Big Decisions

    I had finally made it to the Left Coast. It was the week before Christmas,  the workshop was over & successful, it was time to sort out the next move.  I was at the point where I had to settle in for a bit & plan out the next move or series of moves.  I had a welcoming place to stay in Oakland, yet something was not sitting quite right.  Oakland is a very dynamic city.  It is just across the bay from San Francisco, and it is a hot bed of creativity.  There are studios of every kind all over the place. It is right down the road from Berkeley, Pixar is down the street and it has one of the busiest ports in the US.  There was one place in particular that I toured - it was pretty cool - called the Crucible.  It is a studio devoted to all things fire related.  The place was pretty bustling, they were preparing for a fire opera that would be performed just into the New Year.  I filled out a volunteer form - it seemed like I would be sticking around, so what better place to start networking.  There are enough different places around, I should be able to find some work.  If it wasn't the week before Christmas.

    So I spent my time writing and checking out the area, and considering what to do next.  Do I stay in Oakland, find some work & make a go of it?  Or do I take my last remaining little bit of money and get out of the city.  I had finally decided to flip a coin and stick to it.  There is nothing like an old friend holding up a mirror.  Over the course of a conversation with one, I realized that I really did not want to relocate to another big city.  There were too many indications that I would fall back into old patterns that I have worked so hard to leave behind.  I had this nagging fear that I would find myself stuck again, my worst fear.  There would be no coin toss! I had to get out while I can!  It was not the people, everyone was very welcoming, I feel that I made many new friendships, which I hope to maintain.  It was just not on the right terms.

    Now that that was over with, time to relax a little bit.  I had planned on sticking around the next week to rebuild the furnace and to have dinner with an old friend (from high school days) who was moving into the area.  Christmas Eve, I packed the backpack & took the train into San Francisco.  What a day!  I walked pretty much non stop from about noon till 6 or so in the evening. Started in the financial district, through Chinatown, down to Fisherman's Wharf, up the coast all the way to the middle of the Golden Gate Bridge!  What a view! Of course my phone died just before I got to the bridge, so there are no pics of the sun setting as I walked off the bridge, a huge smile on my face!  That is an incredible structure. There is something about the scale of everything in San Francisco. I walked on for miles, along trails in the "cliffs" along the shoreline, up into the Presidio area at dusk.  Took me a long time to find my way out of there!  I eventually made my way back to the train & back to Oakland.
    Christmas Day!  Away from family, spent mostly by myself, on the phone to those I Love.  It was a lovely day, exhausted from the looooong walk the day before,  I didn't do a whole lot.  I did do some cheap Chinese food in Berkeley - homage to Christmas Story.  Berkeley is a strange place to me.  Extremes side by side.  I only took in a small taste, and I look forward to spending a little more time there next time I am in the area.