Last week's outdoor activities

Well, last week was quite the week for me as far as being outdoors and active. I not only had my weekly ultimate frisbee game (with a score and an assist!), I also went with my coworkers on a 5.5-mile run across the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito (took the ferry back for beer and burgers in SF) and went with Paul on Saturday on my first long (well, long for me) bike ride, about 40 miles round trip to San Anselmo, CA. I have a brand new bike (see pic) with fancy gears and foot cages, so it took me a bit to get used to it, but once I did, I was able to cruise along with Paul and make it up some nasty hills. It's amazing what you can do with a nice bike and a cushy pair of biking shorts (made sure my pair had tons of padding in the rear but still got sore!). We had great weather (a bit windy) and wonderful views along the way, although I wasn't able to enjoy the views too much because I was so focused on the road and making sure my narrow tires didn't hit any ruts. We rewarded ourselves with a big lunch at Mexican restaurant in San Anselmo before heading back over the Golden Gate Bridge to San Francisco. Needless to say I was really tired later in the day and fell asleep on the way home from a housewarming party on Saturday night!

My first Bay to Breakers, wow

Well, I thought Bourbon Street in New Orleans was crazy, but this race was like Bourbon Street on wheels, a roving fraternity party complete with all kinds of crazy costumes and floats. About 5,000 people actually ran a 6-mile legitimate race in the early am, but as soon as the serious runners cleared the course, about 55,000 other people swarmed the 6-mile course during the 99th Annual Bay to Breakers race on Sunday the 16th. The race route ran just a few blocks south of our place, so we bundled up (chilly here, a lot) and walked down to join the festivities with a couple of beers (must drink to appreciate what's going on). What did we see? Well, some things I can't mention (people aren't afraid to bare it all during things like this), DJ house parties that spilled out onto the street, elaborate floats, mobile dance parties, every kind of costume you can imagine, strollers converted into rolling mini-bars, etc. A huge party to say the least, the biggest I've ever seen. It is best described by pictures: 1) Paul with a couple of thousand people swarming behind him in the background, 2) roving jousters, 3) Paul and I enjoying a beverage, 4) the gold party, and 5) a totally rockin' house party. Next year is the 100th and we plan to go all out! What to wear. . .

First 10 days at my new job!

I am employed!! I started on Wednesday, May 5 as the new Philanthropic Services Associate at the Tides Foundation (www.tidesfoundation.org) which is a part of Tides Inc. (www.tides.org). I feel so blessed and fortunate to have landed a job so soon after moving, and am so glad now that I did not start work before the wedding!! The first 3 weeks here without any commitments, except for wedding planning, were spectacular.

Tides has been in business, connecting philanthropists with organizations and nonprofits around the world, since 1976 and is committed to positive social change, promoting human rights, justice, and a healthy, sustainable environment. There is the Tides Center (acts as a fiscal sponsor for over 200 projects around the world), Tides Shared Spaces (stable and collaborative work space for nonprofits), and the Tides Foundation, which partners with individuals, foundations and other institutions interested in using us as a vehicle for their grantmaking as well as donors who are interested in funding some of the Foundation's initiatives. So what do I do? In a nutshell, I am working on a team that supports individuals, foundations, and corporations interested in grantmaking internationally and domestically across a wide range of issues. Clients will come to me (when they turn me loose to contact clients, which may be several weeks yet) to facilitate their grantmaking to organizations in many different countries. So similar work to what I did at SunTrust but I will be learning lots more about making philanthropic grants around the world!

I have had a great experience so far- everyone has been so friendly, my co-workers are diverse and have incredible experience in their field, the dress is casual (which is actually a bit hard to get used to, will still probably dress up many days of the week, just no more suits :), there is awesome energy in the office, lots of people around my age, events happening all the time, etc. Everyone works hard, but there is plenty to distract you if you need to take a break. For example, tomorrow I am going to have a 15-minute chair massage sponsored by Tides HR and then going on an organized run with several of my coworkers over the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito!!

