Day After the 'Bomb Cyclone' --- Day 13/30

Walk:  Yes finally after bug and storm hiatus

Distance: 3 miles

Poor little park next door today - after losing 12 big trees in last winter's storms.

Making a Dent --- Days 13/27, 28 & 29

Walks: No, None

Distances: 000

So Ciwt has been felled by one (or a stew) of the many bugs sailing around windy San Francisco.

Probably a good time to make a small dent in the many books piled around her place.

The Other Football Half --- Days 13/25 & 26

Walks: No, felled by cold/allergies/sinus (?)

Distances: n/a

So during her little home stay so she recovers from one of those 'stew of everything' maladies these days, Ciwt  happened to read the present cost of a suite to watch the upcoming Super Bowl in Las Vegas.  Are you ready? (she wasn't): $2.5 million.

A+ Birdwatching --- Day 13/24

Walk: Hood

Distance: 3 miles
 

So today Ciwt was walking by the little park next door which, it turns out, is known among birdwatchers as one of the best.  It is also a major home base for growing flocks of red headed parakeets (which are mistakenly though understandably called Wild Parrots).  Bright green and chattery they swirl around the park neighborhood, landing here and there for a while on trees and rooftops.  You feel lucky if you see them in flight or for a moment on their temporary perches.

But not today.  Ciwt heard the usual squacking but assumed the parakeets were hidden in some trees.  Then she looked up to her left and saw a bunch of them just hanging out on a bare limbed wintering tree.  Maybe the birds would stay for a moment longer and she could have a closer look, so she climbed up the stairs and saw several people with their iphone cameras pointed at the birds.  Surely the birds would fly away any moment with all these people around.

No, they stayed put, still squaking and flitting around, but right there.  Beautiful, antic and fun to watch.

 

Now this is the kind of bird watching that appeals to Ciwt!

Survivor Guilt --- Day 13/23

Walk: Hood 

Distance: 2 miles

As most of Ciwt's readers know, the 49ers survived as victors in yesterday's playoff game against the Detroit Lions.  We're relieved and happy out here, but there is no overturned cars joyous celebration.  To get to the Super Bowl, the 49ers had to dash the hopes of a team beloved in many areas of the country - including the Bay Area.  Lots of people out here are either from Detroit or spent many years rooting for the franchise and many of them were in the stands yesterday. 

When the Lions came to play San Francisco it was their first Super Bowl opportunity since the franchise began as the Portsmouth (Ohio) Spartans in 1930.  And they almost did it!  So close; they were fired up with energy and played beautifully.  So beautifully, at half time Ciwt congratulated her friend who grew up near Detroit and said she would happily cheer for the Lions in the Super Bowl. But as Yogi Berra said: It's not over till its over....

Most fans out here were mindful of the 49ers' difficult task as spoilers.  Those who weren't were reminded in sympathetic columns by our local sportswriters.  As long time sports writer Ann Killian wrote before the game: They (the 49ers) are the villians in this script.  And after the game, she acknowledged both the sensational playing of the 49ers in the second half and some of the coaching errors that changed the Lions' momentum.*

Survivor guilt:  If the 49ers beat the Lions, it would be inevitable.  They did....

*If you are interested to read her pre- and post-game columns, here is a link: https://www.sfchronicle.com/author/ann-killion/

Where Are the Dogs? --- Day 13/22

Walk: Lafayette Park Dog Run

Distance: 2 miles

So one of Ciwt's favorite and most heart warming outings is walking to the park across the street to watch the dogs cavort with each other, their owners socialize and think about whether to get a dog herself.  

Midday today she headed out, and when she reached the dog area of the park (really it all is), this is what she saw:

Empty!?!

No dogs or owners: 

Then she realized: Playoff Football Games! Apparently the whole park crowd was absorbed in the play and the dogs were staring patiently at their owners.  She turned around and went in to her place to watch herself

New Season, New Artistic Director, New Ballet, New Era(?) --- Day 12/21

Walk: SF Ballet

Distance: 3 miles

So Sf Ballet's 91st season has begun out here and it is definitely not your grandmother's - or mother's or sister's - ballet.  At least today's performance and world premiere of  Mere Mortals wasn't.  

The stage: mostly black, empty except for a huge AI video screen.

The music: Synthesized electronic combined with full orchestra. Very loud aural roller coaster.

The costumes: broad shouldered coats and capes; shiny latex body suits.

The dancing: Full gallop writhing, undulating, spinning, completely in sync with each other and the music for 1 hour, 15 minutes. Simply superb.  Then curtain and home.

The story: Not sure, something to do with Pandora, Prometheus, Hope.

Audience Reactions:  LOTS of standing, clapping, whistling, "Bravos" from the likes of Ciwt.  On the other hand, the man sitting next to Ciwt sat silent, motionless and staring throughout the performance and beyond.  Then still staring straight ahead, stood and said out loud "Well, that's one I'll never see again."

Wright Good Fiction --- Days 13/19 & 20

Walks: AMC Kabuki (American Fiction)

Distances: 3 miles

So, Ciwt found the movie American Fiction so intelligent and well acted, she went once and then returned the next day.  What role can't Jeffrey Wright excel in?