SF: dipping my toes into the bay of adventure.

An ocean of opportunity lies beyond the bay. I'm just starting to get my feet wet.

I recently got back from an excellent journey to San Francisco. I visited friends, partied, got to ride in a new city, had uniquely serendipitous meetings of new people, and truly notched an adventure in my belt.

There's no turning back now. I've tasted liberation and life. And Top Ramen. uggghh

All I had in the house was this noodle vacuum sealed instant concoction probably from months ago. After reading The Omnivore's Dilemma for the past 3 days, and taking 3 ghastly forkings, I can't go on.

But even Organic™ (trademarked because that's what it's coming to. Monsanto owns the patent on our modern corn plant) isn't the best option. The USDA's specifications for organic chicken is so generic, "access to an outside area, "which could mean so little as a 15 ft gated paddock for a football field sized amount of chickens. It's more important to be a conscious consumer than a consumer led by the label of Vegan/Vegetarian, or what have you. The corporatocracy knows there's money to be made from organic, so rest assured they have their hands in the profiteering of it.

My mind is opening from readings & research and travel & experiences.

My visual journey through SF this go around.

Packing it up for the flight.


Assembly outside of SFO. I was surprised the air pressure in my tires stayed in tact. Luckily for me, because I forgot a pump. I really liked this part of the adventure.

Feeding the birds with C & J Music Factory. (They just got engaged! Wowee)

Ultimate frisbee in the park with some of their friends. First time I've played, and it was a blast!

BraaAAaaAAiiiiNNnnnsSSsss.... shots of bourbon and rum at 8am...

Bay to Breakers. A slow shuffle for 7 miles of hand-made and human powered floats, drinking, mobile party mobiles, costumes, and truly odd shit all around.

It's good to see there are life guards on duty... sexy, sexy, duty.

Along with pirates of course. By high noon, we were well doused and spent the remainder of the day lounging in the park and taking a nap back at the house.

I spent Monday on my own jammin around the city, and stopped in to this really cool cafe, Ritual Coffee Roasters, in what I could only assume was an uber hip part of town. I really liked the way they brewed their coffee.

Met this random woman who just started talking to me and ended up knitting a bracelet for me sitting while we sipped coffee.

Then, as I'm telling my friend Joe (who I know from the LA riding scene, but now lives in SF) about my plans to go wwoofing, seek sustainability, and continue doing freelance design, a woman sitting nearby politely excuses herself to tell me she is a UC Santa Cruz PhD student who is looking for a designer to facilitate the creation of letterheads, website, posters, etc. for a group of individuals looking to put together a new way of approaching agrifood education and sustainability. This is their VISION:

The Institute will meet students' growing demand for agrifood system education that goes beyond traditional forms of classroom-based learning. Initially we will establish a parent learning center in California where administration, courses and a core research program will be based. Subsequently, we will develop an international network of learning centers reaching diverse groups of students and researchers, facilitating inter-institutional connections and site-specific, hands-on learning.

Wow. How incredibly opportune that I happened to be in this coffee shop speaking candidly to a friend; again, space/time, I bow to thee. While they don't have a budget as of now, I'm excited how serendipitous meeting this woman was to begin with, and I have worked on barter before. This is exactly what I have been looking for; the means and resource to learn hands on sustainability practices. Perhaps I could take a semester of courses through this institute, maybe get set up at someones house in Santa Cruz, and design their collateral meanwhile.

That all remains to be seen, but what I do see are more signs pointing me in the right direction.

That afternoon I had to seek shelter from the rain, and squatted for a good portion of the day waiting for a friend pick me up. I rather like being on my own. I read, I drew, I thought, and developed a stronger sense of myself and how I navigate in this world.


What I've learned:

• Since I have the time, I should have driven. I spent $130 in airfare, $125 to fly my bike ($100 of which was unexpected), $20 in public transportation and ~$10 in food/beverage. $285 all having to do with traveling by plane. It would have been $80 in gas, and a negligible $5 or so for a drink or snack driving up. I have the time, I should drive... or ride a bike...

• I must do what I must do. Occasionally I feel dampened in spirit, but I can always rest my head and feel comfortable at home to gather my thoughts. This will not be the case for many months soon to begin. This will be a challenge of personal growth and it will not be easy, I can already tell. I've never been one for the sedentary life though... I gotta ramble. I will doubt myself, and will find times arduous. There won't be any roadmap or outline so I must be guided by my own motivation and inner strength. I suppose every human goes through the same inner journey to finding ones self, but typically in a linear structure of a standard working life. I must do what I must do to get to Atom Farm. It's there. Time is the separating factor. If I put in the time and energy, it will come to fruition. I cannot forget this.

• Pack light. With only a backpack, only the essentials should be in tow. However, I think I need to get a jacket or sweater that is light, water resistant and warm. Seems like I will find myself in this situation again.