Putting a (Public) Stake in the Ground

Well loyal readers, it's time for Beth to announce her Biggest Project Yet: Operation Smaller Ass. Or perhaps it's Jiggle-B-Gone 2009? Or Campaign to Stop Dependence on Lane Bryant as My Sole Fashion Option?

You get the plus-sized picture. The fact is, I'm fat. I've been fat for a very long time....but the past few years in particular have been especially cringe-worthy on the scales. The other weekend I went out in a tank top and caught myself in a mirror and was frankly shocked and disgusted at the size of the woman looking back at me. I didn't recognize myself at all. I'm tired of the self loathing and the hiding from the world and the putting my life on hold until I get thin and the eating a pound of pasta at a time because I'm bored and lonely and the feeling like I'm 50 years old because my joints hurt from being so damned fat. I hate all of it.

My feeling is that by blogging about this topic more and being a little more public about my weight loss efforts, it makes it real for me. It makes me accountable. It takes it out of the realm of me just being frustrated and saying and I'm going to do something and makes me actually do it. Plus it encourages the World of Beth to cheer me on and kick my flabby ass when I need it.

Now this isn't to say that this will become a diet blog where I talk about recipes and workout tips and my measurements (unless I start acheiving major results, in which case all bets are off). But I need a stake in the ground - a beginning point to measure from, where I say that things have changed and will be different and that progress moves forward from this day. Stay tuned for more on this topic...my elastic waist pants need to come out of the dryer for now.

Sacramento - Beth's Shrug-Worthy Day Trip

One of my favorite activities that I don't do too often is just to get in the car and drive aimlessly for a few hours and see where I end up. Some of my most memorable trips have come that way - the first time I saw Portland, for example, or the time I randomly drove to Vancouver after a particularly traumatizing job interview experience.

So last weekend I got the bee in my bonnet to see Sacramento. I had never been there. Didn't know what to expect. Unfortunately I did absolutely no research beforehand, couldn't tell you what's there (besides the Governator) or what the city is known for. I just drove there on a whim.

So. Yeah. It's actually a short drive from San Francisco - just about 80 minutes. Surprisingly it's a pretty rural drive too, with a few strip malls along the way. Shrug. I drove around for a little while once I got there, curiously avoiding the downtown area which I expect is where the capital is. I got on I-5 while I was there and felt a little closer to home knowing that Seattle was literally just up that very road several hundreds of miles. Then I headed home. I would not categorize it as a life-changing trip, but it did feel good to get out and drive for a long while and sing along to cheesy songs on the radio.

So....huh. Any guidance or advice on Sacramento? Anyone been there and fallen in love with it? Did I miss something obvious there that would have tranformed my very core? As an aside, I'm trying to focus more on weekend roadtrip adventures, so if you have recommendations, send 'em my way too.....

Chi Re-alignment, Day 1

While on vacation, I picked up a book on how to have more energy and stop feeling so exhausted all the time. It seemed like a good purchase since most nights when I come home from work it's all I can do to microwave some food and avoid falling asleep on the couch at 9 o'clock. Not so cool.

I like that all of the recommendations in the book are logical (eat better food, get some sunshine and physical activity each day, etc.) and easy - given that the target audience is exhausted people, I figure you've got to start small. So today I took the action item of "eliminating clutter" in my home, which consisted of rearranging my furniture, cleaning out my closets and trying to create more energy in my surroundings.

I used to have a few grocery bags of old mail and bills stuffed under my bed and finally got around to shredding them. It sounds new agey, but getting rid of the paperwork under my bed really did make a difference in how I felt. It's like, the energy started to flow, man. Going through these old bank statements and credit card offers and water bills and employment contracts from long-ago jobs seemed very liberating and the idea that all of these things were under my bed made it seem very obvious as to why I wasn't sleeping better. Bad energy, man. No one can sleep when Bank of America is hiding out under them all night, right?

What a feeling! It's still like living in a cramped, noisy shoebox, but it somehow feels like a slightly roomier and more nurturing shoebox.

