talks

i've been to a few interesting talks.

• a conference on the future of carbon mitigation in the post-midterm climate.  what i heard is that international and national -level climate change initiatives are dead.  leadership is really coming from three places:  municipalities and states (AB 32, building standards), businesses striving to cut costs through efficiency, and the tech sector.  it's made me think a lot about finance and encouraging private sector action.  also, about framing issues:  don't we want to be competitive with china?  and create jobs in a new industry?  depend less on foreign oil?  invest in infrastructure?  have clean air? 
  
• a lunch time talk about philanthropy.  i think foundations are hard to get into, but maybe i'll try.  they seem like nice places to work.  also, who's really in control -- the organization giving money or the organization asking for money?  i'd never really thought hard about the funding aspect of non-profit land.
• a talk with andrew sorkin (dealbook column) and futures regulator gary gensler on shadow banking.  okay, i didn't really listen to the talk very much.  (i'd signed up for a fancy dinner with the speakers and was obligated to attend the lecture.)  what i took away was this:  sorkin is five years older than me and has so much power as a business journalist for the times.  crazy!  also, regulators make very cautious statements and stick only to things related to their jurisdiction.  maybe being a regulator does that to you -- focus very narrowly?
  
• an ambassador's talk about aiding failed states.  the most interesting part was his discussion about the bureaucratic politics involved in creating a new organization within the state department.  organizational behavior is fascinating.  public entities are so much more complicated than private ones.  i really think policy schools should take a hint from b-schools and offer more process-oriented courses.  people in governments and nonprofits have to manage and work in really complex spaces. 
  

along that last thought, i read a great book for class, managing with power.      

policy school is convincing me that businesses are the real do-ers and innovators of the world.  (and maybe i want to play on the winning team.)  at cornerstone, there was this ethos of initiating change and working to make things better instead of complaining.  it's been really different  in politics class, where i hear explanations of why things can't get done through the government.  maybe it's just because the professor is a political scientist, not a practitioner.  maybe it's academia that's lame.

anyway, the profit motive is strong.  and while it's often in conflict with things we want as a society, it seems efficient to incentivize private actors to "do the right thing".  or maybe i've been drinking the economics cool-aid for too long :)

family photo

thanksgiving

texas for thanksgiving. 

• we celebrated with close family friends.  the same people that we've been celebrating with for 15+ years.  crazy, huh?
  
• dim sum with dr. chen, another family friend.  he's so nice to me even though my parents befriended him after i graduated college.
• a wedding reception for a family friend.  tasty :)  i like chinese banquets.
• michael and i got coffee at the only non-starbucks place in town.  it's fun to have a "thing" we always do.  buon giorno has taken on a college vibe.  i saw a girl reading nietzsche.  overheard a conversation about living in macau.  and there were a lot of scruffy-looking young men.  wierd.
• frisbee at parr park with mattm suzanne michael.  i'm pretty sure i went to a birthday party at parr park when i was 6 or 7 years old.
• shopping and watching youtube with my sister.

good times. 

my schedule from now until the spring semester:
Princeton (11/29-12/17), SF (12/18-12/22), Costa Rica (12/23-12/29), SF (12/30-1/3), Princeton (1/4-1/20), SF (1/21-1/26), Dallas (1/27-1/30), Princeton (1/31-?)

it looks kind of crazy when i write it all down.  i don't think it really is, though.

are you going to san - fran - cisco?

i went back to california last week!  it felt strange, though, because the house remodel made it feel a bit less like home:

i was only in sf for a couple of days but tried out some new restaurants (gracias madre (vegan mexican) and tataki south (sustainable sushi)) saw a few friends -- matt's people at suppenkuche, kat over dim sum, sibo at blue bottle, and drew jimmy benny.

then, matt and i went on an epic road trip:

