I watched this squirrel who is much larger than my little Harris’ Antelope Squirrel of the Sonoran Desert. I watched this guy scramble up the chain link fence and dance around the tennis players.
Our trip to help our son post surgery plus spend time with our daughter and DIL, has come to a close. We’ll see them in a few weeks at Christmas, which seems unbelievable! Time flies when you’re having fun.
Here are a few sights I saw on my way to the French bakery near the hotel:
Morning Glories!
This was a Bonzai in front of a house.
A very happy house, indeed!
I think this is some sort of a maple, but I’ve never seen one shaped like this.
At the bakery waiting in line. My son said this is the best bakery in the East Bay.
When a place is good and has a reputation there is a line. I waited in line for 30 minutes for sandwiches. They sold out within an hour Saturday, so Sunday I went right at 11 a.m. when they start selling them. Once inside, I read the sign that said: “Sandwiches Tuesday through Saturday.”
Oh well. I found a few other things to try.
Whew! Back at the hotel with a box of goodies. Ready to visit the kids for one last time before we head home.
Once home, it’s unpacking, laundry, grocery shopping and feeling grounded again.
I wish I had my camera, but on Veterans Day I spent some time taking pictures with my iphone around the Claremont Resort and Club, the historic hotel where we’re staying. I had to get photos while I could — because an atmospheric river and torrential rain was in the forecast for the rest of our trip.
Two days later it is pouring! I’m at my son’s apartment now and I couldn’t leap over the river that was rushing down the curb by his sidewalk. Now I’ve got soaking wet shoes and socks!
Flag at half mast for Veterans Day.
The hallway to our room. The blue light doesn’t show to the naked eye. I think it’s an effect of blue panels along the wall and the light reflecting on them.
Views of San Francisco from the resort.
Views of the Golden Gate Bridge.
The lobby.
Looking from a balcony on the Lobby level towards the tennis courts.
Another city view.
A view of the hotel.
The Club — gym, swimming pool, jacuzzi, steam room — can be found at the building in the background. The Club has memberships for local residents for tennis, swimming and the gym. It even has a youth swim team who practices there.
A view towards the Club from the Lobby.
Where are some of your favorite places to visit and favorite hotels?
A photo I took of Red on his flamingo buddy the day before we left.
Travel day turned out to be uneventful, thankfully. There wasn’t a single delay or cancelled flight on the boards when we arrived. We got through TSA in a snap. Waffles was a trooper and besides finding the one stray M&M under a seat in the airport, he was well behaved.
After asking my husband repeatedly if he had packed his swimming trunks, when I unpacked at the hotel, I realized that I had forgotten my swim suit. The hotel has an amazing spa with a steam room, jacuzzi and pool. I was looking forward to daily lap swimming and enjoying the luxury of soaking in their various tubs and using the steam room and sauna.
Where I sat outside with Waffles waiting for a friend of my daughter’s to pick him up for a week. This was outside the hotel with a view of the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance. My daughter needs one more week to heal from her shoulder surgery before she can take care of Waffles the pug.
Sunrise view from our bedroom at home before we left for the airport.
Ginger snaps and chocolate chunk cookies my son baked for us the day before his surgery.
I lost a lot of sleep over travel worries and worry about my son. Although he’s in a lot of pain post surgery, the doctor said it went well.
One of the sea glass photos I took yesterday in the morning light. Two more photos are below.
I was on the phone Friday with a neighbor, talking about a funeral for another neighbor when my son called and called. I got off the phone, called my son back and was hit with the news that his surgery had been moved up. He asked if I could change my flights and hotel and come up to help him.
The level of panic and stress I immediately felt was due to the chaos at our Phoenix airport. We’re number three in the country for delays. Plus I’ve read that they may need to cancel 20% of flights.
I talked it over with my husband who decided to go with me. I called Southwest and they quickly changed our flights and it was at no additional cost. I also made sure they had Waffles the Pug on their guest list. Arranging new dates for the hotel was a little more difficult because of a poor connection and the person helping me had an accent that I struggled with.
