Rewind: San Francisco - Day One

Now, before I beginning the process of blogging about our amazing trip to San Francisco, I need to post a little disclaimer here.  Between Todd and I, a few shots by our friends Greg and Shareen, and a handful of video, we have over 2500 photos from our one week stay in Northern California.  You will only see a tiny fraction of those photos as I post about each day!

Thursday, July 27, 2010
After staying a couple of nights with the in laws, we flew out of Austin to head to San Francisco.  We awoke at 5 am, left for the airport at 6am, checked in at 7am for a flight that left at 8 am.  Can you tell by looking at our tired faces?  (And yes, we flew Jet Blue.)

The cool thing about flying west is that we arrived at the SFO Airport at 9:30 am.  It was awesome because we had the entire day ahead of us, and Shareen, our wonderful friend/hostess/tour guide/driver to get us started.

First stop:  Chinatown!  I'd never been to a "real" Chinatown, so I was interested in what was ahead.  I quickly learned about the steep streets of San Fran, so we decided to hop a cable car to make it down the hill.  I swear every single Asian visiting SF was on that cable car.  I didn't understand a word that was being spoken, so it was almost like being in a foreign country.   Can you see everyone in that car???

Going back up the hill was much smoother with very few people sharing the car with us - especially since we moved a few people to get a good shot.  :)

Chinatown has such ornate architecture and decor, and I had to get some shots.  Although I am not really in to most things Asian, I found some of what we saw to be very interesting.

We decided to shop some.  Of course the jewelry and trinkets were the most exciting for us girls.  There were also figures carved from ivory.  This was hand carved from one tusk of an elephant - just one:

There were also Kama Sudra-esque figurines in the window as well.  Hey, kids, check this out!

After shopping, we made our way to Ross Alley.

Ross Alley - some chick, Shareen & Todd

It's not a pretty site, it is an historical place and houses a great place - the Fortune Cookie Factory!  After waiting in line in the very crowded doorway/shop, we were greeted by a smiling old man who gave us broken cookies to sample.  We bought some chocolate fortune cookies and "adult" fortune cookies, then paid the shopkeeper fifty cents to get our photo with one of the cookie maker ladies.  This photo makes me laugh because it's the best of a few we took because I was trying to get the lady to smile!

Getting a sample of cookies made us hungry, so we started looking for a yummy place to eat.  We decided against this place even though Todd approved of the dead birds in the window.

We found another place and stopped in for some Dim Sum and TsingTao beer.  Everything was really good and the beer hit the spot.

I'll have one of . . . THESE!  This MUST have been what I had, or does it appear that I was guessing?

After heading back up the sstteeeppp hill from Chinatown, we headed to the amazing and famous Golden Gate Bridge.  I took a few shots from the open sunroof as we crossed the bridge towards Sausalito.

After a few posed shots on a windy afternoon:

. . . it was time for "jump shots!"  Can I just tell you how--much--fun Todd had taking all of these shots?    Would you believe me if I told you that Todd kept yelling, "MORE!  Let's do more!!!!"  Hahaha!  Uhhhh, no.  It definitely was not like that, but Shareen and I didn't seem to care.  I was so busy trying to perfect my landing that my jumping skillz suffered.  You may also notice that I had difficulty in keeping my clothes and sunglasses on!  We took so many trying to get a good one, that I just put them all in a slide show so you can laugh as well.  :)  The funniest part of our time at the Bridge was when Todd figured out that we were finally finished with our semi-futile attempt at the perfect jump shot, a very kind man walked by and said, "Would you like me to take some of the three of you?"  I was laughing so hard that I'm truly surprised that I didn't pee my pants.

As we left the amazing Golden Gate Bridge, we headed back through San Fran to take the Oakland Bay Bridge to our friends' house.  First, we had to drive the Crooked Street and get some really cool shots.  I can't imagine how/why people live on that street, but they do.

