Monday was the start of my birthday week, where I’m spending as much time as I can doing what I want to do, not things I feel like I should do. I took myself to see The Sheep Detectives at the Lark Theater, I am a fan of their $7 plus free popcorn for the first movie showing of the day. It was such a touching movie, also funny, creative and so sad in some places. I loved the theme of the importance of letting yourself feel your feelings, and remembering the good and bad parts of your life. I’m so glad I went, even though it was a beautiful morning so I’d normally be spending it outside.
I’ve been taking longer walks in preparation for my Camino trip. Lots of wanders around the neighborhood, but also further afield. I went for a hike on Horse Hill, the first time I’ve explored it in depth, taking trails all the way over to Larkspur. It was great seeing the horses enjoying all the space they have to roam.
Thursday, the day before my birthday, was a busy one. I did some more weaving on the loom that I borrowed from the library. It took a bit of time to figure out how to warp it correctly, but once I got that done and started weaving, it was so relaxing. Later, I headed over to Concord, stopping at Costco to pick up pizzas for the thank you lunch for the summer school student volunteer tutors. I totally forgot about the fact that it was the day before a 3 day holiday weekend, and of course, Costco was a zoo. I headed to the furthest edge of the parking lot and was luckily able to get a parking space. Even better, the pizzas I had ordered were finished just as I finished paying. We had a wonderful time celebrating the 13 student tutors. The middle school principal expressed his gratitude and talked about the skills they had learned and what a difference they made for the students, not only in terms of academic help but also as mentors. I loved seeing how that made the students all sit up a little taller. Next I met Emmy at my favorite hiking/running/walking show store where she bought me a pair of hiking/walking shoes as a birthday present. I’m hoping these will work on both mountains and cobblestones when I do the Camino. I’m going to try them out over the next month or so to see. I got my haircut, then picked up strawberries, blackberries and raspberries at the Concord Farmers Market. I was surprised at how few booths there were. I don’t know if it was because of the holiday weekend or maybe it’s not as popular a farmer’s market. There were already plenty of people sitting on their blankets, getting ready for the music that was coming up in a couple of hours.
I had about ½ hour before I had to be at Emmy’s house, so I went over to the Markham Arboretum and walked a few laps around the different gardens. There were a couple of young boys running around with their Frenchy puppy who looked just like Winston when he was little. I went over and said hi, and they introduced me to their 5 month old Frenchie, Gucci. The boys kept excitedly talking over each other, telling me all about the fun things they’d been doing with Gucci in the week or maybe month that they’ve had him, they couldn’t remember how long it had been. They were all so adorable! Dinner at Emmy’s house was in celebration of Garrett’s 30th birthday, and it was an opportunity for all the parents to finally meet. There were 11 of us at dinner – my ex, Brendan, his wife, Janet, Garrett’s parents, Lenore and Dennis, his brother Dale and sister-in-law, Ariel, and their 2 kids, Ellie and Oliver. Ellie is quite a firecracker, and chatted away with everybody about all kinds of different topics, while Oliver was happy to sit in his grandma’s lap eating strawberries, and every once in a while make excited noises. We had a delicious dinner topped off by an ice cream cake and a pavlova that Ariel had made for the first time. I don’t think I’ve had a pav since I left New Zealand. I was so impressed, pavlovas are not easy to make and it was delicious! Emmy gave Garrett a book full of photos and letters from friends and family. It was so touching and brought Garrett to tears. It was great getting to know Garrett’s parents and seeing everybody interacting. I didn’t want to leave, but I knew I had an hour’s drive home, then an early morning and a long hike the next day.
I was up early on my birthday to get ready and catch a ride with Julie to Muir Woods. The American Discovery Trail 250 Relay group was fantastic. They were obviously people who loved being outdoors, we met quite a few who had walked at least one Camino, and one woman had done six or seven! It was great to learn about their experiences. Julie and I were happy that it was a foggy day, as it made the uphill hiking much easier. I did feel for the folks from out of the area who were hoping to see views of the coast and the Golden Gate Bridge. It did eventually clear up a bit once we got to the top of the Marincello trail above Tennessee Valley – Sausalito was sunny and once we got closer to the bridge you could see the lower 2/3rds. There were 3 batons each with a copy of the Declaration of Independence inside that the group passed around during the hike. I got to hold one from where the Miwok Trail intersects the Laurel Trail down to the Tennessee Valley Trail, which was my home turf. It was such a wonderful way to spend my birthday and celebrate the US’s 250th birthday. We made good time, the group started off hiking pretty fast, and Julie and I kept up with them for the first third, then settled into our slower pace because we weren’t in a hurry at all. After I dropped Julie back at Muir Woods to pick up her vehicle I headed home and took it easy for the rest of the day, reading the birthday texts and cards I had received, reading and doing a bit of weaving. For dinner I had bought some of my favorite treats from Trader Joe’s – smoked salmon, Cambozola cheese, olive fougasse bread, orange cranberry spinach salad and cheesecake with fresh fruit for dessert. I had 2 glasses of wine, quite a splurge for me these days!