One more note about my new job- I work in the Thoreau City for Sustainability in the historic Presidio of San Francisco! The Presidio spans 1,491 acres at the northern tip of the San Francisco peninsula. It was once the most important military post in the United States and today is a national park site within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. It's great- I can walk outside to take a break, walk about 50 feet and automatically be in a beautiful park with views of the Golden Gate Bridge! I'll post some pictures soon :)

San Francisco is a small town

Last Sunday, right after I started my new job, I was in our local laundromat chatting with Suzannah Gill about how things were going at Tides. I knew one other person was in the laundromat with me but didn't recognize him from behind, so I was chattering away. Luckily, I was saying all positive things about Tides, because I turned around to find one of my coworkers laughing at me!! It turns out that several, at least 4, of my coworkers live in my neighborhood, one right across the street, so I will have to behave and be careful what I say always!!

A few more honeymoon photos :)

1)Paul on one of the sandy streets, 2) Paul windsurfing, 3) Paul sleeping (lots of Paul), 4) view from our hotel room, and 5) me at the Split (area of the south island where it was actually split from the north island by a hurricane)

I'm back! Wedding and honeymoon

Hi! After a bit of a hiatus from blogging, during which I got married, went on an awesome honeymoon, and started a new job, I am going to try to blog a bit here and there because things are still so new to me!

Our wedding was a blast, everything we had hoped for and more. It was so amazing to have so many people we cared about and who had touched our lives in some way in one big room, eating, drinking, dancing, etc. Paul and I spent hours rehashing the wedding events on our honeymoon and still love talking about it. Everyone says your wedding day is one of the best days of your life and I would have to agree!! It rained a fair bit on our wedding day, but we were lucky that it didn't affect guest transportation and that we were still able to get many outdoor photos immediately following the ceremony, including many in the middle of 5th street on GT campus! Our photographer is pretty bold and creative, so she pulled two chairs from Tin Drum Cafe and put them in the middle of 5th Street, right on either side of the yellow line, and had us pose for several photos. That is just one of the many cool things she did with us, can't wait until she releases the photos to us! The wedding reception was incredible and just flew by- Paul and I got to eat a little in the beginning while everyone else was in line for the buffet, but after about the first 15 minutes, we were on a rollercoaster of talking, dancing, laughing, etc. I loved seeing so many people out on the dance floor! There were so many great memories made and images captured- so hard to even put into words!

Our honeymoon was a dream vacation- we stayed on an island in Belize called Caye Caulker that should be in the dictionary beside the word "chill". There were only three main streets on the island- the front, middle and back streets- and no motorized vehicles are allowed on the island with the exception of a cable truck and fire truck. The streets were sand, people walked barefoot, and most people don't wear a watch. It took us a day or so to really unwind, but once we realized that we didn't have anywhere we needed to be at any certain time, it became easy to relax. We spent the week trying out all kinds of fresh seafood, getting to know the locals and making friends (big surprise), windsurfing (I had a beginner lesson!), walking around the whole island (only about a mile long), kayaking, watching the sunset from out hotel's dock, drinking cocktails by the pool, snorkeling, etc. It was exactly what we needed and a trip we will remember forever for sure!

The attached pictures are- 1) the tiny airport shack on Caye Caulker, 2) Our feet at sunset on the hotel dock, 3) local restaurant entertainment, 4) our pool and bar at the hotel, 5) Paul in the super clear water at the Split, and 6) us on our dock again (we loved the place!).

More to come!

Dogfest!

On Saturday, the weather was beautiful, the first real pretty weekend day since I've been here, so Paul and I took advantage of it my going to the Duboce Park DogFest, a fundraiser for a local elementary school, and a friend's BBQ in the Mission District. I've posted a few pics: 1) Paul and I with Biker Babe (name was on her shirt), who was worn out after a long day at the park, 2) a self portrait where Paul was too busy looking at a passing bus (transit geek), 3) a dog up for adoption who could perform the best tricks, 4) and all of the bikes lined up at the BBQ house, such a different lifestyle here (picking up my bike from the store on May 8th!), and 5) me walking up one of the many hills here :)

Two quick things- I have not worn heels in 4 weeks, nor have I carried a regular purse. Flats and over-the-shoulder satchels are the way to go here, so when we get back from our honeymoon (yay!!), I plan to do a bit of shopping :)

Smart Car!

