Day 860 – East Shore

I had to be in the office early this morning and man that is rough for me. Even pre-covid, I’d struggle in the morning time. Speaking of pre-covid, I can’t help but notice that traffic seems to be “back to normal” and I don’t understand why. I thought working remote was the new workplace? Are all these companies really forcing their staff to come back into the office? Didn’t we learn anything about the rat race? Why are we returning to it?

I did get a lot done today though, so that’s good. And to reward myself, I went back over to the Berkeley Marina to look for a geocache or two:

FOUND IT

And looked what washed up along the shore:

Relic

Who threw this boombox overboard?

More of the January 6th hearings were tonight. I’m gonna let Stephen Colbert fill me in. Good night.

Thursday, July 21, 2022

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Day 859 – A Tale of Two Cats

A Tale of Two Cats

This is how they greeted me this morning. I know they look like the same cat in these pictures, but trust me, they are very different.

The one on the left is more introverted, but sweet.

The one on the right is spicy. She will butt her head against my hand and then hiss at me while I try to feed her. She hasn’t made up her mind about me yet. Or maybe she has. 😦

Today after work I met with a friend for some tapas and outdoor dining. It was a beautiful evening in Berkeley. We are really so spoiled with our weather here. Then afterwards we went to her place and hung out. She noticed that my hair looked extra curly. This is what it does right after I wash it:

Can you believe I got perms in the 80s when my natural hair has so much curl? I tend to straighten it with a hot iron these days. When it’s curly it just tangles up and is hard to maintain.

I have to be up early tomorrow. I better go to sleep already! Good night.

Wednesday, July 20,2022:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Day 858 – At the Marina

Today after work I decided to head for the Berkeley Marina since I am cat sitting in the nearby area. It was a refreshing stroll, and while so many parts of the world are experiencing a heatwave, this part of the Bay Area stays nice and cool.

Today I saw this newspaper headline:

I keep hearing and reading about this “exodus”, but quite frankly, at least in the Bay Area, it feels as crowded as ever. I wish more people would leave. People move here for two reasons: the economy and the weather. Hey, if you can make a decent living in another state, then by all means……BUH BYE!

I almost felt guilty as the cool bay breeze washed over my face while in search of a geocache or two.

FOUND IT

Yes, that one on the right- the sticker magnet that says 891 – that’s a geocache. If you flip it over, there’s a paper log on the other side that you sign. The “hiding in plain sight” caches are my favorites. They are easy to grab if you know what to look for. The one on the left was part of a multi-stage mystery cache that took me all around Cesar Chavez Park at the marina. I clocked in over 20,000 steps today!

Afterwards I grabbed a bite to eat at a nearby place and about halfway through my meal the fog rolled in, and it got downright chilly!

As I walked past all those boats, I wondered what it would be like to live on one. I would like the breeze, but I would probably get motion sickness and also……um, how does the bathroom situation work?

Alright, I’m wiped. Night night.

Tuesday, July 19, 2022:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Day 857 – Progress

This morning I saw:

Could it be? Are all those live and in person events? Not virtual? Is this it? Are we back to normal? Is this as normal as it’s going to get? Should I stop blogging every night now? Because I do miss crafting actual stories on this blog rather than typing streams of consciousness.

Two Years Ago This Day:

One Year Ago This Day:

Ha. One of my first geocaches.

Is Monkeypox gonna be the next big thing? Clearly, I have more questions than answers.

I am cat sitting as I type this. They are still unsure about me.

Although, last night, when I went to sleep, there were no cats on the bed. But when I woke up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, one had made her way to the foot of the bed, so that’s progress.

Monday, July 18, 2022:

• 

• 

• 

• 

Day 856 – Cats!

I am cat sitting at a friend’s tonight and I forgot my laptop, so I’m blogging from my phone. Formatting is challenging.

Speaking of cats, I went to my parent’s place today to celebrate my dad’s 80th birthday. How is this even possible? I don’t want us to get old. I wanna live forever. I wonder what heaven is like.

Olive Sits on Her Throne

My parents, sister and I went out to dinner, and then came home to watch a movie. I saw 3/4 of “Book Club” before I had to head back to my cat sitting gig. The movie was alright, had its moments.

I realized today I only took pictures of cats! 🐈 😻 🐈‍⬛️.

It happens. Good night.

Day 855 – Teamwork!

I had my solo performance class today and this new story I am writing is just inching along. It’s a bit of a slow burn, if you will. I have spurts of ideas, but don’t really have a format yet. At least it’s fun to write. Sometimes I wonder if I love writing more than I love performing.

After class I headed back up to the Oakland hills to finish out the geocache puzzle series I had been working on before I left for SLO last week. I got the coordinates to the final location, but when I got there, I was struggling to make the find. And the park I was in- Reindhardt Redwood Regional Park was just littered with people, which made it hard to be sneaky. I kept poking around these trees looking for the cache and was about to give up when a guy on the trail asked me what I was doing. I said “scavenger hunt” and he said, “scavenger hunt or geocache?” WHAT? Someone else in real life knows about geocaching?

