Jeff in 1972

OK, now I'm pissed. This is not funny. Who posted this?!

I do NOT see any resemblance at all! We have totally different shirts and I have never worked for GEICO!

Mellissa in 1972/73 and Other Questions

OK, here are my questions: How come Mellissa looks like this in the early 70's, and I looked like the GEICO caveman?
Why does she look so cute and I am described as, well, The Missing Link?

How come she hasn't changed that much and I look like a different person and have no hair? (Uh, to use my best grammer, don't nobody need to answer that)

And, last but not least....aren't EddieHaskell, the Beave, and Wally Cleaver dead?

It Pays to Have a Camera Handy

Sometimes, it just pays off having a camera handy....and sometimes, you just get lucky. At a recent poker game, we couldn't understand why we were missing so many M&M's. By the way, if you attended the poker game and got Parrot Fever, we have NO idea how that could have occurred!

On our backyard patio table, we put a small plastic squirrel in the center. We had no idea that this would be the love interest of a real squirrel who didn't seem to mind.

Very cute stuff.

As usual, clicking a pic will open it, and then hit your "back" arrow to return.

Jeff/Lisa First Pictures August 1993

In one of my earlier blogs, I showed pics of a Point Reyes hike that re-created Lisa and my first date in August of 1993. I recently found my slides from this seminal date and took digital pics of each. I would like to dedicate this blog to Mellissa's birthday tomorrow, March 27th, 2007. OK, here goes: this is the first EVER picture I took of my sweetie...I met her at her Hayward house for breakfast on then onto our hike in Point Reyes National Seashore.

Off we go to Arch Rock, four miles one-way from the Visitor's Center. Lisa frolicked in the water looking awfully cute and giving me that "come hither" look....OK, I made that last part up...

Here are the next few pics I took of my future wife:

I thought she had the cutest face....

...and I still do.

Here is the very first picture that was taken of us together. I set up the camera on a rock and had a remote control device that triggered the shutter button. You can almost see the remote hiden in my left hand. I tried to explain how this all works to Lisa at the time -- and may I point out that the explanation takes about two hours -- but she seemed uninterested. Go figure.



Our next pic together was this one. I should point out that Lisa too, took several pics that day and we are still looking for these. I'll share them here when we find them, but for now, this is what we have.

The pics are not as clear as others, but they were taken from slides shown on the wall, and then photographed with a digital camera. They were then edited in Picasa to sharpen and crop and then posted on this blog. I love looking at these pics and hope that Lisa enjoys them for her birthday as well. We are forever grateful to Mona and Ellen for introducing us. (OK, setting up a dinner to trick Lisa was more accurate, but who's counting?)

Eleven years this June 8th.

Inspiration Point

Back to Berkeley! For a town that I don't much care for, I seem to go there a lot. I suppose I separate the town from Tilden, the Gardens, Inspiration Point, the golf course and the other things they have to offer outside of the city itself. Inspiration Point, in itself, is not very inspiring. They have basically one view of the San Pablo and Briones Reservoirs.

The view is ok, and mostly locals hanging out at the few picnic tables. But, there is something about Tilden that draws one to it's nature, wilderness, and beauty.

There are two trailheads there and for this day, I took the paved one that meanders around to an overlook. Yanni and I have twice taken the other one that leads to Jewel Lake, (see previous post).

I wander along the paved trail for a while until I come upon this uphill offshoot. Up I go and end up at the top of a plateau with great views all around.



Beautiful wildflowers as usual....

....and a perfect view of Mount Diablo. If you want to get an idea about how vast this mountain really is, check out the houses in the foreground.

After six miles, according to my trusty pedometer, I head back to my car. Oh yeah, a brief stop at the newly built outhouse. This, by the way, is the Cadillac of port-o-potties. Your tax dollars at work!

And now, for my favorite photo. I arrive back at my car and see this, which speaks volumes. If a picture is worth a thousand words, this is worth five thousand. There is so much to say about this, that I don't even know where to begin. I'll start with this: Being lost, I see that I'm clearly in Berkeley, the town of free speech, as long as it's the politically correct free speech. Berkeley, the town without balance.

Impeach Bush? Lots of people want him out, and he will be out shortly with the upcoming election, but go through the costly, lengthy, and ineffective impeachment process? I don't think so. Boycott Alcatraz cruises? Hmm..not sure where we're going here. If you've been to Alcatraz once, you're probably set for about 10-20 years before there is any need to return.

