon. Shelli and I decided to go for Vietnamese pastries shortly after I ate breakfast, but it was closed. We opted for subway instead :) I came back and left again shortly afterward with an Aussie and another hostel inhabitant to peruse Chinatown because Chinese New Years celebrations were going on....
I found out it is the year of the Ox! I am the year of the Ox! This is my year! I am very happy about that :) I got a little dangler thing I put on my key chain with a jade ox. There was some singing thing going on, but the highlight was when we discovered these crazy massaging chairs that were giving away demos!! Aarron and I had 20 minute massages for free, and as a massage therapist I have to admit they were relaxing... they had a foot and calf squeeze part that was just heaven.
I stumbled back to the hostel post-massage climbing the four flights of stairs which promptly puts one's calves back to normal. Dinner was ready, and then I went back down and out again to go to a movie with Dave. We were supposed to see the Benjamin Button one but it was sold out, so we went to see Underworld 3 haha. I was expecting nothing but hot women in tight outfits and gore, which is what I got. I was satisfied. I was amused that I didn't recognize any of the new movie posters or adds. I am out of the loop and I love it!
The movie was early, so we got back 8ish and a bunch of us went to a house party. The theme was "gays vs. mormons"... the crowd was half couchsurfers from couchsurfing.com, and the rest were equally as cool. We fit nine people into a child's hula hoop (they are EVERYWHERE HERE) and tried to move around and coordinate our dancing hahahaha. I had a lot of fun :)
Donuts followed this ordeal, followed by a cab, and more food.
the donuts and ice tea saved my stomach the next morning - I woke up not really hung over!!!! It was Sunday, lazy day, but I was happy I didn't have to waste the whole day at all. After a late breakfast, Shaun and I went out for an adventure. I was told of a park nearby that had a wicked view and it was up on a hill (not really that indicative of where it is) so we went to find it.
It wasn't actually that hard since Shaun had been there before, and he took me through some foresty stuff climbing and such, wandered about hills, we found another park, pushed buttons for wheelchair ramps and ran away, warmed hands by a gas outdoor fire, and log rolled down a hill in the newly discovered park. I had forgotten how dizzy log rolling makes you - had to lay at the bottom for a while. I got hungry and cold so it was back to the hostel for dinner! I went to a silly show after that with Dave on the bike... the music was not my scene but the stage show was hilarious... I got to draw my Superfox and some celtic stuff on a mural and play with a stuffy killer whale :)
I was pretty tired after this eventful day full of walking and climbing and stuff, so I chilled around the hostel for the rest of the night :)
Love Leanne
Friday, January 23, 2009
Massages and Weddings
Sooooooooo I went out in the vegetable pants on Wednesday. I was recommended to go to a chiropractor three blocks or so from the hostel by a wonderful Jamie Luv. Your first adjustment is free and then someone massages you and you just tip... The man was so incredibly nice, definitely the best Chiro treatment I've ever had :)
The building is full of oil paintings and sculpture created by the Chiropractor... The massage was excellent too(through the clothes too which is interesting) - the therapist stretched my psoas muscles which REALLY needed stretching and I left feeling like a million bucks.
The people there also offered that I could drop by and work for a couple hours here and there. I would just divide the tips up with other therapists at the end of the two hours. I am very tempted!
Once the laundry was done I got ready to go out for another couchsurfing meet. Unfortunately my "wrong way" key chain was speaking truth because I ended up arriving almost two hours late instead of one. I missed a couple BART stops, plus walked the wrong way at first... oh well.
We moved over to a little pub on Potrero that gave out free popcorn to have with our beer. I've only seen peanuts so this was new! I met even more circus people (I am sleeping underneath a very awesome woman named Shelli in school for contortion) and concluded that San Francisco is a big Circus town. I ran into the man (Mitch) that was taking photos on the Sunday Potluck, and should be receiving a couple photos eventually :)
Brian and Shaun from the hostel showed up later with Conner to take us over to the local bar (Specs) to celebrate Bobby's last night out as a single man. I was the only girl at this event, so I guess I got to go to a sort-of bachelor thing. I felt special. For some reason, someone had handcuffs... Poor Conner was handcuffed to the car on the ride there; I had my hand cuffed to a chair for a little while... Eventually the key was given to the barmaid and then both cuffs were put on Shaun's one hand. He had to cut them off with bolt cutters the next morning since we didn't have the key lol.
