Well, I finally made the move into the big city. Michael and I got a lovely 1 bedroom apartment and moved in on thanksgiving day. It has been 2 weeks of non-stop fun in the city. Layne was here when we first moved and he was a great help with the move, shopping for furnitiure and household items and generally just being a smelly nuisance!
I still work in Oakland but only 3 days per week. I go to work early and come home late on those days so I miss all traffic and the communte takes 20 minutes each way. The apartment is on 22nd and S Van Ness, in the heart of the mission. The best thing for me is the proximity to both of the SF dance studios that I frequent. i used to spend the morning walking Nita, and then having to rush out of the house by 9am to get to dance class by 10. Now, Nita and I have a leisurely morning of walking to Ritual coffee (their logo is a hammer and sickle, so obviously a good place to patronize), and then to Dolores park or Bernal hill, both large off-leash parks. Both parks offer amazing views of the city and on the earlier mornings I get to watch the sun rise of San Francisco. After park time, I have to restrain myself from going to Tartine, which offers the best pastries I have eaten in this country. Some mornings I go there and indulge in a Frangipane croissant (croissant filled with marzipan and sliced almonds), gougere (a pop over-like pastry with fresh thyme, black pepper and gruyere) quiche (which often is made with clever ingridients such as ham and fresh nettles) or brioche bread pudding (aka “french toast in a cup”).
After park and Tartine (or some other breakfast) I either go to work or make the 7-minute-pedestrian trek to dance class. It is a beautiful thing. I go to dance class almost every day now. My work schedule is such that I only really have to miss class on one day per week.
Other than dance class the city holds many pleasures: the beach is a 10 minute drive away; there are countless parks and green spaces; my favorite herb store and food co-op are each easily walkable; there are so many affordable/downright cheap yet good mexican, salvadorean and thai food places it blows my mind; there are always things going on, example: I met my friend/co-worker and now neighbor Paige for a beer on a sunday and there was a string quartet playing at the cafe where we sat at 9pm on a sunday!
Our apartment is really great and is coming together more and more all of the time. It is so nice to again have a place to settle after nearly a year and to have a real bedroom where I can try and sleep more, as sleep has been a real issue for me this past year. We have big windows with nice views, a closet as big as some of my previous dwelling spaces and a kitchen that even has a dishwasher. Life is grand.