Pop Quiz: Denver Edition, V. 2

Pop Quiz, Hot Shots! (Yes, again.)

Question: During a recent trip to Denver, which of the following activities did Beth NOT do?

A.) Had a hot guy that looked an awful lot like Ryan Reynolds sit next to her in a SmartCar while being given a demo of the car's features?

B.) Finally watched "Flight of the Concords" and started to understand what all the fuss is about?

C.) Drove to the Tattered Cover and bored her mom senseless while surveying the bargain books section for almost an hour?

D.) Learned about glitter tattoos and substituted merlot for the more popular grape Kool-Aid at a barbeque for her dad's birthday?

ANSWER: Well it's ANOTHER trick question, naturally! I did all of those things during my visit. And I'm seriously not lying about the guy that looked like Ryan Reynolds. That SmartCar is a Guy Magnet, I have got to pick one up. I'm also not lying about the glitter tattoos, though I'm not so sure I need to pick one of those up anytime soon.

Pop Quiz: Denver Edition, V.1

Pop Quiz Hot Shots!
QUESTION: During a recent trip to Denver, how did Beth and her mom spend their first day together?

a.) Eating "Chinese" food at a Chinese buffet that used to be Furr's Cafeteria, followed up by a trip to a new 85,000-square foot liquor store named Tipsy's;
b.) Eating "Italian" food at The Olive Garden, followed up by a trip to Target;
c.) Eating "seafood" at Red Lobster, followed up by a trip to Kohl's;
d.) Eating "food" at Appleby's, followed up by a viewing of Mamma Mia at the local movieplex

ANSWER: Well it's a trick question, naturally. The answer is A since the question was about the first day spent in Denver, but truth be told, we did every single one of these activities during my visit. And Tipsy's really is an amazing sight to behold, complete with weird manniquins located throughout its aisles and a fireplace big enough to keep all of Southwest Denver toasty. Mamma Mia was overwhelming and hilarious and silly and really quite embarrassing to see Meryl Streep wearing denim overalls, but to look over and see my mom actually lip synching and tapping her feet to "Take a Chance on Me" made it all worth it.

Ah, the homestead.

Beth Chillaxes at Home Doing Nothing: Vacation Continues!

Well folks, it only took two days of vacation for my super extra diligent vacation schedule to be shot all to hell. Yesterday was full of road trippin' adventures....today not so much. So far I've slept in until the double-digit hours of the morning, caught up on my Law and Order: Criminal Intent episodes on the TiVo (Vincent D'Onofrio, you were so young and thing back in the day!), baked blueberry muffins, made chili and finally gotten around to watching Juno. Swear to Blog that was the sweetest movie EVER.

Okay, so that's actually quite a bit of stuff. I also got to spend some time on YouTube, where I can across this little gem. I'm sure most of America has already seen it, but if you're not a regular viewer of Cute Overload.com, these boys might just make your day. The assertive snuggling has been a proven technique of mine for years.

Snuggly Otters and Sweeping Views: Beth's On Vacation!

Hiya kids and greetings from Vacationville - population ME. I finally got around to taking some time off and am trying to make the most of this week being a tourist in my own city. Yes, I've lived here almost ten months and there are still so many neighborhoods/museums/parks/areas I haven't seen. It's going to be a busy week, that's for sure.

Today started off with some coffee at this little cafe near my apartment that I've been meaning to check out for months. Hi, could it BE any cuter? Then it was a sun-filled drive down Highway 1 past Pacifica, past Half Moon Bay, past Santa Cruz...to Monterey to check out the world-famous aquarium and see if I couldn't steal one of the otters to bring back for Alice to play with.

The aquarium was absolutely amazing, as people told me it would be. It really IS worth the $24 cost of admission, and believe me I was pretty skeptical of that when I started off my tour. Of course the otters are riDONKulously adorable and joyful and snuggly and the educational demo station which teaches kids what their fur feels like just makes them all the MORE riDONKulous because they are super duper VELVETY AND SOFT. This just makes it all the more difficult not to crawl into the tanks with them and fall asleep on their little tummies. Sigh. For $24 I think I should be able to take a baby otter home with me, no?

