Family Time

Last weekend the extended and diverse Forest-related clan came together to celebrate the life of Lucy Forest who, at 94 years of age, finally slipped peacefully into the unknown beyond. While the coming together was bitter-sweet, getting to spend time with Uncle Jim, Nancy, Tamara, Sam, Joyce and Ed helped get me through the weekend in good spirits. I didn't take as many photos as I should have, but here are a few worth sharing.

Uncle Jim at Joyce and Ed's

Nancy at Joyce and Ed's

Nancy and Jim

Tamara and Me

Jim and Tamara

Tamara and Sam

Us at Dinner

Family, however you come by it - by blood or choice - is vital and precious.

I may not have taken any pictures at Lucy's service, but I picture my extended family clearly, from the oldest members of our crazy clan all the way down to our newest editions.

And three cheers for Lucy!

Lucy at her Queen for a Day Celebration of Life

 

And There Shall Be Lilacs

In the spring of 2014 I had to go up to Spokane for a small conference at Gonzaga University. I was staying downtown at the very elegant Davenport Hotel. I just so happened to check-in just a few hours before the start of the annual Lilac Festival Parade.

I haven't seen a true small-town parade in ages, so this was a real treat. It was a pretty long parade - I think over 200 entrants. I managed to watch about a third of it before deciding I'd seen enough cheerleaders, color guards, military representatives and cowgirls and was ready for a few cocktails in the hotel bar.

I took a ton of photos. A few are here, but all my favorites (don't worry, there are only about 22 of them) are on Flickr in my Spokane Lilac Festival album. Please be sure to check them all out for the full vicarious experience.

OMG No Way! Lilac fluff!

Seriously? Goggles?

Cowgirl!

 

 

 

Fort Point Wandering

This morning I went with Kathleen for coffee. My plan was to try out Wreaking Ball on Union St. because I recommended it as a place for my niece to try out when she's here (my friend had gotten some beans there and gave it a good reference), but we couldn't find a parking spot. Instead, we went over to the Warming Hut (a great cafe location, but not great lattes) on Chrissy Field in the Presidio. Since we were down there, we decided to walk out to the bridge and Fort Point.

My favorite photos of our walk are on Flickr (http://www.flickr.com/photos/snarfff), but here are a few for the bellhops.

Hope you enjoy.

 

SFUSD Tudor

On Saturday mornings, if I wake up early enough, I like to go have a latte and some wheat soda bread with cheese at Andytown Roasters out on Lawton. I noticed driving home one day what seems to be a closed up school on 42nd Ave. At least, I hope it's closed up! Every time I've driven by, I've thought, "I should take some photos of that building. It's kinda cool looking, reminds me of Tudor England." After thinking this numerous times and not stopping because the light never seemed right, I finally said the hell with the light, parked and pulled out Madge.

The shots aren't great, but I hope they are a little interesting.

 

 

 

 

 

Poetry & Strolling

This evening I went over to The Great Overland Book Company - one of the few used bookstores still in my Inner Sunset neighborhood - for a poetry reading organized by a friend of mine. The guest poets were Candy Shue and Micah Ballard. I will confess I'm one of those who has never learned to appreciate poetry, though there are a small few I have magically connected with, most notably Rilke. I'm not one to give up trying, however, and I was pleasantly surprised tonight, especially by some of the poems Ballard read. I will have to check his work out a bit more. He's a USFer so I should be able to pick something up by him at the campus bookstore when I'm on lower campus this week.

If you are a fan of The Great Overland Book Company and/or an Inner Sunset dweller, keep your eye out for future readings, events referred to as "Poets Upstairs", as I am told there will be more such gatherings. You can look for details on Foglights.

Walking home, listening to some Brian Eno/David Byrne, I captured a couple of photos. I like night light.

I'm glad I crawled out into the night this evening.

 

Virginia City: Whiskey, Women and... Zombies?

Yes, this involves the undead. Yes, I survived.

https://www.storehouse.co/stories/t3jt8-virginia-city-nv

 

The Lodger

I have a temporary lodger living with me right now. He's such a doll. He is very well groomed, likes to wear a tuxedo, is black as sin and has heavenly amber eyes. He plays hard and likes to hang out in bed with me. To be truthful, I think he might be breaking my heart...

Such a sultry look... He's a heart breaker.

You can't hear it, but he's purring up a storm.

He plays hard...

I know you wanna pet me... Go ahead, do it...

He goes by the handle of Pawz and he needs a permanent home. Anyone have space for a cutie like this?