So, we have all laughed at the little Smart Cars on the road, the little "toy cars". Well, I decided to rent on on Thursday to see what driving one was like. Diana, a friend of ours from France that went to Berkeley with Paul and is in town visiting and to come to our wedding, came with me on my adventure. We had the best time, and you know what, when you are behind the wheel and on the interstate, you don't really realize you are in such a small car relative to your peers on the road. We drove north of the Bay up to Point Reyes National Seashore, and the weather was amazing! On the way back, we drove up Divisadero Street from the Marina, and the Smart Car was put to the test. This section of street is some of the steepest in San Francisco, so that combined with how the car shifts gears made for quite a jerky experience, particularly since there was a stop sign at each crest and cross street. I wanted so much to share the experience with someone but Diana was asleep! She acted like she took a flight across the Atlantic the day before or something :)

My Go Car Adventure!

Last week, I saw these cute little go-cart like cars going down Market Street and knew that is something I wanted to do. So yesterday I rented one! The company is called Go Car and has locations in San Diego, Miami, Barcelona, and Lisbon. I had a fantastic time and the weather was beautiful! When I first got to the rental place near Union Square, I got really nervous. The guy placed me in front of a safety video and then disappeared for a while. I was so worried I was going to forget something since I was going by myself. Before I knew it, I had a helmet on, he tested my car for me, and I was on my way! I really wanted to avoid Market Street altogether, but in order for the GPS-guided tour to work, I had to go on Market Street a short stretch to get to Embarcadero. Imagine this- me in this little car surrounded by taxis and big buses! I was super careful and cautious, and it was a huge relief to get to the Embarcadero. I ended up driving all the way up Embarcadero to Fisherman's Wharf, to Fort Mason, Ocean Beach, Fort Point and Golden Gate Bridge, the expensive and beautiful Sea Cliff's neighborhood, and along Golden Gate Park. Along the way, I had several people point and smile at me and others offer to take pictures for me. It was so much fun! I was supposed to be gone only two hours, but I somehow managed to miss my turn and continued along the tour for awhile before I realized it. Luckily, I was in somewhat familiar territory and knew how to cut back to downtown in time to return my car. I would highly recommend this adventure for any tourist and plan on doing it with my parents when they visit in September. The only other problem I had with the car, besides the fact that it didn't go faster than 30 mph (had to let people pass a few times) was that it wasn't made to reverse. I forgot about this at one stop and had to get out and push it backwards several feet. The instructions also warn that on some hills, if you go off the route, you may have to push the car if you have two people in the car :)

Paul and his projects

When Paul isn't working on wedding stuff for me, he is constantly searching for projects to do around the apartment, and I literally mean he walks around the apartment scheming his next move and hardware store purchase. This past weekend he weather stripped the windows and put up shelves to the left of the heater among other things. We also recently hung a curtain in the turret to keep out the cold air (the rafters are exposed, causing a vacuum effect), so the turret is officially Paul's "man's room" and I have no authority there :) This picture is of Paul sipping his favorite beverage while admiring his work. Glad he likes to do projects around the house, everything except laundry and organizing his papers, which I don't mind doing most of the time, so it evens out :)

Weekend Happenings

Well, the weather wasn't the best this past weekend, so we got a lot of errand running done and things around the apartment, including an evening of wedding work (Paul was rewarded by an hour-long run/walk to Golden Gate Park, which was a bit tough for me but thrilling for him :). On Saturday night, we went to this hole-in-the-wall place just south of Market Street to hear one of his old co-workers sing with her band. We had the best time! The drinks were pretty cheap and the atmosphere was very casual, so it made for a great night. Rain was determined to fall all day on Sunday, but we still got up and went to volunteer at Sunday Streets, a program that shuts down different streets each time for pedestrians, cyclists, etc. This time the beachfront road and others near Golden Gate Park were shut down, and Paul and I helped with setup, which meant we walked a couple of miles in the rain placing police barricades and signs. Our reward was lunch coupons for a taco truck near the ocean :) The picture above is me with two jackets on underneath my orange Sunday Streets shirt, and the lump that makes my rear end look huge is my GT bookbag, so definitely not my best look :) The event is a great idea, one we will have to try again when the weather is better!!

