Found a cheap flight to the bay for one of very few weekends open to meet up with some of my workaholic (and other) friends in the Bay. The whole Bay area has this vibe that is really fascinating, and quite wonderful. Maybe because so many subcultures I am/was involved in are overrepresented…Is it possible to like both LA and SF? Is that allowed? While I feel most people when they talk shit on LA, two things bother me and this trip exemplified them. There is tons of traffic in the Bay and the public transportation is not all that. It’s good, but it is not worlds above LA. Is it better utilized? Yes. Is it also more expensive? Definitely. If you live and kick it in SF, that is one thing, because all you really need is a bike ride away. But, from anywhere else, dare I say, the Bay is ‘so spread out’? You have to take BART ($$$) or drive ($$ and traffic all hours of the day). Was it horrible? Not at all. But, its not the glorious car-free mecca that people make it out to be when they talk shit on Los Angeles.
Friday was able to hit up
Maggie Muds for some vegan ice cream and then did some hiking in Bernal Heights. I was on one hour of sleep, so we didn’t do much outside of seeing Tim for dinner in the Piedmont section of Oakland.
Picking our breakfast in a garden definitely rules, as do warm, sunny days, anywhere you are. Fresh mint tea and chillin with the chickens. Hanging out with ‘foodies’ that are not strictly vegan adds an element all of us vegans need to think about. How does GMO soy, a cash crop from Brazil, compare to eating eggs from chickens running free in a backyard? Which is better for the earth or its inhabitants? I am not
questioning the ethics of veganism, but most vegans’ understanding of or (lack of) concern about food systems. Check out the Buy Fresh, Buy Local link on my sidebar to see what I am talking about. And not to mention that most vegans I know could eat a much healthier diet.
What else? Rode an S-Works at XfrankX’s bike shop, hiked in the Berkeley hills and fell asleep at the top, reconnected with some tight friends, ate at a vegan Japanese restaurant (Chaya’s), saw a crazy variety show in a bar with plays, skits and a dude eating a light bulb.
