Run DMZ

I stopped contributing to this blog once I realized Google had abandoned the platform, opening the door (not even a back one) to bad actors with malicious intent and forcing the few of us left to give up the ghost. I even took it offline until the other month when I had a change of heart. I could move to Substack or whatever the cool kids are using these days. But why start from scratch when I can just pile on more posts to 20 years' worth of memories. Admittedly, I felt a little lost without my personal parcel on the internet. I'm also a wee bit worried about becoming another casualty of artificial intelligence. Not just the job loss, which will happen. I'm talking about its threat to humanity. One of the ways it initially insinuates itself into our society is through de-skilling. A doctor that relies exclusively on an algorithm's clinical diagnosis risks no longer recognizing diseases or disorders (or AI hallucinations!) using their own hard-earned training. A teacher...

 

  "Aloha" might be the most recognizable Hawaiian term, but on Maui, "Mahalo" is a close second. It lacks linguistic flexibility, meaning just one thing: Thank you. However, it is quite pliable in conveying a desired tone.  Come enjoy authentic Hawaiian shave ice. Mahalo.   Yes, our lines are long. Please be patient. Mahalo.  The restaurant kitchen's closing early tonight. Mahalo.  Our $1.50 (each) kiwi fruit are better. Mahalo.  Do not move the mat concealing a heating element inside your unit's oven or you may destroy the appliance. Mahalo! I can think of no better word that reflects the four days recently spent exploring a paradise always on alert for potential disasters.  Which pretty much sums up our trip, too.  Mahalo for those quiet, pre-dawn mornings I spent sipping hot tea on our balcony and watching locals setting up for another busy (hopefully profitable) day while pale-skinned tourists ran, walked, and cycled along S. Kihei R...

If calmness and serenity are important, I don't recommend visiting Muir Woods National Monument on a weekend. Parking is competitive, despite mandatory paid reservations. The entrance can be a clusterf*ck because of construction and because everyone wants photos in front of the iconic sign. Walkways are often congested because, of course, people need to stop to take more photos -- of them, not the redwoods. That said, if you like moody shots, this is an excellent venue. This is an excellent place if you live or visit the Bay Area. It just took me weeks to realize it. We arrived on a Saturday morning in mid-October, falsely believing that an annular solar eclipse might reduce car and crowd counts. But this is San Francisco: No one could see the sun -- let alone it being partially blocked by the moon -- through a thicket of fog. And fall is an excellent time to commune with California redwoods, so say the swarms that joined us. One reason Muir Woods is so popular, aside from the ob...

  A pile of plates revealed partially eaten Mickey waffles, two test-bit pancakes, runny scrambled eggs, and rejected berries mistakenly mixed with plain -- not "vernella" -- yogurt. We continued with two eggs benedict, surprisingly good PB&J pizza, and soft-serve ice cream cones that tiny tongues could not outlick. All because Mickey and Minnie were running late. We waited ... and waited ... until none of us could hold in all that food and frustration. Heading back into the sweltering heat, we consoled ourselves. At least Chip and Dale stopped by; otherwise, this expensive character brunch would have been an even bigger bust. I have been a Disney guest on and off for more than 50 years. I went to Disney World  with my grandparents and sister the summer it opened. I returned to run a marathon 32 years later. More consistent has been Disneyland . That first time, I flew with my two young daughters from Alaska. It took three flights and 20 hours, but we arrived in Orange Co...

Every time we stop in Redding on our way to somewhere else, all of the restaurants off the 5 freeway are packed with CalFire crews battling one blaze or another. It's easy to see why: Redding experiences sunny days 88% of the year, so it stays hot and dry. And Redding is a great home base for flame fighters because it's the biggest city beyond Sacramento and situated within wilderness prone to wildfires. On our summer roadtrip, we decided to drive a little deeper in this Northern California city two hours (give or take) north of our state capitol to see what it might offer besides long wait times for a table. After checking into our hotel, we drove to Turtle Bay Exploration Park to take in the famous Sundial Bridge over the Sacramento River. The free attraction is both pedestrian bridge and public art that actually marks the passage of time. The bridge spans a complex of museums (and electric car charging stations) on one side and an arboretum and botanical garden on the othe...

