City Pumpkins --- Day 9/222

 Walk: Presidio Pickleball                                                                                                                               Distance: 2 miles, 1 hour pickleball

                                                                             

             by Grade School Poet

Thanksgiving 2020 --- Day 9/221

 Walk: Presidio                                                                                                                               Distance: 4 miles

Familes and Friends Enjoying a Thanksgiving View from Inspiration Point, Presidio

Let's see.  So much to be thankful for.  Today Ciwt will go with the way the Presidio Trust has managed and expanded the Presidio trails since the base was demilitarized.  There are now more than 25 miles in the hiking and biking network filled with old growth greenery, scenic overlooks and spectacular vistas. All these layed out in an interesting way that offers many forks so that the biker or hiker like Ciwt can create a different route no matter how many outings they go on.  

So often as she walks through the Presidio and San Francisco, Ciwt reflects on the fact that she did not start here.  At a certain point she took the trail that led here, and that has made all the difference.

Robert Frost, 1874 - 1963 (born in San Francisco)

For information on Presidio Trails and Maps press this link

Window Seat Days --- Day 9/220

 Walk: No                                                                                                                                                           Distance: 0, Small Yoga

Ahhh.  True window seat days of just reading away are such gifts.

Assembling the Harvest* --- Day 9/219

Walk: Grocery Stores in Hood                                                                                                                          Distance: 5 miles

Ciwt has been busy (almost) beating the crowds as she assembles the perfect single woman's upcoming Thanksgiving feast.  Used to be that we had to buy and cook an entire turkey, mash the potatoes and make gravy ourselves, which, of course, many singles or couples or non-cooks didn't do.  Then about 15 years ago, a nearby grocery store tried cooking and packaging small portions of Thanksgiving food and being open on Thanksgiving Day.

Great decision.  Happy people came, one by one, or two by two in droves, and Thanksgiving Day has become the store's busiest and most profitable day of the year.  And now they've started to make the food available a few days ahead.  Another great decision for people who choose to stay home that day (with books and cats). 

*Apologies to foodies.....

Last Act --- Days 9/ 217 & 218

 Walk: 1. Presidio Pickleball   2. Same as yesterday                                                                          Distance: 1. 2.3 miles, 90 minutes pickleball  2. 3.5 miles, 1 hr pickleball

Tonight will mark the conclusion of Ciwt's Zoom Contemporary Theater class.  Another Pulitzer winner, the intense and upsetting Sweat by Lynn Nottage will be discussed.  Probably good timing; no more prize winning and exceptional dramatic downers as we head into the holiday season. 

Plain, Direct, Beautiful --- Day 9/216

Walk: 1. Presidio Pickleball     2. Trader Joe's, Presidio Pickleball                                             Distance: 1. 2.5 miles, 90 minutes pickle, small stretch   2. 6.3 miles, 2 hrs pickle, stretch                                           

Wayne Thiebaud, 1961

 

Wayne Thiebaud, Lunch Table, 1964, oil on canvas

Lunch Table (detail) 

Wayne Thiebaud, Various Cakes, 1991, oil on canvas, 25" x 23"

Wayne Thiebaud, Two Kneeling Figures, 1966, oil on canvas

Wayne Thiebaud, Ripley Ridge, 1977. Oil on canvas, 48 x 36"

'

 Wayne Thiebaud, River and Farms Study, 1995, oil on wood, 13 1/4" x 12"

Wayne Thiebaud at Crown Point Press @2019

100 --- Day 9/215

 Walk: Hood                                                                                                                                                   Distance: 4 miles, yoga stretch

So the other day (November 15 to be exact) the artist Wayne Thiebaud turned 100.  

Remarkable but perhaps appropriate for a man whose art is as 100% American as apple pie. Lemon chiffon pie, actually. He particularly loves those, has painted them often and has said about them "the white top, with its burnt edges, is like a snow bank with the sun shining through."  

Wayne Thiebaud (b. 1920), Lemon Meringue Pie, 1964

And that love for his images - from diner food and utensils, to farm and cityscapes, to portraits of the daily things, people and animals in his life - shines through every one of his works.  Something in the simple directness of his presentations is deeply stirring.  Partly this comes from his respect for the classical fundamentals of art: the flat geometry of triangles, rectangles, circles cones, the deep shadows created by light and perspective, the kind of energy you can impart with color and brushwork.  

But what really shines through is Wayne Thiebaud himself.

He still attends as many of the openings and tribute occasions as he can make so Ciwt has enjoyed the pleasure of a bit of Thiebaud's kind, dignified and softly sparkling presence. His first and long time art dealer until his death, Allan Stone, paints a lovely fuller picture of the man: "I have had the pleasure of friendship with a complex and talented man, a terrific teacher and cook, the best raconteur in the west with a spin serve, and a great painter whose magical touch is exceeded only by his genuine modesty and humility.  Thiebaud's dedication to painting and his pursuit of excellence inspire all who are lucky enough to come in contact with him.  He is a very special man." 

  

Woo Hoo?? --- Days 9/211, 212, 213, 214

 Walk: 1. No, Sunday rest  2. CPMC, Presidio Pickleball 3. No, Rain 😄 4. Berggruen Gallery                   Distance: 1. .5 miles, small yoga  2. 4.5 miles, yoga stretch  3. Stretch   4. 4.4 miles, yoga

Four days!!!    CIWT has been getting nowhere for four days.  But this will end; stay tuned please.