Yesterday I crossed about six out of the eight counties in the Bay Area. I've given in to the reality that my car will eventually run out of miles by the time I finish paying it off.
Nontheless, it was an awesomely warm Fall day in the Bay, so I didn't m ind the extra miles if it meant seeing the sights. It's not every day you can wear a sleeveless top in San Francisco, especially by the bay.
Heading back toward the Golden Gate, I decided to stop off at Crissy Field, my fave beach path for a quick stroll and photo opp before I headed back to Sonoma.
San Francisco is a different animal entirely when it's warm out. People actually seem happy to be alive. You see families with children out at the beach, people having picnics, strolling, riding their bikes or just playing a game of touch football.
I've also recently found that unplugging actually makes my life a lot less stressful. By that I mean updating less about where I am and what I'm doing, taking the earbuds out of my ears and just being in the moment. You never know what you're going to hear, especially coming out of strangers.
Getting a call from an old friend, I decided to head over to the East Bay for some conversation and a promise of beer. I talked him into going to my all-time favorite hipster-dive bar, The Missouri Lounge, on San Pablo Avenue in Berkeley. It's pretty much always awesome weather in Berkeley, but yesterday was exceptionally nice weather to sit outside and enjoy a Trumer Pils.
I never realized how un-East Bay I've become until I went back. I guess I assimiliate really easily to wherever I am, but it was kind of a culture shock in a strange way. Having lived out there for so long and then moving to the North Bay -well, it's like crossing state lines, or going to another country, almost. I always forget how chill people in the EB are.
I was feeling a little self-conscious about my friend's smoking in the little cabana we were sharing with some tattooed, pierced and purple haired chick. So, I apologized and told her that I hope it wasn't bothering her. She looked at me like I came from another planet and said: "Dude, I was gonna light up anyways." I felt stupid and told her. "I guess I've been out in Marin too long." She laughed and nodded. "Yeah, don't worry about it, I know I used to work in San Rafael and had to go smoke in the parking lot."
I was a long way away from San Rafael, that's for sure. Heading back to 80 I discovered the new Berkeley Bowl West. Heaven for sure. Since my new obsession is specialty markets, and I used to shop at the original location back when I lived in North Oakland, this was awesome. Of course, I was a little tipsy from having two beers and no food in my system, so that didn't really make for an awesome experience. But I will definitely have to go back soon.
The East Bay is a magical place. My cousin Nikki described it best. "You can see the City from here, without being in the City."
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