Random Fall Observations

Fall is my favorite season. I like seeing nature change, even though it's still sunny out and generally nice. It's a time for new beginnings. But also new endings!

So in this spirit I would like to make 4 random observations:

Observation Nr. 1: fall in northern California arrives with an almost unnoticeable lowering of temperatures (instead of daytime temps. in the 80s we now have high 60s) and, in certain areas, the leaves change color too. However, judging by the amount of sunlight and people relaxing themselves doing summer-like activities such as biking, sailing and surfing, you'd never know it's fall.

Do you like my shorts?

Observation Nr. 2: cooking a meal for friends can be fun, if done right. Adding immensely to the joy of cooking is when you don't burn your spaghetti sauce.

Yes, I can cook - spaghetti sauce being one of the 3 dishes I know!

Observation Nr. 3: my tomato plants are just about done for the year, and, after I and the new tenant in my old apartment building finish harvesting the couple cherry tomatoes left on the vine, I suppose they should be torn out and composted. I learned this year that not just any tomato plants will grow anywhere, even though we're in California. Also, you do need to give them water more than a simple hosing down twice a week.

I ate two of the pictured tomatos today at work. They tasted good, and meaty

Observation Nr. 4: after my first harvest of lettuce resulted in the lettuce plant going to seed, it would indicate that my lettuce fared no better than my tomatoes. Also that my garden substrate or whatever it is they call the soil is less than perfect. What you see below (behind the reddish chard / rhubarb looking plant) is a former loose leaf lettuce plant that was producing nice leaves for salad. It is slowly coming to resemble a branchy bush ... My friend Willow explained it to me like this: when the plant feels under stress, its urge will always be to procreate. Which explains the "going to seed" phenomenon.

Skyline Blvd

Last weekend I had a chance to finally see the East Bay all the way to the Golden Gate Bridge from up top. I invited my colleague Joe to accompany me on another bike ride. This time, he agreed. But Joe is a secretive guy who didn't want to get photographed, so you will have to just imagine what my colleague looks like (hint, he's married and has a grown son).

For the sake of saving blogspace, I linked the map showing the route
we rode. The road along the top of the ridge (the one that separates Oakland from the dry hinterlands to the east - see previous bike riding blog) is called Skyline Boulevard. I've been up there once before, and wondered how the bike riders got up. Well, last Saturday I figured it out. I will admit I needed the road map in the book I bought, "Bay Area Bike Rides", to do it. VERY much worth the $15 I paid for it.

We started in Orinda (on the back side of the Hills) and took a road through what is called Wildcat Canyon (didn't see any wildcats, unfortunately). We did see "wildcat" bike riders, though. I mean all those brightly colored bike rider dudes riding in packs. Some of them whizzed past us like they were chasing Lance Armstrong. Others, going more leisurely, I was able to follow or even pass.

In the canyon (near the town of Moraga), one of my favorite spots on the eastbay, the road was gentle and winding. I even could smell redwood trees (I apologize for my camera's sake)

Next, we had to ascend up to Skyline Blvd (lower right corner of the circuit on the map at top). The hairpins on the canyon road ascending to Skyline were moderate, by alpine standards, yet were as much as my legs and my ten-speed could handle. It was fun, actually. I kept thinking, what if one of those softball-sized rocks laying on the side of the road actually fell on top of me as I drove underneath? Fortunately, no such incidents occurred. A nice view towards the east greeted us at the top. They had posted extremeley high fire danger and it was not hard to see why. Everything is tinderbox dry. (and people still build homes up there! - after the Oakland hills fire you think they would have learned)

Once up top on Skyline Blvd., we proceed back towards Berkeley, thankfully not having to deal with any major grades (that's "grade" as in "slope", for all you flatlanders). The views up there are spectacular. Here is another sample featuring yours truly




On the way down, we sped through Tildon park (top of Berkeley) and Tildon golf course. Yes, Berkeley has its very own golf course, and I didn't see any tye-died golfers either. When I moved here, I thought like everyone from the Midwest that Berkeley was just the university. Anyone who lived in or "came from" or even went to Berkeley had to be a hippie and communist leaning! Well, after a while you get to learn that even Berkeley also has snobs, suburban homes ... and a golf course (which I want to play on). The subject of Berkeley probably warrants a separate blog entry ...

So that's my "virtual tour" presentation from the Bay Area this week. I am waiting for the big earthquake, predicted to come and upend life as we know it. We could, like, be experiencing the aftermath of a 7.6 earthquake and be living in a cold mountain climate.

In the meantime, I tell myself to try to enjoy life while I can...

Before I finish: thanks to my friends, like Carla from the Netherlands, who confesses they read this blog from time to time. But you didn't leave any messages! Carla, do you think I write this blog just for the satisfaction of the Dead Animal Society and our Midwestern Republican commentator Siskel? Please, if you visit, sign my guestbook. Thank you and good night-