berkeley love

trying to be still in the space between my thoughts...

i'd mentioned a few posts before about the traffic in san francisco, and what do you know? i was coming from the presidio and didn't get to leave until around 4 pm. i was being patient, i swear. i tweeted, instagrammed, texted with friends to keep myself busy sitting still in traffic that did not move for over an hour. even when i decided to find other routes to gtfo, two hours had already passed. i've deduced that rush hour traffic in san francisco is worse than rush hour traffic in los angeles. it's probably the worst traffic i've experienced within the u.s...

enough of that! let's talk about why i love berkeley / the east bay. i live near the berkeley marina and i love being this close to the water and nature. i love every minute i've spent out there, and i've gone out there a lot, usually at the end of the day to unwind. it's also kind of like my silverlake reservoir–where i'd go running in l.a.–but bigger and better! the cold, though, is something to get used to, especially when that wind is blowing and your ears start to ache. i just double up on the layers, put my hood up like an ewok and seal the jacket snug. when it's sunny, oh my. i take it aaaaaaall in. the feeling is superb.

settle + explore

finally settled in berkeley. berkeley feels more like home than san francisco, which is where i'd initially wanted to move to, but the population boom and the traffic/parking situation out there can probably drive me nuts. plus, berkeley reminds me of my neighborhood in los angeles, atwater village, which i am still so very much in love with.

one thing i keep forgetting about the bay area, is how small it is. when i'm trying to get somewhere, i'm dumbfounded at how close everything is. i seriously can just walk within a 5-mile radius and get to most of the places i need to get to.

i went for a light hike the other day through tilden. this is lake anza. that last one is overlooking a part of the san pablo reservoir. i read that in the 1800s, there were nothing but wildflowers covering those fields. how awesome would it be if those wildflowers were still there?

i can't wait to do more hikes and explorations. friends have already made plans on going to yosemite and i've already agreed to run a 6-hour race. not entirely sure about the latter yet, but it's a no-pressure run so it could be fun.