The House in Twain Harte

On June 23, 2021 I wrote that I wasn’t asleep until 130 the night before but mostly because I wasn’t trying. I did get a few pages dictated.

In the morning of the day that I wrote this, after my kids went off to play, I got up to find their stuff all over the floor. I got it all away and then fed them. They had gotten dressed on their own.

I collected food and other things for traveling and then started putting stuff in bags. The boys packed their own sleeping bags. I did dishes, threw the garbage away and brought my bags down to the car.

Dad drove us to Highway 238 and over the Altamont pass just fine but once we got into the pass traffic was problematic because he follows too close. When we ran over a 2 x 4 which had somehow fallen into the freeway on Altamont Pass we decided we needed to stop. So, we got coffee in Tracy and I drove the rest of the way narrating as needed. Dad yelled at me a few times.

The house in Twain Harte - Dad’s vacation home - was tragically in disrepair. We hung out for a bit and then went for Mexican food in Twain Harte. Much later back at the house we slowly wound down. I told the boys the story of the house and my siblings’ summertimes with my mother for bedtime.

This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.

Tuesdays and Thursdays are terrible.

On June 22 I wrote that that morning the boys showed up but only for a while. I was up at 9:30 but stepped on a piece of glass and my recovery got in the way of making breakfast. The boys were mostly in the living room during my first work meeting. After that I finally ate and had another meeting.

We went to laundry and the cafe. I was really pleased with what I saw there. Back home I had several hours of frantic work. Tuesdays and Thursdays are terrible. I had to stop twice because work is hard sometimes.

The boys were actually good but they were overly interested in my work. I finished up around five. I got a text from a person who wanted my baby seat.

I made tortellini and ice cream before winding down. The boys were sleeping in their new sleeping bags that night. I noted that I had a mouse.

This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.

The Midnight Mystery Tour

On June 20, 2021 I wrote that my companions and I were running late for The Midnight Mystery Tour. We went to my place quick so I could get a sweater and then we went to Townsend and met the tour at 11:55pm.

We rode the waterfront all the way to Hunters Point and India Basin. The stop was brief and then we went to San Bruno Ave and McLaren Park. That’s where the group got to know each other. After that we rode Brazil through the Excelsior and subsequently Farallones to Beverly and made a quick stop at the Sundial.

Through most of this we were bleeding participants since it was nearly 2 am. After saying goodbye to a few more people five of us took Phelan, Flood and Arlington to Noe Valley for donuts.

I got home at five in the morning.

This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.

Across the Golden Bridge

In the morning of June 12, 2021, that morning I woke up at 9:30 and called my companions. I had thought we were missing the continental breakfast but when we went downstairs we discovered that either we had missed it or they just didn’t have it. All they had were pastries.

It took us 25 minutes to pack and I had to bring my giant e-cargo bike down separately because the elevator was too small. After that we went to Capitol and across the Golden Bridge (aka Tower Bridge) to a place called Beers and Burgers or something. I had to get loaded fries because they had no breakfast menu and no coffee.

We rode back across the Golden Bridge to a fancy coffee shop and then we went under the freeway along the pedestrian underpass to the train station. I liked that. I enjoyed the air and a short while later we boarded the train.

The trip was fun. I read from the wiki for the Vaca Mountains. The lady across from us was listening the whole time. I noted that the steward in the café car gave me finger guns.

We transferred at Richmond and at Montgomery we took Sutter to their house.

We had a few beers at the bar nearby. Then we got Thai food.

This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.

The Lake Natomas Bridges

On June 11 I wrote that the night before we went to bed very late. In the morning of the day that I wrote this I waited until the sun warmed my tent to get up. I had fallen asleep several times all night trying to zip my sleeping bag.

When I finally got out of the tent my companions were at the table. I set up the burners and started boiling for coffee. We made oatmeal and then I broke down the tent and sleeping stuff. We took till 11 to get ready to go.

We descended to the bike shop at Folsom-Auburn Road and I got coffee at the shop there. We rode past the Lake Natoma inn and onwards. Some guy on his phone was following right behind us along the path for a while. We did the lake Natomas bridges and I had to get water at the boat ramp.

The route after the Nimbus Dam was under construction and I was displeased. However, it was only a short trip to my old college classmate’s house after that. I confirmed our plans for later that summer, introduced my companions and got to know his family. I got to play his ukulele. We left a short while later.

We were a little rushed after that. However, I texted some acquaintances in Sacramento about our plans. We rode on the levees just past the suspension bridge at Sacramento State. Then we rode through a burn mark near the Cal Expo. We passed two large structures before going out to the SNRR train crossing at 16th St.

We found a good route down G Street and checked into our hotel. About seven of us met for a meal at the brewery next-door and then we went for a short walk to one of their houses nearby.

We sat in his living room and sampled a whole bunch of bitters and aperitifs - including fernet and China-China. We also got to look at a fancy vintage bicycle. The evening was really great. I got to connect with a lot of people I had known for a long time and was able to introduce them to new ones.

A short while later my companions and I walked over to a bar next-door to our hotel and had a beer.
This is an occasional series chronicling my life.

This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.

The Ride to Folsom

On June tenth of 2021, I wrote that the night before I was overwhelmed by the task of doing everything on my todo list. I piled all my stuff up and went to sleep at two in the morning.

In the morning of the day that I wrote this I woke three times and when I had wrapped my head around the day I tidied. I got on my ecargo bike at around 840 but still almost missed the ferry.

I met my companions on the pier. Once we were settled in I discovered they had done a fantastic job getting the stewards to wait for me. They also told me that the ticket lady wanted to leave us.

At Jack London Square we went to Bicycle Coffee. Then at the train station a guard admired my bicycle. I noted that on the Capitol Corridor the conductor admired my bike as well. Outside of Fairfield I took a break from writing.

When we got to Sacramento we looked for coffee but the station’s Starbucks had gone out of business. However, we found that the ride to Folsom was pretty easy. My companions switched seats a few times and I repacked.

At Folsom we went to a coffee shop and then we had some lunch. The place was different from when I had last visited.

Later we went to Raley's supermarket and bought ramen and beer. I bought this stuff called “giardiniera” a type of Italian pickled veggies.

We rode to the Johnny Cash Trail and stopped to enjoy the breeze and before riding across rainbow bridge.

The ride up to the campground was wonderful but short. We set up our tents and met the hosts. They told us there were no open sites the next day. We did an evening ride across the levees but one of my companions had a flat tire. I towed her halfway and she walked her bike on the last two levees. Dinner was exquisite. We started playing cards after that.

This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.