the rest of the day...

Mary Kathryn and I have arrived in my favorite city in the world. The why behind I love this city is not obvious I suppose. The wind, the weather, it being the first real "city" I ever went to as an adult, the beauty of so many of its structure, and its people, and its food... OK, so you get the point.

This is my 10th trip to San Francisco, dating back to 1993 when Harry Kaplan took Bob Joyce, Mac McCorkle and I to San Francisco for a meeting following the adoption of the small group reform act in Raleigh. It was far colder than I expected (insert Twain quote here) and just as remarkable. The pyramid, the Golden Gate Bridge, and its hilly streets, and bodegas, and beggars, and guys selling you camera equipment or luggage you don't need. In the years since, I have journeyed here to keep soaking it up, to find something new or to just be here. Last summer's trip was inspiring as much as it was excruciatingly lonely, but a reminder of the solace to be found in this town.

MK and I stopped in Berkeley on the way in -- she has spoken from time to time of attending the University of California (CA, like NC, has a primary state university, but shares the name with a number of other wannabes...). A nice campus, and a great chance for us to walk around and see some place new. She got a sweatshirt, and I bought a cap, and I got some cool pics to add to the day's haul (but none made the cut). Of course my favorite moments were MK walking in a little stream that ran through campus, and me taking a picture of her at the Gate in the middle of campus, purely for the purpose embarrassing the shit out of her. It worked, gleefully...

This evening we walked around the city, ate at a wonderful restaurant, and enjoyed some of these precious moments together. I love that she loves shopping with me, and that I am more patient today than I used to be. Had a few revelations of things that bother me, and that I need to work on, but those will be shared a different day.

For now, the sun has set on the Pacific, the fog is rolling into the Bay, and the lights of the bridge and this city make me glad to close my eyes here tonight.