I'll just fast-forward to my favorite: "Destroy power, not people." I was so moved by this bumper sticker (the communication choice of those who do little else), that I burned all my camera batteries, my Power Bars, and even this evil-powered car, the ultimate "power" machine. OK, I'm done with my rant on Berkeley, the Rush Limbaugh of the left, whose good message is lost because of the over-zealous.
I know, I know....I should just stick to writing about the trails. No problem.

Berkeley Botanic Gardens in Tilden Regional Park

On March 22, 2007, I went to Berkeley’s Botanical Gardens in Tilden Regional Park. I’ve been there once before, but going alone, I figured that I would be able to spend a lot of time studying the hundreds of named plants growing there. I could wander around the native plants reading the signs and photographing the scientific names. Or so I thought. More on that later….

On the way up the hill to Tilden, I pulled over to get some of the great views of San Francisco from the Berkeley Hills. We can see the City, the Bay Bridge, Treasure Island, and Yerba Buena Island. This is a good spot at night to see the City lights.

Nice views of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge….

I have many shots of the City from the East Bay. I never tire of looking at this view and many of my screensavers are right here. On a clear day, you can see....well, you get the picture....

Driving on, I finally reach the famed botanic gardens. The botanic gardens are a nice place to walk around and see native plants. Spanning many acres, they have trails, paths, and bridges winding around with hundreds of labeled plants, trees, and flowers. http://www.nativeplants.org/ You would think that this would be the perfect place to hang out and learn about plants.

One giant problem: the signs are not clear at all, and sometimes wrong. Coffeeberry? Which plant? The one on the right or left? I know the plant and it is on the left, but I spent most of the day guessing which sign went with which plant.

California Huckleberry…Which one? There are three plants in this photo. See the clover-like plant at the bottom? That’s Redwood Sorrel. The Ivy in the upper left? No, the huckleberry is in the upper right. Very frustrating.

Now, the day wasn't a total loss, and some of the plants you can figure out. Well, sometimes you can, sometimes not. OK, this is, in fact, Fuchsia-Flowered Gooseberry.

…but other plants, like this Manzanita, are unlabeled.

You do get to see some cool plants like this Fremont Silk-Tassel, but you have to either know what you’re looking for or ask the ever-helpful volunteers that work at the gardens.

So, worth a visit? Probably, if you’ve never seen it, and you do get to walk around the fun little creeks and paths. But, if you are expecting to really learn something about the local plants, you may be disappointed with the poor signage.

Hiking in 1973

Rain canceled my usual hike with friend and fellow wanderer Yanni today. I am lost without my hike, photos, and posting to this site. Instead, I have been going through my nearly 2,500 old slides and finding amazing stuff! Old hikes, backpacking trips, college years, old friends, old family shots, and pictures from my first and second dates with Mellissa. Some of these will make it to the blog since some are just to funny to not post. I did find that I have been hiking, camping, and backpacking since Boyscouts. Here's me at age 19 in 1973 (in an unintended double-exposure on Mt. Baden Powell (a Southern California mountain named after the founder of the Boy Scouts).

Yes, I know...weird hair and 60 lbs lighter.....More classics like this to follow....

Lisa 'n Me

I found this picture of Lisa and me from I don't know where , but she likely will. I have a moustache and she is looking beautiful as always. I'll have to ask her where this is from, but I think it's Hawaii. By the way, Many thanks to those of you who have sent such positive and encouraging comments about the blog and the photos. We really appreciate it!

This one was in the hammock at Steve (my youngest brother) and Tina's house in Chico. We look pretty comfy!

My other brother Dan took this shot of us while in Yosemite, staying with him, his wife Judy and our two nieces, Amanda and Rebecca.

Mellissa's Training Ride

It's official: Lisa has registered for her first Triathlon. It's in Moraga later this month so time to dust off the bikes and head out. I have agreed to be her coach, personal trainer, and official photographer. You bike nuts will recognize that Lisa rides a Klein. Only the best for my sweetie.
We decide to see how long it will take her to do the 14 mile bike race, so we head out for the Iron Horse Trail. In the triathlon, she will first complete the 1/4 mile swim, do the 14 mile bike, and finish with a 3.1 mile run.
From Crow Canyon, you can head north or south on the trail. We chose the much more boring south end through Dublin, since we had not seen this section for years. Bummer, 'cause this is what it looks like. Two words: Bo Ring. It takes eight miles from our house to get to the end one way. Straight down, straight back. Impossible to get lost.

