Sunday I ended up cancelling my planned Different Spokes ride because I felt really crappy in the morning.  I was still wiped out from my adventure in moving crockery on Friday and the prospect of riding out the Point Reyes Station and dealing with that horrible bridge congestion in both directions was very unappealing.  I hung around the house and felt generally better as the day progressed.  It was a good decision.

Sunday night we had a dinner party for our friend David’s birthday.  I broke out all of my new kitchen stuff and made these fabulous little ruben paninis for appetizers and then I made ice cream to go with the maple pear upsidedown cake that I’d made for dessert.  Mr. Poe made pork tenderloin, fried rice, and salad.  I had a really good time– perhaps too good of a time because I had a nasty headache for some reason the next morning.  I worked from home until lunch and then headed down to the office on Muni.  After work, I walked home.  I had a bunch of errands to run for Mr. Poe’s upcoming birthday and I hadn’t walked home from work for a while.  First I headed to Union Square and then I headed towards Japantown.  I love the painting on this building.  I’ve eaten there a couple of times back when my friend Quela used to live in the neighborhood and if memory serves the food is pretty nasty:

What caught my eye was the World Famous Hot Corned Beef Cocktails.  God bless the Irish:

I made my way over to the Cathedral which is jaw droppingly well designed:

Then I headed over to Japantown:

The inside of Japantown Center:

This is the pretty bridge over Geary at Webster:

Then I headed over to the Fillmore.  Which gets nicer every day.  This is the Raymond Kimbell playground which had both football and soccer matches going on:

I headed home through Alamo square.  Sadly, I couldn’t get everything I needed for Mr. Poe’s birthday dinner at Molly Stone’s so I’m going to have to go to more grocery stores.  We had dinner and went to bed.  Long day.

I felt pretty crappy when I got up.  I didn’t pull anything lugging all of my crap back from Crate and Barrell but my whole body felt used and abused.  I had a ride on the calendar and it was pretty short so I went on it.  We headed over to Marin Headlands.  I’m not going over the Golden Gate Bridge again on a bike until they have the west span reopened and not even then if it’s open to pedestrians.  It’s a complete shit show getting over that bridge and should be avoided.  I think I’m gonna start driving over and parking at Mike’s in Sausalito.  I don’t know what else to do. 

We headed over to Rodeo Beach first.  Which is always fun to visit and beautiful:

Surfers!

Sophie and Travis–

There were a bunch of students studying the flora:

Some of them were cute little cubs with smart pink ties:

From Rodeo Beach we headed over to Hawk Hill where sadly it was too foggy to see much:

The sun was peekin’ out on my way down Conzelman:

We headed back over the bridge which was a total eek and then I headed home for dinner.  I was totally beat.

Bike Mileage:

Today 27.0 Week to date 120.2 Month to date 245.4 Year to date 4,435.9 To Goal 3,564.1 Over (Under) plan (802.5) YTD Mileage vs Last Year (1,091.0) Rolling Year 6,248.2 Since Inception 10/1/07 32,941.4

I was feeling pretty tired on Friday morning and I elected to come in on the train instead of biking.  I planned to ride on both Saturday and Sunday and I wanted to make sure I was up for it.  I had a bunch of errands to run over lunch and I decided to add a little to that and went for a walk.  First I walked through Chinatown and took a bunch of pics:

Grant Street:

I love the outta-sight! color scheme on this building.  Fabulous:

I love this mural on Trenton and Pacific.  It’s spectacular:

Pretty Our Lady of Guadalupe church:

The view from Ina Coolbrith Park:

I love this awesome house.  It has fabulous Maya Revival detail and if google maps is to be trusted, it has five levels:

The view down Pacific from Taylor:

Huntington Park:

The Mark Hopkins:

Looking south from California and Mason:

I headed into Union Square to run errands.  One of which was about sixty pounds of stuff from Crate and Barrell that I had to lug back to work and then to the train and then up the hill.  I know I should have taken cabs.  But I’m a cyclist and cabs are the enemy.  Also, I’m too cheap.  By the time I got home I was way more tired than I would have been if I’d gone riding.  Mr. Poe was at a movie so I had dinner with Mr. Chris, David, and Alex and then I went home and went to bed.  Long ass day.

Thursday I came into work Market to 14th to Folsom to 2nd to Market to Sansome and into work.  I headed home for lunch and went for a nice ride after work.  I headed off 2nd to Howard to 11th into Bryant to Precita to Mission to Richmond to Leese to Crescent to Agnon to Justin to Murray and into St. Mary’s Park. The playground there is recently redone and looks fantastic:

Below that is a nice big dog park that always seems to be scantily attended:

I used the footbridge to cross the 280 and then took Cambridge to Bacon.  The big water reservoir in the Portola District used to be a farm  There are a couple of remnants.  The first is the farmhouse which is now an administrative building:

I continued on Bacon to Hamilton where I had a look at the other remnant of the old farm.  The old greenhouses which make a gorgeous ruin:

Still lots of roses in there:

I took Woolsey to San Bruno and got a a pic of San Bruno Mountain from around Somerset:

I continued on San Bruno to Bayshore to Visitacion and up into McLaren Park where it was very, very foggy.  I got on Mansell and stopped for a pic where there would be a grand view of downtown if it wasn’t so foggy.

