Exploring Northern California (+ another year)

Last week was one of those busy weeks. I had early calls every morning, trying to accommodate crazy time zones. Tuesday morning was our 1st Microsoft Employee Acquisition meeting, and we met at the new offices. It’s just down the street from our current office, but is basically in the mall. OK, there is a separate entrance, but one of the views overlooks the mall’s rotunda, and neatly sits on top of Bloomingdale’s. The office is no McKinney, but it’s getting there. At least it feels like a real office with a real receptionist and real meeting areas. At least there is a little character / color / decor.

Tuesday morning, I had one of those, “I’m really happy I’m where I am” moments. It was walking down the street, a sunny day, amidst the hustle and bustle of people going to work, getting coffee. The hotel doormen in their uniforms and hats, waiting and smiling and nodding. And I was just part of it. I typically don’t feel this on a day-to-day basis because I have such a simple commute—once I’m downtown, I don’t even step above ground).

The week continued on, full of those little moments of realizing what it means to be where I am, how I got here, what’s next. It’s all still a bit of a surprise, really, and this was one of those weeks where I felt amazed by my life and situation.

This weekend marked another year in my life (argh! Yes! Now I’m in my 30’s, whereas earlier in the week, I was just 30). And what a weekend it was. Friday night, Ian’s cousin James and his new beau, Jason, flew into town. We picked them up at the airport (how adorable is James—he had packed and hand carried homemade muffins in a linen-lined basket for us), and then walked across the street to our Mission Beach Café.

This night, there was a large party, but our friends there squeezed us in. Dinner was fantastic as usual, and James and Jason really loved the food. What’s even better is that we supped just a few mere feet away from a film legend, Mr. John Waters. We headed home, drank wine, lit a fire, and played Catch Phrase until we were overcome by sleep.

Saturday morning Ian and I woke up bright and early (OK, Ian’s wake up time was a little bit brighter than mine). He had run across the street to pick me up a muffin (ok, he also had to buy some cream off them), and for the first time in a very long time, we enjoyed some delicious coffee out of our pot.

It was such a gorgeous morning. The weather was clear, sunny, warm—just lovely. We sat outside on our little deck, enjoyed our coffee, woke up slowly. Ian then made eggs and we had fresh fruit and another cup. James and Jason woke up after a bit, and we all chatted outside. Ian and I got packed for a mystery overnight trip, and we headed out around 11 a.m. A drive across the Golden Gate (packed because of the nice weather with throngs of Girl Scouts and bikers). We continued upwards towards the famous Highway 1.

Famous for a reason! The views are reminiscent of the cliffs in Ireland.Really gorgeous (sometimes scary rounding those curves)—breathtaking views of the ocean, wildflowers I’ve never seen before, and loads of rocks against lush green hills. The drive in itself was fantastic enough.

We drove through the small seaside town of Stinson Beach, and on through flatter land and redwood-lined roadway. We stopped in Point Reyes station, a cute one-road town, where we popped in and out of shops. We ended up at Cowgirl Creamery, and bought a picnic lunch—gourmet pork sandwiches, crackers, fresh cheese, and continued on without agenda.

Our first stop (again, through unparalleled countryside) was the lighthouse. We had driven through a different climate, and it became misty and terribly windy. The lighthouse turned out to be crowded, so we ended up walking up a trail, and standing at the look-out over the ocean for a bit before hiking it back to the car. We proceeded then to South Beach, just off the road, and ended up at a relatively empty beach with roaring waves. Ian had been thoughtful enough to have packed some wine from home we’d gotten in Sonoma County, and our wine / picnic kit made its inaugural debut (it was originally a gift Ian bought for someone, and never ended up giving it to them—lucky for us, the thing is awesome!). We sat on a large log / piece of driftwood, and broke into the wine, sandwiches, and cheese. It was still a bit windy. Our next stop was to check into the B&B we were staying in, the Olema Inn. The Olema Inn was really pretty on the outside—a huge front porch, wisteria covering the sign and roof. The restaurant is apparently Zagat and Michelin-rated. We were actually staying in a new Olema property just up the road, so we drove up there to check out our room, The Snapdragon. Set back from the road was a yellow house, surrounded in flowering plants, bushes, and trees. Little trails headed off into the woods, and the view of the mountains was fantastic. We settled in, Ian gave me my birthday presents (so much fun), and we decided to go explore. We found ourselves back in Point Reyes Station walking around a bit, and then again ended up at Cowgirl Creamery. We got coffees and split a homemade cookie and enjoyed them in the backyard area of the creamery. We walked around just a bit more, and then headed back to the Inn. We had about an hour before dinner, so we found Scrabble on the shelves and had a game, while enjoying the rest of our wine outside. The day was just too lovely—when the breeze picked up, it got a bit chilly, but the effect of the wine counterbalanced it a bit. Ian beat me in Scrabble for the very first time, but I must say we weren’t actually keeping track of points. Poor guy. We changed for dinner, and headed down to the main house of the Inn.Dinner was really special—we started out with fresh raw oysters, and then Ian ordered the largest Porterhouse known to mankind, and I had a delicious duck. We had a very tasty Pinot Noir, and finished off with strawberry soup and vanilla bread pudding. It was back to the room, and right to bed for us. The next morning, we enjoyed breakfast again at the main house, and then headed back to SF via Highway 1. It was another beautiful day. We stopped at the Muir Overlook, and were so happy we did! There were some amazing views of the cliffs and ocean.In the pic below, Ian is a tiny spec on the peak of that rock!We stopped at Fillmore street to shop around a bit, and as it turned out, James and Jason were brunching there. We met up with them, then took them to the airport. To avoid traffic on the way home, Ian and I stopped at the mall in San Bruno and ended up seeing Baby Momma. It was entertaining. So, a really great weekend overall. I loved my surprise, and it was a wonderful way to begin exploring more of California. It’s hard to believe that just 45 miles away (and less!) is land so rugged, beautiful, and virtually untouched as what we experienced.

If I were a rock, my name would be Derrick.