Day 12

Eureka to Eureka – 0 miles

Well, I was planning on continuing north, but the folks here in Eureka are just too nice. My new surfing buddies have a beautiful old Victorian house on the beach, with a wrap around porch. I can sit on the out door couch and watch the waves come in. There’s a huge fireplace in the living room. And the hospitality has been just awesome. It’s great to make new friends.

It was pretty drizzly most of yesterday, but we went for a surf anyway. They are having a huge Halloween blowout tonight, and I’m invited – so is most of the town. Hey, maybe party girl will be here. That’d be pretty cool.

Kayak Surfing

Not making much progress on my drive up the coast, but I am having a lot of fun. Got up pretty early yesterday and checked out of my hotel. Went back to Humboats and rented a kayak for the morning to do more paddling around Humboldt bay. Returned the boat in the afternoon and struck up a conversation with a guy in the kayak rental shop. He was up for some kayak surfing, but didn’t want to go solo (that’s not really safe – although I do it from time to time). I agreed to join him. I rented a surf boat and we spent the afternoon on the beach.

Turns out he has a big old run down house on the beach on the north end of town. He offered to put me up for the night. In return I bought him a quarter keg of amber ale from the lost coast brewery. That seemed to me a fair trade for lodging for the night. It also seemed to bring out all his friends. We got a bon fire going on the beach and stayed up to the wee hours of the morning. I slept on the back porch in my sleeping bag with a view of the ocean.

The next morning I got up before anyone else and explored the kitchen – I found the basics, flour, butter, eggs. etc. I went to the local grocery store and bought a bag of oranges, a pound of bacon, some buttermilk and a pound of fresh ground coffee. I whipped up a batch of buttermilk pancakes, with bacon, fresh squeezed O.J. and coffee. There were a bunch of folks that crashed overnight, they all came to the kitchen as the bacon smell made its way through the house. Everyone seemed to appreciate the effort.

I spent the morning on the back porch lazing over coffee and the paper, and borrowing their WiFi. There’s a light drizzle this morning, and I’ve decided to stay out of the rain. Later today I’m continuing my drive north.

Paddling in Eureka

Had a tough night (see prior post). After party girl woke me up and left my room, I called down to the front desk and extended my stay another night. I'm on a road trip and staying at the Red Lion in Eureka. It was about 9:30 A.M. and I was dead tired and I was not about to get up, check out, and hit the road. I put out the do not disturb sign and went back to sleep until noon.

I found an all day breakfast restaurant and had a nice eggs benedict and fresh orange juice. I lingered over coffee and the newspaper. One of the best things about being on an unscheduled vacation is the opportunity to do nothing for a while.

Eureka sits on Humboldt bay. A great spot for both surfing and windsurfing. But the wind was virtually non-existent and the waves coming on off the pacific were sloppy and unsurfable. I didn’t bring along my kayak (darn, I knew I forgot to pack something) but I was able to rent one from Humboats for the afternoon. Got in a pretty good workout – paddled for a bit over 10 miles. I’ll probably go back tomorrow. I’m gonna go sit in the hot tub.

Monday Night in Eureka

Or, How I almost got lucky in a small northern California town

After days in the wilderness I was looking forward to getting a hot shower and spending some quality time at a laundromat. I checked into the Red Lion hotel off 101. Oooh and they have a hot tub. I love those things. I checked in, took a hot shower and changed into my last set of clean clothes. I found the local laundromat and got the salt, sand, and pine needles out of my clothes.

When I got back to the hotel I sat in the hot tub for a while. It was wonderful to get warm again. Camping on the beach leaves a cold that seeps into my bones.

I went to the hotel lounge for dinner and a glass of wine. It was getting pretty late, but the kitchen was still open. I was on my second micro-brew (the wine selection was a wee bit limited) when I struck up a conversation with a couple of girls that sat down next to me. I guess the entertainment options for Eureka are pretty limited – and the Red Lion lounge has a pool table and some pinball games. Anyway, they were pretty drunk and they insisted on buying me another beer. The blonde that took the barstool next to me put her hand on my thigh and proceeded to flirt with me in a very unsubtle way. I suggested some fresh air,. She asked if I was staying at the hotel. I said I was. She pressed up against me and suggested going back to my room.

