We drove up to San Francisco Friday afternoon. It was our intention to do this whole weekend by public transportation, and that’s how it started until we got to the train station in Palo Alto to find out that overnight parking was an entirely new concept which no one had ever thought of. While we were proud to be such innovators, we were a bit put off that we had already wasted time driving and instead we just drove the rest of the way.

We took it a little slower this past week, having been a bit burnt out by the constant tourist life we’ve been living in every spare moment we get. Plus, Jen’s work schedule got shitty and she had to work a second weekend in a row. Friday, we met up with my aunt and uncle, Dick and Sharon, as they traveled from Phoenix to visit my other aunt and uncle, David and Nancy, in Pleasanton.

I love the juxtaposition of the city to nature you get out here. Last week we headed west through Saratoga into the mountains to visit the redwood forest in Big Basin. The city slowly fades, then abruptly ceases as the road makes its curving ascent. The map said it was 28 miles, but it took over an hour because the road was so windy. Along the way, we pulled over alongside a ridge to go for a walk down one of the many paths they have scattered all over these hills.

It’s been a month since we started this journey, and that sounds like a completely arbitrary amount of time deserving of a few notes about our trip so far. The first week involved a lot of driving and a lot of stops along the way. Our favorite place was completely unexpected and we only stopped in Moab because Summit County was in this weird state where the snow is mostly gone but still prominent, and there isn’t really much to do.

We took a few days off midweek to swing on over to Yosemite. I came here a dozen years ago on a cross country driving trip and remembered it as being one of my favorite parts of that whole journey. It was spectacular then as it is now, and this time we spent a couple days in the valley.Ansel Adams, eat your heart out Somehow, a few days before we went, I was able to reserve one of the last couple remaining campsites in the main valley floor.

We took this weekend as an excuse to head down to camp in Big Sur. With Jen’s schedule, we had to squeeze it into Friday afternoon through late Saturday night, but that’s ok because it’s just a short jaunt down south. I love it out here. If you’ve never driven on Highway One, go. Go now. It’s one of the most breathtaking drives you’ll ever take. I read somewhere that the majority of visitors to the area never stick around, but only drive through, stopping alongside the road at the many turnouts to enjoy the scenery.

Hash House Harriers. This is the group of “drinkers with a running problem” which I’ve only now found out about. Apparently it’s a worldwide fraternity of folks who love to drink and just need an excuse to organize. Their excuse is to chase a couple wankers, hares, all around town, trying to track them down and occasionally stopping for beer. I’ve only now found out about this group. It’s a bit overwhelming at first.

We’ve made it past a week in our new, temporary home. Twelve more to go. At least. We’ve been keeping pretty busy in our off hours, without much time to jot down what’s going on. On Friday, our apartment complex threw a shindig with a bunch of wine and appetizers. It was fun meeting and talking to a few other residents. One girl we met had a dog larger than Piper and was shocked that we couldn’t bring her.

We’re starting to be settled into our new place in Santa Clara. It’s Wednesday night, Jen has been in training at the hospital for three days and I’ve been cooped up, working from home for three days. This whole working remotely thing is a bit of a shock at first. I used to take a day or two here and there to work from home so I could avoid distractions and get more things done.

We brought our mountain bikes up to Arastradero Preserve and biked around a bit before realizing the majority of the trail was too crowded for bikes. There weren’t a ton of people, but there were enough people with dogs, strollers, or little old ladies that I didn’t feel comfortable zipping by on my bike. I didn’t want to end up with an infant in my spokes, so we took to walking instead.