Lovely Sunday

Yesterday was one of the better Sundays on record.
It wasn't a Sunday I could have imagined enjoying 10 years ago, when Sunday was for tending hangovers and recounting the events of Saturday night. This Sunday found its glory in being a day filled with exactly what I wanted to do; a manifestation of my priorities and values.
Unlike years past, I awoke around 8 AM and was out on the open road by 8:30. Marc and I had an urban hike on the morning agenda. We left the house and went south, then west, past the ball park and around along the Embarcadero, stopping for breakfast at Ghirardelli Square.

Most of this route - said like "root" if you're British - I knew by heart, having walked it so many times. However I didn't know exactly where Ghirardelli square was. Marc, who is not a long time San Francisco resident, said he'd lead me there. I have to admit, I had my doubts as we walked the full length of the tourists district. When we passed the Cannery, I was pretty sure we were going to have to double back. Instead, it appeared like a mirage, just as Marc promised. As we climbed the steps, we passed McCormick's & Kuletos' where Adam had taken me to dinner over 12 years ago. I never could figure out where we had eaten and was thrilled to finally learn where it was.

We had agreed to see what we could find for food at Ghirardelli Square. I had hoped we would find Fritz's opens so we could enjoy their crepes & fries, but it was no longer there. We dined at Lori's Diner which was exceptionally mediocre. Tsunami did get to come in the restaurant with us, which was nice and my eggs were good.

Before long we were off again, through Aquatic Park, up over Fort Mason, down along the waterfront of the Marina Green and then to Crissy Field. We walked down & back, then stolled through the Palace of Fine Arts. For the last few months, I had done a number of urban hikes in my walking training. This was the first long hike that Marc had kept me company. He, like me, enjoyed nearly the same thing - watching how the buildings move as one walks past, drinking in the views, mocking the tourists. Having a companion for this walk was such a treat.

After tackling Filmore Street and passing the local color to be found in Hayes Valley & the Civic Center, we made our way home completing a solid 11.5 miles. We were beat. Marc took a short snooze while I packed up my things. We hopped in the car and headed east out to the Country Home. With a quick stop at Whole Foods, we landed at Marc's place with food & provisions for the coming week. We unpacked and I was left to cook in the kitchen.

I boiled up a chicken, picked the meat from the corpse for snacking and boiled down the stock further to have for future soups. The main dinner was a chili with squash & chard. I was quite a prize, having not carefully read the recipe. I was 2 cans of beans short as well as a can of crushed tomatoes. Marc kindly ran out to get those, while I kept cooking, only to realize that the squash I was peeling & dicing was not the butternut that the recipe called for. I simply minimized the amount of squash and then realized I was short on ground cumin. So I had to spend 10 minutes grinding the cumin seeds into ground cumin.

After dinner we enjoyed reading hour. Such a lovely day. Walking, cooking and reading. I tended my health, I fed my body and stimulated my mind. Such simple pleasures, I wonder how it took me so long to enjoy their richness.