Day - 1613

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Alice and I were tourists today, taking the F line from Castro to the Ferry Building ...

... and eating soft shell crab sandwiches.

It was an ideal San Francisco day.

We ran into Rossana, who was on her way to Vallejo for the afternoon and taking the ferry.  She's so happy at Twitter!  So exciting!

As we headed back, we ran into a ukulele festival at Buena Vista Gardens.  Next year, we'll bring our ukes!

The rest of the day was spent taking care of a few chores and relaxing.  

Day - 1614

Friday, July 26, 2019

Work was quiet today.  Cake day, so I got my cupcake.  After work, I cleaned and did two loads of wash, as well as practiced a bit on the Schumann.  I fell asleep around 10 or so.

Day - 1615

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Work, hit and switch league tonight, bed.  Played so-so at the club, winning 4 and losing 3.  I felt a little stiff and my feet have been bothering me.  I'm using a small medicine ball on my right foot, which helps a bit.  

Day - 1616

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Another flat session in the evening at the Oaks, four hours of nothing cards while surrounded by players making mistake after mistake.  Waiting for the balance of opening hands and made straights and flushes to tip in my favor.  In the meantime, I'm slowly getting my poker skills back and feeling comfortable raising the pot any chance I can get.

Working from home was busy today and faced a couple of technical glitches.  

Day - 1617

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

A little sluggish today after yesterday.  Going through the motions at work.  Read when I wasn't working.  Had little energy after dinner and went right to bed.

Day - 1618

Monday, July 22, 2019

Woke up at 3:15 and took Uber at 3:50 to reach the ticket office of the San Francisco Symphony.  Today at 8 a.m., the symphony is selling single tickets for next season's performances on a first come first serve basis.  Some tickets, the center terrace seats, are selling for $20 each.  I was first in line and all alone at the ticket entrance until 4:30, when Mitzi arrived.  Norm arrived around 5:15.  Alice arrived around 6:20.  It was fun to hang out in line and secure our spot to buy tickets. 

We were given waffles and lattes, which were delicious!  The SFS also handed out free tote bags, a coffee cup, and a program list and pen to check off what concerts we'd like to attend. 

with Mitzi and Norm, the early birds in line!

We ended up getting ten concert tickets for the season.  It's MTT's final season as music director of the symphony, so it's a special year to attend the symphony.  His final concert as maestro is Mahler's Symphony No. 8, Symphony of a Thousand, in late June 2020.  It's another great program this year.  I can't wait to hear such glorious music from such a magnificent symphony orchestra. 

Our tickets, 20 in total

I managed to get to work on time, taking BART after purchasing the tickets.  The day was pretty busy.  I went home to SF after work, had dinner with Alice, then took care of a few things before going to bed.  

Day - 1619

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Up at 6:30, breakfast, getting ready, then off to East Bay, giving a ride to Cecilia on Broadway.  At home, I made beans, prepped lettuce, tomato and onion for burgers and hot dogs, then finished reading the final chapter of Winners Take All, our book club book for the month.  Good book.  It's about the charade of the wealthy elites changing the world with their businesses and ventures, only it's not changing the world and not raising all boats...only the elite's boats.  It's the notion that technology plugs everyone in, but apparently that's just not the case, which is why the disparity between the haves and have nots has expanded. 

Book club was at Lisa and Richard's in their back yard.  Kara and Margaret were there, along with Richelle and a few of Kara's friends.  I fired up R&L's new gas grill and cooked the burgers and dogs.  This grill is something sweet!  Very nice!  The day was perfect, sunny, warm, a mild breeze to keep the back yard cool.  There was so much good food...we didn't need dinner later on. 

We stayed until 4:30, then Alice and I hung out at my place until traffic died down.  We were back in SF by 9, then off to bed before 10.

Day - 1620

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Up at 6, cleaned the apt. from 6-7, then headed over to Safeway for tomorrow's book club fixings, then gas at Costco and in SF by 10.  We spent the afternoon listening to music inside the Botanical Garden.  Pianists played throughout as part of a piano/flower festival.  Members of the SF Symphony played, a pianist and clarinetist, playing Brahms.  Very nice. 

In the evening, we relaxed, watching a couple of shows on NHK.  

Day - 1621

Friday, July 19, 2019

Quiet at work today.  No racquetball this morning.  My foot isn't getting any better.  I've been massaging the bottom heel, which helps.

Reading a piece on white male privilege from the New York Times by Yale professor Claudia Rankine called "I Wanted to Know What White Men Thought About Their Privilege.  So I asked."  I'm looking for the kind of response I would give in the article, but haven't found it yet.  I'm halfway through.