Curiously though, my favorite creature at the aquarium was not the otters (and don't go making any jokes about the stingrays because those things continue to freak the hell out of me) but this guy pictured here - the black sea turtle. From what I can tell there was only one of them inside this giant wall of ocean fish creatures which made him see so unique and independent. He rocked the whole exhibit. You GO, giant black sea turtle guy!

Tomorrow's going to be museum focused, at least that's my intention at this point. I may end up vegging out and watching bad TV, but I'm trying to stay in the Activity Zone cause once you leave that, man, it's an uphill battle all the way.

Have things I should see over the next four days or so? Let me know....

Two months later, Beth returns to the blogosphere!

Whoo. Phew. Ahem. Okay, folks, I am back! After two months of not a single post or update to the blog, I am finally turning over a new digital leaf and re-entering the blogosphere. What have y'all been up to? What have I been up to? A quick recap:

Getting a new kitten. I'm pleased to introduce Miss Alice Purrito de la Embarcadero to the world, who likes to run, jump, frolic, leap, scamper and explore every possible inch of this tiny 500 square foot apartment 24/7. Hot damn, kittens are exhausting. I am counting down the days until she becomes a mellow, lazy, cuddly lap cat like all of my other ones have been. That day will come, right? Right?

Visiting Seattle. What a invigorating trip - getting to reconnect with old friends over cupcakes, revisit all of my happy places (Half Price Books, Triple Door, the market, the Westlake Sephora...), do some shopping, drink performance art sake, and enjoy a tater tot omelette all in just three little days. Why did I wait so long to go back home? Why not do it more often? I almost cried when I could see the city from the plane on our descent into Sea-Tac. Home. At. Last. I need to do that more often.

Sprucing Up The Homestead. After some helpful suggestions from a recent houseguest, I'm pleased to say I'm starting to spruce up the apartment. This involves sending off a ton of kitchen and closet-related crap to Goodwill, paring down the book collection and incorporating some new color via throw pillows and about three bags of decorative knick-knacks from Crate and Barrel. Definitely feeling a little better about the place, even if it remains the Loudest Apartment On Earth.

Getting a California Driver's License. Nine months of living in this state and I finally buckled down and got a California license. I don't know why it took me so long. Oh wait, yes I do. This makes it real. This makes California my home. My legal place of residence. This means my Washington license isn't valid any more and that makes me deeply uncomfortable. Sigh. Trying to keep things moving forward instead of lingering in the past, but I have to say that's often easier said than done.

Shopping at Mervyns. Okay, this one I'm not proud of, it just happens to be what I did today on a whim. Everything was 50 percent off. I admit I felt my hipster cred being all but evaporated, what with shopping in the same store where my mom buys her mock-turtleneck shirts and elastic waist Mom Pants, but who I am turn down a $12 black cardigan and $10 t-shirts?

More to come, at least sooner than two months from now....

And now, some audience questions

Q: Um, holy cow. That's an flippin' awesome tattoo. I mean, seriously.
A: Thanks, but that's not a question.

Q: Where did you GET that thing?
A: Millennium Tattoo, in Fort Collins. It was totally clean, legit, safe, non intimidating and staffed by alterna-hipsters, which is always a nice bonus. Ryan did mine and she was fanTAStic.

Q: Where did you PUT that thing?
A: It's in the middle of my back - which means it passes the Yuppie Professional Dress Attire test plus avoids the whole Tramp Stamp issue. Win-win really.

Q: Does your mom know about this?
A: No. And I'd like it to stay that way, thanks.

Q: But...aren't you like 33 years old?
A: Yes, but....

Q: What, you afraid you'll get grounded or something?
A: Excuse me, have you MET my mom?

Q: I'm asking the questions here!
A: Siiiiigh.

