I just called to say I love you*

Thanks, Walter (I am still tired). Will pack now!

Wow! Toronto, Cocoa Beach, London, This gathering thing is taking off isn't it!

PS Urs, your hug was delivered.

Here are a few more details of our gathering: Sat. toured several art galleries with Osso leading, then Coppola cafe (or something like that) for a light lunch. Numerous signs, artifacts there associated with the director of 'Apocalyse Now' etc.

Then to the 'Beat' book store ('City Lights') said to be a hangout of Kerouac, Ginsberg et al. An alley: 'Kerouac Way' is nearby.

I bought another anthology of Irish poetry (what else)

From 'City Lights' we went to a cafe ('Vesuvio') next door to hoist a glass. Then, while others cabbed it back to the King George and Adaggio, jjorge walked back through Chinatown with it's wonderful outdoor markets and vendors etc.

At 7:30 pm We left for 500 Jackson (see pic of tangerine sorbet) for dinner cramming ten people into two cabs (you really get to know others in a special way when you cram! :wink: )

BTW Eva it was at 500 Jackson that we toasted you --Solea was Sun. night.

Lots more to say but I'm flying home in a few hours and have much to do.

PS
Osso had me up to 'see her etchings.'
Well, really she gave me a scotch and showed me photos of her wondewrful landscapes. They are LOVELY. Osso is hiding her light under a bushel. Folks, we need to hound her to post a few for you to look at.

later, jjorge

Hey Osso, bring those etchings/landscapes out and show them to us all!

Hey! You've been holding out on us? No fair!!!

BBB
Thanks, Jjorge. I'm so glad Osso's eyes were healed enough for her to make the trip to the gathering. Sounds like everyone had a great time. We want to hear from everyone about their experience.

BBB

I saw Osso's paintings.........or pix of them. She's a very talented woman, and I didn't even know she could paint.

BTW, jjorge was right when he said the flavor of the sherbert was tangerine. I remember humming that tune while we ate that delicious dessert. (I was going to say the jjorge mistook the flavor, because he had chocolate sauce put on his. LOL)

I'm still in SF, posting from the hotel business room; am amazed, it's free. I loooove my hotel. Took whole groups of a2ker's up to see my nice room - it was on a corner, had windows facing both west and south, with the western one looking onto a roof garden. The refrigerator had lots of goodies, all sort of gourmet-ish, with good juices, heinekens (sp?), at non-exorbitant prices. Everything in sort of danish modern style, mixed with some japanese touches. Very cool place, Hotel Adagio.

On the people - I was so pleased, I think we all were. Everybody was intensely who I expected them to be. I already knew them, did not have any sense of surprise, more it was a continued conversation in three dimensions, as blatham added.

I am not so sure I have ever really laughed so much over such an extended few days although no one was workng at being a comedian. Dys is a consumate teller of real life tales, with great delivery: I was mesmerized, really appreciated getting to hear him. We all took lots of taxi rides, who was in which taxi changing. I missed the ride where Dys and the taxi driver had a continuing riff, which I'll let Diane tell about. But I did hear the by play with the waitress at the Daily Grill, where the waitress held her own in the repartee.

But I was in on the ride with the Russian taxi driver who took us on a notquiteSteveMcQueen ride up and down Russian and Nob Hills; we told him about Able2Know and nudged him to post, but he doesn't thnk his english is good enough. It is. He and JJorge started talking about Russian poetry....

The food, the food...
well, more later, got to go for my city walk..

Envious - and still lurking!

That sounds so great!

And only a couple of hours until we leave for Florida. And we will see Misti and Rae soon! And then JoanneDorel and then Roger - oh, and of course Panzade.

I am so glad to hear that all the gatherings work so well. I think it tells a lot about the way we are on the forum - honest and ourselves.

urs, Your "-honest and ourselves" speaks volumes about the people I have met at A2K Gatherings. We even shared a few family dirty laundry during our talks, and it continues to "work so well." The important point of these Gatherings is to enjoy the company of good people in conversation and fun; and it's been fun. The frequent smiles says it all, but looking forward to the next Gathering says even more.

Osso took them up to see her etchings?







Oh my!

Yowza, way to go Osso.