Thursday consisted of a very scary experience. I went to turn on this baby computer and it would shut itself off about 30 seconds after loading completely. I let it charge: nothin. Looked it up for a couple hours on the other computers but to no avail. The internet was yelling "overheating" but it was NOT overheating! It wouldn't turn on long enough to do anything and even shut off in safe mode. I was FREAKING OUT.
I massaged Shelli, calming down a bit. Shaun then came over and proceeded to look stuff up with me and then proceeded to FIX IT! It was just the battery not quite behaving, so the computer would shut off thinking that the battery was going to explode or something. YAY! I was starting to worry I'd have to ship the thing back on it's warranty to get it fixed.
Relieved, Shelli and I went to a supposed donation yoga next door to the Chiro place... it was a new installment, so the teacher ended up not showing up but we were let into the space (also adorned with lots of oil paintings and we stretched with someone named Margarita for an hour or so. It was nice. Mission Accomplished.
After a rest at the hostel, we proceeded to go hunt out this Cafe that Jamie had also told me to try out. It was an adventure, but we found it 15 minutes before closing. It was an all vegan place with lots of raw food. In other words, it's EXPENSIVE. One big piece of cake was ten dollars! But the decor was pleasant, and they had a hippie game on their tables that we decided would take too long to play. They let us stay till ten thirty, which was nice.
I FINALLY watched Spirited Away last night. I was supposed to watch that sooo many times but it never has worked out. It was so cute! Full of imagination; I loved it :)
Tonight is an event called Alpha Beats. It's at a 1000 person capacity venue, so it should be big. I am helping Jamie decorate the back room so I show up early, (at six) but then I'm guestlisted :)
time to put away breakfast!
Love Leanne
The building is full of oil paintings and sculpture created by the Chiropractor... The massage was excellent too(through the clothes too which is interesting) - the therapist stretched my psoas muscles which REALLY needed stretching and I left feeling like a million bucks.
The people there also offered that I could drop by and work for a couple hours here and there. I would just divide the tips up with other therapists at the end of the two hours. I am very tempted!
Once the laundry was done I got ready to go out for another couchsurfing meet. Unfortunately my "wrong way" key chain was speaking truth because I ended up arriving almost two hours late instead of one. I missed a couple BART stops, plus walked the wrong way at first... oh well.
We moved over to a little pub on Potrero that gave out free popcorn to have with our beer. I've only seen peanuts so this was new! I met even more circus people (I am sleeping underneath a very awesome woman named Shelli in school for contortion) and concluded that San Francisco is a big Circus town. I ran into the man (Mitch) that was taking photos on the Sunday Potluck, and should be receiving a couple photos eventually :)
Brian and Shaun from the hostel showed up later with Conner to take us over to the local bar (Specs) to celebrate Bobby's last night out as a single man. I was the only girl at this event, so I guess I got to go to a sort-of bachelor thing. I felt special. For some reason, someone had handcuffs... Poor Conner was handcuffed to the car on the ride there; I had my hand cuffed to a chair for a little while... Eventually the key was given to the barmaid and then both cuffs were put on Shaun's one hand. He had to cut them off with bolt cutters the next morning since we didn't have the key lol.
Thursday consisted of a very scary experience. I went to turn on this baby computer and it would shut itself off about 30 seconds after loading completely. I let it charge: nothin. Looked it up for a couple hours on the other computers but to no avail. The internet was yelling "overheating" but it was NOT overheating! It wouldn't turn on long enough to do anything and even shut off in safe mode. I was FREAKING OUT.
I massaged Shelli, calming down a bit. Shaun then came over and proceeded to look stuff up with me and then proceeded to FIX IT! It was just the battery not quite behaving, so the computer would shut off thinking that the battery was going to explode or something. YAY! I was starting to worry I'd have to ship the thing back on it's warranty to get it fixed.
Relieved, Shelli and I went to a supposed donation yoga next door to the Chiro place... it was a new installment, so the teacher ended up not showing up but we were let into the space (also adorned with lots of oil paintings and we stretched with someone named Margarita for an hour or so. It was nice. Mission Accomplished.
