I spent Friday and Saturday in San Francisco for a State Bar commission orientation. I really enjoyed getting to know the other commission members and learning more about the work we will be doing. It’s great during this time of exploration and slowing down to have an opportunity to use my analytical, interviewing, writing, and social skills in a different way as well as learn a lot from other people.
During my downtime, I enjoyed getting out to walk around the waterfront and see different sights. It was chilly and a bit windy, but the sky was beautiful on Friday, both in the morning and evening. Saturday morning was foggy, and in fact, the tip of Salesforce Tower that was visible from my hotel window on Friday night was completely obscured Saturday morning. I wandered through the ferry terminal as vendors were setting up their stalls for the Saturday morning market, wishing I had cash with me so I could’ve bought some of the delicious looking bread, gorgeous flowers and colorful vegetables. In fact, later in the day I had to find an ATM to get some cash. I had gotten so used to not tipping when I was in New Zealand that I had not brought enough cash with me for my hotel stay. And, since it was the first time I had used cash since I was back in the US, I forgot about sales tax being extra as well. In New Zealand, GST, goods and services tax, is included in the price, so if something costs $5.50 that’s the amount listed. I really like this system and wish it could be adopted in the United States, it would make things a lot easier. I can see how foreigners get very frustrated, especially with the fact that sales tax is different in every county, and sometimes even in different cities.
On Saturday afternoon, my sister treated me to a fun show at SF Sketchfest, a reading of five short plays with a group of six different comedians, including George Wendt, ‘Norm’ from Cheers. I found the plays to be not only funny, but many also had a thought provoking ending. It was wonderful to get out to live theater and to just laugh with a big group of people. There was a small kids playground with beautiful mosaics near the theater.