Q: So evidently your mom didn't go with you. Who'd you go with for the tattoo?
A: My junior high co-horts Rena and Chrissy accompanied me. Nothing celebrates 20 years of friendship like a night of body modification.

Q: Did you have other images/ideas you thought about before ultimately deciding on the typewriter?
A: Yes, but they seem kind of embarrassing now in retrospect. I did really like the idea that Rena suggested in the waiting room at the tattoo studio of doing my first car (a '78 Chevette hatchback named Bessie that had pine green glitter paint), but I'll save that for another time maybe. The key was to get something I wouldn't regret 20 minutes later and more importantly 20 years later. The typewriter and the flowers are both very personal and meaningful to me - and the combination turned out much prettier than I could have imagined.

Q: I think I see a question coming from the back. Wait, is that your mom?
A: AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

Ink Ink, Baby

Well kids, I know it's been a couple of weeks, so hope you all had a nice turkey day with the parental units or whatever form of friends and family you surround yourselves with.

I headed home, as per tradition, to the Mile High Suburbs, where I wandered around Southwest Plaza, made awkward conversation with my dad, ate way too much stuffing, enjoyed a lovely night in downtown Denver and, oh yes, GOT A FREAKIN' TATTOO. Get! Me! Beth is officially a bad-ass. Well, that is if you can call someone with an old-school typewriter tattoo a bad-ass.

I've been thinking seriously about a tattoo for over a year, but the question was always what to get and where to put it. Plus whatever I decided to get would have to pass the "80 year old Beth test" in which I would still find it cool at age 80 and not live with the regret of having Pooh Bear or Morrissey inked permanently on my body which would have been the case had I done this back in my college days without really giving it some real thought and plenty of time.

But the typewriter seemed like something that is just very....me. The pink flowers remind me of my first apartment in Seattle that had a Magnolia tree in the courtyard that bloomed every Spring.

I lurve it. I really do. It was totally worth the wait and the effort and the pain and the money. And now, let's open it up for questions from the audience.

What's next, cell phones and email accounts?

In more “Beth Jumps on A Popular Tech Bandwagon WAAAAAY Too Late” news, I’ve created a Facebook page. Yeah, I realize the rest of you hipster young people were doing this years and years ago when you were in college, but I’m a little slower and older than y’all so cut me some slack. In all honesty, I can’t guarantee how often I’ll be updating my page….but I’m hope it will be more productive and current than my ill-fated MySpace page which I look at and udpate about once every….oh right, never.

Props to those of you who’ve poked me, thrown yams at me and written on my wall – nice to see old friends and familiar faces! Any tips on cool apps I need to check out and incorporate into my page?

Beth Gets Moxi-fied

In what has proven to be my most rewarding and smug moment to date in the Bay Area, I have found a new, brilliant hairstylist that was both achingly hip but still refreshingly approachable and down to earth. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Rebecca from Moxi. She is my new hair stylin’ BFF. No judgmental head-to-toe once overs and sneers about the condition of my hair color (you hear that, Cheyenne?). Instead, Rebecca made terrific recommendations for my cut (bangs, people, bangs!), made further edgy recommendations for my color the next time I visit (Beth’s going chestnut!), plus her assistant gave me a scalp massage that practically put me to sleep purring right in the styling chair.

I heart her.

Plus the fact that she actually used to train other Aveda stylists across the West Coast, including my old stylist Ruthie at Habitude, in Seattle, gives her all the more street cred in my mind.

By far, however, my most favorite-est part of my Moxi-infused morning was when the adorable receptionist asked me if she could (first) bring me some chocolate to go with my coffee (Hello? Is a foot rub by Colin Firth next?) and (second) if she could change the track on the music playing overhead because it made her want to “kick babies.” Something about that seemed hilarious to me. Apologies to those of you who actually HAVE babies, I don’t actually advocate that behavior, but it sure is ridiculously funny when someone says it out loud.

And the people gathered. And there was a kitten. And they were all Very, Very Spiteful. Spitesgiving 2007!