After a rest at the hostel, we proceeded to go hunt out this Cafe that Jamie had also told me to try out. It was an adventure, but we found it 15 minutes before closing. It was an all vegan place with lots of raw food. In other words, it's EXPENSIVE. One big piece of cake was ten dollars! But the decor was pleasant, and they had a hippie game on their tables that we decided would take too long to play. They let us stay till ten thirty, which was nice.
I FINALLY watched Spirited Away last night. I was supposed to watch that sooo many times but it never has worked out. It was so cute! Full of imagination; I loved it :)
Tonight is an event called Alpha Beats. It's at a 1000 person capacity venue, so it should be big. I am helping Jamie decorate the back room so I show up early, (at six) but then I'm guestlisted :)
time to put away breakfast!
Love Leanne
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Motorbikes and Couchsurfing
Alrighty, so I left off with a slight headache on Sunday morning/afternoon...
In the afternoon, I went out to a Couchsurfing.com Potluck in a park on Potrero Hill :) I made some quinoa with cheese... Dave came out with me and I got to go out on his motorcycle :D I forgot how much I love being on bikes! The park was a dog park with an amazing view - lots of food, hula hoops, a pinata (spelling), volley ball, guitar, etc... LOTS of fun!! There was a photographer there taking photos:
Photos by Mitch Aidelbaum http://www.aidelbaum.com/
here are a couple of me with a cute dog:
post-potluck consisted of going for a spin in the bike :D
Dave showed me Twin Peaks (hee hee) which had the best view of the city I've ever seen, plus it was beautiful the whole way there. Only taking the Muni (buses) does limit how much of the city you see, I really gained a new appreciation for this place. It's a lot bigger than I thought!!!
After a nice drive back, he informed me that there was a movie named Hudsuckers that had hula hoops in it!! I think there were about seven or so of us watching it upstairs - pretty entertaining.
That night it was also decided that I will now be massaging staff for accommodation! works for everyone - staff needs massage, i need a bed and bathroom and kitchen :)
Monday was a very progressive day! My collapsible hula hoops arrived at the hostel! Something else arrived that was good news (no babies for me), I gave my first massage in a while, and met someone from CS. We met up later than expected, so I spent a fair bit of time at the the hostel and left around five or six? The woman's name is Jamie, and I instantly liked her. She gave me really good advice and insight into traveling India. She has a boi over there and had just arrived from traveling around India and SE Asia for five months! She had brought seven hoops with her, pretty inspiring hehe. We chilled at her house for a while until I headed back to go out with a few people from the hostel. I really liked this woman :)
That night there was a dubstep/electronic show about five blocks away at this nice nightclub with about 12 djs... I recognized one as someone who's played in Vancouver before at a dub show and was supposedly really good! I had possibly seen her at Shambles before but who knows what I see at that place...
The show was my favorite night so far in San Fran! SO good! I had not danced like that in a while, I was covered in sweat from dancing till almost 4am - music was good, people were friendly (and very pretty!), venue was nice, and there was an art installation by a friend of a friend. All round happy times. No photos I was too busy dancing sowwy...
I was sober for the night before, so I woke up tired but fine. I decided while walking for groceries that it was such a nice hot day that I should sit in a park. So I brought my crocheting, a hula hoop, music, and a book and went out to a park called verba buena near some art schools. I started making a cover for the hoops so they dont get wrecked on the plane to europe!
Did massage #2 yesterday as well.
Next was another Motorcycle ride this time to Treasure Island, this island halfway across the bay bridge. This was also very scenic, but I had left my memory card in my computer so I will just have to remember it *shrug*.
Onwards to a dinner party! Yummy soup, more nice people, and one of them was an energy healer which was fun to talk to. One of the people here at the hostel is getting married to a guest on Thursday, so we were going out to celebrate last night. We ended up at a bar, but I wasn't feeling like drinking so I talked for a bit then went back to the hostel.
I guess I'm all caught up here now... I am halfway through my book so far, doing laundry for the first time since arriving (once a week seems like enough so far...) sitting here in my veggie pants not sure if its appropriate to go out in these pants and my jacket. hah.