I was relieved to get everything all arranged. But we are scheduled to leave in a day rather than two weeks. So, I’m feeling overwhelmed.
At our neighbor’s funeral on Saturday, we turned off the ringers on our phones. (It was an amazing service and it was an honor to be included for a celebration of life for such a unique, kind, intelligent man. I’m glad we got to know him during the past few years.)
We forgot to turn the ringers back on. My friend from Santa Barbara was stranded at the Phoenix airport and wanted to spend the night, but we missed her call and her husband’s. She was traveling back from the East Coast after visiting her mom. Her Phoenix to Santa Barbara connection was cancelled.
This doesn’t bode well for our upcoming flight to Oakland. But hopefully, we’ll make it in time to be helpful post our son’s surgery. The reason why they moved up his procedure? The nurses are going on strike the week he was previously scheduled. Oh my! What could go wrong on this trip?
The sun reflecting in the pool behind my mountain of sea glass.
Do you have any flights to be concerned about in the next few weeks?
It’s that time of the month to post my son and DIL’s reading syllabus for the next month! My DIL teaches English at a private school for students who may struggle with school for various reasons, but are very intelligent. I’m posting the current reading assignments in case you’d like to follow along — or are looking for something good to read.
I will admit, I didn’t keep up with October’s reading list. I wondered how the month went by so quickly! I did read — plus listen to “Revolutionary Road” by Richard Yates. I read Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” on the flight to and from Oakland. I’m currently reading “The Stranger” by Camus.
I’m behind, but the syllabus is expanding my reading to include poetry, novellas, plays and fiction that I normally wouldn’t read. I see that as a good thing, even though I’m not sticking to the schedule.
My son had his pre-op appointment for his surgery and wouldn’t you know it? It’s the day after my bunion surgery. I postponed my surgery until next year. I’m going up to take care of my son in November for his surgery, just like I did in October for my daughter. We are enjoying taking care of our grand-dog Waffles in between surgeries. We are on a pretty good schedule and I look forward to our walks together almost as much as Waffles does!
I came home Saturday from helping my daughter post shoulder surgery. To help her more, I traveled home with her pug Waffles. This photo was taken at the airport.
A family who lives near her took care of Waffles while my daughter had surgery and for the week while I was helping out. That’s because my daughter was staying at our son and DIL’s apartment — and our son is deathly allergic to Waffles.
The family sent my daughter pictures and videos every day. One that made me laugh was the mom and two kids in bed with Waffles. The kids were fighting over who got to sleep with Waffles, so the mom had them all sleep together!
Waffles hangs out in the daytime in my husband’s office.
I was a little nervous about traveling with Waffles. I’ve never flown with an animal before. But he was a trooper. My daughter has flown with him lots of times since his puppyhood. Now he’s nine years old and a pro at air travel.
My daughter gave me the low down on traveling with Waffles. She said I had to have him in the carrier when I checked in. I was instructed to call the airlines to make a reservation for him and then pay $125 at the check in counter. He used to travel for free. The fee is a new add on along with $35 for a checked bag — which also used to be free.
She said once I checked in, I could walk him on a leash through the security line. I had to place the carrier in the luggage tub to be scanned along with my purse. Then I carried Waffles through the security check point. Once through security, Waffles was back on his feet and I walked him to the nearest pet relief station — of which my daughter knew the exact location.
While we were waiting for our flight, Waffles jumped back into his carrier and snored. I took him on one more trip to the pet relief station before our flight boarded. While I was walking with Waffles, a woman came up to me and said, “This is so unnecessary! You are adding to the chaos!”
“Whoah!” I thought. I was only walking a 20-pound, well-behaved dog on its leash! I turned to her and said, “I don’t have a choice. My daughter had surgery and I need to take her dog home. This is my chaos.”
I got a half grunted “Oh, I’m sorry,” in reply.
Once on the airplane with Waffles inside his carrier, it fit under the seat in front of me. He slept and snored the entire flight.