Came home and cleaned up, did two big loads of wash, and went to bed by 10 p.m.

Day - 1622

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Work, reading, reviewing La Stravaganza chapters. 

Racquetball hit and switch in the evening.  I didn't play especially well and my partners weren't killing the ball the way they were the week before, so I ended up 3-4 for the night.  Good matches though and some fierce playing.  I was sore by the time I stopped playing at 9:30.  I was also pretty tired, having spent the past four nights engaging in after-work activities.

Day - 1623

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Racquetball, then worked from home.  It was busy today.

Ron Craswell was in town tonight, so we went to sushi with Dorian, then to the Oaks for their $185 NL tournament.  I hadn't played in a poker tournament in years.  It was fun, brought back some memories, but also felt a bit limited because I didn't have any moves, didn't have any table image, and seemed a bit out of sorts and too cautious.  I lasted until round 8 p.m. or so, shoving under the gun with Q7 and running into AA and JJ.  Ron had AA and was all set to double up against TT, but a T caught on the river.  He's so unlucky with his bullets.  We played 1-1-2 NL at table 3 for an hour or so until Ron lost all his chips with top pair against the table captain's set.  The Oaks was not kind to Ron.  Dorian was at another 1-1-2 table and seemed to be doing well.  We left around 10:30 or so. 

Day - 1624

Tuesday, July 16, 2019

Played at the Oaks again tonight.  Card dead most of the night and played few hands.  I may have won one or two pots total.  Not too good.  I can see the power of raising post-flop in position for the free card, but it does expose what a player has.  The free card play does work a lot of the time.  People don't like reraises post-flop and certainly not rereaises on the turn.  The better players find a way to mix things up.  Not so much at 3/6.

Day - 1625

Monday, July 16, 2019

Racquetball in the a.m., then work.  My right foot is still bothering me a bit.  Walking slow and limping.

Played at the Oaks tonight.  I'd like to play a few nights each week and build up my reading abilities again.  Mondays are good nights to play because of their $200 high hand special from 6-10 p.m.  It's also a popular night to play.  I ended the session up $135 but could have won so much more had I not folded a top hand in a big pot I was certain I'd lost.  The level of players is somewhat low at the 3/6 table.  The players are weak in general, so it's a good table to re-acquaint myself with the game and exploit opponent errors.  That's how you make money in poker, by capitalizing on other player's mistakes.  Limit shows all kinds of mistakes, too.  I will need to be more aggressive in general and read players better than I can right now.  It's nice to be back and playing again.

Looking forward to playing Schumann's 4th Symphony this fall!

Day - 1626

Sunday, July 14, 2019

I spent the morning on Quicken-related stuff while Alice went to the Farmer's Market with one of her friends.  We then cleaned up the Airbnb, did some gardening, then soaked in the hot tub at Diamond Heights for an hour. 

We're reading Winners Take All for book club next week.

I like this writer a lot.  He's articulate about so many things and this book about the "elite charade" of changing the world sounds so interesting. 

Day - 1627

Saturday, July 13, 2019

This morning a few of the racquetball guys (Glenn, Tiger, and Glenn's wife Amy) signed up for beginning Pickle Ball at the Oakland Athletic Club.  Steve and Mary also showed up, along with two other couples.  It's lots of fun, but will take a little getting used to.  I'm not too good at serves.  The paddles are light weight and hitting the ball is pretty easy.  There's not much speed on the ball, which can affect timing.  Amy and Glenn are naturals.  We'll probably set up another lesson soon.

Traffic into SF wasn't too bad.  The fog kicked in midway over the Bay Bridge and stayed all day long.  We went to Alice's Garden Bed at the Senior Center and did some tending.  The plot looks good!

For dinner we had hot pot with Austin and Hannah.  The meat Alice got was very good.  We also made brownies for dessert.  So delicious!  We watched a show or two on NHK (Alice's favorite channel), then went to bed around 10 or so.

Day - 1628

Friday, July 12, 2019

Work was fairly busy today for a Friday.  After work, I picked up Alice's boots that were soled at Ike's on Lakeshore Ave. 

Checked the mint plant Alice stuck in one of the pots out back and it's looking pretty good.  That would be great if I could grow a little mint for tea.

Had dinner and went to bed shortly afterward.  Tired from a busy week.

Day - 1629

Thursday, July 11, 2019

Work was somewhat quiet today.  Had our first hit and switch league tonight.  We have 17 players in the league, a good group.  All the morning players are playing, which is nice.  That means no racquetball tomorrow morning. 

I won all but one game tonight, losing with Harry 10-11 in a great long game against Glenn and Bert.  I played with Robbie my first game against Tiger and Glenn.  Robbie still has the great shots.  At 65, he's still an amazing athlete.  