I continued on Mansell into Persia to Ocean to Alemeny to Roussea to Still to Lyell to Bosworth to Milton to San Jose to Duncan to valencai.  I stopped at 22nd for a pic of the fog rolling in:

This is the restaurannt Boogaloos.  It has an amazing restored facade:

Me:

I continued on Valencia to 18th.  This is the view looking up 18th from Valencia:

I continued on 18th.  This is Mission High at 18th and Dolores:

The view up Dolores from 18th:

I continued on 18th to Douglass to 17th to Ord and home for dinner.  This ride had a whole lot of climbing and I’m a little out of shape because I’ve been so lazy all summer(hangs head in shame).  It totally kicked my ass and I was in bed before 8PM. 

Bike Mileage:

Today 26.6 Week to date 93.2 Month to date 218.4 Year to date 4,408.9 To Goal 3,591.1 Over (Under) plan (785.6) YTD Mileage vs Last Year (1,114.5) Rolling Year 6,224.7 Since Inception 10/1/07 32,914.4

Wednesday I came into work Market to Sanchez to Steiner to Page to Webster to Post to Kearny to Bush to Sansome.  I took Muni home for lunch because I had a birthday gift card burnin’ a hole in my pocket and am now the proud owner of a Cuisinart Griddler.  Although I initially thought it would see most use as a panini press, now that I have it I think I’ll use it most for grilling vegatables.  I refuse to eat anything that comes off of Mr. Poe’s grill because it’s coated in meat stuff and well, yuck, and having a pristine grill to cook zucchini, tomatoes, peppers and such is giving me a lot of good ideas.  You can also get waffle plates for it which I’ve already ordered off of Amazon.  I’ve lived in a waffle free house for too long!

After work I headed off Sutter to Presidio to Euclid to Arguello to Clement.  I got some pics as I headed west:

I love this building.  I stumbled into this donut shop many a time before I stopped eating dairy:

I continued on Clement.  The golf course at Lincoln Park was super foggy and spooky.  I kept expecting to see the ghostly phantom of a long departed caddie haunting the place.  Who would turn out to be some guy in a ghost suit trying to scare people off while he looked for treasure.  Yes I watch a lot of Scooby Doo:

I continued on Clement to 36th to Shore View.  There’s a lot of gorgeous homes on Shoreview:

I took Shoreview to 38th  to Geary and stopped at Sutro Heights Park for pics. 

Roar:

I took 48th to Sutro Heights.  There are a couple of super run down big houses on 48th that had my Scooby Sense working on orverdrive:

I took Sutro Heights to 47th to Balboa and down to the coast.  The beach was foggy and gloomy:

Me:

I took the Great Highway to Taravel to Merced to Hernandez to Laguna Honda to Portola to Corbett.  This is the incredibly foggy view at Portola and Corbett.  It wasn’t dark for another hour at my house:

I took Corbett to Ord and home for dinner.  After dinner I worked on my homework and went to bed.

Bike Mileage:

Today 18.9 Week to date 66.6 Month to date 191.8 Year to date 4,382.3 To Goal 3,617.7 Over (Under) plan (790.3) YTD Mileage vs Last Year (1,137.6) Rolling Year 6,205.1 Since Inception 10/1/07 32,887.8

It was gorgeous all day Tuesday–  sunny and very warm but not attempting to be hot.  I went on a mileage short and hill intensive ride after work.  I headed off up Washington and stopped for pics at Montgomery.  This is the Transamerica Pyramid from Montgomery and Washington:

This is the new City College building that going up in Chinatown:

I continued on Washington to Powell to Jackson and climbed to the top of Nob Hill.  It was a lot of hill:

I continued on Jackson to Polk to Pacific.  These are some of the pretty Pacific Heights Victorians on Pacific at about Laguna:

I continued on Pacific to Webster.  This is the Health Sciences Library for California Pacific:

A little stern perhaps but still finely detailed:

This is a the gorgeous Synagogue on Webster at California.  It’s gorgeous:

I continued on Webster and stopped at Post for a few pics of Japantown:

I got on Post and stopped at Fillmore for a few pics of the gorgeous mural on the back side of the Hamilton Recreation Center.  It’s fabulous:

I continued on Post to Scott to Turk and climbed up Lone Mountain.  Then I took Balboa to Cabrillo to 8th and into Golden Gate Park.  I headed past the Music Concourse and then came out of the park at 9th and took that to Judah to 7th into Laguna Honda to Ulloa to Sydney to Portola to Twin Peaks and up to the top of the mountain.  i got a bunch of pic.  This is the massive wall of fog hugging the coast:

The Golden Gate Bridge was partially buried in fog:

Sutro-licious:

Me:

Hikers on the top of Twin Peaks:

I continued on Twin Peaks to Villa Terrace to Graystone Terrace to Corbett to Ord and home for dinner.  Mr. Poe had already walked the dogs and they were ready for dinner and then bed when I got home.