Waffles likes to sunbathe on the throw rug by the sliding glass doors. That’s where kitty Olive spent her mornings, too. The first thing we do in the morning is take Waffles for a walk around the neighborhood, to our little park, and back up to our home. He is ready to go! He seems to enjoy a strict routine. So do I!
Have you traveled with a pet? If so, did you find it easy?
What do you think of strangers voicing their opinion on what you’re doing?
These are photos from my recent trip to Berkeley and Oakland, California. I was helping my daughter, post her shoulder surgery.
This is the Cheeseboard pizza from Thursday. Cremini mushroom and Kale with a side of their famous cilantro pepper sauce to dip the crust. As an added bonus, they top your slice with a sliver! Cheeseboard Collective is an institution in Berkeley.
Here’s the background info from Cheeseboard’s website:
About Our Pizza
Cheese Board Pizza started with a simple, fun idea during one of our shifts
We’d grab some extra sourdough baguette dough, pick our favorite cheeses from the counter, and toss on veggies from the market next door to make pizzas just for us. Then, in 1985, we decided to share the fun and started serving a single type of vegetarian pizza to customers after hours on Friday nights. Each night, we’d make one fresh, unique pizza with veggies, specialty cheeses from the Cheese Board, and a thin, sourdough crust.
Today, that same recipe is still our go-to. The Pizzeria, now located just two doors south of the Cheese Shop and Bakery, is open for lunch and dinner four days a week. We’ve also added salads, roasted garlic, cookies, soft serve ice cream, sodas, beer, and wine. Live music is part of the scene at both lunch and dinner, adding to the vibrant atmosphere. Even though the line for pizza often stretches down the block, it moves quickly, with music keeping things lively along the way.
Here’s a rose I saw on my walk from my Berkeley Airbnb and Cheeseboard.
Beautiful Bougainvillea I spotted on a walk in Oakland with my son and daughter-in-law.
I’m not sure what these berries are. I just thought it made a unique shot on my walk to Cheeseboard for a slice.
Berkeley is a beautiful town when you open your eyes and notice the little things like flowers.
The tree-lined streets made for nice walks when I returned to my Airbnb after taking care of my daughter at my son’s apartment.
This was my cozy Airbnb — a separate room with it’s own entrance at the back of a home. I stayed here five years ago when my son had shoulder surgery. It has a bathroom, bedroom and a kitchenette.
Now for everything Cheeseboard:
My last three evenings, I walked from the Airbnb to Cheeseboard for a slice of pizza (and a sliver) before it got dark. It was my daughter’s idea. She told me to go home early so I could have Cheeseboard, which is a treat I enjoy when I visit my kids. Prior to my Cheeseboard walks, I was getting home after dark, exhausted and savoring a cup of chowder I had bought the day I arrived. I wrote about Cheeseboard years ago: How long would you wait for pizza? Hint: It’s Cheese Board.
I’d walk around Shattuck Avenue for about 30 minutes then get in line at Cheeseboard and walk home with my salad and slice. Yes, I’d get in line because there is always a line. There is also a cheese shop two doors down owned by Cheeseboard where I’d buy a few treats for the kids to bring the next day, like their favorite cheese, crackers, chips and homemade tomatillo salsa.
About Cheeseboard: They make one flavor of pizza per day and one salad. No special orders except Gluten and/or Vegan free. The pizza’s randomly change according to fresh produce and they locally source cheese. There is never meat on a Cheeseboard pizza.
I had this one and will say it was really, really good. I liked the Cremini/Kale better, though.
The pizza I had on my last night in Berkeley.
This is the line going into Cheeseboard. The open door near the front of the photo goes into their cheese and bakery shop.
The line wound around the corner and down the street.
If you go to Berkeley, I highly recommend a slice of pizza at Cheeseboard.
What’s your favorite pizza or a pizza spot?
What do you think of my Berkeley photos?
If you’ve never been there, did you think it would be so beautiful?
