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Day Off

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No trip into San Francisco today. Not getting on BART, not wandering through the Farmer’s Market at UN Plaza and not going to a baseball game. I am not sure what was going on at today’s orientation at UCHastings, but it didn’t involve me. Quite good since it was late when George picked me up at BART after the ball game.

Unlike the night before, the As managed to squeak out a win over the Dodgers. In fact, there was still waaayyy too much blue in the stands. Tuesday night the attendance was around 33k, I didn’t hear the numbers last night. On the positive side tonight besides the five drums and plenty of cow bells, there was an opposing right fielder with a sense of humor. The win meant the series was split and the As gained more ground in the standings.

I crawled out of bed at the crack of dawn before figuring out that George was making the early drop off run which meant getting to back to sleep. Other than meeting a friend for coffee and a photography discussion, I spent the rest of the day running errands, reading and eating more cherries (note, cherry season seems to be lasting longer this year) rather than doing anything for school. Ah, well, I like getting up early to do homework, right?

Turn Signals

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Back we are to a rental beast. Beast being the literal truth as the smallest thing on the lot when George went over was a Jeep SUV. Hello? That is not a small or easy to drive car. Nor, just to add insult to injury is it terribly fuel efficient. Add to that clumsy, difficult to park and stark white and you will start to understand how completely I loath this particular vehicle.

It isn’t a car in which I would feel safe with a new driver as it seems to take more than its fair share of the road. George was the poor person who had to deal with Enterprise this time and has agreed that if it is going to be more than a few days till our car is returned he will take the responsibility for swapping out for something smaller and a bit easier to handle.

What started this rant in my head was the challenge of driving with the standard US driver neither knowing or understanding the use of turn signals. Heaven forbid that you actually provide the driver behind you with a clue as to what you might be considering next. Much less someone coming in the opposite direction. I won’t even bother to describe the California driver and traffic circles (roundabouts for you English driving types). Signal? Who? Why? How?

Argh!

Meanwhile – in other challenges, I have been working my way through all the documents that UCHastings seems to require. Every other minute there is yet another document, paper or mandatory course to complete. Not that I mind TitleIX training, but I have already addressed the fact that training geared toward incoming college freshmen is insulting at best to mature students and incomprehensible to the average foreign student.

Gee, back to my usual mode of being a total PITA. Feels natural, even if it falls under the guise of making the whole experience more appropriate and relevant.

Cleaning

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Which is absolutely not my favorite thing in the whole world. But then, I have a daughter due back from Germany today, a couple of cats to get back to their own cozy home and no in town baseball game to provide me an excuse.

You see, I have this upstairs room that is variously called my craft room, my studio or that junk room. You get the idea. It had gotten to the point where I wasn’t willing to even step inside the room which leads to serious secondary and tertiary affects. Projects don’t get completed, I contemplate buying more supplies since I can’t locate what I know is in the room and my kids look at me with the “lead by example much?” quizzical look that I can’t refute. So I broke down starting yesterday and started to put the room in order.

To understand the magnitude of the task just think sewing, machine embroidery, knitting, spinning, quilting, cross stitch and you will get the idea. Each of those mentioned above has supplies: patterns, books, fabric, threads, yarn, needles, notions, machines, a spinning wheel or two, fiber, coffee mugs, tea cups and a sheep skin (doesn’t everyone need a sheep skin?) to just start the list. And then there are the various audiobooks in physical copy that I have accumulated from both Graphic Audio and Audiobookstand (going out of business….) that I haven’t yet heard.

plus the able helper

I did mention the cats? Onyx seemed to think it was his job to assist in all things. The third time I pulled him out of behind boxes or that he tumbled boxes and books off the shelves along the slanted wall he was evicted. Not pleased, as it is the given right of cats to walk wherever they want. Ten minutes later, I was forgiven as the custodian of the bag of treats.

Any way, we picked up the daughter safely, transferred her and the cats to her house and it still left me enough time to make a serious dent in the disaster.

I can actually find the floor…..

Prettier than new

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After driving a rental car since 3 July, I picked up our shiny clean car yesterday from Hustead’s on 7th in Berkeley. I am so used the size of our Golf and the standard transmission that I have found myself not willing to parallel park due to car size. And then there is the uncomfortable feeling of searching for the clutch which just doesn’t happen to exist. What is also noticeable to me is that I much prefer the hatchback/station wagon back opening to a trunk. Just sliding things like suitcases and groceries is easier than lifting them out.