Bike Mileage:

Today 22.6 Week to date 47.7 Month to date 172.9 Year to date 4,363.4 To Goal 3,636.6 Over (Under) plan (787.3) YTD Mileage vs Last Year (1,149.5) Rolling Year 6,195.7 Since Inception 10/1/07 32,868.9

This morning I took a different route into work than I’ve been doing.  I want to avoid Market in the morning because it’s kind of a shit show with all the bikes and also because the painted bike lanes can be very slick when wet which they can be in the morning following sidewalk/street cleaning.  I took Market to Laguna to Hayes to Octavia to Fulton to Franklin to McAllister.  City Hall looked fabulous as it tends to:

I continued on McAllister to Polk.  This building was the California Culinary Academy until they moved to Potrero Hill.  It looks like it’s finally getting a new tenant.  Which is good because it’s fabulous:

I continued on Polk to Post to Kearny to Bush to Sansome and into work.  It’s gonna be a beautiful day.

I had a birthday party yesterday and it was lots and lots of fun.  I made a New Mexican themed menu and everything turned out really well.  I cooked all Saturday afternoon and started up at 7am on Saturday and it took all morning but I managed to crank out everything I had planned and there were no disasters.  Sadly I neglected to take any pictures so you’ll have to trust me that my Carne Adovada is all shades of awesome.  Thanks again to everybody who came and I hope you had a great time.

Monday I came down Market into work and headed home for lunch.  After work I went for a nice ride.  I headed off down 2nd.  This is the view looking north down Mission from 2nd:

I continued on 2nd to Townsend.  I stopped at 3rd for some pics of the pretty neighborhood:

I continued on Townsend this is the view looking down Townsend from the Design Center:

I took Kansas to 17th to Potrero.  This is San Francisco General Hospital which seems to continually be under construction:

I continued on Potrero to 25th.  This is the fabulous mural at the Golden Gate Market at 25th and Mission:

I continued on 25th to Valencia to Tiffany to 29th.  This is the view looking west up 29th.  The fog be rolling in!

The view back on 29th looking towards Mission:

I took San Jose to Monterey.  This pretty Saint Francis Wood home is at Monterey and San Aleso:

I continued on Monterey to Santa Clara to Portola to Claremont to Dewey to Pacheco.  It was a very foggy day on Pacheco:

I continued on Pacheco to 9th and into Golden Gate Park.  I headed over to the Music Concourse and stopped for pics:

The De Young:

The California Academy of Sciences:

I came out of the park at 8th and took Cabrillo to 2nd to Balboa into Turk to Baker to Hayes to Scott.  This pretty mural is pretty recent and is at Scott and Fell:

I continued on Scott to Duboce to Castro to 17th to Ord and home for dinner.  We had party leftovers and took the dogs for a walk.  Mr. Poe went to bed early but I stayed up a little and watched TV.  Fun day.

Bike Mileage:

Today 25.1 Week to date 25.1 Month to date 150.3 Year to date 4,340.8 To Goal 3,659.2 Over (Under) plan (788.0) YTD Mileage vs Last Year (1,162.6) Rolling Year 6,257.5 Since Inception 10/1/07 32,846.3

My brother is back with his lovely wife and his adorable demon children on their way home to Baltimore from Korea.  It’s been a panic.  Mimi’s been on a tear and the boys are so exhausted with checking up on the children that they’re ready to pass out on their feet.  Here’s a pic of my nephew Eugene who looks EXACTLY like my brother did at his age.  Yesterday there might have been a bit of projectile vomiting but we’ve all agreed to get past that and never to mention it again.  Ashley Jr’s parked himself in Eugene’s lap and only moved with protest:

Rufus was never far from the children.  He’s the best dog ever:

I dropped them off at the airport mid day and picked up Mr. Poe and we spent the early afternoon shopping.  I’m having a birthday party tomorrow and the menu has a New Mexican theme.  I made green chile for frito pie and it’s very good but the red chile is something special.  It takes forever.  You have to take dry chiles, prepare them, clean them, reconstitute them, strain them, and then reduce the pulp with a seemingly endless stream of additional ingredients that also must be strained before adding to the pot.  But the results are fantastic.  Smooth, velvety, luscious, and spicy.  Perfection with a deep red color that will stain anything it touches.  Mr. Poe stewed some pork with it for a dish called Carne Adovada, and I’m making enchiladas and a tofu dish with it tomorrow.  Stay tuned….

Late in the afternoon I took the dogs for a long walk.  Here’s proof that Mimi can tolerate Rufus without anybody getting hurt.  Not pictured Ashley Jr:

The Seward slide:

The view from Kite Hill was phenomenal:

The view looking down Corbett from about Clayton:

We headed home for dinner.  Mr Poe and I are headed out with Mr. Chris and David but the dogs need their kibble or someone’s gonna get hurt.