Yes, dlowan, but jjorge got individual attention...

Well, look, the bar was closed downstairs!

Actually, he really liked the album of my paintings and that meant a lot to me.

I just got back from shopping, which I didn't mean to do, but tucked into all the sleek stores like Tiffany's and Gump's is a Loehman's, a kind of discountarama, which had some Coach bags on sale. Well, first of all, San Francisco has more purses in these few square blocks than available in other whole cities..

Anyway, I stared for what must have been an hour at a lot of the animal friendly purses, then fell for this leather one on sale.. sigh.

I took a bunch of street photos, with some views of places we've been.
I missed connecting with another friend today, but that's fine, this is a city I enjoy walking by m'self too. The sky is glorious today...
Hope the pdiddies are having a lovely time in the wine country..

I miss everybody, now that I'm home. The fun of seeing friends and enjoying them as I do is also a loss when it's over.

I got there a day early, since I had to leave on Sunday. Mr. and Mrs. c.i. and I had a delicious dinner (maybe the best dinner of the weekend for me.) They had beautiful photos of Japan. And interesting stories to tell about their trip there. Mrs. c.i. is lovely and gracious and, I must say, brave to put up with the rest of us for the entire weekend.

On Friday I started out for Haight Street and somehow ended up at Fisherman's Wharf instead.......this was caused by getting on the right bus, going the wrong way. Oh well. After walking along for a while, I found the sea lions. Very entertaining. The next day, after breakfast at Sinbad's on the Wharf, some of us returned to see the little darlings. Their interaction was fascinating. Lots of aggression and competition in the animal kingdom. Diane, Dys and Blatham were very impressed, I could tell. They're all a bunch of socialists........unwilling to admit to the natural order of animals......well, I guess that's going a bit too far, although I wonder if they agree with me. But they didn't seem to appreciate all the fighting for the prime spot and the women like I did. I do love a bit of aggression in it's proper place. But it was cold in the unsunny spot we had for observation and the wind was blowing. It was a great morning.

At lunch we had a chance to talk some more. Old friends I'd met before (Mr. and Mrs. PDid and Diane and Dys and jjorge) and old friends I hadn't yet met were good to see. Mrs. PDid is an animated sort and full of wisdom about the world. And fun, very fun and funny. PDid himself is as you would expect, no surprises there.

His t-shirts were a real pleasure, and they didn't even get us in trouble in SF. The first one said something intellectual like, "Bush Sucks" and the second one said an equally edifying thing like, "Bush Sucks." No, the second one said another thing and the picture of Bush was lovely, but I don't remember what it said. It didn't matter, however because whatever it said, it carried the same message as the first. And on the third day, we had the Sopranos.

Osso, as we've already said, had some lovely photos of her gallery and paintings. I was very impressed. And she had a yellow green jacket that I was plotting to steal, but didn't get the chance. It's funny how much seeing our a2k friends improves our understanding of who they are. And Osso had a fantastic room in a marvelous hotel. I'll let someone else describe the bar. Lights like mobiles from the Guggenheim.........oh, I said I'd let someone else describe...

jjorge is my old friend from a Boston gathering last June........it was very good to see him again. But he had a bit of trouble keeping up with us. Actually, I must confess, we all had a bit of wine to drink at the meal with the tangerine sorbet and somehow or another, jjorge got left behind when he went to the restroom. He didn't deserve to be left and we all felt terrible about it. I didn't get a chance to tell him I was sorry........so I'll do it now. Kiss kiss, jjorge, I wish it hadn't happened. It says nothing at all about how much we love you. And I noticed that it didn't seem to ruin your fun much.

And georgeob didn't show. I was very disappointed, as I believe we all were.

On Sunday, I had to leave early and was very sad to do so. But I'll remember the week end fondly and look forward to the next one.

Here's to friends. Some of my best are from a2k.

Now - why the smeg can't we get Margo and Msolga talking like this about THEIR weekend????

Damn stiff upper lipped full of good behaviour narrators THEY are, I can tell you....

Just wondering, whom THEY left in the restroom, who didn't show up, but was expected ... ... :wink:

I thought I posted here earlier. Guess it didn't take. I've been reading along, just not saying much.