It is also interesting to have a clean car. Mind you, once in a blue moon or so I drive the car through a car wash. Being a good citizen of California I would rather take it somewhere that processes the runoff water properly than to run up my own water bill and have slime all over the driveway. You see, it is the redwoods around our property. They have a tendency to shed and drip on any vehicle left in the parking area. To get it off requires not just cleaner and water but a lot of scrubbing. Car washes have these lovely big rotating brushes that manage to get off the sticky stuff with one pass through. Much easier on me as well.

At least that is my story and excuse for not washing a car. As far as the rest of it? They actually vacuumed out the inside. And changed the radio station which tells me that the battery in the car is well functioning and provided entertainment to the crews while working. At least I am assuming that you don’t bother to change the station if the only thing you are doing is moving the car in and out of the shop.

Back to the car. I have a new right rear passenger door. A repaired rear quarter panel and a new right rear tire. There is lovely, clean shiny paint along that side.

While waiting for the last bit of polishing, the manager and I talked about the challengers of traveling with family. His most recent experience involved daughters, excess baggage and outrage that he expected them to stay within weight limits. Then I think of the size suitcases I used to travel with and have some sympathy. It takes time and energy to learn how to coordinate clothing so that you can minimize what you pack. It takes a willingness to ignore current fashion in favor of light weight and layer. And besides – if I brought too much in the way of shoes or clothes, I wouldn’t have enough room for the knitting and cross-stitch projects now would I?

Crunch

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As I was driving home from dropping off daughter #2, I took a variation on my usual route. Not sure why, but that is what I did. Maybe my brain said I was driving back from North Berkeley BART rather from dropping off Dani. In any case, I drove up Cedar rather than Rose. At early in the morning, most of the traffic lights are flashing rather than regular red/green cycles. Depending on the intersection, the change from night to normal happens sometime between 0500 and 0600 on weekdays. And this is a Tuesday, not a holiday.

For whatever reason, as I approached the Cedar/MLK intersection I didn’t completely register the stoplight as having changed. The end result it that a Lyft driver who was turning right interested with my right rear passenger door. No one was injured and his car, from what we could see in the dark, seemed to have only minor scratches on the front grill. Not so my Golf. After exchanging information we both headed on our way. He said he had a passenger to pick up then would check in about a police report. Just to make sure, as soon as I got home I called the non-emergency Berkeley Police Line. This is not Germany. Since no one was injured, I was told just to notify my insurance company and an official report wasn’t required. What? No ticket? No. Amazing.

Next call was to USAA. By 1000 I had dropped off my car, been picked up by the rental car agency, provided a 2018 Japanese something or other and was back home. It made me glad that I had paid the extra few dollars a month for rental car coverage.

This was not exactly how I had planned on spending my day. But it did help that the As managed to win 6:2 against the Padres.

Driving around in circles

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This was a day spent on wheels in either our car or Shana’s Fiat. I promised Dani I would give her a ride to work, I had to go into San Francisco which was car to BART and back; I needed to pick her up from work. Then there was getting Alex to and from work, picking George up at BART on his return from NYC and getting Shana’s car back to her house along with Noah and his stuff. George did a couple of runs before picking me up to take me back to Berkeley. Something about needing to get home and packing for tomorrow’s departure.

I managed to read a bit and finished my current audiobook – Simon Winchester’s Precision. For anyone interesting in science, engineering and/or the industrial revolution it is a great read. He does his own narration being one of the few authors who can pull that off. I think it might be one of those books which may well be more interesting in audio than written page since it has aspects of technical but it is really about the story. Winchester is an excellent raconteur.

All of this lead to my mind going in circles when I should have been sleeping

New BART Cars

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In general, BART needs a face lift. Badly. The current set of cars are old, clunky, difficult to keep clean and lacking in what has come to be routine in major cities as to signage and accessibility.

As it happens, there are new trains on the way. Not at all like the test cars which have been in the system for a couple of years; these new cars are sleek. The seats can’t be taken apart by any enterprising subway sleeper. They have significantly less seating but markedly better standing space. The handicap locations are clearly marked as are the bicycle areas. What is even more important is that there is electric signage. At the end of the car, the sign clearly states the current station. The electric boards in the cars have both station information and map with the current location clearly noted.

Gee! Just like a real subway that you would find in any International city!

new interior

The seats are suspended so that cleaning should be easy. There are no cushions to be pulled off or stolen. There is signage. Plus, none of the seats would be comfortable for sleepers.

I wonder how soon the homeless advocates are going to complain that these cars discriminate…..

Discussing the new cars was by far better that talking about today’s baseball game. Let me just leave it with – didn’t suck as badly as yesterday….

