I'm getting better at telling apart gunshots (common) and fireworks (way more common) in my neighborhood. So when I heard three shots out my window just now, I was pretty certain they weren't fireworks. But then I heard the same pattern of three again, and then again, and I grudgingly admitted that no one was likely to be shooting like that ( Read more... )

You all hear me talk a lot about the Monday night ceili that's replaced the Plough in my life, but I'm not sure I've ever posted details about it. If any of you are interested (and local, and not already regulars, which leaves... not many of you ( Read more... )

It was hot today in San Francisco, hotter than it gets more than once or twice a year, and the heat bothered me more than on the Playa. I resented the need to wear clothes, so I wore less than usual and tried not to sweat to death while I did some work in a cafe. All week I've been wearing little tank tops, sandals, short skirts, not my usual ( Read more... )

I went to REI earlier for one of my last BM purchases.I was reluctant to spend the money, but I went in search of a camelbak resevoir that would fit inside my iridescent backpack. I decided after the last time that a camelbak is really the right answer for water. The 50-oz one looked reasonable, and I decided it was worth the extra $5 for the ( Read more... )

"Burning Man: because what goes better with dust than faux fur ( Read more... )

I'm not much of a cocktail drinker. A few exceptions are on my mind at the moment, though. First, there's an article in the SF Chronicle about vermouth, and it mentioned something I'd totally forgotten: this excellent red vermouth called Carpano Antica Formula. Years ago, Nick and I went to Cesar in North Berkeley and had an amazing Manhattan (I ( Read more... )

Man, Nick wins again. French lentils topped with sauteed gingery chard, caramelized onions, and a slice of toasted goat cheese. It's hard to beat this.

I'm hoping to rely on my bike to commute to Caltrain (starting in the fall). I have a nice shiny hybrid bike, a Giant Cypress DX, that my parents bought me at the start of grad school. It's sort of heavy: extra features like fork and seat shocks, a thick mountain bike-style frame, huge knobby tires. Carrying it up the BART stairs has been annoying ( Read more... )

There are so many things I want to do this weekend. Dancing at Friday Night Waltz, chantey sing on the Balclutha, Maker Faire all weekend, a birthday party, an engagement party, Steer Roast [admittedly a bit far away], New Orleans jazz with a friend ( Read more... )

I like my Mac for many reasons. Life is so much better now that I can run analyses in a terminal window and work on a Word document at the same time. I wrote the first chunk of my thesis in Word quite happily. But when it came time to deal with inserting references and figures, I made a big last-minute decision ( Read more... )