As you can tell, we were still a good ways up from the Bay.

Next stop: Casa Pacifica.  Casa Pacifica is the name our friends gave their home since they have so many visitors.  Really, who wouldn't want to visit a place with such beautiful weather, an orange tree outside your window, and amazing hospitality!  We made it into Niles (a small suburb of Fremont) in time to drop off our bags and head over for our 4:30 massages.  Todd and I had a couples room where "Andy" and "Rita" (their American names, I'm sure) gave us some amazing deep tissue massages.  I'd been having problems with pain and numbness in my arms and hands and gave Rita a heads up to work on them.  Rita, who spoke no English, beat the hell out of me.  I was literally crying out in pain, but I needed it.  My main concern was taking away from Todd's relaxing experience.  He said that he almost asked if I was okay and then thought, "Hey, she's a big girl," and resumed his massage.  :)  After a short time, Rita said something to Andy who said to me, "Rita say you have lots of problem."  Dude . . . what a loaded statement that is!  "You want 'nother thirty minute?"  I declined so Todd and Shareen wouldn't have to wait on me, and Rita continued her ass-kicking.  Let me just say that the fingerprint bruises all over my arms for the next few days did the trick.  No more numb hands or arm pain!  There were no photos of me practically naked screaming in pain.  I know, I'm a bad blogger.  Get over it.

After scraping our relaxed bodies back to the house, we headed back to Casa Pacifica with a brief stop by the famous "Taco Truck."  I've never bought food from a truck/trailer before, but it was good!

Todd, Shareen, and I enjoyed our taco appetizers and beverages while we waited for Greg to get home from work.  Entertainment was also provided by the awesome Dexter.  "Dexie" (as I called him) became quite close during our visit, which helped me get through missing our babies so badly.  He's such a star that every time I took his photo, he blinked!

We were later treated to a delicious dinner on the back patio.  Greg lit up the heaters --- yes, heaters in July! --- so we'd stay warm enough under our blankets while we ate and chatted.  We then began telling stories and catching up when Greg introduced us to a new friend: Amarula.  What a delicious little drink it was, over and over again!

After a long day of travel, sightseeing, shopping, relaxing, and hanging with friends, we settled in our new home away from home.  Windows open, fan on, and comfy covers provided us the first of many cool nights to come.

Next: Day Two - Monterey and Carmel

An Unexpected Trip

On Wednesday (the 11th), I got to take an unexpected trip . . . to the Emergency Room.  It's kind of a long story and I don't know exactly how it all went down, but it went something like this:

I had training that morning for school after less than four hours of sleep.  Must get used to new schedule & soon!  Training got out early, so I went home to eat a lunch of leftover salad from the night before.  Around 3:30, I drove to the teacher's store to buy some supplies and dropped them off at school.  I stayed at school for all of ten minutes, went to the restroom, and drove down the street to meet some friends for dinner and drinks.

It's been so hot in Dallas lately.  We are on our 14th consecutive day of 100+ degree temps.  By the time I got to the restaurant, I was warm and fanning myself with a menu.  To help with the heat, I ordered a yummy frozen Bellini which I had one sip of while my friends and I were waiting on an appetizer.  As we were chatting, my stomach rumbled and I excused myself to the bathroom.  TMI: I had a little diarrhea, and as I washed my hands, I noticed my eyes were still red from that morning.  I was still warm and looking forward to that Bellini cooling me off some.  After I sat down, it hit me that I didn't feel too good and told my friends.  One friend said that my face looked a little swollen and asked if I needed to just go home.  I debated & told her that I probably should.  As I fumbled to get my credit card out of my wallet, I had to ask if they would pay for my drink and I'd pay them back the next time.  When they said it wasn't a problem, I then said I needed to go to the restroom first and asked one of them to walk me.