Wow. OK this kind of thing does not happen to me very often. And something in the back of my mind was wondering if I was going to be paying for this. And not in a figurative karmic sort of way. I was wondering if she was – well – a professional. OK, so I can’t just go and ask “Hey, by the way, are you a hooker?” If she’s not, then I’m screwed (or not – uh - you know what I mean) I figured if she asked for money I’d beg poverty and let her know I misunderstood – and please leave. I’m not morally opposed to prostitution. It just isn’t what I wanted to spend my pennies on tonight. Actually, I wasn’t even sure that I wanted her tonight. But, then again, she is kinda cute – and I’m kinda weak. Besides - cute, drunk, blonde, and slutty is a very rare and special combination not to be passed up.

We got to my room. We stood by the bed and she kissed me. I excused myself to the bathroom. You’ll see what a bad idea this was in a minute – but I just had 3 pints of beer, nature calls. When I came back, she was lying on the bed. Snoring very loudly. I shook her shoulder, but there was no response. She had passed out. Oh, well – now what? I thought it best to let her sleep it off.

Then she started to wretch. Oh, crap – one of the top ten reasons not to bring a drunk girl back to your hotel room. I rolled her on her side as quickly as I could and tried to hold her head over the side of the bed – and I kinda made it. But there was spew on her shirt – the bedspread – and the floor. She finished and was still blissfully oblivious.

I tried to clean up as best I could. I took off her shirt and rinsed it in the sink. Balled up the bedspread and put it in the bathroom. For the floor, after some lame attempts I went and found the night maintenance guy – it was about midnight. He had a carpet shampooer, which he brought up and we cleaned the carpet. He was pretty unfazed. I’m guessing this has happened before. She slept through it all.

Once the room was clean, I took her shoes, socks, and jeans off and pulled a blanket up over her. I was really looking forward to a good night’s sleep in a big old bed – but… Hmm. It didn’t seem right. I folded myself into the undersized couch in the room and tried to sleep.

At 4:00 a.m. since she hadn’t gotten sick again, and since I was really tired – and not able to sleep in the sofa – I climbed into bed. I usually sleep “au naturale”. But I wore some boxer-briefs (it seemed the gentlemanly thing to do) and a long sleeve tee shirt (to hide the big scar on my left arm - no one wants to wake up to that)

“Oooh,” she moaned (and not in a good way) and woke me up. She rolled over and yelped. She literally yelped when she saw me. But I think that hurt her head. Her eyes opened wide with surprise. She looked under the sheet at herself (I’m guessing to see what her state of dress/undress was) “OK, this never happens to me. Where are my clothes?”

I groaned from being woken. “Your pants are on the chair, your shirt is hanging in the shower – it’s probably still wet.”

“Oh god” she said with real panic in her voice. She wrapped the blanket around herself. She didn’t really need to, she did have a bra and panties on. She grabbed her jeans and shoes and made a beeline for the bathroom. She closed and locked the door. After a few minutes she opened the door and called out “Can I take a shower?”

“Sure” I called out. “Can I join you?” I added too softly for her to hear. She was way more fun when she was drunk. She slammed the bathroom door and locked it again. I needed to pee.

20 minutes later she came out. I was sitting on the bed. She was wearing her shirt – which was very wet. It looked like it was freshly washed. Guess I missed a spot. She moved toward the door without turning her back toward me – as if I might try to attack her or something.

“Can I drive you somewhere? Do you want to go get some breakfast?” I asked her

She snatched her purse off the table and ran out the door.

“I have an extra toothbrush, if you want it” I called out – probably too softly for her to hear.

I never even got her name.

Women. I’ll never understand them.

Days 7, 8, & 9

Shelter Cove to Eureka – 148 Miles (3 days)

Spent 2 days camping on the beach and one in the Humboldt redwoods state park. Just awesome. No cell or wifi or any other coverage once I left the town of Shelter Cove. Just lots of great scenery and solitude. In the off season – and maybe due to high gas prices - this area is really quiet.

I’m really looking forward to real bed, running hot water, and central heating again. 3 days camping is just about my limit. Everything I have with me is covered with sand and salt water. Sadly, no Westin or W Hotel in Eureka. In fact, the options are pretty limited.