Today is my lazy day. Oh yes I've also developed a cough type cold (not sure how) so this is also a reason for laziness... It sure feels like a vacation so far :D
In the afternoon, I went out to a Couchsurfing.com Potluck in a park on Potrero Hill :) I made some quinoa with cheese... Dave came out with me and I got to go out on his motorcycle :D I forgot how much I love being on bikes! The park was a dog park with an amazing view - lots of food, hula hoops, a pinata (spelling), volley ball, guitar, etc... LOTS of fun!! There was a photographer there taking photos:
Photos by Mitch Aidelbaum http://www.aidelbaum.com/
here are a couple of me with a cute dog:
post-potluck consisted of going for a spin in the bike :D
Dave showed me Twin Peaks (hee hee) which had the best view of the city I've ever seen, plus it was beautiful the whole way there. Only taking the Muni (buses) does limit how much of the city you see, I really gained a new appreciation for this place. It's a lot bigger than I thought!!!
After a nice drive back, he informed me that there was a movie named Hudsuckers that had hula hoops in it!! I think there were about seven or so of us watching it upstairs - pretty entertaining.
That night it was also decided that I will now be massaging staff for accommodation! works for everyone - staff needs massage, i need a bed and bathroom and kitchen :)
Monday was a very progressive day! My collapsible hula hoops arrived at the hostel! Something else arrived that was good news (no babies for me), I gave my first massage in a while, and met someone from CS. We met up later than expected, so I spent a fair bit of time at the the hostel and left around five or six? The woman's name is Jamie, and I instantly liked her. She gave me really good advice and insight into traveling India. She has a boi over there and had just arrived from traveling around India and SE Asia for five months! She had brought seven hoops with her, pretty inspiring hehe. We chilled at her house for a while until I headed back to go out with a few people from the hostel. I really liked this woman :)
That night there was a dubstep/electronic show about five blocks away at this nice nightclub with about 12 djs... I recognized one as someone who's played in Vancouver before at a dub show and was supposedly really good! I had possibly seen her at Shambles before but who knows what I see at that place...
The show was my favorite night so far in San Fran! SO good! I had not danced like that in a while, I was covered in sweat from dancing till almost 4am - music was good, people were friendly (and very pretty!), venue was nice, and there was an art installation by a friend of a friend. All round happy times. No photos I was too busy dancing sowwy...
I was sober for the night before, so I woke up tired but fine. I decided while walking for groceries that it was such a nice hot day that I should sit in a park. So I brought my crocheting, a hula hoop, music, and a book and went out to a park called verba buena near some art schools. I started making a cover for the hoops so they dont get wrecked on the plane to europe!
Did massage #2 yesterday as well.
Next was another Motorcycle ride this time to Treasure Island, this island halfway across the bay bridge. This was also very scenic, but I had left my memory card in my computer so I will just have to remember it *shrug*.
Onwards to a dinner party! Yummy soup, more nice people, and one of them was an energy healer which was fun to talk to. One of the people here at the hostel is getting married to a guest on Thursday, so we were going out to celebrate last night. We ended up at a bar, but I wasn't feeling like drinking so I talked for a bit then went back to the hostel.
I guess I'm all caught up here now... I am halfway through my book so far, doing laundry for the first time since arriving (once a week seems like enough so far...) sitting here in my veggie pants not sure if its appropriate to go out in these pants and my jacket. hah.
Today is my lazy day. Oh yes I've also developed a cough type cold (not sure how) so this is also a reason for laziness... It sure feels like a vacation so far :D
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Cheesy bus rides and Giant Buses
I left off last on Friday night, which was tons of fun....
I ended up salsa dancing :) The place was not what I was expecting - I thought it would be a big open ballroom type thing, but it was a little restaurant/bar with a cozy atmosphere and a big open outdoor courtyard with more seating outside. The band was just setting up, the dance floor was not huge but it actually made it better. The whole place reminded me more of things I'd seen on Rick Steve's videos in Spain then the US. Good food too.
I watched the pros, then danced myself twice - it helps when the person you're dancing with knows what they're doing, girls always just follow the guy (or other girl in my case the second round) in salsa.
The next day I decided to utilize my bus pass and randomly take transit around to a couple different parts of the city for scenic value. I got a sandwich and hopped on a bus - got off when I saw a park just packed full of people! There were people all over with blankets, beers, games, music, like a city communal picnic only I was pretty sure this happened almost every sunny Saturday afternoon.
