Miscellaneous: Location, Location, Location

I found myself recently in the town of Larkspur, in Marin County, just north of the Golden Gate. Looking for a shady place to park, I pulled into a side street and came to a stop in front of the house pictured here. In front of the shack-like building was a "for sale" sign. One bedroom, of less than 700 square feet, un-landscaped, old and not very well put together to begin with, this is something you might pick up for about $30,000 in many parts of the United States--say, in central Alabama. Price in Larkspur, California? $800,000. It truly is all about location.

Places I'm Visiting: The House at Webster and Filbert, San Francisco

On my way to see the Matisse/Diebenkorn show again at SF MoMA, I passed what is probably my favorite house in San Francisco—the confection on the corner of Webster and Filbert. The house has just been given a complete make-over and it looks wonderful. It's been repainted a subtle green and all the trim has been redone in white with embellishments in gold and violet. It looks like all the metal domes have been restored as well. This building was being used as a temple of some kind last time I saw it, painted an odd pale lavender and looking a bit run down. It's been transformed. Well worth a visit. Below is a photo of the house before the restoration.

Miscellaneous: Santa Rosa Morning

Spring break is over. My son is back at school. The best part of my day used to be walking him to school in the morning. It was a good time to talk, a good time to look at the sort of things you miss when driving.

Unfortunately, his new school is too far away to walk to--so we drive. Most mornings I park and take a short run through the streets around the school.

I like to look at the morning sun on the houses and the gardens, especially at this time of year, when it's low and casting long shadows. I like to listen to the birds. I like to think about things. Running gets the blood going. It's a good way to start the day.