• motorcycled to the sonoma coast, where we ate delicious crab rolls and looked for whales @ bodega bay.  we stayed at a cute cottage on a farm.  it was fun to make dinner from garden vegetabls, eat cheese made from the goat "willow", and enjoy the fresh eggs.
• to explore the rest of the state, we rented a truck and headed through the sierras!  there were bright pops of yellow & red trees every now and then, and the mountain tops were lightly dusted in snow.  driving along on the eastern side of the sierras, i could understand the impulse of explorers to see what's on the side of the mountains.  i'm glad the sierras are protected by three national parks and numerous wilderness areas, and that kings canyon np is largely inaccessible by road.
• we first headed for saline valley, the northern part of death valley.  after 50 miles of unpaved road, one flat tire, digging the truck out of soft sand, and doubling back numerous times, we found the hot spring!  it's pretty cool :) -- clean and well maintained, with a handful of old hippie nudists.
• then, we checked out the main sites at death valley -- huge sand dunes, hiked around some colorful badlands. 

good times!  six more weeks of school before the first semester is over.  crazy.

happenings

school is in full swing! 

so far, problem sets and memos haven't ruined my weekends.  i've decided that being a B (or B-) student is okay.  and, i'm feeling more confident that focusing on economics and environmental policy is the right thing to do.

some non-school things:

• attended flora's baby shower!
• dinner with my cousin.
• matt visited!  we looked at dinosaur bones at the museum of natural history, went out for dinner, got drinks with vivian and her beekeeping man.  we picked apples and turned them into apple pie!  went to a david sedaris reading.  saw the town.
• visited matt's parents and sister in connecticut.  we watched hours of family video.  :)
  
• we also hung out with pete & jane in vermont!  we at lots of great food, walked around the woods, and went on a bike ride.  the leaves were gorgeous!

p.s.

here's an interesting article in the wsj about corporate social responsibility.  just something to think about.

eek

tomorrow's the first day of school!

trying not to stress out about my inch-thick stack of readings.  i "read" stacks of paper all the time at cornerstone, and i studied history as an undergrad! 

my courses are mostly fixed -- politics of public policy, microeconomics, quantitative analysis.  but i get a couple of electives -- one on climate change and a half-course on microfinance.  looking forward to everything but micro.

ma-ath camp

math camp is drawing to a close this week.  it's been a busy mix of calculus, presentation skills workshops, diversity training, resume writing, errands around campus, and getting acquainted with the area.  still settling into the new apartment and adjusting to new jersey.

it's strange to think that i've been wanting to go to school for so long (nearly a year), and now i'm here.  some thoughts:

• i was hoping to take a quant-focused course of study, but the math has been a lot more challenging than i expected.  i moved "down" a level. 
• the water in jersey smells wierd.  brita works wonders.
• i'm glad i don't live in a dorm but living away from campus makes me feel isolated.
• i can't believe it's common to not have air conditioning in the north east.  
• biking to class is fun :)

on the weekends, i've had a chance to catch up with some old friends!  slowly but surely, i hope to see everyone soon!  i wandered around brooklyn with garett, showed nan around princeton, and hung out on the jersey shore with naureen & jim. 

after math camp, i'll have three more days of orientation, and then classes start on september 16!

the little civic that could

my mom, sister, and i drove across the country!

in the car, michelle alternately napped and played yoshi's world on nintendo DS.  mom took pictures and practiced the thumb cymbals for her bellydance routine.  i listened to this american life and played scrabble with michelle.

although we didn't stop anywhere for long, we saw some cool things.  at yellowstone, there were bison and geysers and a gorgeous canyon.  i loved the drive through wyoming!  cool rocks, wind-ey roads, not much traffic.  there were also mounds of red dirt covered with green grass!  we had fun in south dakota, where we checked out mt. rushmore and the badlands and stopped for an hour to try out a human-sized maze!  in chicago, we took an evening boat ride around lake michigan and the river.

now i'm in my princeton apartment.  my things haven't arrived yet, so the space doesn't feel like mine yet.  hopefully it will very soon, though.

anxious

i'm feeling anxious these days.

moving.  i'm not thrilled about new jersey or the town of princeton.  i'm also sad to leave matt after living with him for 1.5 years.  but i am excited to live in a new place (abstractly), to explore the east coast, to go to school, and to do something new.  it'll be good to leave the yuppie sf bubble.  i'm also happy to be closer to naureen, vivian, garett, and many more!

school.  i hope i'm able to prioritize and balance my workload.  all i want to do is master a limited set of topics, network and strengthen my resume.  (not get the best marks i can get.)  this way, i'll have time to be a sane and happy carol -- explore, stay active, hang out with matt, travel and all that other stuff. 