Beach Camping

The middle of nowhere to Shelter Cove - about 35 miles (2 days)

I’m enjoying a warm cup of coffee overlooking the Pacific on a crisp clear autumn morning, after a soul satisfying breakfast. Life is not so bad.

I spent the night before last camping on the beach. Found a great, but very hard to get to, surfing beach. Did a bit of windsurfing, too. Should have brought a backpack. But made a few trips from the road to the beach and I was able to set up camp. Built a small fire from driftwood to cook my food. Slept with my head poking out of the tent to see the stars. The night sky is incredible here. Fell asleep listing to the wave crash on the beach.

Broke camp in the morning and drove north towards a town on the map called Shelter Cove. Turns out to be a small town, with a few Inns, B&Bs, an airport, and a small marina. There is a fishing charter company, but they are closed up for the season. If not I would have gone fishing for the day. Looks like this is a summer playground for the rich – fly in and stay at your beach house for the weekend. Didn’t see any celebrities. Didn’t see much of anyone. The town seems to shut down in September, and stays that way until May. Beautiful spot though.

Put up for the night at the Inn of the Lost Coast. Very romantic spot. My room had a bathtub for 2 with a view of the ocean. Need to remember this place when I get myself a steady girl-buddy. Getting here is a bear – it would test the patience of any relationship. Of course, the answer is to just to take the private jet (ha ha). Anyway, for the second night I fell asleep to the sound of the waves on the shore. I could really get used to this.

Fooled by the Dot

Day 5 - Ft Bragg to Leggett (and then on to the middle of nowhere) about 70 Miles

OK, so on my map Leggett is a dot about the same size as Santa Rosa. In real life, it’s a dot about the size of a strip mall in Santa Rosa. There’s really not much here. Just to give you an idea of how far off the beaten path I’ve strayed, the nearest Starbucks is over an hours drive away in the bustling California metropolis of Willtis (which itself is probably another 2 hours to the next sign of civilization). I was thinking of staying in Leggett – but no, the dot was deceptive. I am really in the middle of no where. Not much in the way of accommodations.

I found a general store and loaded up on some 5 gallon containers of water and food staples. Gassed up the truck on the way out of town, and decided to head out into the “Sinkyone” Wilderness State park. There’s a road – if you can call it that, more like a dirt track that takes over where highway 1 heads inland. Turns out this area was too rough to put the highway in. It’s pretty steep and a scary drive. There are signs warning that large vehicles are not recommended and that you’ll probably get stuck in the rain. No worries on that, the weather has been perfect so far. The park itself doesn’t seem to have many roads and covers 40 miles or so of California coastline. It should be fun to explore. Hopefully some good surfing beaches.

I suspect I'll be out of e-mail, WiFi, Cell-Phone and every other coverage for a few days. See you on the other side.

...as primitive as can be...

Day 4

Gualala to Ft Bragg 58 miles.

Drove through yuppied up Mendocino. Sometimes it seems like Walt Disney comes into a place and turns it into a tourist area. I’ve never really cared for that. Mendocino seems like it would have been a really cool place to hang out, 30 years ago. Continued on to the town of Fort Bragg. Didn’t see anything remotely military about the place. I though Ft. Bragg was in North Carolina. Stopped at a promising looking motel just as you get into town. It was called the harbor lite lodge. It sits on a bluff up over the boat harbor and all the rooms have a view.

Had a nice dinner in the restaurant down in the harbor. The food was passable and the views pleasant. Wandered down the main street in town after dinner and turned in early.

Day 3

Bodega Bay to Gualala. 48 miles.

Woke up early, surprised at my lack of a headache. Champagne usually does that to me. There wasn’t much wind, but I took the windsurfer out and sailed back and forth on the bay. The water was virtually flat. Cleaned up the equipment and showered before check-out time. Grabbed lunch on the way out of town (deep fried fish, not worth writing about). Continued the drive north on 1 to Gualala. Yup, that’s a real name of a place.

Made my first use of the camping equipment Gualala point regional park. Stopped at a grocery store and bought provisions including a steak, which I grilled on the hibachi and a potato that I wrapped in foil and “baked” on the coals. Shared a good bottle of cabernet with a nice retired couple parked in an RV near my campsite. They were making their way down the coast from Alaska.

