apartment crashing

I recently took a trip to Seattle to visit friends, and my sister.  Part of visiting friends means crashing at their apartments and scoping out their personal style.  

I stayed with my friend, Margaret.  She's an interior designer, and in the process of getting her own business, Margaret Mitacek Interior Design, off the ground.  She's talented and such an inspiration.  Margaret is especially fabulous at creating rich looking spaces on a budget.  She furnishes her apartment using hand-me-downs, Goodwill finds, and Ikea, Target, and Cost Plus upgrades.  Margaret breathes new life into old, stale pieces by giving objects a new paint job, or adding a bit of flare.  I am always getting ideas for my own apartment when I visit her.

Check out Margaret's inspiring, and surprisingly low budget apartment.

Hand-me-down arm chair

Goodwill lamp and Target votives

Lamps from Goodwill were repainted to be a bright shade of raspberry.  Hand-me-down desk repainted gray with updated hardware.

Vintage photograph of one of Margaret's old-timey relatives and an Ikea couch with a cozy blanket over the cushion.

Gorgeous straw bench on loan from Margaret's mother.

Dining table and chairs on loan from Margaret's neighbor.

After my lesson in how to be poor, but look rich at Margaret's, I went to my sister's to learn how to live in an antique showroom.  She's in college and lives with three other girls.  This was my first visit to her apartment, and I was seriously distracted by all the amazing treasures.  They've only been in the apartment since August, but it looks like they've been living there for the last decade.

There were shrines to cowboys, cats, and vintage posters.  Books looked cozier and more inviting.  Cosmetics were artistically arranged on trays.  Everywhere there was a surface, something interesting was sitting on it.  I'm sure whatever my sister was talking about while I was there was interesting, but I wouldn't know it, I was way too busy checking out every detail of this three-story house.

Books on an invisible shelf, capped off with a toad.

Cosmetics and manicure set-up complete with baby face and figurines.

Cat shrine

Cats

Bedside light from local vintage shop

The best piece: vintage string dispenser.  I must have one of these.

I left Margaret's and my sister's feeling ready for a new household project.  Time to take a visit to my local thrift shop or Goodwill and do some bargain hunting and updating.  Great apartment inspiration from two, very different homes.  

public transit to yosemite

Ryan has always wanted to take public transit to Yosemite.  When we weren't able to coordinate a ride with friends, this seemed like the perfect opportunity.

Turns out the train is fun, easy, and affordable.  

We left our apartment at 6:30am took Muni to Civic Center station then transferred to BART.  BART took us to Richmond station, where there is a transfer point for Amtrak.  After a seven minute wait, we were on our way.  

Sitting on the upper level of the train, we were able to stretch out, get coffee and breakfast, enjoy Bay views, and, best of all, we were not sitting in weekend traffic.

Two hours later, we were in Merced, where we transferred to a bus, YARTS.  The bus is part of Amtrak, and does not need to be booked separately.   

Waiting for the bus at Merced Station

The bus arrived after a 10 minute wait

The two hour bus ride took us right to Curry Village, where we were staying in a heated tent cabin, although the bus does make other stops in the park. 

There is a free shuttle, in the valley, so once there, a car is really unnecessary.  

At 1:35pm our trip was complete, and then, well, we were in Yosemite, so it was time to enjoy the park and our friends.  We did a mini-hike on Saturday and cross country skiing from Badger Pass to Dewey Point on Sunday. 

Alpenglow on Half Dome

Lunch break at Dewey Point

Dewey Point

If you're headed to the valley, Amtrak is the way to go.  I would definitely use public transit to the park again.  

Perks: No traffic, space to stretch out and move around, views, Amtrak fare includes $20 park entrance fee.

Lesson learned:  Between drunk strangers wanting to chitchat, families playing The Itsy Bitsy Spider on repeat, and a crazy punk kid singing along to Beyonce on his iPod, it became clear that headphones or earplugs are a must.

Muni: $2

BART: $4.30

Amtrak: $41 

Total: $47.30 each (one way)

spring is in the air

I moved to the Bay Area in 2005.  After seven years, I still have not adjusted to Bay Area seasons.  I'm used to hot summers, crisp autumns, cold, snowy winters, and cool, wet springs.  In San Francisco, however, summer is downright frigid, autumn is hot, winter is mild, and spring is a total crap shoot.  I find that around times when seasonal change should be coming, I become anxious. My body is craving change, but nothing happens.  I still get unnecessarily bundled up for winter, and, although this happens more rarely, dress inappropriately for those ridiculously cold summer nights.  

There has been one constant, however.  Every year, since I have moved here, there has always been one rejuvenating and energizing week in February.  The sun shines, the air warms, the birds chirp, people don t-shirts and sun dresses.  And, best of all, the trees begin to bloom.  It is by far, my favorite week of the year.  

That time is now.  It seems as though the blossoms appeared on the trees overnight.   Yesterday, I actually felt hot!  Today it's supposed to 70 degrees.  Other than the natural beauty, I think this time appeals to me, because it is the one time of year where it feels like change is happening.  There is a shift, and suddenly, San Franciscan's seem more neighborly, and summer feels like it is just around the corner.  

for shame!

I'm a reusable bag junkie.  I have dozens.  I have grocery bags, produce bags, and bags I take with me when I go shopping. 