anyway, i try to think about things one week at a time.  i don't read my emails from princeton too carefully -- things'll come together when i'm there, right?

the days blur into each other

i did very, very little this week.  besides dinner, the days were indistinguishable from one another.

mostly, i moped around the house and bugged matt.  to pass the time, i finished anna karenina and planned my cross-country drive with mom and sister.  i have a lot of things to pack, but i've saved most of it for this coming week.

i also continued to say bye to people -- moki sushi with joanna & dan, sally's after dark w/ sibo, kheng & terry, and cpk with kat & melissa. 

this weekend, matt and i checked out anchor oyster bar, alemeny farmer's market, the slides at winfield & esmerelda, and gunn & jill's housewarming.  (they own my dream house.)  we also played a beautiful computer game, machinarium.  (as a non-gamer, i would recommend this game to anyone.  it's beautifully drawn, cute, and has several challenging mini-puzzles.)  we went on a double date with pete and jane and saw the impressionist exhibit at the deyoung and ate at tartine & luna park.

hm, i like eating, but there should be non-drinking/eating ways to meet up with people, yah?  i can think of plenty of active weekend day time activities, but not many for week nights.

happenings

• last week, matt and i went to bethany beach, deleware for an ahrens family vacation.  met aunts, uncles, and cousins.  it was nice to swim in the ocean, lounge around the beach, ride bikes around, and laze about the house. 
• almost, sort of completed a pair of oven mitts.  no pattern, just some advice from mom!
• read graphic novels logicomix and market day.  both good.  also half way through with anna karenina.
  
• seeing people before i leave.  korean street cart with kat, little star with drew and harry, pakwan with john and brendan, ikes & birite with sydney. 
  
• new.  matt and i have tried a few new-to-us places:  pastores and los altos tacos (bernal, decent mexican hole in the wall) american grilled cheese kitchen (soma, good but overpriced), and old clam house (bayview, just okay).
  

space and place

i like that the longer i've lived in san francisco (and the bay area), the more there is to this place.  there are still so many things to do, to see.  so many interesting neighborhoods, communities, groups.  just thinking about transportation, i like that i've gotten to know transit routes, driving routes, bike routes, walking routes.  all different ways of moving through and experiencing the same place.

i know it's a "thing" to move around and "see the world". afterall, i am moving to the east coast and i yearn to travel too.  but i think there's also a lot to be said for staying somewhere, making where you live really YOURS, and being part of the local community. 

my things

i don't want a lot of things.

but as i think about my upcoming move to princeton, i find myself wanting to bring all the things that make me feel like this is my space and place.  potted plants, pictures of friends and family, and kitchen stuff.

happenings

• sammy's wedding near la. good to see my college friends -- rob, drew, harry, jimmy, and kammy. i was happy to help write and co-deliver the best man speech!
• megan (matt's sister) visited sf. fun times included a 7 mi. hike near purisima creek, suppenkuche, and wicked.
• house remodel. we've been meeting with an architect to redesign the house in two phases. phase I: kitchen, phase II: facade. it's stressful but fun.
  
• jmt fail. after a 30-ish mile hike from tuolomene meadows to agnews meadow with matt, i decided not to continue with a solo hike. i'm pretty sad and disappointed. but after this first leg, i realized that i'm not prepared to walk 10 mi / day at high altitudes with big elevation changes. and i'm not yet confident to deal with camping and hiking alone. the hike was quite gorgeous though! we started with a walk near a slow moving creek, made a steady climb through donohue pass, then wound around several beautiful, beautiful lakes. we faced some challenges -- hail and thunderstorm, my flaky water purifier (don't get a steripen), a few sketchy creek crossings, lots of mosquitos, and losing the trail a couple of times. here's thousand island lakes:

beginnings and endings

i went to an out-of-town wedding a few weekends ago.  when i got back, there were two emails in my inbox -- one announcing a birth and another a death.  and recently, friends also blog about babies.

it's that time of life, i guess -- weddings fill my calender at an increasing rate, baby showers at a slower rate. eventually, the deaths of our parents.

a quiet week

• july 4 barbecue with friends.  one guest remarked, only people in california bring beet salad to a barbecue.
  