By the time I got to the ladies room, I was seeing stars and not well at all.  I had more bathroom issues and began pouring sweat.  I have never sweat so much in my life.  Very quickly, my hair was wet, the floor was wet, my clothes were wet . . . everything was soaked.  My friend went to get my purse and tell our other friend what was happening.  I asked her to find some Benadryl when she left the restroom, thinking I may be having an allergic reaction.

Everything gets pretty blurry from here.  I stayed in the bathroom stall for what seemed like forever.  My friends came in to check on me, bring me water, help me clip up my wet hair, hand me towels for my neck.  No matter what I did, I couldn't get comfortable and could not quit sweating.  Itchy spots behind my left ear and the back of my head started, so I knew the hives were taking over my skin.  After I had been alone for a while, I heard a voice say, "Ma'am, are you okay?"  Quickly telling her that I needed Benadryl, she (who I believe was a waitress) left to get a manager.  For legal reasons, they couldn't give me any medicine.  That's fine - just let me die here instead.

My friends returned to the restroom after again what seemed like forever, ready to drive me home.  They called Todd to let him know what was happening, and told them they'd be bringing me home.  As things got to the point where we should leave, I told my friends that I couldn't make it, and finally asked them to call 911.  I immediately stripped off my wedding ring and asked my friend to take care of it for me.  I didn't want it stuck on my finger or getting stolen along the way.

Not long after, I am dripping wet in a bathroom stall with a few strange men dressed as paramedics.  Apparently, this is when I pass out.  They get an IV in my arm, check my blood pressure (which had tanked), and prepare me for take off.  I was worried that I might get sick everywhere & tried to delay our departure as much as I could.  Finally, the lead EMT said, "Kristin, we HAVE to go."  I remember that shaking me up a bit, so with his help, I tried to stand up.

Well, keep in mind that I had been sweating profusely.  My clothing was soaked completely through.  Like an old pro, this former drunk sorority girl at a fun fraternity party wobbly stood up and stripped off my pants using my feet.  The poor EMT said, "Are you trying to take off your jeans?"  I confirmed that and he told me to hurry.  They then got me on a stretcher, covered me up, secured my IV line, and placed oxygen on me.  So during Wednesday night dinner service, my wet-rat, half-naked self was wheeled out of ladies room, through the restaurant, and into the ambulance.  In my altered state, I do remember hoping and praying and squeezing my eyes tightly closed in case any of my students or someone I might know happened to be witnessing this dinnertime disaster of mine.  As far as I know, I am in the clear from my adoring fans being traumatized by it all (well, other than my two friends and paramedics!).

A short time after we got into the ambulance, I began to come to a bit thanks to the three paramedics who were all working on me at once.  I remember looking up to the IV bag and noticing that it was about 75% emptied already.  My finger was pricked and blood sugars tested.  I continually tried to ask to which hospital I was being transported, but either they were ignoring me or couldn't hear/understand me.  They finally told me they were rushing me to the nearest hospital.  I was wishing that one of my friends was in the ambulance with us, but honestly, there wouldn't have been any room.  As soon as he noticed I was responding more, the lead medic said, "Well, it was a bit tight in that bathroom stall with you."  I responded, "

Well, to wrap this long story up soon, I got into the ER, got poked & prodded some more, and finally began to stabilize and feel a bit more coherent.  I was hoping my friends could come back, but they never did.  Not sure if they didn't want to or weren't allowed.  Todd arrived soon after that, and I felt awful that he had to rush across town to deal with me like this.  I asked him to go get my friends, but he said they wouldn't let them back.  I was so thankful for all they did, but told Todd they didn't need to wait around unless they just really had nothing better to do.  Not long after, my mom arrived.  Nothing like a gathering for the wet-headed.  It was nice having my mom the nurse there just in case.

After my blood pressure came up a bit (which sounds weird for me to say since I have high bp), my EKG was normal, the redness and swelling of my face and skin decreased, and my oxygen levels were up, I was finally released to go home.  So . . . with all of my pride, I had my amazing husband tie up the back of my hospital gown, gather my wet belongings, help me put on my flip flops, place my wedding ring back on my finger, and walk me to the car to head home.