Day - 1630

Wednesday, July 10, 2019

Racquetball this morning with some great games, then worked from home, which was so nice.  Made another pot of chicken stew and baked bread while working.  The afternoon was busy.

Pulled out two poker books to review from my bankers box of poker books:

These are good books to get me back in the proper mindset.  I remember being impressed with the chapter by Howard Lederer on limit poker in the Full Tilt book.  I went to the Oaks in the evening for a few hours and played a few hands.  I had AA twice in-a-row, which happens maybe once or twice in a lifetime.  Both hands won.  I was up $60 at once, but had some unfortunate hands lose my last hour there.  I had AK suited lose to a flush and AQ suited lose to a full house.  Both were costly pots.  I ended up down $3 for the session.  I'd like to build the skill set again and play larger limit stakes, then also play no limit, where the real money can be made.

Day - 1631

Tuesday, July 9, 2019

Received a very nice review at work.  That felt good.  I'm glad I'm so helpful here.  I enjoy my flexibility and independence.  I like doing my own thing.  Always have. 

I'm keeping many lists right now, lists of books to read, lists of subjects to study, lists of songs to reference, lists of 70s songs to orchestra pieces to play, the lists go on and on. 

Went out for ramen in celebration of three years at HB and my wonderful laptop that allows me to work anywhere.

Day - 1632

Monday, July 8, 2019

Racquetball in the a.m., followed by a reasonable day at work.  Went to lunch with Murry and Yolanda at The Royal Exchange.  That was so nice!  In the afternoon, I began jotting down song references to use in La Strav.  I listened to this a few times and might work a story about it that opens chapter 1A:

I could listen to this every day for the rest of my life and never get tired of it.  I have David Crosby's autobiography but have never read.  It might be time to do that.

Day - 1633

Sunday, July 7, 2019

We continued gardening.  Alice has a garden plot at the Senior Center that she's taking care of for two years.  We pulled some weeds and watered the garden bed.  It's a nice space, but only half of it gets sun. 

The rest of the day we relaxed at home.  We had a delicious rack of lamb dinner!  Before I knew it, it was time for bed.  The end of a perfect four-day weekend.  Back to work tomorrow.

Day - 1634

Saturday, July 6, 2019

Today was a gardening day.  We set up five Grow Boxes that Alice has used a few years ago.  She's back into planting mode, which is really good for her.  She loves gardening.  We cleared her back yard of weeds, then cleaned the boxes.  We went to Lowe's and bought five bags of soil, then filled the Grow Boxes up and planted beans, lettuce and tomatoes.  I read a few hours today and organized a few accounts.

Day - 1635

Friday, July 5, 2019

We spent a perfect day in Oakland, starting first with breakfast at Lyn & Lou's with Richard and Lisa. 

I ordered my favorite, eggs a la Justin and a mocha.  We hadn't eaten here in years, but it was like coming home.  This place is a neighborhood institution, and we've been coming here since 1994. 

After breakfast, Alice and I took care of a few things, then met up with Richard for a bike ride around Lake Merritt.

The weather was ideal.  Richard rode Trey's bike, the Cadillac Eldorado of bikes, a big red monster that weighs about 200 pounds but rides so effortlessly with its fat tires, one gear and back brakes.  He got all the looks and compliments from passersby. 

Alice was impressed with the gardens inside the park by Children's Fairyland.  We need to spend an afternoon investigating the Japanese garden.  It was like being in Japan again. 

Alice's AirBeeNBee

After our bike ride, we headed back home, then met up with Richard and Lisa again for dinner at Mijori in celebration of our 30 years of friendship!

Mijori never disappoints!  After our feast and a perfect day in Oakland, we headed back to SF for the rest of the weekend.

Day - 1636

Thursday, July 4, 2019

Went to SF early in the a.m.  We were going to ride bicycles in the city, but damn it was foggy and cold all day long.  We ended up taking a little side trip to Stonestown Mall, got a latte, played some cribbage, than came back to foggy dreary Sunset.  I got some reading done and updated my portfolio. 

We went out for Chinese food on Polk and Hyde.  Alice was craving sweet and sour, so we ordered a family dinner for two with soup, veges, shrimp and rice.  Very good!