After that I hopped on a bus again and it took me up a shopping street (where I window shopped a bit) then another bus through another park, only this one was huge. Golden Gate bridge was at the end of this one so I did the cheesy pictures since I didn't even bother to go there last time. It was prettier than I thought it would be...
The way back took me through ANOTHER park (Golden Gate Park) then I got hungry and went back for dinner.
I ended up not going to the birthday party last night: I was already on transit tons and didn't want to go back on the BART by myself. I was also lazy, Skyping, and already drinking at the hostel, so a bunch of us ended up all going out to a live blues dive bar that apparently used to be a brothel. The music was nice; I danced again. The singer had this crazy fire engine red suit with black sequin trim - I tipped them five Canadian dollars and they thought it was pretty lol.
I have a tiny little headache now from last night, but I am able to eat with no problem and once I find some Advil in my bag I will be fine :)
Speaking of maladies, I had this bruise on my hip from slipping on a box lid packing my house and it is turning all sorts of interesting now - enough that I took a picture...
Well, I'm out! Love you all!!
I ended up salsa dancing :) The place was not what I was expecting - I thought it would be a big open ballroom type thing, but it was a little restaurant/bar with a cozy atmosphere and a big open outdoor courtyard with more seating outside. The band was just setting up, the dance floor was not huge but it actually made it better. The whole place reminded me more of things I'd seen on Rick Steve's videos in Spain then the US. Good food too.
I watched the pros, then danced myself twice - it helps when the person you're dancing with knows what they're doing, girls always just follow the guy (or other girl in my case the second round) in salsa.
The next day I decided to utilize my bus pass and randomly take transit around to a couple different parts of the city for scenic value. I got a sandwich and hopped on a bus - got off when I saw a park just packed full of people! There were people all over with blankets, beers, games, music, like a city communal picnic only I was pretty sure this happened almost every sunny Saturday afternoon.
After that I hopped on a bus again and it took me up a shopping street (where I window shopped a bit) then another bus through another park, only this one was huge. Golden Gate bridge was at the end of this one so I did the cheesy pictures since I didn't even bother to go there last time. It was prettier than I thought it would be...
The way back took me through ANOTHER park (Golden Gate Park) then I got hungry and went back for dinner.
I ended up not going to the birthday party last night: I was already on transit tons and didn't want to go back on the BART by myself. I was also lazy, Skyping, and already drinking at the hostel, so a bunch of us ended up all going out to a live blues dive bar that apparently used to be a brothel. The music was nice; I danced again. The singer had this crazy fire engine red suit with black sequin trim - I tipped them five Canadian dollars and they thought it was pretty lol.
I have a tiny little headache now from last night, but I am able to eat with no problem and once I find some Advil in my bag I will be fine :)
Speaking of maladies, I had this bruise on my hip from slipping on a box lid packing my house and it is turning all sorts of interesting now - enough that I took a picture...
Well, I'm out! Love you all!!
Friday, January 16, 2009
Return to San Francisco
Okay, so I have to replace/fix Photoshop since it is not working so that's why there have been no photos yet... I am downloading Vuze now so things should be running soon!
To update since being ill on the train at noon:
Everything has worked out today so far!
I forgot to pack my scandals (turns out was a good thing) but I realized a pair of ballet type flats would be a better choice for wearing with leggings anyway, PLUS can be shoved in the side of my bag better... so after showering, going for a nice walk in the sunshine to an organic grocery store, picking up food, and getting a weekly bus pass, I wandered in search of shoes.
I randomly walked right into a shoe store not far from the hostel, turned out it was a designer-for-dirt-cheap three level bonanza so I was spoiled for choice for actual quality and got a pair with an ankle and top of foot buckle :) It was almost creepily perfect.
After I left, I was walking back thinking about how I needed a bang trim. Bam! There is an Aveda place advertising haircuts - upon asking I found out bang trims are free in the school. Someone had just had a cancellation too, so they just brought me up, cut my bangs, and off I went. Perfect timing again.
The weather here is sooooo much warmer... Almost 20 degrees out - I was wearing a T shirt today and I was warm (suckers!!) :D It's been sunny and clear both days too :p
I have ordered the collapsible hoops to the hostel here from LA so I don't have to go there anymore... it only takes a few days and about 8 bucks for postage as opposed to over 30 to Canada... so I will have them here which is awesome!
