Travelblogue: Weeks 9-11 of 13: Countdown to Freedom

A lot has happened since I last posted. Here are the highlights:

Tuesday, July 17: Moving Day

Today my brother and I moved into a new abode. It's a very nice duplex in a very shady part of town. I sleep with a knife next to my bed and when my brother's not home I block all the doors with chairs.

The walk from the new house to BART takes twenty minutes. I frequently take a taxi back to avoid leering advances and the taunts of little children shouting, "I hate Chinese!"

I swear I saw gun fire one night followed by 7 more shots. I called my brother to come home in a hurry and told him what I heard. He was not happy to be inconvenienced by, what he claims, were just firecrackers.

Lately I feel better because I've seen a few nerdy looking white people walking around. I no longer feel like I stick out like a sore, light-skinned, and business-attired thumb.

Wednesday, July 18: Baby on Board!

No, not me.

I found out today that my friends Stephen and Emily are pregnant! It was an accident but still very welcomed and exciting nevertheless.


I ran out and bought them Baby Birkenstocks. Thoroughly appropriate because (1) they live in Berkeley and (2) the shoes are unisex!


I love when my friends have babies. I have an excuse to buy adorable outfits and shoes, and can playfully poke their cherubic chub to my heart's content without any responsibility, bone-tired fatigue, or parental guilt. Ah the joys of other people's kids.

Friday, July 20: Two Magicians and 900 Pages of Delight

Forget Harry Potter. I'm talking about Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell.

If you're looking for a "ravishing...superb" novel that "combines the dark mythology of fantasy with the delicious social comedy of Jane Austen into a masterpiece of the genere that rivals Tolkien"--and frankly, aren't we all--then look no farther than this tome about two magicians and the history of English magic by Susanna Clarke.


I never read novels because so many are crappy, but I am eating this one up!
(Shout out to Stephen George for recommending it! You rock. I owe you big time man.)

Friday, July 27: A Civilized Goodbye

Today Erin, my next-door officemate, and fellow summer associate finished off her last day. We celebrated with a Summer Associate lunch (there's only 3 of us left now!):




And then had high-tea at the Nordstrom Rotunda whilst discussing Jane Austen and sticking out our pinkies when raising our teacups (just kidding about the pinkies.)


Saturday, July 28: The Kayakers

Tammy and I went kayaking with my firm today in the beautiful California Bay.


I don't know if I'm more impressed with the fact that she roused herself at the crack of dawn to go kayaking with me at 7:45am on a Saturday, or that she came completely prepared with snack bars, bananas, water shoes, windbreaker, and everything else recommended on the kayaking website. That woman is thorough, prepared, and quite the trooper. I should call her The Girlscout from now on.


Tammy and I shared a two-person kayak and our lagging position in the group said a lot about the state of our upper-body strength. But towards the end, Tammy realized that the sooner we reached shore, the sooner we could partake of a gourmet brunch (on the company dime of course). Suddenly, having voiced that logic, Tammy began to row like a maniac and I was surprised at how quickly a kayak could glide through the water! That girl loves her brunch.

Wednesday, August 1: Gadfly Reprise

Today the Gadfly called to ask me to lunch.

I had thought good and long about what I would say when this moment came and I told him my carefully rehearsed excuse:

"Well, I've been really busy lately so I don't think we could have lunch. I could probably get coffee with you sometime though..."

To which he replied that he's too busy to do coffee. And that was that. I was beyond relieved that I should probably never have to talk to him again.

Postcript: So close and yet so far away...

I have only 1.5 more weeks of work left. (Yay!!!!)

I have only 2 more weeks until I return home to Boston. (Waiting for this is the hardest).

Then I have only 2 weeks before school starts. (Boo!!!!)

And then I have 9 months until I move back to the Bay Area. (yay)