After the Thursday and Friday when I picked up two hitchhikers who shifted my thinking and understanding in a revolutionary kind of way and before I drove 200 miles back north to find my camera unharmed by a red wood, I spent two wonderful nights in San Fran with good friends. My buddy Bryant who is more like a big brother and my good good friend Todd. Intermittently meeting up and staying with friends on this trip has been very necessary.
My college buddy Jeff was flying in from Boston to Frisco the following weekend. Jeff will be joining me for a week as I take him down the coast eventually to Riverside, east of Los Angeles, where he is the best man at a wedding. I had a week to kill before he joined me so I hopped off to Yosemite.
...Yosemite...I think I might need another year to explore that place. I checked Half Dome and hiking through sequoias off my life list. Saw a coyote in the Mariposa Grove - we starred each other down - then I went after him on foot, but he nimble footed off and lost me. 2,000 year old GIANT trees in the rain, sat by a fire in a museum cabin as the sky opened up to sun - an epic day. The Wawona Inn was an unexpected but fantastic decision. I went in for the live music, but was sucked into staying the night - by my own doing. The dinner menu was outrageously priced so instead I bought $35 worth of booze as I sat grinning and listening to piano. I then put on my complimentary bath robe and strutted around the top balcony of the hotel. Yet another place added to my list of places to bring future lady friends.
Went back to SF and stayed with Todd again - just a great time. Had a rough Friday when I spent $385 on travel shots and my wonderful, beautiful, completely awesome Dahon fold up bike was stolen. Yes it was locked...but to no avail. I prayed for the damn fool who thinks it necessary to steal...fuck him. I was over it quickly - more room in the car now.
So now my boy Jeff is with me. Before he joined me I had driven 11,524 miles around the country solo. An average of 142 miles a day. That doesn't seem right, but it is. I've been zig zagging, pulling U-ey's, and getting lost for the last 80 days , so I guess it makes sense.
Jeff flew into San Francisco the same weekend as the annual "Fleet Week", so the city was unbelievably packet with touristas checking out the sailors, aircraft carriers, fighter boats, and the Blue Angels pulling off amazing ariel maneuvers. We peeped seals and mobs of foreigners on Pier 39 down by Fisherman's Wharf then I escorted Jeff to his first hostel experience located literally down an alley in downtown San Fran and next to a suspicious "Massage Parlor" with red neon lights. The place would not have been so bad if I could have muzzled the dude snoring all night or if I didn't sleep in jeans and a belt, or if I knew how to put sheets on a top bunk without them becoming a clump in the middle of my bed an hour after I went to sleep.
We hit the road early in order to beat the 7 a.m. meter and rode over the Golden Gate Bridge "Full House" style. Then I went off to corrupt Jeff by taking him out to eat at a Best Western. During WWII the U.S. built bunkers and coastal defenses all around the bluffs on the north end of the GG bridge in anticipation of a Japanese attack. Why did I never know that? What else don't I know? Tons.
We cruised the coast down to Big Sur via Monterey Bay for some Mexican. Camped at Limekiln and now Pismo Beach. I'm stretching the nylon on the hammock and Jeff's got the tent.
"Last Chance" lost her front license plate somewhere in San Fran - good riddance - thing was all dented and bent up anyways. Rock hounded what I hope is large chunks of jade from Sand Dollar Beach.
My journey with Jeff has been perfect so far and unfortunately, as I could have predicted, it's going to be far too short. Santa Barbara Wendesday - L.A. Thursday....phase II is off and running!
WORDS OF WISDOM FROM PHOENIX THE ISRAELI PIRATE
"If the devil knew he was the devil, he wouldn't be the devil - so God is the devil - they're the same."
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