Scavengers!

People are scavengers here, who knew?? It is amazing. For example, I posted 8 of my moving boxes on Craigslist on a weekday during the middle of the day, and in a matter of 15 minutes, I had two requests to pick them up. Another example is that I put an old duffel bag with a broken handle and Paul's old twin comforter just outside our place by the trash bin, gone in 30 minutes! Perhaps it's because people move around a lot out here? Who knows. Paul has scavenged too, pretty sure his dresser and the Schweppes shelves (which are going to be out on the curb this week!) were free and found on the street, and the 2 bookshelves in our dining room space were only $20 :)

Public Parks in Private Spaces

By some law or ordinance (Paul knows all the details), there is a requirement for certain buildings to provide public space, so I set out on a tour of some of the more popular sites, including a 15th floor terrace on Sansome Street and a beautiful park with redwood trees right beside the Transamerica Pyramid. I spent over an hour on the terrace, reading and drinking a coffee treat in the sun and then about half an hour in the park by the Pyramid. What a great requirement!

More walking, SF Architecture

So, I did a lot more walking this week, over 13 miles total! After my downtown walk, I decided to walk from our place through the Castro neighborhood through to Noe Valley, which is a super cute neighborhood with lots of shops and restaurants, kind of like the Highlands. One incredibly steep hill on that walk and then I encountered another one on my walk on California Street to downtown, on which I saw a huge church (thought the mega churches in Atlanta were big!). Along the way, I took pictures of some the houses around town. Such a different style out here!

Such great natural light in our place!

Since I've had the chance to be home during the day a bit, I've gotten to witness the great natural light our place receives, particularly through our big main window in the living room. You can tell I was home during the 4 o'clock hour because of who is on the TV screen :)

Downtown Walking Adventure

So, in the mornings the last several weekdays, I have been coming to a coffee shop right down the hill from our place to work on final wedding planning, job searching, etc. With the weather being so nice yesterday, I decided to devote my afternoon to exploring in downtown San Francisco. I took the bus to Paul's office and set out on foot through Chinatown, to Coit Tower, down to Pier 39 to say hello to the sea lions, all the way down the Embarcadero to the Ferry Terminal and all the way up Market Street to Paul's office, a 3-hour endeavor with a few short breaks. Along the way I took a few pictures, including one above which looks like a group of flying to-go boxes (upon a closer look, actually books). I treated myself to a Starbucks treat on my way back up Market Street and was looking forward to stopping back by Paul's office to grab the coffee maker we recently received from our registry and head home on the bus. Well, that wasn't exactly what was in store for me. There was a big accident on Market Street involving a bus (don't think anyone was hurt) that kept the buses backed up for over an hour. I had already picked up the coffee maker when I realized the bus was not coming, and, since I really wanted to get home, I tried looking at my transit map to find an alternate way home and ended up walking through kind of a rough neighborhood. It's ok during the day, so I was fine, but I know never to go there at night!! To avoid looking like a tourist in that rough area, I didn't pull my map out again for quite some time, so my coffee maker and I ended up way north of my intended destination and had to cut several blocks south once I figured out where I was. I to tried and catch the bus again near city hall, but still no bus scheduled for a long time, so back several blocks north and homeward before a bus finally came, whew!! Made it home in time to give away my backing boxes to a girl who is moving to our neighborhood and then cleaned up for dinner in Noe Valley with my friend Suz. Definitely earned that big guacamole burger after walking for 4 hours!! At least it was nice weather :)