• housewarming.  nice to see everyone!  it was also good motivation to clean the house.
• finished priming the back wall.  the wood soaked up 2 gallons of primer!  started applying color this week.  almost, almost done...
• finished zeitoun and what is the what.  i enjoyed both books!  very different from that  staggering genius book. 

happenings

• last weekend, we camped at henry coe state park with matt's people. good fun -- a steep five mile hike, side trip to a great swimming hole, and good eats. super, duper hot.
  
• reading a series of graphic novels about germany in the late 1920s and early 1930s, berlin: city of stones and berlin: city of smoke. a little hard to follow at times, but good overall. picked up dave eggars' new book, zeitoun. will report back. recently purchased some how-to type books -- the key to chinese cooking and golden gate gardening.
  
• jmt delayed. from pct trail journals, it sounds like areas above 10,500 feet are still completely covered with snow. since a good portion of my hike will be at or above that elevation, i've decided to wait two more weeks for more snow to melt.
  
• old stuff with cali-asian twist. sandwiches at rhea's deli and ramen at hapa ramen. skip hapa and go for rheas.
• watched documentaries straight outta hunters point and food, inc. food inc is the same old stuff. straight outta hunters reminded me of the wire, except that it is real and hunters point is basically in my backyard.
• baked an almond cake, with great success!
• began to paint the back wall of the new house.
  

japan excursion

matt and i visited japan for a couple of weeks.  we checked out big cities on the well-worn tourist path, mostly staying in tokyo and kyoto.  (we also spent a night near mt. fuji and in osaka.)  it was hot and humid.  good times were had.

• delicious and memorable food.  highlights include a splurge at yuzuya ryokan in kyoto;  ramen at nagi in shibuya;  cold soba noodles in ginza;  tea flavored plum wine at a quiet bar in ebisu;  unagi in kyoto;  sweets everywhere;  heaping bowls of ramen and udon in osaka;  eating over a gushing river near kibune shrine and much more...
• the sights!  in (and around) tokyo, checked out the chaotic tsukiji fish market, ghibili museum, museum of emerging science and innovation, and the ramen museum.  in (and around) kyoto, we escaped the crowds at eikando temple; took a nice walk between the shrines in kibune and kurama;  walked underneath the many red gates of fushimi inari shrine; scrambled up a hidden hill in nara;  played with the monkeys and wandered the bamboo groves in arashiyama.
  
• while the sights were intereresting, everyday experiences made japan memorable!  it was a delight to travel on super-efficient railways (shinkansen bullet train), also frustrating to be lost around massive train stations.  it was fun to try out all the vending machine drinks, marvel at the toilets, pay for food and tickets at computer terminals.  we stumbled upon cute boutiques and handicraft shops, but also hostess bars and love hotels as we wandered around different neighborhoods.  we also took many japenese-style baths -- a public onsen near kyoto, the communal and private baths at the inn.
  

i thought a lot about where my ideas of japan come from -- haruki murakami books, anime & manga, animated films of my childhood, nintendo and consumer electronics, iron chef, san francisco sushi restaurants, and college history classes.  i'm not sure visiting japan dispelled any "myths", but it was interesting to finally see this place, of which i have so many strong impressions!

the days fly by

how i spent the week:

• checked out bernal establishments. sandwiches at avedano's meats and empanadas at 331 cortland.
  
• map & compass class.
• yoga and jogging.
• painted a section of the wall in the house.
  
• read graphic novels. burmese chronicles and fun house. both excellent.
• made lemon cake, beef stock, braised short ribs.
• japan and john muir trail planning.
• hunting and gathering. looked for morels in the sierras with bryan and company. (awesome but tiring!) picked cherries and peaches with matt and friends.

update

• matt's parents visited us last, last weekend.  a lot of home improvement projects, alemeny farmer's market, maker faire, and many delicious things eaten -- mama's, vega, emmy's spagetti shack :)
• caught up with friends.  home cooked dinner with kat, fresca with shira, bakesale betty with eugene, mall date with annie during johann's wedding
• texas.  started an oven mitt, blackberry picking, art show, sex and the city 2, wandered around the "bishop arts district", chinese food, freddy's frozen custard, and hanging out at linford's new house.
• the rest of my summer looks like this:  6/10 - 6/24: japan, 6/30 - 7/22: john muir trail, 7/25 - 8/1: deleware, 8/14 - 8/21: roadtrip across USA (tentative, still)
  

unemployed and a little bored

hello fellow readers!