It was with great bitterness and angst that the Friends of Beth kicked off this year’s third annual Spitesgiving gathering last weekend at the SSB casa in West Seattle. Good food, good friends, good wine and, um, did I mention there was a bebeh kitten there named Owen who was freakin’ ridiculous? And that SSB’s new house could substitute as a panda sanctuary with all of the bamboo growing around it?

Despite being delayed for five hours at the airport while the plane waited to fly in an auto pilot (see picture when he finally arrived), I made it back to Seattle for a whirlwind 40-hour Spitesfest. Seriously, the timing for Spitesgiving could not have come at a better time. I have been looking forward to this event for the past month – I needed Spitesgiving this year – and truly, it did not disappoint.

There were awesome souvenir coffee mugs. With turkeys on them. Really disgruntled, pissed-off turkeys.

There was a DVD of the first season of Beverly Hills 90210 airing almost constantly, which was fan-freakin-tastic.

There was Miss Spitesgiving 2007, i.e., Ginners, who made her first in-person appearance rather than phoning it in during the dinner hour.

There was the Ceremonial Tasting of Something Awful – which consisted this year of a Seattle Seahawks-themed collection of Jones Soda – including such spite-inducing flavors such as perspiration, turf, dirt, sports cream and finally sweet victory. The perspiration smelled and tasted sickeningly just like what you’d think it would, but strangely enough, the ointment flavored soda really wasn’t that bad (rather minty).

We then went into my absolute favorite part of Spitesgivng, which is the Airing of the Grievances. I kicked off with a two page list of things I am bitter about, including how noisy the street outside my apartment is, classic quotes from parental units, and the fact that the pigeons in San Francisco don’t move or fly away when you get close to them. They just stand there. Defiantly.

There was an amazing feast too, including turkey, Stove Top dressing, mashed sweet potato yumminess, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie.

And then it was over – just as soon as it began, it seemed. But we shall carry the spirit of Spitesgiving in our hearts all year.**

** Except for Eric, who gets a spiteful shout out because he was a wuss and didn’t make it this year. What. EVER.

Three Days To Go....

Seriously, World at Large, I feel like a giant weight is starting to come off of my shoulders. I am decompressing. I am relaxing. I am taking naps every afternoon. I. Freakin'. Love. Vacation!

I still have three days left during my time off and now I'm starting to make a list of the things I haven't seen yet. Still, it's been a busy week so far:

Drove around town with my dad and stepmom. Reverted to being the same awkward, sulky 13-year-old girl I've always been when I'm around them.

• Saw the very impressive murals at Coit Tower
  
• Saw the California Palace of the Legion of Honor and ate a very fancy flank steak salad.

Ate dim sum in Chinatown

Had a drink at the Top of the Mark

Had a drink at the Bubble Lounge

Starting reading "Tales of the City"

Posed for ridiculous pictures at the Fairmont with my very fancy friends Jenny and Mark

Developed a full-on addiction with Grey's Anatomy. Seriously, where has this been my entire life?

Napped daily in addition to sleeping in

Watched documentaries on Frieda Kahlo and Diego Rivera and starting getting a little obsessed

Spent way too much on a new skin care line, bought from a woman with no eyebrows and neon green eyeshadow

Vacation Lessons Learned the Hard Way

Lessons learned after spending two-and-a-half days with my dad and stepmom in San Francisco:

1.) If you're uncomfortable spending a mere 3 hours with your family during the holidays, you might want to reconsider spending TWO AND HALF STRAIGHT DAYS with them. Just sayin'.

2.) If you get talked into driving along the 49-mile Scenic Drive with your family while they visit you in San Francisco, you might want reconsider your plans. Strike that. You might want to run screaming into the Bay and drown yourself immediately. Reference Lesson Learned Number One and realize that being with family in small, enclosed places like rental cars is NOT SMART.

