Day: 21 January 2004

I got an e-mail from Rich Olyott today asking me what the weather has been like here. Well, today is warm and sunny; a blue, cloudless sky. It is the kind of weather that I think we are fortunate to have on a good summer’s day in Scotland. The temperature is maybe around 60-65 degrees F — not roasting, but pleasant. I’ve been walking around in jeans, a t-shirt and sometimes a jumper. No need for my fleece or rain-proof jacket. Yet. That’ll come in Seattle, I can be sure of it!

Jane sent me a text the other day to say that she, however, is frozen in Menlo Park; walking around like the Michelin Woman, wrapped in every piece of warm clothing in her rucksack. The mornings here (in Healdsburg) have been foggy, giving way to a warmer, sunnier day. I’m not sure how things have been further south, around the Bay Area. I expect that it will be cooler there, and a little foggier.

I love San Francisco! Char drove me down to the city this afternoon; and a more perfect afternoon you could not hope for. When we rode across the Golden Gate Bridge the sun was shining, there was a very light breeze and the sky was a deep blue. This is what California is all about; this is The Sunshine State ©.

I arrived at Robert and Nicola’s guesthouse on Pacific Avenue around 2:30pm; Zack came out to meet us (I’d called, a little lost). The place is fantastic — we got a brief tour of the main house too, which has an incredible view of the bay area; almost as though Robert and Nicola had been given a checklist of landmarks they wanted included in their View ™: Golden Gate Bridge, Coit Tower, Alcatraz, Treasure Island, er… that Roman-looking building at the Marina, the Bay Bridge, the Russian Embassy across the road.

I took a ride in a red VW (with faulty brakes, in a city with steep, steep hills) with Zack, to a hi-fi shop (which didn’t sell the Bose headphones he wanted; which didn’t sell the Bose headphones I wanted). We ended up on Haight Street (am I spelling that correctly?) at Amoeba Records, a second-hand record store situated in a former bowling alley. It sells EVERYTHING, new or used. They didn’t have what I wanted. I got stuff anyway.

What the evening holds, I dunno! I need to text Jane with a 200-character review of the house. Then, who knows?!

I got an e-mail from Rich Olyott today asking me what the weather has been like here. Well, today is warm and sunny; a blue, cloudless sky. It is the kind of weather that I think we are fortunate to have on a good summer’s day in Scotland. The temperature is maybe around 60-65 degrees F — not roasting, but pleasant. I’ve been walking around in jeans, a t-shirt and sometimes a jumper. No need for my fleece or rain-proof jacket. Yet. That’ll come in Seattle, I can be sure of it!

Jane sent me a text the other day to say that she, however, is frozen in Menlo Park; walking around like the Michelin Woman, wrapped in every piece of warm clothing in her rucksack. The mornings here (in Healdsburg) have been foggy, giving way to a warmer, sunnier day. I’m not sure how things have been further south, around the Bay Area. I expect that it will be cooler there, and a little foggier.