Here we are lost and checking the map..."let's see...if we are here, and Mexico is there...." http://www.ebparks.org/parks/irontr.htm

The only interesting thing on this part of the bike trail are the three "waterfalls". Now, calling these "waterfalls" is kinda like putting lipstick on a pig, however I am dying for something scenic here. By the way, Lisa bought me this cool windbreaker. The sleeves zip off and, given its color, I am impossible to lose.

Time for our eight miles back home. Here's a smart thing: how do you protect the bike riders as they pass by the golf course? Build a tunnel. That's it; the 3 waterfalls and this cool tunnel. I'm dying here. Next ride, we go north through Danville and Alamo. Less boooorrring.

OK, everyone has their own motivation for working out (and for finding the strength to make the last mile and a half climb up Crow Canyon.) Here's mine. As for Lisa, she had already swam a mile and a half that morning and then went for a run after finishing the bike ride. I gave her a small carrot and water. Come on, she's in training!

Wong Kids before Kevin

Isn't this a cute picture of Lisa and her brothers? Kevin was born later. Here is Mark, Paul, Glen, Lisa, and Doyle. My friend Phil has inspired me to post old pics of the family. Created by photographing old prints and then editing. I love this one of Lisa and most of her brothers. Kevin, I'll get you in later. You just weren't born yet!

Sunol Hike to McGuire Peaks (sort of)

Yanni's back after a two-week break and we celebrated by attempting the McGuire Peaks loop in Sunol Regional Park. The trail follows the Flag hill I did recently (see previous post for Flag Hill in Sunol.) After climbing up Flag Hill and then walking to the trailhead, we had already gone 3.5 miles. Completing the 5.5-mile loop and then walking back another 3.5 miles? Hmm....time for a decision: Uh...no way. Over 12 miles of "a whole lotta up" in the 80 degrees sounded, well...bad. So we decided to do another loop and just take some interesting photos.

...like this one of the goofy happy face on the way up Flag Hill. In geology, they call this 'Happy Face Rock", a common phenomena caused by the Earth's inner core when beer is spilled on the ground. It's true, look it up.

Yanni was very excited to get back into the woods. Here, he has made it to the top of Flag Hill and is celebrating by trying to spear one of the birds flying overhead with his hiking stick. No luck, fortunately.

Cruising on, I saw one of the best examples of the aptly-named Indian Paintbrush. This plant always looks good to me. (And, I guess also to the State of Wyoming, who adopted it as it's state flower in 1917). The local Indians believed that the flower was given to a young warrior by the Great Spirit. I wasn't there, but reportedly the warrior was having trouble painting the sunset with his war paints, so unable to compete with Nature, he asked for help from the Great Spirit. The flowers dotting the hillsides today are the leftover paintbrushes used by this warrior.

Back on the trail, we wander around the High Valley Camp, Cave Rocks, and all the other things that make Sunol such an interesting place. You can read about the park's history and everything else here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunol_Regional_Wilderness

Here I am holding down the park sign wearing my dork hat, but it protects my ears from the sun. Lisa bought me this great yellow hiking shirt that is loved by me (and really loved by every bee in the woods.."hey look Buzz, a giant dumb-looking new flower!")

People sometimes ask me what I carry in my pack. I take nearly the same items every time. They are: bandana, TP, maps, snacks, hiker's stool (22 0z), hat, waterbottles, small tripod, glasses, flashlight, Leatherman multi-tool, first-aid kit, plastic bags, rope, compass, waterproof matches, flint, spark-striker, sunblock, spare camera battery, camera, whistle, hiking stick, windbreaker, Kleenex, eyeglass packet cleaners, small bungees, monocular, and bug repellent.

For this trip, however, I only carried two items....

We finally made it back to the car after four and a half hours of hiking. I checked my pedometer for the distance (another gift from my cute wife) and it read 9.8 miles Yanni refused to accept this and made me walk around the parking lot for another two tenths, so we did 10 miles!