3.) Index cards of Topics to Avoid are helpful to bring along during long car trips with parents, including: "Why I'm Not Married Yet"; "How I Got To Be Such A Liberal, Feminist Democrat"; "The Gays;" "The Denver Broncos"; "What Exactly 'Public Relations' Is"; and "Where All of My Money Goes."

4.) Whatever you do, resist the urge to open the rental car door and tumble out onto the highway while the car is moving in a frantic attempt to escape the never-ending bickering over city traffic, narrow streets, the cost/scarcity of decent parking in San Francisco, and the lackluster map directions for the 49-mile Scenic Drive. Instead, channel your inner 13-year-old teenage girl and stare vacantly out the window for the remainder of the trip.

5.) Recognize that you're not a 13-year-old girl and HELL YES you will have a second glass of wine at dinner because, after all, your parents are paying for that dinner.

6.) Remember that Family Is Forever.

Reflections on Work and Change

Le sigh. More than a month has gone by since my last posting – how does that happen? I’ll tell you how, World at Large, I’ve been hella busy, that’s how. You look good – have you lost a little weight? Is that a new shirt? What’s shakin’?

So where to begin. Oh yes, there’s this workaholism THING. I’ve been working at an absolutely dizzying pace for the past two months. A migraine and carpal tunnel-inducing pace to be precise. The pace, the demands, the responsibility, the constant pressure to prove myself, and the unceasing fear that I’m going to f*ck something up have kept me up every night since I got here. I can safely say that I’ve never felt so overwhelmed, frustrated, disorganized, terrified, out of my element, and put to the test as I have these past two months.

Unfortunately work has been almost all I’ve done since I’ve arrived. I feel like I’m on the world’s longest business trip, where I go to work and then come back to my sterile hotel room to do some more work and eat room service and then go back into the office the next day in my little rental car for more work.

But, lest this turn into a virtual pity party for the local yuppie, let me acknowledge publicly that I do see a silver lining among all of these workaholic-fueled clouds. I haven’t lived in a new city for almost a dozen years. The last time I packed up and moved I was a baby bunny rabbit of 22. It’s been waaaay too long since I made any sort of life-altering decision and those sort of events don’t come easy, or often.

So, yes, it sucks right now. It’s hard and scary and gritty and all uphill. But I need to hold on to the part of me that knows that it won’t always be that way.

Back to – ahem – work for now. Did I mention I’m on vacation for 11 days starting next week? Did I mention that that thought makes me grin ear to ear?

Shaken but not stirred yet: Beth returns!

It’s been two weeks since last I posted and boy, have I ever heard about it from you loyal readers. Enough already! I’m baaaaaack! Hmmm, where to even begin? Let’s start with a basic needs overview:

Shelter: Good progress here – I’m basically all moved in and trying to get used to having my apartment overlook the Loudest Street EVER. Seriously, Bay Street? You can’t cease with the motorcycle revving and delivery truck beeping and drunk people shouting for just a few hours at night? Other than that, things are good, except I feel like I live in a shoebox that smells like a cat box. Apparently the key to living in a small studio is that you keep it immaculately clean otherwise it's all downhill from there, quickly.

Transportation: I’ve had two flings so far with my boyfriend Flexcar and our love proves stronger than ever. Flexcar’s quite posh in the Bay Area with their green Toyota Priuses, which are SO shmancy that they don’t even use normal keys to enter the vehicle or start the ignition. Take that, fossil fuel guzzling cars with your archaic, metal keys. Pffft. I’ve also figured out two bus routes to get me to work, one of which is packed with tourists, the other which is packed with, ahem, exotic views of Chinatown and roasting rotisserie ducks hanging in shop windows.

Clothing: Hate all of my schlumpy Seattle clothing. Need razor sharp wardrobe ASAP. Everyone here is very hip with great shoes and great hair and clear skin and trendy vintage wears. Donations for my Bay Area makeover will be gladly accepted.

Books: Found a Half Price Books (my happy place) in Berkeley, which was strangely disappointing. Clearly someone sent around the memo that day that Beth had some extra cash so they hid all of the good stuff in the back rooms.

