Overcast again this morning, a decent breakfast at the usual place, empty again, this early in the morning, the blank walls waiting on whatever the next exhibit will be. I say “decent” in that it was somewhat larger than usual, yesterday's fare of dim sum for lunch and a couple of glasses of wine later in the evening for dinner leaving me, well, hungry.

Later. I drifted into working on artandlife for an hour or so this morning. I haven't posted any of the revisions and it will take many more sessions to get it where I want it to be, but progress of sorts. Many of the photographs are not up to snuff and there's plenty to do on the journal - can anyone remember when I was talking about updating the 100 Books section or finishing the bio? ha! double ha! - but maybe we've turned a corner here in June. I do have the time. I do have to remind myself I can pretty much spend it as I like: naps, walks and, well, updating these sites I so haphazardly maintain. This is good, merit badge material. We are into merit badges for the moment. Anything to keep the blood pumping and the brain alive. Hup! Here in Oakland.

Later still. A walk down and around the way, the street crews that have been re-paving some of the sidewalks and digging up the various electrical cables under the streets now working on the pavilion area next to Lake Merritt that connects to the branch library forcing a detour and a glance at the small sign explaining the project. They're putting in bike lanes and grass strips and trees and all kinds of swell stuff. My, my.

Months to go before they're finished, but it should look nice, be worth the money they're spending. (Whenever I see how much time, effort and machinery required for these things I realize I have no idea of what “real money” might be. These projects represent nickels and dimes in the scheme of things and yet any one of them would bankrupt three of me. You get older, you learn I guess.) Pretty exciting though, don't you think? All this construction going on down the hill from me? Might have to move up the coast for a couple of months just to catch my breath. Whew!

Where is this going?

You should have seen the stuff I'd written and then erased. Same old, same old. The attitude really is decent in a kind of cynical way, but decent is decent, cynical or not. I don't know if I'll take off up the coast for a couple of days starting tomorrow, but I did check with the apartment manager and she's willing to feed the cat. I don't usually go that far and then not follow through. The Russian River. As I said, when's the last time I've been up the river? Decades? I would bet.