Bittersweet Market Street

I have a definite love/hate relationship with Market Street. Since I began temping back in January for various companies, most of which are in or near the Financial District, I've spent many lunches and random walks down this crazy street. The company I've been at for the past 5 weeks is at the beginning of Market, by the Ferry Building, with an amazing view BTW (the job is great, too:). Hopefully I can stay at this one another month or two....

Anyway, since I've been at this job, and from what I can remember, Market Street has "given" me: 3 Jamba Juice smoothies, 2 organic rice pkgs, cat food, Special K bars, and today (which prompted me to write this post) a $5 Starbucks card. It seems that companies like to try out their new promotions out here- totally works for me! Also, towards the end of the week, occasional bands will provide live music to enjoy on my way out and about. And, the streetcars are so cute and bring an authentic vibe to the spot.

The "bitter" part of Market involves the aromas I smell and the people I get to observe. Twice now, I have seen nudies- one being a big group of cyclists earlier this year and the other week, a lady kneeling over kissing the sidewalk. Also, quite frequently, I feel like gagging when the overwhelming scent of urine takes over, from either the many homeless or the dirty bike messengers (this is heightened when we have a rare warm day). Surprisingly, I've never gotten crapped on by any of the million scumbirds of the earth (aka pigeons) that infest the sidewalks. Oh and I can't forget the silent Asian man with his glactic/gibberish sign & sunglasses and the other stalwarts professing their crazy messages every day.

I just can't avoid this street! Somehow I gotta get to Old Navy, the glorious Westfield Mall, Virgin & my favorite chocolates:) I guess this is one of the places that give SF its character; and it leaves me with some interesting stories to tell....

Alamere Falls Hike

Yesterday we decided we were about due for another hike over in Marin. Previously, the Matt Davis hike was by far my favorite, but now I'm not sure...this one was pretty amazing.

The hike is about 7.5 miles round-trip, and in order to get to the falls (which are at the very end), we passed a few lakes and got to walk on a cliff above the ocean. The trail that goes off to the falls is very narrow and tight with some steep grades, but oh so worth it!

This is actually the top part of the first photo. It was quite peaceful, almost like a little private cove.

From the top of the falls, we had to climb down a steep cliff to get to the ocean and the base of the falls. It was a bit slippery, but once we wiggled on down, it was mesmerizing. Amazingly, the wind was almost non-existent and the weather was just right. One of Alex's patients recommended that we stop and eat at the Coast Cafe in Bolinas, which is right next to where the hike begins. Bolinas is definitely a one-of-a-kind town. A quaint and tiny main street with the Cafe, a little grocery store, a bar (pictured below), museum and little collectibles shop. The people here are free-spirited and proud of it. The old man at the restaurant who sat us had the coolest black Pooh bear overalls on.We started off eating some BBQ ribs outside, since the cafe is closed from 3-5pm and we got there at 4:30. They have outside tables open during that time for ribs & oysters. When 5pm came around, we wanted dessert so on into the cafe we went. Oh and was it so so so good!

The best blackberry pie I have ever tasted! So fresh with a buttery, but not overwhelming crust.

The best bread pudding I have ever tasted! Just the right amount of cinnamon and nutmeg with the freshest strawberries and whipped cream. Divine. We were in heaven.

I Want This

It's a mini-bread machine! I've always been facinated/intimidated by bread machines, along with just making bread in general. Alex and I have tried quite a few times to make bread and I can remember just one time it being really successful. All the other times we seem to have problems with the yeast and getting the dough to rise or cook and not be super dense.

Anyway, I thought this little bread machine is super cute- can't go wrong with mini machines! If you're interested you can find it here. It's a bit pricy, but I'll keep my eye out for it on sale...

Oh, and any tips on increasing my patience with bread making is welcome. It's worth the effort for homemade bread deliciousness!

Out of the Lunch Box

Today the Boston Globe and the SF Chronicle both have done stories on lunch boxes, this being the back to school time of year and all. Reading about it got me thinking about how different lunch boxes are now-a-days compared to when I went to school. I can't remember the exact characters I had on my lunch box (I'm thinking Rainbow Brite, My Little Pony or Barbie), but it definitely resembled this:

The thermos with the attached cup (all plastic, of course) was a staple. I remember these boxes having a distinct smell which altered the taste of whatever juice was in the thermos. Ah, the memories....then I moved on to the brown bag that got me through junior/high school- yep, my mom made my lunch up until I graduated with my name on the front and all-oh, I miss those days!

Now, onto a few of the latest lunchboxes I found from the Globe:

So trendy and non-branded! And they just have that crisp, fresh & clean feel to them. I love how each aspect of the lunch has its own spot where it belongs in the box. I should buy Alex one of these, my Old Navy hand-me-down he's been using has gotten its money's worth and it beat up enough to justify a new fancy tote!

As I was browsing, I found this little box:

The concept is probably quite helpful, but I still feel bad for the poor kid who has to have his allergy advertised to the world....

Do any of you have a favorite lunch box of old, or one that's tried & true??

Street Sunday

Yesterday, we found out about the first Street Sunday here in the city. The Embarcadero was closed off to cars and there were all sorts of people cycling, skating, walking etc. The funnest part of the day was going over to AT&T Park and getting to go out on the ball field and run the bases!

After that, we strolled up the Embarcadero. There were various activities, including hula hoop (I need to practice that), physical training seminars, dance & yoga classes and other health-related booths.

Alex took this photo near the ferry building; I really like it.

At Justin Herman Plaza, a group of roller bladers were on the stage doing the Thriller dance, and then later were teaching it. It was funny to watch and they tried hard. It was great being out and I'm excited and happy to see our summer is finally here!