Earth: The World of Beth survived her first 4.2 magnitude earthquake at 4:40 this morning with nothing more than a slight rattling of my windows. I rolled right back over and went to sleep and tried to ignore the fact that animals are supposed to have a sixth sense about these types of things and warn their humans about them…and Puff just kept right on snoozing next to me. Damn that cat.

Hot Shins: Beth Freaks Out Until Her Stuff Arrives

So, um, apparently when I was joking about my movers selling my sofa in Mexico to buy weed, I might not have been entirely off base. Without much explanation, my sketchy-sketch movers showed up two days late which - admittedly - is better than never, but it was a very hectic day yesterday while I waited on sharp, pointy, angry eggshells to get a call back about the whereabouts of my worldly possessions.

To kill time, we sat near my pool, and I proceeded to get very sunburnt shins which is proving to be a very random and unsexy place to get burnt. It was disorienting to then go out later in the evening for fireworks - after being sunburnt on a sunny, warm day - and find it so cold that you need a coat and scarf. San Francisco, you're one strange cat, you know that?

The good news - at last - is that my stuff arrived (relatively) safe and sound and today has been very much like Christmas except that you're opening boxes you packed yourself of your own stuff. Still, stuff! Let's hear it for kitchen pans and picture frames and books and towels and stuff!

Big time Sanity Props are due to Heidi Jo, who did an excellent job at distracting me and keeping me from going off the deep end these past few days. You, my friend, deserve a case of Elizabeth Spencer, for all the work you did these past few days.

Chillin' on the sofa tonight with a Bud Light (the drink of the choice for this trip) and some episodes of Entourage, having dropped Heidi off at the airport. Feelin' scared. Feelin' exhausted. Feelin' overwhelmed with potential and that's scary and exciting and wonderful and intimidating and then right back to scary. Can't overthink - gotta just get out there and experience whatever is thrown at me. As the card on my fridge says, "You must travel in the direction of your fear."

For tonight though, I'm heading in the direction of my bed and we'll take it from there.

Abandon Hope Of Being a Hipster, All Yee Who Enter Here

The World of Beth arrives in San Francisco!

After signing my lease and checking out my very empty, very tiny, very expensive, apartment, Heidi and I hit the streets for some Hot Tourist Action until my stuff arrives bright and early tomorrow morning.

Cable car tour of the city? Check. Lunch on Fisherman's Wharf? Check. Ghiradelli Square? Hell yes. Obligatory pictures of the Golden Gate bridge? You know it. I've got exactly six months in my mind to get this touristy crap out of my system before I have to turn into a hardened local, so I might as well immerse myself now and enjoy it.

On an unrelated note, we watched this very odd documentary called "Starbucking" that was advertised as being hilarious and quirky and it was more just kind of disturbing and sad. One man's quest to visit every Starbucks in the world - interesting idea, no? Perhaps I could start some similar obsession now that I'm just an hour outside of wine country - visit every winery in Napa and Sonoma? Or perhaps every used book store in San Francisco? Oh right. I've got work. That. Best to enjoy the next day or so until I have to resume my normal responsible=person life...

Fingers Crossed: The Journey Continues

Day two of the road trip and everything - fingers crossed - has gone smoothly and without angst. We've been rockin' out to Dolly Parton and the Scissor Sisters - life is more or less good, save for the disturbing series of anti-evolution billboards posted along the highway ("Don't Make a Monkey Out of Me!").

Puff has proven herself to be a frickin' furry ROCK STAR when it comes to travel and has exceeded all of my expectations. Maybe she was just cranky all this time because she really wanted to see the country from the backseat of a Dodge Caravan - maybe? Sort of? Possibly?

We stopped driving around 8 and are staying in the hamlet of Willows, California, at a Motel 6 that is remarkably, and reliably, Motel 6-ish. Comfort food and Bud Lights at the beary over-decorated Black Bear Diner (see pic) and now it's lights out. The real adventure starts tomorrow when we hit civilization....