“Geocache,” I tell him.

“David’s Geocache?” He asks.

“YES!”

Turns out, he another cacher who goes by the name of “Turtle.X.” He has over 4600 finds. I have over 400 finds, just to give some perspective. So anyway, he helped me find the cache.

FOUND IT!

I wish they were all this size. Small caches make me cranky.

Turtle.X and I chatted and walked back to our cars and he gave me some tips. I always wondered how long it would take until I finally met another cacher. I have been doing this a little over a year now.

I forgot to take a bunch of pictures today. Oh well.

Saturday, July 16, 2022:

• 

• 

• 

Day 854 – Home Sweet Home

Today is my dad’s birthday:

Dada

To the left is my dad. To the right are an artist’s (mom) renderings of my dad. I think the sculpture looks like Walter Matthau myself.

Happy Birthday Dad! I’ll see you Sunday.

This morning I checked out of my hotel and hit the road home. But this time I planned stops via geocache finds.

At the Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo…..

FOUND IT!

This one was HUGE! And very well hidden under here….

I think the cache was pink because everything at the Madonna Inn is very pink- so very in theme. I got a bagel there while visiting and then I was back on the road to my next stop:

The Rios Caledonia Adobe Museum

Confessions, I only made this stop in the city of San Miguel because there was a “Geocache Hotel” there:

FOUND IT

Okay, now THIS is the biggest one I ever found. And the museum was pretty cool too:

Coffee Anyone?

If you wanted a cup of coffee back in 1873!

School’s In Session

And Remember Ladies…

Those ice cream stores are scandalous!

My last geocache stop was less glamorous- simply outside a KFC in King City. But there was a Starbucks across the street so it all worked out.

I finally got home around 6pm and I am unbelievably exhausted. Good night and enjoy the rest of my slide show.

Friday July 15, 2022:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Day 853 – The Dunes

Today was my last full day in Pismo. I decided to head back over to Grover Beach after work – one last time.

Apparently, Grover Beach has “Dune Riding”, so cars can drive onto the sand. I think it’s pretty cool- I saw lots of people drive right up to the water, park and chill in the back of their trucks.

As I walked along the beach, I couldn’t help but notice not only all the clam shells, but complete whole, “still alive clams” kicking it in the sand:

Before Covid, clams were on the decline, but now they’re back, baby, back! Good for the clams!

Alright, time for bed. I check out tomorrow.

Thursday, July 14, 2022:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Day 852 – Shell Beach

I had to be in the office earlier than usual today, so I didn’t have time to do my morning walk. Thank God for the little workout room this hotel has- complete with an elliptical machine that I pedaled on for a half hour this morning.

After work I headed off to my next destination: Shell Beach. Shell Beach is simply a neighorhood in Pismo Beach and when I first pulled up to where google maps told me to go, it just looked like a private little residential neighborhood with manicured lawns overlooking the ocean. It had too much of a “homeowners association” vibe for me at first, but then I took a walk.

Ahhhhhhh…..

There was even a geocache hidden at the top of these stairs.

So I walked along the beach to my next geocache location, which took me to another set of stairs. I zoned in on where the cache should have been hidden but I couldn’t find it anywhere. Feeling a little cranky and hungry I kept walking and thinking I would have to get back into my car and drive if I wanted to find food, but then….

FOUND IT

At the top of the second set of stairs was a restaurant connected to a swanky hotel. Don’t mind if I do! I sat and ate my burger and drink and tried to figure out where I went wrong with that last cache. I did a little more research, finished my meal, traced my last steps and……

THERE IT IS

It was hidden inside a piece of wood that was part of the fence along the stairs! So sneaky!

And just in time for sunset. I’m exhausted – enjoy my slide show.

Wednesday, July 13, 2022:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Day 851 – Avila Beach

This morning I scoped out a path so I could get in a longer walk with a hill. I miss Bay Area hills. I am happy to say I was able to walk to the beach in about a half hour. And I found a geocache right here:

It was cloudy this morning, but after work the sun made an appearance, so I decided to try out a different beach where I found two geocaches.

Avila Beach

I would have found a third geocache at the end of that pier, but I was denied when I got within 200 feet of it:

Behind the Locked Gate

Now, typically I am not one to shy away from hopping a fence or two, but this was a little too high for me and not worth the risk. I must return some day when the gate is open again.

So far Avila Beach is my favorite neighborhood in the Pismo Area. I had a lovely dinner overlooking the water:

I will say this though. I had no idea that central California was so desolate. With the exception of some small beach towns and Cal Poly, it’s pretty much just agriculture. I am now remembering an ongoing joke about Cal Poly when visiting friends there back in the early 90s: “Ornamental Horticulture.” Apparently, it’s a major that students would declare when they didn’t know what else to major in. I get it now, cuz SLO is pretty podunk.

NEXT UP: I think I will check out “Shell Beach” tomorrow.

Tuesday, July 12, 2022:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•