Since Wednesday, I have been racking my brain trying to figure out what triggered this attack.  Nothing makes sense.  My next plan is to see an allergist/immunologist to see what exactly it is I'm allergic to now.  Until then, I am a member of the Benadryl-carrying club and both Todd and my work team know how to help me if (God forbid) it ever happens again.

Most of all I learned that my friends, Amie and Megan, are real troopers and true friends.  Without their help, I don't know what would have happened.  In fact, I don't even want to think about it.  Thanks, guys.  I owe you more than another happy hour.

Georgia Trip

July has been such a busy month!  Take a restroom break, get a snack & drink, and join me for a little tour.

About a week after our July 4th weekend in East Texas, Todd and I packed up the car and drove to Georgia.  We had family business to attend to as well as many friends to see (and for me to meet!).  We headed first to Mississippi, where our GPS told us we were in the middle of absolutely nowhere.  It was kinda right.

 

We stayed overnight with friends in Saltillo, Mississippi (small suburb of Tupelo).  Brent, a high school friend of Todd's (who was also a groomsman), and his wife Michele opened their home to us for the night.  They have four precious children that were just as hospitable and fun.  It was fun for us to meet the kids and for me to meet Michele for the first time.  Unfortunately, I didn't take ANY photos while there.  :(

The next morning, we were up and out the door to finish our drive to Atlanta.  Our first stop was to visit my mother in-law, who is not well.  Unfortunately, her condition continues to deteriorate, and it was a somewhat difficult visit.  Dealing with her affairs was one of our prime purposes of going to GA, yet we still found time to see friends, relax, and have a little fun.

Spending time with my brother in-law, Tim, was nice because we rarely get to see one another.  There is never enough time to visit with everyone when traveling, but we did get to see Tim several times.  He loves having his picture taken as much as his brother.

We saw the Tuckers, who were Todd's next door neighbors growing up.  They were such sweet people & have an amazing garden!

We got the chance to spend just a little time with another friend, Daryl, and his wife and children.  We played with their precious red-headed kids, chatted, the boys had some 40s, and the girls took care of some wine.

Thankfully we were able to take Cheryl, a longtime friend of my MIL's, to dinner and spend time catching up with her.  She's such a neat lady.

Visiting Bill, Kerri & kids in Peachtree City (or "The Bubble" as we called it) was a great time, too.  Relaxing, swimming, playing with their dog, riding golf carts (which is how they get around there), hitting the local Walmart (which had golf cart parking!), eating and partying was basically what we did.  We truly needed the down time.

We went to a local Farmer's Market (which is when my camera settings got thrown off & I didn't know it, so pretend these pics aren't blurry!).

 We crashed a birthday party with Bill & Kerri.

I lost my virginity to The Varsity and Trader Joe's . . . and it was worth it!

We spent time with one of my longest time best friends, Kim, who lives about an hour outside of Atlanta.  We've been friends for over 35 years!

We also spent time with Kim's husband (Neil) and their daughter (Charlotte) and their dogs Ralph and Herman (shown).

We had lunch with Kim's mom, Judy, and went out on Lake Lanier for a short time in between storms.

  

Best thing of all is that Todd and I learned, after being together almost seven years, that we travel really well together and have some amazing family and friends.  For that, we are blessed.

Next stop on our tour of July . . . San Francisco!  Don't worry, that trip will be broken down into daily posts!

July 4th Weekend

We took an overnight trip to visit Todd's cousin and his family this weekend, and this time the dogs went with us.  This was their first overnight trip together, so we weren't sure what to expect.  After the initial first few hours of wild excitement by our dogs and Michael & Cathy's boys, things went really well.

Best thing of all . . . the dogs are RACKED today.  It may take them a couple of days to recover.  :)