Another house gone (September 2022)

This house, diagonally across the street from us, is no more. In perfectly good condition, and on pier and beam, it could have been moved to a new location. But the demolition crew told Tom the buyer didn't want to take the time to move the house. I wonder if it could have become affordable housing for someone in the Austin area?

Pretty much gone in a day but for the truckloads of debris to be hauled away.

After the lot was cleared of all topsoil, a crew began building a swimming pool in what will be the back yard. The foundation for the new house covers to within 3 feet of the property lines on either side.
 

Teruko Dandelion, half-elf (September 2022)

Amon, Fox, and I play Dungeons and Dragons every other Sunday. I found my Dungeons and Dragons piece on Amazon, which truly does seem to have everything. My character is Teruko Dandelion. Teruko is for my character's Japanese ancestor, a historical figure who at age 70 commanded an army of 3,000, winning the battle. Her elf name is Dandelion, because the weeds grow almost anywhere and are associated with granting wishes.
 

Why do kittens like small spaces? (September 2022)

As soon as I moved this basket to the table, Colette hopped inside to check it out.

Do see TC as snug as a bug in a rug, while Colette looks on?

TC in a box

 

I hope you can access Danny's Godspell solo. So well done!

Godspell Solo 20220827_152438.mp4

Happy 22, Danny! (August 24, 2022)

We had the great pleasure of spending Danny's birthday plus a day (August 25) with her, Al, and Joyce in Waco. After lunch and birthday cake, it was time for Godspell.

Danny and friends from her years in Waco's Children Theater reunited to perform Godspell.

 She acts! She sings! She dances! She plays the recorder!  Danny is a quadruple threat!

Oakland Bay and the Embarcadero (Tuesday, August 16, 2022)

We had to get on the water! We took the Oakland Bay ferry to the Embarcadero in San Francisco Bay. Bonus: parking at the Oakland Bay ferry was a lot more available than in downtown San Francisco. The U.S. Navy John Glenn, an expeditionary transfer dock ship, is moored behind me. 

Sunbathing sea lions at Pier 39. The famous San Francisco fog rolls in under the Golden Gate Bridge.

Papa Tom is in heaven at the farmer's market on Pier 39. 

We weren't returning on the Oakland Bay ferry from a San Francisco Giants game or special event, and didn't want an alcoholic beverage. Still, there must be a history behind this very specific prohibition.
 

Muir Beach and Mt. Tamalpais (Monday, August 15, 2022)

Muir Beach Overlook is the site of several WWII observation posts that were part of the San Francisco Defense System. Soldiers used telescopes to search the Pacific for invading warships.

Muir Beach, just 3 miles from Muir Woods, is accessed via a 450-foot pedestrian bridge from the parking lot. The bridge allows Redwood Creek to connect to its natural floodplain, a habitat for threatened and endangered species.

High tide or low tide?  We couldn't tell.

We were able to drive almost to the top of 2,579 foot Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County. We hiked the last 3/10 mile to the fire lookout station, now closed. We think the forests are monitored via drones these days.

Sunset from the fire lookout

The mountaintop is about 45 minutes north of San Francisco. If it weren't sunset, you would be able to see the city off in the distance.
 

China Camp State Park and Muir Woods (Monday, August 15, 2022)

We had to revisit China Camp State Park just north of the Golden Gate Bridge, where we stayed in 1997. The park is the site of  the historic China Camp Village, where 19th century Chinese immigrants fished for shrimp that was dried and sent back to China. A series of laws excluding Chinese immigrants, and banning shrimp exports led to the end of the village. Papa Tom looked for ripe blackberries.

Muir Woods National Monument is a 554-acre redwood forest about an hour from San Francisco. The forest has been federally protected since 1908, so has survived the logging that decimated surrounding redwood forests.

Some of the redwoods are nearly 1,000 years old and reach heights of more than 250 feet.

The only way Papa could photograph the treetops.

In the early 1900s, Congressman William Kent donated the land to protect the redwoods from the logging industry boom to rebuild homes destroyed in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.  Before the logging industry came to California, there were about 2 million acres of redwoods along the coast. By the early 20th century, most had been cut down.

If you have time, you should read about the all-male Bohemian Club, still in existence. It's not exactly the Trilateral Commission, but was instrumental in the Manhattan Project to develop the nuclear bomb, for instance. In 1892, they held their summer retreat in what is now Muir Woods National Monument, building a 70-foot statue of Daibutsu Buddha. Nothing of the statue remains.

Came upon another historic object in the woods: a phone booth!