the past week has been a little crazy for me.  matt and i executed our mid-may plans of quitting my job and moving to bernal.  it's been good to explore (a little bit at a time), the new neighborhood.  it's quiet. much quieter than i'm use too.  and not being around people -- the hustle of the financial district or all the people at work -- is a little hard.  it's a little wierd not to be affiliated to any organization, just kind of floating around.

anyway, so far this week:

• bernal yoga.  trying out a new studio, $35 for a month of unlimited classes.  my abs totally hurt from monday's noon class.
• trying out the "ad hoc at home" chicken potpie recipe and marcella hazan's bolognese sauce.
• a really informative noontime talk at SPUR by SFMTA's chief traffic engineer.  i will definitely be back for their climate policy talks next month.

jane mentioned women's only day at a japanese style bath in japantown, which i have been wanting to check out for a long, long time.  that's on my to-do's this week as well.

crazy days

the past few weeks have been a little crazy at work.  i don't know how people consistently work 80 hours weeks.  it's exhausting!  there was a lot of cursing and yelling from my corner, but the worst is over now.  i'm looking forward to wrapping up at cornerstone and spending more time outside :)

 
non-work goings-ons of the month:

• lots of new (to me) places:  range, balompie cafe, la trappe, trattoria contadina, andalu, cafe flore, liberty cafe, little nepal, sandbox cafe
  
• watched a beautifully animated film, the secret of kells.  lots of 30 rock and mad men.
• sunday streets!
• yo la tengo :)

life updates

here are some updates:

• i'll be in princeton, new jersey for school next fall.  i still have mixed feelings about it.  
• matt bought a house in bernal heights.  i also have mixed feelings about this.  at the least, it's been interesting to think of san francisco in terms of real estate and gentrification (beyond mission hipsters and noe valley). 
• my last day at cornerstone is may 14.

weekend report

• out the door and how to train your dragon, cute.
• pacfica hike and suppenkuche.
• comic crazy.  finished y and asterios polyp.  y was fun.  asterios was very cool visually and a nice story!  started britten & brulightly.
• matt put in a bid for a house...

quick east coast tour

i went to new york and new jersey this weekend to check out the woodrow wilson school.  (it's called woody woo, apparantly.)  

 

in addition to visiting the school, i got to hang out with naureen and vivian from high school, and garett from college.  that was pretty nice :)

 

i have a lot of angst about school.  but my thoughts are kind of jumbled up right now.  so, i'll just let them sit a little bit for now.

life developments

my sister visited this sunny weekend!  we:

• ate lots of delicious things, including:  bi-rite ice cream (twice), tartine pastries, brunch at brenda's, brunch at mbc, delfina pizzaria, in and out
• made a seafood gumbo :)
• wandered around the cartoon art museum, ferry building, sutro baths, and ocean beach
• pedaled across the golden gate bridge and took the ferry back from sausalito

i've also finished hearing back from all the policy programs i applied to.  (i was accepted to all of them.  i was offered full tuition and living stipend at two programs, and reduced tuition and generous fellowship at another.)  it really comes down to princeton (full tuition/stipend) and berkeley (no fellowship).  i agonize about it every day.  i don't know what i'll do. 

new zealand

matt and i recently had fun in new zealand!

• wellington. checked out views from mt. victoria; wandered around an old cemetery and botanic garden; cable car; te papa; caught a showing of sutra; ate at some nice establishments, floriditas and fidel's.
  
• three days of mountain-biking along the queen charlotte track in the marlborogh sounds. it was nice to have our belongings transferred by boat and to stay at resorts along the way. it turns out that the qct is mostly for intermediate/advanced mountain bikers, but we made it :)
• beautiful drives through the marlborough and central otago wine regions.
  
• a really nice stay at an isolated log cabin on a farm at the end of an unpaved road. a double rainbow to welcome us!
• fox glacier. helicopter ride to glacier and a guided hike. we could see all the way to the ocean! also, a long beach hike and walk around lake matheson.
• four days of walking the kepler track in the fiordlands. lush beech forests, alpine ridges, and an easy walk along the river to the lake. staying in huts really helped us reduce pack weight.
  
