It was 20 years ago today

It was 20 years ago today,
That my train pulled in across the bay   ♫
I was here to start a west coast life
And I brought my handy pocket knife
Rode a bus and then a yellow cab
Inhaled some Cheerios and took a nap   ♪
My San Francisco adventure began!*

Yep, that’s right. Twenty years ago marked the beginning of my residency as a San Franciscan and a Californian. When people ask what brought me here, I usually respond with one word – Amtrak. It’s true, but that’s not what they expect.

 

The purge, the witch, and the wardrobe

Happy Halloween! While most people are doing their autumnal digging out of costumes and ideas for trick-or-treating and upcoming holiday festivities, my little organizer self likes the seasonal ritual of shedding. The trees drop leaves and begin to expose themselves to the cold while I exfoliate the underused or no longer relevant pieces to simplify and refine my wardrobe. It’s an activity I seldom plan, but one that spontaneously happens at least twice a year. How the spontaneity happens is hard to record, but three years ago, I captured one such episode:

I was perplexed by the amount of time it was taking my partner, Sven, when he disappeared into the bedroom to put away the small bundle of clothes he unpacked from our weekend away. Did the exhaustion from the drive and the days of relaxation overtake him? Curiosity got the best of me, so I went to investigate.