I’m not much of a camping guy, but once in a while it’s good to sleep out under the stars and get some fresh air. Slept surprisingly well

Day 2

San Francisco to Bodega Bay. 71 miles

After lazing over the Sunday paper with a pot of coffee and a room service breakfast at the Westin – I continued my drive north on highway 1 at the crack of noon. Over the Golden Gate Bridge. Made my way to Bolinas, just past Stinson beach. Stinson beach is, imho, just a little too yuppie for my tastes. But Bolinas still has some real life to it. I grabbed a fish sandwich on the back deck of the Coast Café (very tasty) and a beer. Note to self, come back for more good food – I could be come a regular here.

The wind was up – probably 12 to 15 knots and the waves weren’t too high. Took the windsurfer out and rode for a couple hours. Hosed off on the beach then continued north with the heater on full blast trying to ward off the hypothermia. It’s starting to get a little cold north of San Francisco. I stopped for the night in Bodega Bay. Went to the grocery store and bought a bottle of Mumm’s champagne. Chilled it in the sink of the motel room and drank it all for dinner, looking out over the bay.

Hmmm. Feeling lonely. Is drinking alone a sign of a problem?

Road Trip!

Been feeling down lately, and – like the guys in the old movie “Animal House” - when things are bad nothing cheers me up like a road trip.

Rich’s Rules of the Road:

1) No superhighways – take the back-roads

2) No staying, shopping, eating, drinking at an establishment that has a branch within 25 miles of home (otherwise, why travel?)

3) Meet someone new every day

4) Do something new every day

5) Practice at least one act of random kindness each day

Driving North on California Highway 1. Staring from Santa Cruz – ending, well, we’ll see how far I get. No schedule. No plan.

Mountain View to San Francisco. 117 miles.

Day 1

Loaded up the truck with the camper shell, a small tent and a hibachi borrowed from Jason. Put the windsurfer and my surfboard on top and packed a week of clothes.

Drove to Santa Cruz at about noon and then headed north on 1. It’s a windy curvy road. The first stop was for a late lunch at the brew pub at Half Moon Bay – called, you guessed it – Half Moon Bay Brewery. This is one of my favorite haunts. They make a great IPA, but check their seasonal brews, they’re usually pretty good, too. Spent a couple of hours chatting up one of the new waitresses. Only had 2 beers because I wanted to go a bit further than Half Moon Bay – that would not count as a road trip.

After leaving HMB made my way up to San Francisco. I was planning to make it to Sausalito or further north for the night, but I had a yen for some good Italian food. I succumbed to the call of Kuleto’s. One of my favorite restaurants in SF. A lot of folks say its past its prime, I think it’s great. I should have called Joe (a friend who lives in the city) but it was short notice. I had dinner at the bar and flirted with the gay barkeep (with no intention of following through). Had some great Italian food and a good bottle of Chianti.

Was thinking of staying at the Villa Florence hotel for the night but it was sold out. That’s the problem with “no plan”, there are no reservations. I made my way to the Westin San Francisco. It’s a few blocks away from Kuleto’s and after a whole bottle of Chianti I was in no condition to drive. I like Westins, their “heavenly bed” is, well, heavenly. I love rolling around on that king sized bed under the down blanket with a lover. Anyway, after chatting up the clerk at the front desk I got the weekend rate for the night (score!). I got a room pretty high up, with a great view. Sadly, no lover. Oh, well, maybe next time.

I plan to sleep in late tomorrow. Life is good. Wish I could live like this all the time.

Hi, I'm Rich

I’ll confess. I’m a chronic Blog lurker. For several years now I have read a number of blogs and commented anonymously and enjoyed reading them. It seems easy enough – so I decided to finally take the plunge. Here goes.

So, since this is the start of my Blog, I’ll tell you a little about myself. I am Rich (with a big R, not a little r) – so really Richard (I try really hard not to be a Dick). I just turned 34 in August. My kid sister teases me that I was named after Richard Nixon – he resigned from office the day I was born. I guess my parents weren’t watching the news – or maybe it’s some weird sense of humor they have. I grew up in Hawaii. Aiea to be more precise. I am a Haole. If you are from Hawaii, you know what that means. I was, in fact, the most haole guy in my school growing up. That was the bad part. The good part was I got to grow up in Hawaii – although since I lived there my whole life until I was 23, so I didn’t know anything different. It wasn’t a paradise. We had dentists, traffic jams, indoor plumbing, and homework just like the rest of the world. Still, it’s a nice place. If the dot com bubble ever comes back I’m going to retire there.