No luck finding a host on CS yet, but there is a potluck in a park on sunday and a meet up in the mission district on wednesday that I plan on attending, so I will at least meet some people from there!
Possible photography show by a friend of the friend on the train tonight, otherwise salsa dancing for my first time with two aussie guys from here, or a bar. I may get to get a spin on a motorcyle too if Dave is not asleep... Quadruple birthday party with Nate from last trip here tomorrow too - somehow my whole weekend has exploded into events. This is kinda what happened last time lol. Alright I am supposed to have a pracitce salsa now...
To update since being ill on the train at noon:
- ended up having someone from Milwaukee/Montana/Portland sit beside me for the rest of the way, talked for ages ended up ranting about candadian politics lol. Also talked to a lovely woman from Sacramento and a German here for school.
- sleeping was quite uncomfortable/difficult on the seats, the sleep mask and earplugs are proving to be essential.
- got the bus into San Fran, went to a coffee shop one block away with wifi in hopes of having a couchsurfing response, got dizzy from sleep dep and walked the three blocks to the pacific tradewinds hostel to sleep
- Slept periodically throughout the day and tried to eat to feel less nausous... woke up at nine and decided I was well enough to go out...
- went to a bar with almost the entire hostel staff and backpackers... someone passed out at the bar (I took a picture) and a very drunk scotsman was making me laugh most of the way back
Everything has worked out today so far!
I forgot to pack my scandals (turns out was a good thing) but I realized a pair of ballet type flats would be a better choice for wearing with leggings anyway, PLUS can be shoved in the side of my bag better... so after showering, going for a nice walk in the sunshine to an organic grocery store, picking up food, and getting a weekly bus pass, I wandered in search of shoes.
I randomly walked right into a shoe store not far from the hostel, turned out it was a designer-for-dirt-cheap three level bonanza so I was spoiled for choice for actual quality and got a pair with an ankle and top of foot buckle :) It was almost creepily perfect.
After I left, I was walking back thinking about how I needed a bang trim. Bam! There is an Aveda place advertising haircuts - upon asking I found out bang trims are free in the school. Someone had just had a cancellation too, so they just brought me up, cut my bangs, and off I went. Perfect timing again.
The weather here is sooooo much warmer... Almost 20 degrees out - I was wearing a T shirt today and I was warm (suckers!!) :D It's been sunny and clear both days too :p
I have ordered the collapsible hoops to the hostel here from LA so I don't have to go there anymore... it only takes a few days and about 8 bucks for postage as opposed to over 30 to Canada... so I will have them here which is awesome!
No luck finding a host on CS yet, but there is a potluck in a park on sunday and a meet up in the mission district on wednesday that I plan on attending, so I will at least meet some people from there!
Possible photography show by a friend of the friend on the train tonight, otherwise salsa dancing for my first time with two aussie guys from here, or a bar. I may get to get a spin on a motorcyle too if Dave is not asleep... Quadruple birthday party with Nate from last trip here tomorrow too - somehow my whole weekend has exploded into events. This is kinda what happened last time lol. Alright I am supposed to have a pracitce salsa now...
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Vancouver to San Francisco... Train Time
After waking up at around 4:30-4:45am to catch a coach to Seattle, I made it to the train that I am sitting on now.
I slept on the coach most of the way... woken up to cross the border where I was asked many a question about my itinerary! I have never been asked so many questions at the border before… In the past I’ve had people almost forget to ask where I was going in the States!
Unfortunately I don’t have much of a solid itinerary (plus no tickets except the one to Seattle to boot), and I think the border guy was not really into freedom-from-schedules-travel (or freedom in general) so he stapled a piece of paper into my passport saying I have to return to Canada by 11:59pm March 15th. Hahahaha. I said I was going to be out of the States by spring time, probably early march, so the guy put a stamp on that gives me till mid March which was nice, but I got the impression that he was suspicious I would just start living in the US. Heh. I was miffed at first at having ANY sort of time limit, but after brooding for a couple hours on the subsequent coach ride to Seattle, I rationalized that I would definitely be out of the States well before then anyways, it gives me two weeks in NY (which might be too much), and I want to spend lots of time in Montreal yet still have lots of money for Europe.