At 3:06 a.m. today I posted the above photo (of a photo) on my Instagram feed with this caption: You know you've officially grown old together when even your photos are middle-aged. Happy anniversary, boo. #circa1981 #vpi [as Virginia Tech was better known back then]. Didn't see it? That may be because at 3:18 a.m. I took it down. In those 12 minutes listening to someone's deep snores, I considered who might see the post, including friends who've failed at marriage a time or two.  I then spent the remainder of those dark hours trying to recall the details of this day 37 years ago. I remember feeling queasy -- in part because I'd spent an entire night unable to find a sister who'd gone AWOL and then shifted to worry what too much liquor at our afterparty might bode. I also was pregnant, but didn't know it.  Since then, I've wondered why we've succeeded where so many other relationships have not. Some of our friends had no choice; their spouses checked...

We’d just entered the Tokopah Valley Trail when a young family finishing their hike asked if we were heading to the falls.   “That’s the plan,” my husband said.   “Then I should warn you: There’s a bear about a mile in.”   After that, no one really cared about seeing yet another striking waterfall within Kings Canyon and Sequoia national parks. We were on a bear hunt.  This popular trail off the Lodgepole camping grounds, like most parts of the parks, is riddled with active bear area warnings. Don’t leave food or scented products in your car. Don’t wear yummy-smelling bug spray, lotion, or sunscreen walking to a scenic viewpoint. Watch where you eat. Watch where you step. Use those bear-resistant trash bins at all times. Don’t leave the outer public restroom doors open, so bears can get in. Don’t run if you happen to stumble upon one; instead, stand your ground. And above all, respect their space. This is their home, not yours.  All signs showed...

  It wasn’t until earlier this month that I learned one of our neighbors in Terrebonne is a movie star.    I recall my dad telling me about seeing it in some of his old-timey western movies, but nothing recent and certainly nothing starring actors like Kevin Costner and Reese Witherspoon. And yet, there on a plaque I read while listening to my sister puke was a list of contemporary films shot on location at Smith Rock State Park, including  The Postman  in 2000 and, more recently, 2014’s  Wild . (No, Smith Rock isn’t on the Pacific Coast Trail, but Hollywood has never been a stickler for accuracy.)   The Oregon state park is by distance less than a mile from the house we purchased once my parents both passed. But the drive takes about 10 minutes because of less direct roads and speed limits. Still, its presence is huge – for the town and for me personally. I came here regularly to heal from some pretty traumatic events. Yet the place triggers only good...

I do not know the origins of Pip’s name. I’m sure my mother came up with it. It fit her perky personality as a pup and it helped she answered to any variation. Pipperdoodle  when around designer dogs.  Pipperoni  when scavenging food that fell on the floor.  Pippo  when she gained too much weight. And  Pippen , which I always thought was her actual name until I saw her AKC papers.    Notice I’m using the past tense. Pip isn’t here anymore.   For the past week I’ve moved through days in a quiet state of grief. Bawling over an abandoned, half-eaten cheeseburger in her food bowl—her final meal, it turned out. Sobbing when removing her favorite blanket and leftover treats. Sniffling after tossing her medicated shampoos and unused prescriptions and giving another family our scented poop bags and extra-large pee pads.    It didn’t seem right to remove all the void reminders so quickly, like she wasn’t worth mourning. But Tuesday was trash...

In the end, I ended up running about half of the 12k Bay 2 Breakers course. Of the roughly 4 miles we ran, I’d trained for to do just .25 of them. My race entry predated my farewell to  running . And despite landing in a fast corral, I was told there are plenty who choose it to avoid all the naked people and start walking after a very short spurt. In my mind, we’d show up a little before the race start, run at a good clip for a quarter mile and then walk it off.    That didn’t happen.   A long wait while hurling tortillas Parking can be hard to come by in downtown San Francisco. And public transportation can be cumbersome if traveling from another part of the Bay Area, though a ferry will get you within easy reach of starting corrals.  We opted to take a shuttle from a Mill Valley Park ‘n Ride to the start. (“We” being me, my daughter and son-in-law, who are B2B regulars.) Similar shuttles operated from Emeryville in East Bay and Millbrae to the south. This...