Heavy Equipment

The city has been replacing a water-main that runs parallel to the path I take to work. This path is high-traffic so I guess they decided we'd all be better off sharing the space rather than closing the whole path. I have never been so close to such a collection of operational heavy equipment.

This includes dump-trucks with 6-foot-tall wheels and 12-foot-high beds, and a backhoe whose scoop could easily encompass my bicycle with me on it (I might be underestimating the scale; I need to take photos, but it's been rainy for the last few days so I haven't).

There's something really primal about watching them dig, drag, and pound the hell out of the (muddy, great-smelling) dirt right next to me. It sort of makes me want to pedal just a little bit faster. Even though they are professionals, that orange mesh fence is not really going to stop them if they slip in the mud.

California

So, nearly a week later, I'll say this about that.

We saw ancawonka and Jeff successfully married last Saturday. The bride looked great, and the groom, quite handsome. ...They came down the aisle to the Star Wars theme, which I suppose was OK, though from that millieu, I would've prefered the storm-troopers theme (No? Think about it: many people standing at attention, formal march, one person in flowing dress... Hm, OK, I'm done with the image now.)

I would've loved a few more days to tool around Oakland and visit with people. Our hotel was in a great location, three short blocks from the BART and about ten minutes' walk from the wedding site, a restored Town Center from the 1800s which was more charming than just cute. ..Great fountain, which none of the kids actually fell into (to my surprise). 'Twas great to see some of our California friends, sadly mostly not on LJ.

Apart from the wedding food which was quite yummy, d. and I had a great treat of dinner the night before in a nearby bistro. Saturday lunch was at a brand-new Salvadoran restaurant in Berkeley that I'll recommend to anyone local.

Sunday was a full day. Quaker meeting in Berkeley sort of ran over-time so we didn't get to chat with anyone (boo). We checked out of the hotel, got lunch at a veggie restaurant nearby, and went off to the airport. ... skipping ahead a few hours: our 1-hour layover in Las Vegas turned into 14 hours by missing a connection. Stay tuned.