The fireworks began around 9.  Wow, they were loud in the neighborhood.  Alice's Airbnb guests arrived around 9:30.  We've never had an issue before with the 100 or so guests staying at Alice's, but last night her July 4th weekend guests had arrived back at Alice's inebriated, then proceeded to argue and fight.  The husband started yelling.  That's when I went into dad mode.  I went downstairs and knocked on the suite door.  The guy opened the door sheepishly.  I glared right at him and in a very low but super firm and pissed off voice, I said, "If I hear one more outburst, I will ask you to leave."  He said, "Okay," the sheepishly closed the door, and that was it.  No more noises from the Airbnb guest.  I guess I can thank my dad for that glaring look and intense authoritarian fear-of-God voice that comes so naturally to me when confronting inappropriate behavior.  It's amazing how very loud drunk male shouting will trigger me so immediately.  It's as if some kind of suppressed PTSD feeling kicks in and I become this quiet tyrant ready to unload some calm fury someone's way.  Hmmm.

Anyway, the fireworks continued until 11:30 or so, but after that it was a very quiet, very peaceful evening.

Day - 1637

Wednesday, July 3, 2019

Dead slow at work, not surprisingly, as today was like a Friday before our four-day weekend. 

After work, Howard, Dorian and I paid a visit to the Oaks Card Club.  I hadn't been there in years, but some things never change.  The players were all different, but also the same as they've always been.  Howard had always wanted to play there.  This was his first time.  He said he was like a teenager on his first day, nervous as hell as we walked in.  He didn't know what to expect, but once we sat down and were given our chips, he settled in and really enjoyed himself.  He and I played at the 3/6 limit tables while Dorian played at the 2/3/5 no limit table.  Howard had fun.  We played for a few hours before it was time for bed.  I ended up plus 63 and Howard lost his rack (100).  He'll lose a few more before he gets the hang of it.  Fun night for sure, and lots of fun coming home to the Oaks!

Day - 1638

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

Took care of my Jabber issue.  IT needed to set up a phone profile.  Now I can use my work phone on my computer.  Very cool!

Easy going at work today and sunny in San Francisco.  I spent lunch at Rincon Center and hung out an extra hour or so.

Getting a list together of all the things I need to do to write and rewrite La Stravaganza.  The list is extensive.  

Day - 1639

Monday, July 1, 2019

Set up my work computer at home today.  Everything's up and running except Jabber for some reason.  IT looked into it but hasn't gotten back to me.

Along with work, I cooked a pot of chicken stew, baked bread, and cleaned the cupboard of old items, some of which with expiration dates going back to 2008.  Yeah, life's changed all right.  I think I'll really enjoy my new work digs!

Day - 1640

Sunday, June 30, 2019

We got up early, had coffee and bagels on the Avenue, then met up with Richard at Peet's at 11 for Arizmendi pizza and about 40 minutes of chat time.  Another beautiful day. 

At 2, we went to Richard and Lisa's for our first ever Lakeshore book club.  The weather was heaven, and so was the food.  Our first book, The Color of Law, is one of those earth shattering reads that I can't stop thinking about.  It comes up all the time in American life and politics.  I came up just the other night when Thursday night's Presidential candidates squared off to create a moment (or two) to distinguish themselves from the rest of the pack. 

When Joe Biden and Camilla Harris had their moment about school busing, the real point of contention is the complicity of the United States government to keep America segregated.  What Biden doesn't get, or doesn't see, or doesn't fully appreciate is that our government has never stood for equality and has condoned segregation throughout its history.  This book does an amazing job shattering the illusion that "de facto" tendencies (i.e., people wanting to live with people of the same color) created segregation more than "de jure" tendencies (i.e. government control/force/desire/laws that allowed segregation to thrive and prosper).  The big lie of America (one of many, unfortunately), is that our rules and laws and idea of fairness works for everyone.  It does not.  If you still believe that lie, read this book. 

In attendance were Lisa, Richard, Alice, Margaret, Kara, and Kara's friend Rachelle.  It was a great discussion.  Our next book is "Winners Take All," by Anand Giridharadas.  This book looks good too!

Day - 1641

Saturday, June 29, 2019

We had a few activities to attend in Oakland this weekend, so Alice spent the weekend here in the East Bay.  We went to a few of Alice's favorite stores (Target, Ace Garden Center, IKIA, Costco) and one of my favorite spots (Peet's on Lakeshore).  The weather couldn't have been better. 

We went to the GrandLake Farmer's Market and bought strawberries and blueberries for a fruit salad to take to the Racquetball potluck at Glenn and Amy's.  We stayed from 6:30 - 9.  Lots of fun and great food as always.

Day - 1642

Friday, June 28, 2019

This is a game changer.  This is me working from home with my new home office setup.  This changes everything.  I'll have blocks of time again, no commute, music to listen to while I'm working and time to write and revise when the queue is empty.  Everything runs through my new laptop, including my office phone.  I can attend all meetings through WebEx.  I see the future a few years down the road and it looks like working from a comfy cabin on a cruise ship to Alaska.  I love technology!