A lot has changed for me in the past year. I used to have a job that I loved, a great girlfriend that I was engaged to, and lived in a great apartment in Cupertino. I got cranky at my former employer and quit without having a new job in hand. Not the smartest move I ever made - but, damn, it felt great at the time. I landed a new job, but had to take a pay cut and job is not nearly as good. My fiancé gave me the heave-ho a couple of days before our wedding. With no one to share the rent with and a smaller paycheck I was forced to either start drinking cheap wine or find more humble accommodations. I opted to move in with some buddies from the office.

Now I work as a software engineer (I write computer programs) at a company in Sunnyvale. I got my Computer Science degree from the University of Hawaii and could not afford to make a living in Hawaii. San Jose is expensive, but at least you can get a good paying job. I travel a lot, as my job involves getting out and meeting with customers. Of all the engineers in the group I am considered the “presentable” one. I guess that means I have some modicum of social skills.

I live with 2 other guys in a rented 3 bedroom house in Mountain View – Scott and Jason. The three of us all used to work at the same company in San Jose. We are all nerds. But then so are most of the folks in the neighborhood. Just about everyone here is working on computers in some way. Although during the bubble (1999-2000) everyone (even my favorite bartender) became a web designer – My bartender would read Java manuals between serving drinks. Fortunately, now he is focused on his mixology and his clientele.

Lynn is my best friend and drinking buddy. We met at the University of Hawaii, taking computer classes together. She was the smart undergrad in two of my master’s level classes. Now – inexplicably – we work at the same company in Sunnyvale – small world. Just after the break-up with Sarah (the one that dumped me at the altar) I abused alcohol pretty significantly, and Lynn was right there to help me. Partly, I’m sure, because I abuse a pretty good class of booze. She was always there to listen to all my whining and crying. If someone is going to put up with my whining the least I can do is buy them some good wine. When things go great or crappy, Lynn is the first one that I call. It’s really great to get a female perspective on things from someone you trust. I consider myself a smart guy, but when it comes to women I can do some really dumb things.

Lynn is living with and engaged to Jim – they have a place in Milpitas. Jim is a Windsurfer (as am I) and we have gone out on the bay a few times. He is more of an enthusiast than I am. But he keeps pushing me to get out there. The problem is that I got spoiled in Hawaii where the conditions are so perfect – the tradewinds combined with the warm water – that I have a hard time with most of the locations here in the bay area. You can get some good wind on the bay – but that water is dirty and cold. Jim drinks my good wine too, but he doesn’t have much patience for my pining over Sarah. He tells me, "Look, you’re rich, good looking, well hung, and 45 minutes from San Francisco where there are way more women than straight guys. Go get laid and you’ll feel better." Sometimes I think he might be right – sometimes it’s good to get the primitive male perspective on things too.

About 100 things about me

1. I am a foodie

2. I love to cook

3. I make virtually everything from scratch

4. I think eating is the second greatest sensual pleasure – you can guess the first

5. I garden

6. I only grow ingredients that I can’t buy at the grocery stores (like fresh tomatoes and herbs)

7. Breakfast is my favorite meal

8. I’ve made myself breakfast in bed (I’ve made breakfast in bed for most of my partners)

9. I am decadent

10. I like good wine, but I’m not a wine snob

11. I don’t think less of people just because they drink white zinfandel

12. For a foodie, I’m pretty skinny

13. I’m 6’ 1” and 150 lbs

14. Growing up I was a 98 lb weakling

15. The best meal I ever had was a cheese sandwich

16. In Paris, unpasteurized brie cheese on a freshly baked baguette

17. Shared with a lover and some good wine

18. It cost 3 euros

19. I love to travel

20. The journey is at least half the fun

21. To really get to know someone, take a trip with them

22. I’d rather walk, hike, peddle, paddle, ski, surf, drive, take a train, or a boat than fly

23. Air travel is a terrible way to get from point A to point B

24. If you must travel on an airplane, the smaller the better

25. The only exception is a transoceanic flight – where I prefer a business class seat in the upper deck of a 747

26. OK, I’d really like to be in first class cabin, but – let’s be practical – that’s only gonna happen after I’m a multi-gazillionaire. And, at that point, it’s Gulfstream time.

