And I picked a lock this morning, go team!
I've had a great past few days. They've been book-ended by Gore. Here, I'll explain with some out of focus pictures:
Tuesday, I saw Al Gore's back! He was speaking in Berkeley, but I didn't find out till he was almost finished, so I hurried down with the roommates in time to see him schmoozing with people. His convoy included a tricked-out Prius.
Wednesday I was surprised by Zach's sister, Suzanne. She and her boyfriend are here for the week. Yeay.
Thursday, I studied with Raina and Rad, then we got sushi, then we got gelato, then Rad and I drank beer. It was a wonderfully productive and fun night. On my way home, I saw DEER. Yeah, that's right, like 5 feet from me, on Oxford street. I took a picture. It's a shitty picture, but it's proof. Behold:
Yesterday was spectacular. The largest critical mass of the year was last night. I'm bad at estimating large groups of people, but I heard someone place the figure at over 4,000 cyclists, most of whom were wearing costumes (I used my fireman coat). For an idea of scale, the whole group circled the Civic Center plaza. We went through the broadway tunnel and down that huge hill in Japan town, but the crowning achievement was getting on the Golden Gate. While riding on the street is legal, riding on the bridge and the highway is not. Exhilarating is the right word. The bright spot of light in the picture is a helicopter.
After we got off the bridge, we biked up above the city (or by the golf course... I was so lost) and the helicopter continued to follow us. Each bike had one of those tiny, flashing, LED lights on back, so looking ahead one could see a pack of lights weaving down this dark and twisty road. It was quiet and peaceful and the helicopter kept making passes with its spotlight, so that huge shadows of the trees made the road look like it was slipping away. It was surreal.
When I got back, I went straight to Vanessa, Koa, and Nicole's "Gore" Halloween party. I ate, drank, and talked with some cool people. It was a great end to the evening.
Tuesday, I saw Al Gore's back! He was speaking in Berkeley, but I didn't find out till he was almost finished, so I hurried down with the roommates in time to see him schmoozing with people. His convoy included a tricked-out Prius.
Wednesday I was surprised by Zach's sister, Suzanne. She and her boyfriend are here for the week. Yeay.
Thursday, I studied with Raina and Rad, then we got sushi, then we got gelato, then Rad and I drank beer. It was a wonderfully productive and fun night. On my way home, I saw DEER. Yeah, that's right, like 5 feet from me, on Oxford street. I took a picture. It's a shitty picture, but it's proof. Behold:
Yesterday was spectacular. The largest critical mass of the year was last night. I'm bad at estimating large groups of people, but I heard someone place the figure at over 4,000 cyclists, most of whom were wearing costumes (I used my fireman coat). For an idea of scale, the whole group circled the Civic Center plaza. We went through the broadway tunnel and down that huge hill in Japan town, but the crowning achievement was getting on the Golden Gate. While riding on the street is legal, riding on the bridge and the highway is not. Exhilarating is the right word. The bright spot of light in the picture is a helicopter.
After we got off the bridge, we biked up above the city (or by the golf course... I was so lost) and the helicopter continued to follow us. Each bike had one of those tiny, flashing, LED lights on back, so looking ahead one could see a pack of lights weaving down this dark and twisty road. It was quiet and peaceful and the helicopter kept making passes with its spotlight, so that huge shadows of the trees made the road look like it was slipping away. It was surreal.
When I got back, I went straight to Vanessa, Koa, and Nicole's "Gore" Halloween party. I ate, drank, and talked with some cool people. It was a great end to the evening.