On the 4th of July I slept in, did some weaving and worked on a few different writing projects, then drove to Larkspur and took the Smart Train to the Marin County Fair. I was very happy to pay $1.50 (no charge for parking either) and get dropped off right across from the fair, rather than spending $25 for fair parking where I’d have a longer walk. At the fair I checked out the art exhibits – all kinds of fiber arts, photography, ceramics, painting, sculpture, etc. The fiber art included very impressive pieces done by San Quentin incarcerees. I attended a really interesting presentation called Billboards, Bars & Motels; 1950s Roadside Marin. The presenter had photos from both before and after World War II showing the changes throughout the county. I found out that the Richardson Bay Bridge used to be called ‘Redwood Bridge’ because it was made of redwood and had a drawbridge, that 101 originally went over Camino Alto and when the new highway was built, it was only one lane each way so people could turn directly off the highway to all the little bars and motor courts that were dotted around it. It was fascinating! There was also a photo display from different Fourth of July parades around the county, including one of the Bolinas-Stinson tug of war, which I had totally forgotten about. I also checked out the animals; the sweet baby pigs, the sheep – the shorn ones that looked very happy, the unshorn ones, definitely a little crankier. Later, I found a spot close to the music stage for my blanket to watch the fireworks when it got dark. I listened to the last bit of Pete Floyd, a Pink Floyd tribute band who were much better than I expected. I met up with my sister and her friend Abby, and we danced and danced to Mustache Harbor, an awesome, energetic ‘yacht rock’ band. Next up was Super Diamond, who we had seen a couple years ago when they last played the fair. They were okay, but got boring after a while, which made it a good time to take a break and get some dinner. And the final act was Fleetwood Macrame, who I had not seen before. They were absolutely incredible, I think they are now one of my favorite tribute bands. They had so much energy and the crowd was so into it. In fact, I had a sore throat the next day because I was singing so loud! The fireworks show was spectacular.
When I got home I was still very amped up from the music and the fireworks, but needed to get to sleep because the next morning, I was heading out to Bolinas to help with a post Fourth of July beach cleanup. I decided to take the bus, since there was a stop a block away from my house which would drop me off close by where the cleanup was being held, would only take maybe 10 minutes longer than if I drove myself, and only cost $1.50. But when I got on the bus I discovered it was a free fare day, so in the end the ride didn’t cost me anything! For the 1st third of the ride there was one other passenger, and once he got off I was the only passenger, so I had pretty much a chauffeur drive. I’m almost always the person who is driving to the beach, so it was so nice to just sit there looking out the window enjoying the redwood trees, fog, ocean and the Bolinas marsh. I ended up cleaning up the half block near the beach instead of the beach itself as it was a lot cleaner than expected. I managed to gather a pretty big bag worth of stuff, everything from little bits of metallic streamers to cigarette butts, bottle caps, a flip-flop and a sandal, beer cans, and all kinds of bits of plastic and Styrofoam. I felt like I had accomplished something and spent the next hour eating lunch and reading in a little hidden alcove I found behind the natural food store before hopping on the bus to go back home. I was thrilled to see that Mychal Threets, the new host of Reading Rainbow, was also on the bus!
It has been such a wonderful birthday week doing things that I really enjoy. I got lots of wonderful birthday wishes from family and friends here and in New Zealand. My friend Mary sent me a link to a band called the Tuck Shop Ladies that she and her ukulele group heard at a festival in Australia. Their songs are hilarious, fun, bouncy music, just the right thing to listen to during my birthday week. I’m feeling very happy about my life, the people in it and how I’m able to spend my time. I’m excited that I’ve been giving back more to the community in different ways. In fact, a friend from my MNA program just reached out and asked if I could review the bylaws for a new nonprofit he’s starting. Life is good. I’m very, very lucky.
