rule for the last week in sf: don't take pictures

i soaked in my last days fully. and just stole a few pictures from others who documented the splendor and fun.

thursday - i went to the botanical gardens in golden gate park and sat on a bench in a field of wildflowers and another on top of a bluff overlooking lush california vegetation. i love love love the botanical gardens. there is no way i could describe how beautiful it all was that thursday afternoon - a deliciously gorgeous surprise of beauty at every turn. yes - that description is so pastel compared to reality.

friday - i biked around angel island with some friends. this is something i had been wanting to do for ages. we drove to tiburon, took the ferry, cruised around the 5 mile perimeter road, sat on the grass at the cove and had a picnic, then explored devastatingly charming tiburon for a while before heading back to the foggy city. it was just spectacular, all of it - the salty air on the ferry, the insanely beautiful views streaming past me as i felt so alive on my bike, the shops and alleys and little while chapel on top of the hill in town, the wildflowers on a path we found by serendipity, the goldenness of golden hour on that little hilly peninsula. um, seriously. it was to die for (pictures are sadly unrepresentative).

saturday - after i took one last run along ocean beach, we waited in line for two hours to eat brunch at the red door cafe in pacific heights. it was worth the wait. it was such a san francisco dining experience, complete with outstanding food and a flamboyant, crass host wearing hot panks and a sparkly hat. the presentation was like art and the decor was creepy. after, we went to the north beach festival which was huge and awesome, and took one last trip the special rooftop.

sunday - i had the blessed opportunity to attend the baptism of a great guy who has been meeting with the missionaries for months and a "why i believe" fireside afterwards, where recent converts share their stories and testimonies. it was incredibly wonderful. man oh man, I LOVE BEING A MORMON.

on sunday night i drove around running errands and dropping stuff off and my heart was doing weird things. a twisting, beating, streaming pre-eminent longing.

see you in two months, my city. until then, here's the agenda. basically my life is awesome.

• the past couple of days - hanging out with my parents in park city (wildflower hikes in their mountain backyard, cruising in dad's 1967 alfa romeo convertible, staying up late pillow talking with mom, dodo lunch mommy date/zoom lunch daddy date, shopping, pedicures, etc)
• june 22-26 - canada (including glacier national park on the way, calgary and banff)
• june 28 - one rocking night in new york city
• june 29-july 3 - driving across the country with my favourite person (stops in palmyra, niagra falls, kirtland, chicago, nauvoo, minneapolis and mt. rushmore)
• july 4-15 - bear lake with the whole family (the best time of life, for reals)
• july 16-25 - serve in a remote village in guatemala (and maybe have some adventures afterwards? probably)
• rest of july - bear lake with friends and family

august is still to be determined. i promise it will be real good. hooray for summer!