High Winds and grey skies

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We docked in Cobh promptly on time this morning after another night of rolling seas and various assorted complaints from passengers. I ignore them, but wonder what they would do if the seas became really rough. I figure as long as you can manage to walk down a corridor; in the evening not get tossed out of your bed – it just isn’t that bad.

Say that three times to the chandelier  that came down in Chops the other night. No one was sitting below it which was all to the good. There has been a toll on dishes and glassware in various locations.

Oh, yes. Docked. There wasn’t any rain for the morning and people headed off the ship in droves. On tours, on the train, on the bus, on foot. There were more than a few who got partway out, were blown sideways by the wind gusting up to an easy 50 knots and made their way back to the ship.   I have been here before, both walking around the local town and heading into Kinsdale, and into Cork. Those tours were lovely, but my idea today was a bit of exercise and no particular strain at all. 

The coffee machine is still working plus I have a kettle in the room. Could not ask for much more.

Meanwhile, they are working on a new driveway at home

Detour to the Driveway

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For the moment, imagine you are not with me on the Brilliance – rather you are back in Berkeley looking at what was – for about a year – a gravely, muddy mess filled with pickup trucks and construction debris. The fact that everything was picked up (without me getting yet another flat tire), ground prepped and base laid down is even more astonishing.

Admittedly, photos taken on a cell phone and passed over to be aren’t always outstanding, but this one does the job. You can see my new fence along the back line. No more worrying about someone backing up a few cm too far and getting dropped backwards down a hill. No worries about potholes in cement that was poured sometime before 1960. What I have are mostly grey pavers (manmade stone) with an occasional hint of some other color). Phots not taken at twilight don’t show the color variation as much.

But it is a definite improvement and the end is in sight!

Meanwhile, this is a sea day. Cross-stitch and audiobooks are the order of the day.

They might be moving

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downstairs yet this month.

a few things moved into the living room

 

The kids are working diligently on sorting out their stuff and figuring out what needs to be stored (seasonal), what needs to get relocated downstairs and what just might go the way of the recycling.

and a few more into the bedroom

 

Their furniture is mostly in, there is stuff on the wall.

Is it evil of me to say that I am looking forward to them, and most especially the dogs, having their own space?

Two for one

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Sunshine + an As win. Ssveral home runs and a pitching staff that msnaged to keep its act together.

The Cub’s fans were stalwart and, with one exception, really nice people. Several were on break from Illinois bad weather while others were able to combine being snowbirds with supporting their team. I can’t say the peobkem person was anything other tgan oblivious. Otherwise why would you think it was alright to stand at the lawn railing directly in front of fans sitting on blankets?

Also in the mix were a couple of Diamondback fans, a guy with an LA Dodgers cap and an avowed Padres fanatic.

Otherwise, it is relax and finish the latest small cross stitch time.

Meanwhile- back in Berkeley

Inspection tomorrow

New Window

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As it turns out, there was dry rot in the framing around our main living room window resulting in a serious additional expensive as this sucker had to be custom made…

But it looks nice

now and will be better once the wood is stained to match the beams….

and the stairs leading to the lower level….

DWS

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and then there is DWA.

When I was young and first had my driver’s license there weren’t many older women driving. This was the 60s and male prerogative was alive and well. Men drove (and managed to get lost because they didn’t navigate) while women sat in the passenger seat, dealt with extraneous issues like offspring, pets and meal service while on the more long distance hauls that were common family vacations in the 1950s and 60s. In fact, when I think about my grandmothers, I am really not certain if either of them had a driver’s license. Certainly, born around the turn of the century both, neither would have been too old to drive. Not if you looked at what the men were doing.

I can remembering driving in certain areas while in Med School and shuddering each and every time I saw the top of a grey head with eyes peering out the windshield through the steering wheel. It didn’t matter the sex of the driver (mostly women) or the ethnic group. In fact, in the eyes of a young person everyone over a certain age seemed to be small, grey, wrinkled and, while worthy of respect, should not be behind the wheel of a car. Ever.

So – Driving While Aged. Also known in German as “Sontags Fahrer” which translates directly to “Sunday Driver.”

If only they would restrict themselves to Sundays. I could deal with that. I would simply avoid driving anywhere on the weekend. I certainly don’t see them on the road at 0500 in the morning when dropping Dani off at work. The deer, as I mentioned yesterday seem more than willing to fill that particular role.

Today I added DWS – which is either Driving While Stupid or Driving While Sleeping. The first includes putting on make-up, fighting, brushing hair, shaving and messing around with a cell phone in any manner (texting, taking fotos, talking on said cell phone). Kind of like “Slug Bug” which we played when young (be the first one to see a VW Beetle and you got a free hit on a sibling), I decided to start counting the idiots on the way back from Martinez this afternoon.

