foreigners

Someone I'm a little bit acquainted with online used the word 'foreigners' about people of color in California recently. The only thing she knew about them was that they were not white.

I'm not a very diplomatic person, and I was probably not too careful when I pointed out to her that her word choice could be perceived as hostile. Her friends told her that she hadn't done anything wrong.

I think it's amazing. Dan, my partner, is not white. But he is the second generation in his family to be born in California. Foreigner in the US? Not so much. Think about it. Should he be expected to travel to Mexico and demand a Mexican passport? He hasn't spent any time in the country.

In Mexico he'd be a foreigner. Where we live, he is in the majority: 70 percent are not white in Santa Clara County.

sepia hills

roadtrip

Dan and I took a trip to Eureka, Arcata, Crescent City, Mendocino, and Fort Bragg last week. Bunch of photos are here: click.

eureka, calif.

I think they built the tower just for the pigeons

Kathy and I moved into a new office at work last week. This is our new view. Pretty.

one counselor per 2400 students

Apple products - ipods, iphones, ipads, computers - are marked "Designed by Apple in California", evoking sun, palm trees, and capability. Here is a San Jose Mercury News article about the situation in East San Jose High Schools. That's California too.

egg plant

I've seen these flowers along the trail for years, but I have no idea what they are called. They are tall, and they remind me of big fried eggs.

dan has a jacket that is as teal as the sky

my favorite time of year

spiky red flowers that come out in the spring

salinas, calif.

purple and pretty

mimosa everywhere

And the allergies are here, so it must be spring.

it's spring but the maple is still in fall

I am still amazed I get to live in california where winter looks like this

fall in winter

california in january

Girls I meet walking across campus:

flip-flops, t-shirts, no jackets

Me:

thick wool winter coat

big wollen scarf

doc marten's boots

cambria

So, Dan and I went on a road trip the week before Christmas. We took off from the Bay Area, and drove south. Our first stop was Monterey, where we stayed at a hotel with a fireplace in each room. That was pretty much all I wanted from the vacation.

It didn't rain, we walked a lot and had a lot of good food. They sold tamales in the street at the farmer's market.

From Monterey we drove further south, and ended up i Cambria, Calif. It's a cute little town where you can easily imagine yourself living. It looks like a lot of people run little businesses out of their houses. There are artists, and designers, coffee shops and restaurants.

Main street runs parallel to Highway 1, and that's where all the restaurants are. We had a super breakfast, and a cozy dinner.

There are lots of hotels in Cambria. We stayed at one called Cambria Palms. It wasn't a random choice, we had actually been invited to come and check it out, and we didn't pay for the two nights we stayed there.

The place is owned and run by a young couple from Santa Barbara, and they are renovating and updating a classic California motel. It's cool, and it's going to be even cooler as they keep working, you can tell.

Hearst Castle is close by, so we went there. The view from there is amazing, and the house is crazy.

While on the trip I became obsessed with the Hipstamatic app for the iphone. Hence the photos. It's all I've been doing since.

out of office auto-reply

I just got this, in response to an email I had sent:

I am out of the office today on a mandated, unpaid furlough day due to severe state budget cuts imposed upon the California State University system. As a result, I will be unable to reply until my next business day or later.

Most employees of California State University, East Bay are being furloughed an average of two days per month from August 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010, due to deep cuts in State support for the CSU budget. Classes will remain in session on furlough days, but most administrative offices are closed. The Library, Student Health Services, and Student Housing offices will be open, but with reduced staff. The Bookstore and food service operations will remain open with possible adjusted hours. The University Police Dispatch Office and patrols will remain fully staffed.

Please refer to http://www.csueastbay.edu for a list of furlough days for the balance of the academic year. Thank you for your understanding during these difficult economic times.

For the record: All California State University employees are subject to a 10% pay cut. Even if classes won't be canceled during university-wide furlough days - meaning administrators are out - classes may be canceled for faculty furlough days. At California State University, East Bay, each faculty member has been asked to pick two unpaid furlough days per month during the fall quarter. Those days may or may not be teaching days.

big basin redwoods state park, boulder creek, calif.