• queenstown. paraglided; luged; ate at tasty establishments, the cow, fergburger, and awesome fish and chips at fishbone grill; drank some tasty beers like dux de lux.
  

recently

• watched a few inspiring ted talks:  dave eggers on 826 valencia.  paul stamets on mycelium.  alain de botton on success.
• read volumes 1-3 of y: the last man.
• finished season three of the wire.
• made buttermilk fried chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, and asparagus.  recipes from thomas keller's ad hoc at home.  the friend chicken is pretty easy :)
• ramen and mr. smith's with alicia and eugene, for a co-worker's going away
• 30 mile bike ride near dry creek and alexander valley
• missed out on a mushrooming expedition in the forest today, but my coworker kindly gave me a bunch of chanterelles afterwards.  i'm looking forward to cooking with them :)

how we define ourselves

i had a few people over on tuesday.  one person lived in brazil for a while. 

 

he contrasted people in brazil with people here.  he said, we define ourselves by our jobs and what we do.  people there don't do that.

 

anyway, the thought has been lingering in my mind.

week end

• celebrated my birthday!  korean tofu early in the week with kat.  matt made  halibut, carrots and asparagus from thomas keller's ad hoc at home.  a++  :)
• took the lsat, just so i have it in my back pocket.  i may need to take it again...  maybe three times is the charm :)
  
• blueberry oatmeal pancakes for breakfast
• dumpling making / superbowl party with sydney!
  

life is full of possibility

a quiet mostly indoor weekend to match the quiet rainy week. things to report:

• foods eaten. chicken tikka masala at john's. the new rosamunde. homemade pizza (and pizza dough using my new food processor ;). my favorite brunch at mission beach cafe. turned the leftover lamb into a curry.
• walks taken. a "hike" from our place to bernal heights, just to get the feeling of a possibly new neighborhood.
• travels ahead. chatted with spencer to get ideas about new zealand. matt and i booked tickets for this march! john muir trail permit reservations for july 1 through july 24 are confirmed with yosemite np.
  
• my mom gave me a sewing machine :) never thought i'd feel so happy about it.
• bottled the oatmeal stout.
• weddings. crazy to think of the weddings this year -- johann, sammy, and tracy.
• tv. dan lent me and matt the entire box set of the wire. dangerous.
  
• still waiting to hear back from schools.

i have crazy new ideas every day about things i could do!

mostly just food

mostly, i hovered around the kitchen this weekend.  friday night low key dinner at mangosteen, drinks at bourbon & branch, and two episodes of the wire.  saturday unsuccessful studying and some successful as well as unsuccessful baking.  sunday, a nice dinner!  roasted leg of lamb, chickpeas, chard, hummus, couscous, cucumber salad, pita and some accompaniments.

 

it was kind of crazy to get a whole leg of lamb from the butcher.  i suppose we see whole chickens and turkeys all the time.

notes

a relaxing three-day weekend, mostly around the house.  highlights:

• couch potato.  tampopo, avatar, the wire, and the lives of others.
  
• college friends!  kate's kitchen and hanging out with sammy, kammy, jimmy, harry, and drew.  jimmy's housewarming later.
  
• bike shopping.  should i get this bike?
• other delicious things:  thirsty bear, baked grapefruit ginger tea bread (a little too sweet for my taste :), french toast with john & company, lucca's ravioli, and chilango.  today i am also making my first niu rou mian (taiwanese beef noodle soup), based on mom's rather vague instructions.
  
• brew day!  making a bock, our first step into lagering.
  

adventures of a lulu

• work parties.  small sun get-together and cornerstone party at exploratorium
• take 2 of east bay bike ride.  15ish miles felt easier this time.
• tried my hand at "indian" food.  made fresh cheese (just okay), saag paneer (threw it all away), and channa masala (decent).

the new year

a nice, slow beginning:

• homemade new year's eve dinner at rebecca's.  mulled cider, carrot walnut bread with dukka, salad with kale and apples, lamb stew with quinoa, and hazelnut cake!
• slept in.
  
• video games.  beat mario for the wii and started pixel junk shooter with matt!
• beer.  bottled the mint chocolate stout and brewed an oatmeal stout.
• hiked. six miles of the matt-davis trail at mt. tam.
• cooked.  roasted chicken with root vegetables, chicken stock, and bacon shallot mushroom pizza.