27. Italy is my favorite country – the food, the wine, the women - it is unparalleled

28. Vancouver is my favorite city

29. I find Paris overrated

30. But no where on earth can you get a better chocolate croissant

31. When life sucks, eat a chocolate croissant

32. Most of the music on my iPod is either jazz or alternative

33. I will not attend a music concert where there are more than 500 people in the audience, what’s the point? Watch it on MTV instead

34. I think live jazz in an intimate club is awesome

35. I drink more than I should

36. I know all the bartenders at my favorite bar

37. And they know me, by name

38. And so do most of the waitstaff

39. I drink pretty expensive wine and alcohol

40. I’m worth it

41. I don’t make enough money to be an alcoholic

42. If I win the lottery, I’m probably in trouble

43. I spend a lot of money on food, too

44. I think life is too short to eat bad food or drink bad wine

45. I was born and raised in Hawaii

46. It wasn’t as much fun as it sounds

47. I’m blond (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haole)

48. But it (growing up in Hawaii) was still pretty good

49. I think women from Hawaii are the most beautiful in the world

50. I think women do not need to be thin to be attractive

51. I think every woman can be sexy

52. I think women who know this are sexier

53. I am a hedonist

54. I am a nerd

55. I live in silicon valley

56. I have a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering

57. I have a master’s degree in computer science

58. I work with computers all day (and sometimes all night)

59. I was awarded a patent on a method of designing integrated circuits

60. If I explained it to you, you would probably fall into a coma

61. The patent makes the company that I worked for about $50 million dollars a year

62. The company I worked for gave me a nice plaque when the patent was awarded

63. I quit a week later

64. The CEO came to my office to try to talk me out of quitting

65. He offered me a$5,000 per year raise

66. I quit anyway and took a $5,000 per year pay cut to work for someone else

67. I hold grudges

68. I windsurf

69. I kayak

70. I surf (but much less since I’ve moved from Hawaii to Northern California)

71. I’ve spent more money on water sports gear than I did on my pickup truck

72. I can’t believe I bought a pickup truck, nor can my friends, it is sooo not me

73. I have never received a ticket for a moving violation (well, I’ve never been caught)

74. I can type over 45 words per minute using only my right hand

75. I was hit by a drunk driver one night, in a head on collision - the other driver crossed the center line

76. The driver that hit me just kept on driving – it was a hit and run

77. The police caught the guy the next day

78. His passenger turned him in

79. He was never convicted

80. The sub-compact car I was driving was totaled

81. The driver’s side door and the left front wheel of my car were torn off in the crash

82. It’s unbelievable to me that the other driver was able to drive away

83. He was driving a big old Ford pickup truck

84. That was the only time I was ever rode in an ambulance

85. I have 12 titanium screws and pins in my left arm

86. And a really cool scar

87. I usually wear long sleeved shirts, even when its hot outside

88. After the accident I bought a big Ford pickup truck

89. All the fingers on my left hand work fine, now

90. The doctors told me they probably wouldn’t

91. People tell me I’m attractive

92. Personally, I can’t see it. I think I’m rather ugly

93. That doesn’t bother me, unless I hear girls swooning over a cute guy

94. I am weak and easily led astray

95. A photographer once told me that I am attractive enough be a model

96. I think she used that line more than once before

97. She took a lot of pictures of me naked (that is, I was naked, not her)

98. So I can never run for public office

99. After she was done taking pictures, she had her way with me

100. She didn’t need to use that line, she had me at “Hello”

101. She gave me some pictures of her

102. I still have them

103. I’m sentimental

104. I was engaged to be married once

105. I bought her a big expensive diamond ring

106. I asked her dad for her hand and his blessing

107. I spent months working with wedding planners, caterers, florists, and my future mother-in-law – it was hell

108. I was left at the altar (well, not quite, she dumped me 2 days before the wedding)

109. It hurt a lot more than I thought it would

110. She was my best friend and my lover

111. I still love her and wish her nothing but the best

112. But right now I think all women are scum (well, not really)

113. That won’t last long, as I truly adore women

114. Life without the influence of women, would be truly unbearable