By the time I hit I-80 South from the Cal 4 entry I was out of both fingers and toes. It simply is not safe to be out on the road where there are idiots, large trucks, debris scattered in the road and rubberneckers looking for their own accident. Somehow I was sorry I turned down George’s offer to drive me. No, it would not be independence, but I could knit, read, cross-stitch or play computer games all of which are much more comforting that following a car with no visible driver.

Finally sliding past and seeing a wizened face peering through the gap in the steering wheel, grey hair in no particular style, gender indeterminate, ethnicity the same. But crawling down the road at under 50 km in the second lane from the left (Continental and North American Rules) it seemed to me that DWS = Driving While Senile. Call me evil, but I reported the license plate number to DMV. I don’t want this older person (older than me which is now referred to as longevity challenged….) to kill themselves or take anyone else with them. Hopefully, if I get to that point, someone will do me the same favor.

Dark of the Moon

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It is that time, a scant few hours before down that is absent most life. The vampires are headed quietly to bed. The werewolves are tucked snuggly in their human forms with the full moon a distant future. This only leaves the idiot deer out for a stroll down from the hills. They wander down through Codornices Park and out into our neighborhood at Eunice and Euclid. Not completely stupid, they are trading the hills, picked over vegetation and mountain lions for groomed lawns and gardens.

“Deer in the headlights” is not just an expression. When hit suddenly with light in the pre-dawn hours they freeze followed by a mad dash in a random direction. That direction can and does include straight into whatever car startled them in the first place. Not being a fan of deer as hood ornaments or grill decorations my instinct was to slam on the brakes while hitting the horn. Normally I am not a fan of disturbing my neighbors before 0515 in the morning. But cleaning deer guts off the car is not exactly something I had scheduled into my plans for the day.

Luck was with me. The lead deer veered off at the last minute with the rest of the thundering pests right on his tail. I was left with an excess of adrenalin. Making it the last few blocks up the hill to the house, I parked and climbed out on trembling legs.

I have finally found a positive thing about living on a hill. By the time I had climbed the hill followed by the stairs to the house my shakes had completely worn off. Going back to bed looked really good about then.

Bathroom Progress

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The tiling in the new bathroom is almost complete –

with the glass to go in last

The floor is done, the cabinet is in. We have the fixtures. All that will remain after the next day or so is the glass for the one section. As this is close to an accessible shower, the floor is slanted toward the back wall. There isn’t a door, making entrance and egress easier.

Neither Dani or I are thrilled with the colors, but they are neutral and inoffensive.

Entry way

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While I was in Sweden, George sent me this picture:

corner bench unit

So, as you imagine, I came home expecting to see it …

and it wasn’t there.

Now to figure out how much longer it is going to be….

Pizza Moda

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Construction is proceeding on the house. This week’s inspection which included the plumbing in the shower and the chicken wire base on the outside house passed without issue. Chicken wire you ask? Yes, one of the layers in the house skin is chicken wire. It helps hold the stucco in place till it sets. Lathe, plus chicken wire plus stucco. Meanwhile there is plastic covering all the flashings and window/door openings…

Doesn’t make for much of an exciting day, just bash, crash and various electrical machines roaring along the whole day.

It was enough that George and I were more than happy to meet friends at Pizza Moda which turns out to be a lovely Italian type place on University Ave in Berkeley. Early it is families with small children. Later it is adults.

Now let me define early = 1730. Later = 2000. What it really comes down to is that the doors close at 2130. Heading home at 2145, we closed the place down. Berkeley obviously goes for early dining. Not terribly Italian is it? Not just having experienced late dining being defined as starting around 2100 just in December.

It made me interested enough to take a look at restaurant opening and closing times. Sure enough – most open around 1730 give or take 30 minutes and seem to be lights out no later than 2230. Then I thought about NYC. Definitely a later operating schedule. San Francisco runs later hours.

Gee – you would think I was living in the MidWest!

Arriving Stockholm

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This is one of those trips where the hours add up to days en route. It was early afternoon on arrival in Copenhagen followed by a rest (SAS has a wonderful lounge at the Copenhagen Airport) before my connecting flight to Stockholm. From there it was the Airport connector bus to the Central Station followed by a taxi to the hotel. My driver was from Turkey. He has family in Germany. We had a lovely chat on the short drive to the hotel.

Taxis are expensive, won’t be doing that again. Excuse is that I was really, really tired and I just didn’t want to deal with finding the “T” and then walking a ways to the hotel.

It is time to sleep.

Before I forget – It feels like progress on the house –

bench in the entry way upstairs

will be shelves next to the utility room down