So I am over it.
I had a latte and sandwich waiting for the train this morning, and I am paying for it now. Either that or I am getting motion sickness, or nerves, or a combo. Ugh. The train ride is so beautiful though! The seats have lots of room to lay back with leg rests and pillows. The observation/lounge car is bright and sunny (I am in it now) and it’s already gone by some water and fields and scenic stuff :)
My stomach is already feeling better, must have been the latte. I should know better by now.
Love you all!
I slept on the coach most of the way... woken up to cross the border where I was asked many a question about my itinerary! I have never been asked so many questions at the border before… In the past I’ve had people almost forget to ask where I was going in the States!
Unfortunately I don’t have much of a solid itinerary (plus no tickets except the one to Seattle to boot), and I think the border guy was not really into freedom-from-schedules-travel (or freedom in general) so he stapled a piece of paper into my passport saying I have to return to Canada by 11:59pm March 15th. Hahahaha. I said I was going to be out of the States by spring time, probably early march, so the guy put a stamp on that gives me till mid March which was nice, but I got the impression that he was suspicious I would just start living in the US. Heh. I was miffed at first at having ANY sort of time limit, but after brooding for a couple hours on the subsequent coach ride to Seattle, I rationalized that I would definitely be out of the States well before then anyways, it gives me two weeks in NY (which might be too much), and I want to spend lots of time in Montreal yet still have lots of money for Europe.
So I am over it.
I had a latte and sandwich waiting for the train this morning, and I am paying for it now. Either that or I am getting motion sickness, or nerves, or a combo. Ugh. The train ride is so beautiful though! The seats have lots of room to lay back with leg rests and pillows. The observation/lounge car is bright and sunny (I am in it now) and it’s already gone by some water and fields and scenic stuff :)
My stomach is already feeling better, must have been the latte. I should know better by now.
Love you all!
Friday, January 9, 2009
Progress
Well, it's starting. I have just canceled my phone contract, so as of Feb 8th there will be no more phone!
I have two bags full for value village/salvation army, stuff for friends, and way too many boxes of stuff I'm keeping. The house is getting there.
Monday was my birthday... I didn't really feel like doing much, so I packed, ate pizza, and had cake.
On Tuesday I went in for my last tattoo appointment! Once it is healed, I think that will be the time to leave... hopefully (it takes a week to heal)
I picked up my travel cards yesterday in Vancouver, which is where I am now :) I want to go out for a dinner with a bunch of friends, but I have been pretty much constantly nauseous since I've been out here, and it makes me less inclined to eat.
I also purchased my travel insurance through World Nomads a couple days ago. Things are all coming together :D I am getting nervous!
I have two bags full for value village/salvation army, stuff for friends, and way too many boxes of stuff I'm keeping. The house is getting there.
Monday was my birthday... I didn't really feel like doing much, so I packed, ate pizza, and had cake.
On Tuesday I went in for my last tattoo appointment! Once it is healed, I think that will be the time to leave... hopefully (it takes a week to heal)
I picked up my travel cards yesterday in Vancouver, which is where I am now :) I want to go out for a dinner with a bunch of friends, but I have been pretty much constantly nauseous since I've been out here, and it makes me less inclined to eat.
I also purchased my travel insurance through World Nomads a couple days ago. Things are all coming together :D I am getting nervous!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Almost Packed Up
I had my first trial run fitting pretty much everything into the pack today. It didn't fit the first time, but I tried again (different rolling technique) and now there is room to spare in pretty much every pocket!! I am very excited! Here it is packed up (above).
My house packing is coming along slowly, but it will go faster now that I don't have to constantly think about whether or not I should take things with me. I am cutting myself off - if anything I will only bring LESS (except a coat). It's still feeling kinda heavy :s
I am starting to feel on the mend health-wise as well; my nose was not driving me nuts today :)
My next major decision is about the coat. I have a long sleeve shirt and a thin zip hoodie in there so far, but that's not going to be enough. Decisions decisions.
It's also my birthday tomorrow - no idea what I want to do! Probably nothing. I am not feeling prepared enough here to take on anything in Vancouver. Maybe I'll go get a massage.
So much to do!!!!
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