Rabbit Ears, Pier Beers, Gondoliers
We skipped Bay to Breakers this year, which is just as well considering we have like entertainment here at home any day of the week provided at least one of us is wearing rabbit ears or comparable gear whilst streaking naked down the hallway or, if out of doors, wearing a diaper (best viewed large), as anything less would be indecent.
As for the official hullabaloo, though, I just didn't have it in me this year. Besides, after chasing my diapered one up and down a beshitted pier all afternoon on Saturday, my rigorous training schedule suggested I take Sunday as a rest day lest I strain my parenting muscle.
I call this one "Don't Touch That."
I call this one "He Touched It."
See, all I have to do is wind him up, set him loose, and we have a one-man impromptu pride parade.
Sometimes, however, it is advised that he not be set loose, and then we have Wombat's interpretation of the classic "You're Not My Mommy" public temper fit.
Guerilla tactics were employed.
You'd think he'd be more grateful considering I was sticking my neck out on his behalf by yet again taking him to a bar. Bad mommy!
But enough about me, let's talk about...Alessandro.
This is Alessandro:
He's from Venice and he has a Ph.D. in environmental engineering and he's single and looking for a Visa. Any takers?
I would, but my hands are full at the moment.
Simon's on a boat!
Teddy's on a boat and moving to L.A. for good on Tuesday! (WAH!)
Wombat was NOT on a boat but left ashore with some kind suckers volunteers.
The occasion was a friend's thirtieth birthday party, and Alessandro ferried him about the lake all afternoon with groups of friends while he drank whisky from a plastic tumbler. He's moving away (back to Kansas! does anyone go back to Kansas?) in two weeks, and although I hardly see him at all anymore anyway--he's a bit of a drifting wayfarer, as writers often are--my world will certainly be less wide and beautiful in his absence. (He wrote a book for my company in 2009 that is the best thing I've read in all of my nine years working there. I got all fangirl about it even though I've known the guy for years.)
Losing him and losing Teddy at the same time--ten years working on his Ph.D. and he finally landed a sweet job in L.A. (as opposed to my ex, whose decade-long post-graduate career is culminating with a Ph.D. and a sweet job in...Salt Lake City? (does anyone move back to Salt Lake City?) (yes, they do))--is...weird. The fact that these two are settling down for stable lives in destinations rather than pitstops shouldn't be that jarring considering I'm the one with a kid and a mortgage, but then I've always been the domestic homebody (even back when I didn't have a home to domesticize) and these guys...these guys are my gypsy friends. Gypsy friends all grown up. Grown up and flown away. Perhaps subconsciously I always wanted to be the first to build my nest, and to build it the strongest, so it would be a place for everyone else to come home to. Or, to muddle the metaphor, I am the anchor tethering their boats to a fixed point as they drift with the tide.
I wonder what will happen to Alessandro if the U.S. kicks him out and he has to move back to Venice?
How was the food at Lake Chalet? I went there and sat on the dock only to discover that they have two menus, and the thing I wanted is not served outdoors...so I left without eating.
Also, what a fantastic way to spend one's birthday. I highly recommend this event:
http://www.sfstation.com/lake-merritt-radio-regatta-e382981
Basically, you buy beer, then ride around in boats for half price while listening to a little AM radio that broadcasts the DJ's from the boathouse.
I've been twice now (once out, once in) and never had any of the food (our friends are cocktail friends), but the dishes I saw going by smelled AMAZING. Also, Wombat seemed to like the bit of tortilla chip he found on the ground.
It seems like family draws a lot of people back to places like Kansas, Iowa, etc. A lot of my friends here left for college or for a time, but ended up coming back to home base, which I guess is understandable. (And also gives me hope that I'll make it back to California eventually!)
The title of this post makes me happy.
If Alessandro has nice teeth, I will gladly whisk him away from his boat and help him get that visa :) I may need to relocate though
I like this post very considerably. I will undoubtedly be back. Hope that I can go by means of far more insightful posts then. Will likely be sharing your wisdom with all of my buddies!