San Francisco

I got into San Francisco yesterday around noon. I’ve now completely adjusted to sleeping on the bus and can do it at will. When I got here I wasn’t tired at all. I took off to see the Castro Theater and the Civic Center. San Fran’s public library doesn’t match up to the excellence that is the SLC public library. San Fran also doesn’t seem to have as many active iPod users as DC. Maybe the DC folks are still listening to the 9-11 Report. Still San Francisco can throw down with any city in North America. I think we need a new reality series built around city vs. city grudge matches.

Except for an overnight in Albuquerque this is the end of the trip. I’ll just be passing through LA, Las Vegas and other places as I race back across the country before my bus pass runs out. I think I could live like this, for a little while at least. I feel so much more relaxed floating from place to place. The only hard moments are right after I get to a new city and I have to figure out where I’m sleeping and how to get there. I feel nervous and scared. Once that’s solved it’s easy. The rest of it I’ve done hundreds of times before. I think I like it because it’s okay to be alone.

While traveling I don’t feel the pressure to be with friends that I have once I settle down. The pressure is something that comes from inside me, not my friends. I don’t want to be alone. I want to see them. I want to hear new thoughts and ideas. I want people that I can love and share things with. When I’m travelling those pressures go away, at least they aren’t as high a priority as figuring out food and shelter. I’m just so spectacularly bad at maintaining friendships, and certainly girlfriends.

But put all that aside, it’s time to revel in San Francisco. Many kudos to Chris and Jennifer for putting me up for the night and being great company. Oh and mucho thanks to Chris for hooking Andy and I up when I was in Seattle. It turns out Andy was like four blocks up the street from where I was staying in Seattle and was there the same two days I was. It felt like deja vu all over again because Chris did the same thing when we were both in Dallas and didn’t know it.