The other day I stopped past Mollie Stones to pick up some dinner items on my way home from work.  Because I was coming straight from work, I didn't have my reusable grocery bags with me.  When it was my turn, the cashier asked if I needed a bag.  I hung my head in shame, mumbled that I did in fact need a bag, then looked around to see if anyone was getting ready to slap a scarlet W across my chest for being such a blatant waster.  I wanted to shout out, "I use them for cat litter!" But, instead I grabbed my paper bag, and slid out of Mollie's, careful to avoid eye contact.

I've always felt a sense of wrong-doing when I don't have my reusables with me, but now that San Francisco has banned plastic bags, and charges $.10 per paper bag, it feels even more shameful.  I love the new ten cent ordinance.  I feel like San Francisco is moving in the right direction.  Now, if we could only follow in the footsteps of Concord, Massachusetts, and ban single use plastic water bottles, the biggest waste offender.

Lesson learned: always keep at least one reusable bag in my purse.

20 books

As I mentioned in my last post, because of my ferry commute, I'm able to put my feet up and have dedicated reading time.  I haven't read this much since I was an English in college.  Last year I powered through 16  books, which may not sound like a lot, but it's about 14 more than I normally get to.

My list included:

I've been trying to read a variety of genres.  From teen fiction to memoir.  I was pretty satisfied with all my reads.  I laughed hysterically when Tina Fey described her typical pedicure experience, and cried for twin brothers as they learned harsh lessons.  I learned the gritty details of the Chicago World's Fair and rooted for a Peeta and Katniss hook-up.  The only book I didn't love was The Handmaid's Tale.  I just found it to be tedious.

This year my goal is to read 20 books.  A friend is shooting for 52, one a week.  That is a bit lofty for me.  I definitely want to feel successful.  Although, I am going to check out her reading list for ideas.

So far I've gotten through:

Where'd You Go Bernadette

This was a quick read, but to get the most out of it, I felt like you needed to be pretty familiar with Seattle, and all of it's quirks.  Which, fortunately, I am.  

I'm currently reading The Marriage Plot.

This is not at all what I thought it was going to be.  A recent college grad trying to find herself while working on her thesis centered around Victorian Literature and their love of marriage plots.  It's dense, but engaging.

With two books down, I definitely think I can accomplish my 20 book goal.

Any recommendations?

carless commuting

I was surprised to find that the most challenging part of carless commuting wasn't selling my car and getting used to a new way of life, but getting outsiders on board.

I was pretty much sold after one glorious ferry ride across the San Francisco Bay.  I now have dedicated reading time built into my day.  It's incredible.  I arrive to work and come home feeling happy and relaxed, rather than consumed with road rage.  

And the views.  Holy cow.  I am treated to views that people travel across the world to see.

Convincing others that my new carless life was a good idea was an entirely different story.  Colleagues were actually taking bets on how long I would last.  Our custodian regularly asks me if I have a car yet, unable to believe that I don't by choice.  

If getting people to believe that I enjoy commuting by train and ferry was hard, getting work to support me in my endeavor has been even more challenging.  I am working with our school to incentivize green alternatives to driving.  They encourage students to bike, walk, and carpool.  I would like to extend this encouragement to the staff.  There are great programs out there that financially incentivize public transportation.  I am currently advocating for Commuter Checks: a fantastic program that pulls out money pre-taxed from paychecks to be used for alternative transportation.  Another option, is the Bike Commuter Benefit, a program which rewards people for carbon free commuting.  With so much red tape to get through when dealing with public education, this may be a process.  But, I think we're getting there.  

Can we also address for a minute how amazing San Fran Livin' is.  Genius.  

curses, fog!

Last year, Ryan and I went on a hike along Sweeney Ridge south of San Francisco.  On a clear day there are both bay and ocean views.  The day we went, however, was probably the foggiest day San Francisco has ever known.  

Our ocean views looked pretty much like this:

It has been so gorgeous lately in the Bay Area.  Sunny days and perfect temperatures.  February is not typically a foggy time of year.  We decided to revisit the Sweeney Ridge hike knowing that we would be guaranteed sunshine.  

WRONG!

We woke up Saturday morning to dreary conditions.  This did not, however, stop us from grabbing our friends, and our Clipper Cards, and heading south on BART.  

We arrived in San Bruno with only one minor hiccup, which actually caused us to miss our connecting bus.  With an hour to kill, we were able to scope out the Japanese Interment Camp photography installation at the San Bruno Station.  

SamTrans eventually took us to Skyline College where we were able to meet up with the Sweeney Ridge trail head.  The hike was beautiful, despite the fog.  

Sweeney Ridge Trail Head in Parking Lot C of Skyline College

The trail has several abandoned army bunkers

The location where the San Francisco Bay was discovered

The fog begins to clear and the ocean becomes visible

Beach time in Pacifica

We took a quick trail break to have a snack and drink at Nick's in Pacifica.  Although the 1950s vibe is fun and quirky, stick to beer and avoid the food here.  It was definitely meh, and most certainly expensive.  

Treated to a beautiful ocean sunset

We wrapped up our 13.1 mile hike as the sun was setting, found the 110 bus stop in Pacifica and headed back to the Daly city BART stop.

By the time I got home, I was ready to put my feet up and have a nice, hot cup of tea.  Maybe one of these days we will hit up the Sweeney Ridge trail on a clear day.  Here's hoping.  

BART: $7.60

SamTrans: $4

Sandwich: $8

Drink and Grilled Cheese at Nick's: $20

Total: $39.60 for one