Last week we had to cut our time on the beach short so that I could hop a flight to San Francisco to work out our program strategy for the next year. Fortunately, one of the people we were meeting with, Kristine, was already planning on being in Stinson Beach, CA for the week (she rents a house there), so we held a mini "retreat" and worked at the beach.
Tuesday morning I was scheduled to fly out early, but instead was woken up at 4am with a call from Delta letting me know my flight was cancelled. After haggling on the phone for a half hour the best they could do was an evening flight. So I went back to bed and tried calling again a few hours later. That time, our travel agent for work found me an afternoon flight and a first class seat! So the moral of the story is, don’t take no for an answer from an airline, especially at 4:30am. I must say, now that I’ve flown first class, I am having a hard time riding “in the back”. Everything was free up there – movies, TV, HBO, bottomless margaritas (in a real glass), a plated hot dinner complete with side salad, roll, and chocolate cake! Although the goodies were nice, my favorite part by far was that I could actually cross my legs in my seat. Normally my flights aren’t that long, so it doesn’t really matter to me, but for the killer 5 hour flight from Atlanta to San Francisco, it was a beautiful, glorious thing. I got in late to SFO and took the metro (BART) to the hotel. I didn’t even bother unpacking since we were leaving the next morning, so I went straight to bed.
The next morning (Wednesday) I was treated to a visit from my co-worker Whitney (see Dominica post) who was also at the San Fran office for the day. It was nice to start the day with a friend and laughing, even if it was for only 15 minutes. I met up with my boss, Amanda, and our media guru, Tom, and we trekked off in search of the rental car place. It was more like being on a treasure hunt really, while carrying luggage. I don’t recommend it. Once we finally rustled up the car we headed north out of the city to Stinson Beach. I finally got my first glimpse of the famed Golden Gate Bridge and tried to snap a few shots while we drove through (rather unsuccessfully). I have a confession here: I must be a real Floridian because I was not really all that “wowed” and thought the Sunshine Skyway Bridge (in Tampa) was better! Although, perhaps if the bridge is viewed at sunset it looks more majestic? I just thought it was fun to imagine the final fight scene from X-Men 3 (involves the bridge)... yes, call me a simpleton.
After twisting through the hills we arrived at Stinson Beach. It is a little town on a spit of sandy beach that is surrounded by parks – Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Point Reyes National Seashore, Muir Woods, and Mt. Tamalpais. It’s a cute little beach town with low slung wood and glass houses and landscaping filled with flowers, succulents, and sharp pointy things. When we arrived, we had lunch on the patio then sat on the beach to discuss our goals for the next year. It was odd how intense the sun could be but how cold the air (and water) was, so I got sunburned a bit on my arms. While we talked I enjoyed watching a seal body surf in the waves. We spent the rest of the afternoon going through our planning exercise, then finished up for a walk on the beach before dinner. We walked down the spit and around the backside to see the lagoon (more seals) and more seabirds. It was a nice visual change to see topography, which everyone laughed at me for commenting on. After dinner we worked through more of the planning tool before finally giving up for bed.
Thursday morning we got up early so Kristine and I went for a short hike up Mt. Tam. I saw my first Acorn woodpecker (they have personalities and group social structures like parrots) – they are hilarious, fun, and appear to be wearing a red Jewish yamaka on the back of their heads. We also saw a Chickadee some Bluebirds, a Hairy woodpecker, a Northern Flicker, and some other little song birds. I also was able to get some great shots of the coastline looking back at San Fran, and you can just barely make out the silhouette of the city in the fog (just below the words San Francisco).
After the hike we got back to work, had some lunch, worked more, then finally left just before dinnertime. It was a long day and a half of planning, but sitting on couches that looked out towards the ocean made it almost enjoyable. We got back in the car and wound our way back to town. Amanda was driving, but as passengers, Tom and I turned green and clammy and couldn’t speak the whole way back. The winding roads took quite a toll on us for some reason and we thought we were going to barf for sure. We made it back without making a mess and checked back into our hotel. We met another co-worker from the San Fran office for a nice dinner on the other side of town, so I enjoyed being able to see a new part of town.
Friday morning I got up early to do a bit of shopping and rearrange my bag before meeting Tom and heading to the BART station for the airport. The trip home was fine (I was in the back), although I was quite envious of those in first class! A saving grace was that my co-worker Michelle and I discovered that we were on the same connecting flight so we met up in ATL just in time to catch our last flight home. It was great to have company and catch up after all our traveling. It was also wonderful to see Wade at the airport when we landed. And to prove we were actually working, here is a picture of Amanda and Tom taking the usual EDF-waiting-posture while we wait for a cab in San Fran. Yes, there is a wee bit of a Treo (like a blackberry) addiction problem...
As I write this I am on a plane bound for DC. I’ll be there Mon-Wed this week. I made sure to be home in time for Wade’s birthday on Thursday! His request is to be paddled around Myakka Lake so he can go fishing. I am happy to oblige, so stay tuned for pictures... :)
For more San Fran and Stinson pictures, check out our Picasa picture site here.
