Thanksgiving

Maylin is so pretty!

I got to go to Seattle for Thanksgiving to visit everyone and meet Maylin.  It was cold, but great!

Aya made shoes for Milo

Family at the Asian Art Museum

Kids and the Olympics!

Yum...

I can't wait to go back! xoxo

Camping and climbing!

The weekend of November 16 I got to go camping for the first time! We hiked and I even got to (try to) climb at the edge of the ocean!

"Are you sure about this?" 

 I wasn't able to climb the route, but I did get to "jug" up the wall, which is very much about coordinating arms and legs without actually having any skill.  Perfect for me!

Goofing off with the high-speed lens

We stayed at Wright's Beach and camped right on the beach!

I stepped out of the tent in the morning...and said good morning to the Pacific Ocean

The delicious coffee spot in Jenner

Coffee in the morning

Coffee in the evening (decaf)

What a great weekend! xoxo

My Bridge!

xoxo

We moved!

Pootzy and I have a lot of great friends who helped us move about a month ago.  It was a quick afternoon followed by a few weeks of settling in.  Now we're in our new normal, which is living a block from Lake Merritt and two blocks from work, which is great!

Pootz saying goodbye to the old apartment

Up three steps into the bathroom (above the Murphy bed)

Studio (Murphy bed on the left)

Our fun, tiny kitchen

It's great: This kitchen is behind a wall, which means I can cook without making my bed, sofa, and clothes smell like food!

xoxo

Alyssa and I saw Chicago

It was so good, and a really fun night!

Look Dad!

We're at Pebble Beach!!

Halloween at Hong Fook

I forgot to post the pictures from Halloween!  We were instructed to "wear black, orange, or a costume or we will fix you" for work Thursday and Friday.  I wore black, was costumed anyway, and earned a room full of laughs and claps....

Part of the Halloween crew

Our Korean nurse offered to dress me in a traditional Korean dress.  Though I was too big for it, I loved being a part of the celebration.  In this picture I am with Dympna, my primary translator.

Halloween Chinese Lanterns

Friday I was a good witch!  You can't really see it in the photo, but I painted my right cheek gold and red for good luck, which this social worker really liked.

I love this place!

xoxo

So much happening!

I've been doing really fun things lately, reinforcing my decision to stay put in Oakland.

I did end up selling my car to Carmax, an easy and stress-free process.  It took me two and a half hours to get home on public transportation, but it was well worth it!  I don't miss the car, as this decision is making me plan more and be more active.

In a field, waiting for the bus

I did a 65 mile bike ride with several friends up through wine country and along the Sonoma coast. It was beautiful!  I'm still trying to get the group picture, but these give you an idea of what we saw along the way.  We stayed in an AirBNB house right outside of town, which was so creepy but also really fun.  You can read about the ride here: http://www.levisgranfondo.com/

This Thursday I had the opportunity to go to see The Windsbach Boys Choir (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windsbacher_Knabenchor) at Grace Cathedral for a free concert.  The boys were so talented and had obviously worked incredibly hard to produce the beautiful music they were offering.  

After, I ate dim sum, went to the Trolley Car Museum (http://www.cablecarmuseum.org/), and then went to City Lights (http://www.citylights.com/), which is a famous indie book store.  Then I came home and took a walk around the lake and had dinner with a friend.  What a great day!

Now to get ready for my move in two weeks; so exciting!

xoxo

Style consultant

This is Never, my hair stylist's dachshund (she said she would "Never" get another dog). She always gets final say with my haircuts.

Xoxo

Fingers crossed!

I'm at Carmax to hopefully sell my car today! My new apartment is two blocks from work and I'm looking forward to embracing life in the city 100%!
Xoxo

Early morning

In the "cool, gray city of love"

Helpful

Oakland has goodwill ambassadors who patrol neighborhoods cleaning, offering directions, and the like. Today I saw two help this man with his groceries for four blocks (!). I love Oakland
Xoxo

Moon Festival

I now work at an Adult Day Care in Chinatown in Oakland.  On Wednesday, we celebrated Moon Festival with dancing, singing, and afternoon tea.  It was so neat, and they assured me that I will be taught dances and songs before next year!

xoxo

In the Bay

Two weekends ago, I got to go on a bike ride around San Francisco with a friend who will be moving to New York.  We saw so many neat things I would never have known about!

Like the Golden Gate from the other side...

And then I rented a kayak on Sunday and tooled around a little in Oakland Harbor...

Being on the water gives you a very different perspective!

Last weekend, I wandered around SF again and found the Columbus Tower (aka Sentinel building, aka where Francis Ford Coppola has his studios).  Neat!

This place is amazing! xoxo

Vernal Falls, Yosemite

 Okay, so here are more pictures of Yosemite.  I pinch myself every time I think that it is only 3 hours away!

People swim at the bottom of the waterfall!

I have my eye on a few longer hikes...

Yosemite!

My friend Zareen and I went to Yosemite yesterday... More to come!

Cycling

i apologize for the onslaught of photos: I keep forgetting to post!

A few weekends ago I did a 100 mile bike ride! In true Halasz-girl fashion, I got lost a few times, which made the ride closer to 110.  Not shocking, then, that I forgot to take a "finish line" photo!  So...here is the jersey and my number, proving I was there!

xoxo