More on California...and Here

I've not written much these last few weeks, focusing my attention instead on the trials and tribulations of living life day by day. It's time that I spend some of my pent-up energy to record a bit about what's been going on in my life. While I was in California, just before a client event, I stayed a few days with my sister, who lives in Berkeley. I've already written about the first evening there, when we met some of her friends for an evening at Women of Taste, a fundraiser for Girls, Inc. The next day, she drove me to see, among other things, the Point Reyes lighthouse at the Point Reyes National Seashore. It's a spectacular place, but I have to admit we did not climb down from the ranger station to the lighthouse below, largely because I was concerned my knees would not hold up (and my lungs might give up the ghost, too); there are signs warning that the trek back up the stairs from the lighthouse to the ranger station is the equivalent of climbing the stairs of a 30-story building. I would be willing to try such a thing if my life depended on it, by it didn't. Here are some photos I took during the trek up to the ranger station from the parking lot and back. The views of the rocks and waves below are stunning; my photography is not.

Before going to Point Reyes, I should note, we stopped in a little town whose name completely escapes me. We had coffee and a scone and wandered about the town, watching lots of people mill about in the tiny downtown area, admiring one another's motorcycles, bicycles, children, dogs, and other possessions and passions of interest. Afterward, we went looking for Nick's Cove on Tomales Bay in Randall, California. The idea was that the restaurant at Nick's Cove is said to have wonderful oysters and I wanted some. We did not have a map, as it turned out, so we did not drive far enough to find the place before we decided we'd missed it and turned around. We stopped, instead, at Tony's, a place where my sister had eaten before, and I had some very good fish & chips. The next day, I think, we bummed about a little and then had a spectacular dinner at a fabulous Oakland restaurant called Bay Wolf. We met my two of my sister's friends and their significant others and had a wonderful time talking, eating wonderful food, and drinking wonderful wine. I was getting a bit nervous at what this might cost, since the entrees were not awfully high, but certainly on the upper end of my comfort zone and I was uninvolved in selecting the wine. One of my sister's friends selected the wine, which was obviously of a much higher quality that I am wont to pick...because I am genetically frugal, a trait supported completely by my financial status. At the end of the evening, the same friend who selected the wine simply picked up the entire tab for all six of us. I was deliriously grateful, but also felt more than a little ill-at-ease at not making any contribution at all. I didn't want to make an issue of it, though, so I endured my discomfort and gleeful appreciation in silence. I vowed I would write her a thank-you note, which I have yet to do. And then, a little more than a day later, my conference would begin. But not before I learned from my wife that an employee, one of three (including my wife) remaining back at the office, quit without notice early on Monday morning. She entered the office sometime before 5:00 am, wrote an email saying she realized it could not have come at a worse time, but rationalizing it by saying she had a great opportunity she could not pass up. The worthless, subhuman, filthy scum! This came as a complete surprise, since she had been doing a good job and had showed real promise. However, there were some issues beforehand that should have been signals: she had a very poor attendance record, claiming that she had migraines, stomach aches, and all manner of physical problems. I had talked to her about the issue recently, giving her lots of praise for her performance, but counseling her that her absenteeism was a problem that needed attention. I guess that's the attention it needed. I have nothing but loathing and disdain for a person who would leave her employer in such a bad spot. I wonder how employees would feel if they showed up for work one morning to find this note? "Sorry, we found a better opportunity and we're not coming back. You no longer have a job. We know it's a bad time, what with the mortgage you just got, and all, but that's really not our problem. Good luck." It's not appropriate to wish others harm, I know, but I do wish for this woman everything she deserves; poverty, pestilence, and life-long angst. With few exceptions, the Conference appeared to come off without a hitch. Oh, there were problems, but the worst of them were visible to only a few people. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves immensely. Everyone, that is, but a woman who according to another member, was badly beaten by her husband. I was told that the woman is OK, but that her husband was arrested and spent at least two days in jail...and had not gotten out as of the time I left town. If what I was told is true, the bastard should be released from jail and directly into a tank full of angry, hungry, and utterly demented sharks. It may be pure rumor, though. Some people do love to make up stories. So there you have it. I've been slowly getting back into my routine since getting back. Lots to do, but nothing is truly urgent. Tomorrow, my brother and his wife...the one's who live in Mexico...are passing through Dallas and will stop overnight to see us. It will be good to catch up with them, albeit briefly, and stress to ourselves that we need to find time to relax, regularly. Last night, I read some of my posts from a year or two ago and found them to be much more interesting than most of my posts of late. They were more interesting because they told more than a story, they told a story that had legs, a story that was more than a travelogue and more than a record of my activities. There are more of those coming. I'll force the issue with me if I have to.

Before I forget, a wild turkey who has been nicknamed Josephine has decided it likes the Berkeley hills and has taken up residence near my sister's place. Every day, it comes scratching around. I took a very brief, very bad video.