Trip to Big Basin Redwoods

Last Saturday (Nov. 21), Kali & I hit the road for a weekend of tent cabin camping in Big Basin Redwoods State Park. I was the last minute addition since her fiance had to work all weekend. The drive was almost more beautiful than my recent trip along the coast. We traveled south on 280 before winding over the mountains on narrow Old La Honda Rd through Redwoods and by beautiful cliff-hugging homes. With a view of the bay behind us and the ocean up ahead, it was about the only place I could imagine wanting to be on such a clear and pristine day. I half hoped we wouldn’t make it to camp.

We finally arrived to our campsite, and as I stood there, I heard rain but didn’t see a cloud in the sky. Subtle breezes were sending water droplets from last night’s rain down through the canopy overhead. It was surreal. Moss covered everything in sight and there was a dampness in the air. A huge log by our cabin dwarfed Kali’s car, and we were immediately really excited to be there, despite the briskness. A grove of redwoods with little undergrowth stood between our camp and Kali’s friends. Upon our first trip through, we deemed it the enchanted forest.

It was a great weekend with a little hike, fire building, delicious food, and singing around the campfire (swore not to share the videos but “This Land is Our Land” & “Knights in White Satin” were remarkably awesome). It was a brutally cold night. The form-fitting sleeping bag kept me warm until a leg cramp yielded an uncharacteristic claustrophobic-like panic attack, which was only relieved by getting that bag unzipped and thus, letting out all the warmth. I later dreamed a raccoon made its way in to my sleeping bag. Every dream I had was set in that cabin so the relative sleeplessness of the night left me a little unclear on which events were real.

The next morning was rainy and made for a dreary drive home. The view from the day before was completely draped in dense clouds. We found a different route which was a little less winding and passed through the quaint-looking town of Boulder Creek and the horse country of Woodside, where I might very much like to live one day. (Per Wikipedia, it’s one of the wealthiest communities in the world, so maybe not. Home to Neil Young, Michelle Pfeifer, and one of Steve Jobs’ residences.)

All Camping Photos

Inspiring Kids

Thursday morning (Nov. 19), Kali called me and said, “So, how would you feel about talking to some HS kids about what you do in an hour?” I just laughed. So Tim & I met with 2 groups of seven 15 & 16-year-olds for about a half hour each. It was actually really cool. I gave them the advice that I never took. We talked about how we got where we are, and felt so much validation by the presence of one of their teachers. It was a little crazy being catapulted back to that age and remembering the wonder which I looked upon the idea of working for big brands. I have totally been desensitized, and it was a nice reminder that despite the hell that is advertising, this is the dream a lot of people had and we’re actually living it.

North by Northwest

Since we got out of work early this Wednesday, Ryan & I made plans to spend the afternoon watching North by Northwest on Blu-ray, the most recent addition to his collection. He has a gigantic TV with 7.1 surround. I felt like I noticed all kinds of little details, previously missed (or possibly just forgotten). He bought me crepes for lunch, and we had a perfectly lovely day in the Castro. I *love* having such a good friend who shares my love/obsession with old movies. Though, it might take us another year & a half to schedule another movie day.

Thanksgiving

We had our 2nd annual Haight & Ashbury Thanksgiving at Cerra’s. I made my pecan pie in the morning and tried to spice it up with some decoration. That task was a learning experience, but I think I got a system down for next time. I headed over a couple hours early and tried to help setup. That’s always my favorite part of the day. It’s chill.

Tim & Emily showed up a bit later, and Tim immediately took off his outer shirt and hat. Apparently, a wife beater & dew rag is his lumpia-making ensemble. Cerra brought him a blond wig for the frying later. It was such a spectacle. He managed to trick the four white girls in to forming an assembly line to make all the rolls.  I’d never had Filipino food, so it was pretty cool to basically learn how to make it. We churned out a huge pile and they were a big hit, served with sweet chili sauce. We also had Yorkshire pudding and California Rolls, keeping our multi-cultural theme alive. Oh yeah, we also had mead, made from Welch’s grape juice. Completely eclectic. It was a nice break from traditional Thanksgiving, yet we all ended up with just as intense food coma. No one moved for nearly an hour after eating.

We ended up having 17 people, so that was pretty awesome. Luckily, Cerra had some extra packaged gravy from last year because our first batch was gone before either of us had a chance to sit down. Also, her turkey was even better than last year and received rave reviews. She posted her delicious makeshift recipe after everyone asked for it. We’re 2 for 2 on stellar Thanksgivings.

In Other News

I finished “The Great Gatsby” last week, and it was a much darker ending than I expected. The publisher’s afterword was actually really insightful, too, giving background on the cover art, which was completed before the novel. Fitzgerald actually worked those visuals in to his words. Nice to check off another classic on the list.

I also saw a couple movies I really enjoyed, including Gigantic with Zooey Deschanel. I still don’t completely understand some aspects, but I like movies with seemingly random strangeness. I also finally saw Funny People. I loved the first half (really captured being an up & coming comedian), but I could have done without most of the second part. I was inspired to write a bunch of material. It’s mostly crap, but the more you write, the more your brain gets sensitized to detecting humor in situations. Therefore, I’m calling it a success. I found a laundry mat/café with a comedy night near the office, so it could be the perfect, pressure-free place to try out some material if I ever get something together (and stop being a chicken).

Now, it’s time to dig out my childhood Christmas tree & decorations. My tree hasn’t changed much since I was about 10, and I love it. Might still be too early to break out Christmas music. Though, I haven’t yet sampled my Bing Crosby White Christmas vinyl.

Oooh, speaking of music. Randomly, a guy at work asked me about my NIN collection and hooked me up with some tracks I was missing. I was so excited to speak to another NIN fan, who shares some of my obsessions. Made me feel that much less crazy.