On Friday, I arrived in Oakland, California, the home of my friend Ginger. Ginger and I went to high school together in Dallas, and as close as we were then, we've fallen out of touch in the past few years. I've seen her a couple of times in the past two years: once while she was in Atlanta for work, and last October (briefly), at our 20th high school reunion. But I'd never met her husband Bob, nor her son Owen. So I was really excited to see her and reconnect after such a long time!
It was a wonderful visit, in every sense. I arrived Friday afternoon, and Ginger, Owen, and I went to the nursery (garden, not baby) to look for items for their brand new deck. While Ginger spoke with the garden professionals, Owen and I looked through the herbs and flowers, and decided which ones smelled the best. He likes chives, basil, and mint for their smell, and aloe for the "pricklies" on their leaves.
When we got back to their house, I discovered that Owen, at the tender age of 3, is a baseball fanatic. He wore a glove and baseball hat the entire weekend, asked me to play baseball with him multiple times daily, and knows that his favorite teams are the Giants and the A's. But really, he likes the Giants over the A's. He and I played some catch, and we hit a wiffle-ball some that night, and he wore me out! But it was really fun (same as it was with Kai, in Lake Tahoe) to see a little child with real interest and talent.
I met Bob that evening, and he's terrific. He's very mellow, bright, and super-nice (and until recently, he owned a Jeep -- so of course I liked him!). He's also incredibly handy; he remodeled an entire bathroom at their home, and he built the new front patio. Unfortunately, his mother died recently, of complications from lupus, and Ginger warned me that he might not be up for visitors; but he was warm, funny, and really interesting to talk to -- and was a fantastic host, despite it all.
That night, I had my second home-cooked meal, and again, it was fantastic: steaks, grilled corn Mexican-style (i.e., with butter, cheese, chili powder, and lime -- makes my mouth water just thinking about it), asparagus, and fresh fruit. We went to bed relatively early that night, because Bob was to get up early the next morning to run a 5K, and the rest of us thought we might go to the finish line, so we all thought we'd need to be up early.
The next morning, Bob was good and went to the run, but the rest of us slept in, instead. Later that morning, Ginger and Owen went to a swim meet for Ginger's goddaughter, and I went to a local coffee shop to work on the trip planning somewhat. Afterwards, Ginger, Owen and I went to a park for a picnic and a little baseball (Owen played "thrower", outfielder, and catcher, but didn't want to bat at all -- so Ginger and I did most of the batting). When we returned to the house, Bob took Owen while Ginger and I did a little shopping, and then went for dinner at a fabulous Italian restaurant. Our favorite dish was our appetizer, actually -- Sardinian flatbreads with herb jam, accompanied by chickpea fritters (not falafel, more like cornbread), fresh peas, young greens, and a yogurt sauce. Then that night, we went for a walk, which was beautiful, with views of the San Francisco bay. Ginger lives in a hilly neighborhood, and the walk was tough -- but the views made it worthwhile, for sure.
On Sunday, Ginger and I went to a yoga class, which was really great. We then went to the Farmer's Market and bought tons of fruit, some sorbet, bread, and vegetables -- although I think I ate my weight in samples! Then we came home and attempted a frittata for breakfast. Unfortunately, I flipped it too early, and it broke -- so we ended up with scrambled eggs, instead -- but they were delicious, despite the mess I made.
That afternoon, we went to a baseball game so that Owen could watch a little ball, and then came back to the house. I caught the ferry from Jack London Square in Oakland, and took it to San Francisco. I wandered around near the bay for a while, then ate dinner at a famous restaurant in San Francisco, the Slanted Door. And it was amazing, worth both every good review it receives, and every penny of my hard-earned money. After dinner, I sat and looked out over the bay for a while, until it was time to catch my ferry back to Oakland. It is a beautiful city, for sure -- and it reminds me that I really do love looking at the water. I can see why San Francisco has such a romantic reputation -- it was lovely sitting there.
The next morning, Ginger and Bob went to work, and I packed up my things, went to another yoga class, and then left Oakland to head up to Oregon. It was a great weekend. Ginger seems so happy, and she has a wonderful husband and child. I really enjoyed speaking with her at dinner on Saturday night -- she's such a good listener, and always asks challenging questions which encourage me to answer with forthrightness and honest emotion. It was truly special for me to be able to catch up with her after such a long time.
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