Icer Air pics

Here are some of the cool shots from the event yesterday - Enjoy!










Jonny Moseley midair off the jump!










I can actually see my apartment from this shot!













Closer shot - you can see the crowds that came to see the event - very cool!









Couldn't pass up the "Wipe Out" shot!

It's Snowing!!

Well, not really - but Icer Air 2000 is in town - right up the street from my apartment - along with over 200 tons of snow (real snow - trucked in and also man-made from ice machines) - a group of the best snowboarders/skiers in the world - and the ever present (at least around my area) Jonny Moseley. So - today at noon - literally thousands of people are expected to watch Moseley and 20 other skiers and snowboarders ski down a snow covered ramp on Fillmore - soar off a ski jump at the Vallejo intersection - wow the crowd with midair tricks and - hopefully - land Green Street. Bales of hay will protect them from skiing into oncoming traffic if they can't stop in time. A lot of the residents of Pacific Heights are all bent out of shape because of the disruption - the 200+ tons of snow - the baracades - and all the people who will be in their little neck of the city. If you don't know - Pac Heights is the wealthiest area of SF - homes can go upwards of 15M - so to have 1000's hanging around your house - trampling what little lawn you might have - with the boarders pulling 360s past your multi-million dollar windows - yeah - i'd be a little peeved too - however - it's just too freaking cool to get worked up about.

Check out the photos i took this AM - sorry for the crappy camera phone pics - but it's the best i could do. Enjoy.






The ramp on Fillmore leading to the jump













That blurry mass at the bottom is the jump













Blowing fresh snow down the ramp












Shot of the making of the 10 foot high jump






I got invited to go to the after party - something private and fun with all the boarders - jonny - and interestingly enough from what i hear - jake gyllenhaal - but i'm passing - i'm not a snow bunny - i'm a city bunny...

Swish Swish Swish - K

Three Cheers for Insomnia

The bitch is back - and that bitch would be insomnia. I couldn't sleep last night - work is crazy - i'm getting my period - rich and i had a long talk (we're fine - just needed to hash some things out) - and the planning for this gala in Oct is beginning to take up even more time than i anticipated. I'm tired, exhausted, and yet I can't sleep. I'm supposed to go to dinner with friends tonight - a new restaurant - and i'm going to bail on the evening because i just need to sleep. I think i'm going to take Tylenol PM - see if that helps - maybe soak in a really hot bath. What's really bizarre is when i did finally wake up this AM after falling asleep for a few hours - i was crying. What the fuck. I've never woken up crying before. Weird dream about not being able to find my car - i was barefoot in an airport - but there were dentist's offices there - that geeky guy from that movie "can't buy me love" - can't remember his name - but now he's a total hottie on some tv show - he was a dentist - please - you know how dreams go - completely nonsensical. I think i'm just really stressed out - i've got 9 deals on my plate right now - plus another 5 that are closing the first week in Oct - and i guess my mind just can't settle.

I did buy myself something lovely though - a little treat at www.vivre.com - one of my absolute favorite sites. Totally amazing and decadent - everything they have is like a little piece of luxury. I treated myself to a gorgeous, velvet-lined box of carved black ceramic housing 12 beautifully embossed notecards and envelopes with scallop detail at the corners.
So even though going crazy - at least i'll have pretty stationary to write on while locked up in the sanitarium.

I'm hoping this will pass soon...

K

Separated at Birth

I wasted yesterday away watching tv - running errands - and napping. My last errand of the day was to do a little grocery shopping - nothing major - just needed a few things. I was waiting in line at the express checkout - and noticed a girl waiting in line at the next checkout aisle over. She looked EXACTLY like Shrek. So she didn't have the trumpet like ears - or the greenish skin tone - but her face looked exactly like his - just picture Shrek with long braids - et voila. I totally couldn't stop staring. So not nice - but damn - it's not often you see Shrek shopping at Safeway.

Poor honey. Someone needs to get her a spa day and a makeover.

Great weekend

I drank a bit too much on Friday night - it was Kevin's birthday - 35 - and we went to a restaurant in SF called "SuppenKuche" - it's an authentic german restaurant - the menu barely translatable - full of schnitzel, spatzle, sauerbraten, bratwurst and beer - that i understood. BEER. I'm not a huge beer drinker - more of a nice leggy pinot or cab girl - or an icy grey goose and tonic with a lot of lime. But when in rome...

There were ten of us at dinner - we had the large table in back - there is no formality here - it's open seating - you share your table with other diners when necessary - it's loud - the rooms filled with laughter and the clinking of glasses - smooth planked tables - benched seating and dried flowers and wheat hanging from the ceiling. Our group was large enough to have our own area - while we waited for the last 3 to arrive - we orded our first round of beers. I had the spaten. The beer is so fresh there - amazing - makes me actually appreciate a cold beer. The guys ordered HUGE steins of beer which held probably 3-4 pints of beer each. I finished the spaten pretty quickly - and while we ordered appetizers we ordered our second rounds and i got my tipsy little hands on one of those bad boys. I had to hold it with 2 hands - it was too heavy to drink like a regular beer. Once everyone arrived and the appetizers were finished we ordered dinner - which was delicious and another round of beer. We also opened the champagne i brought for Kevin and everyone toasted to his birthday.

After dinner - we stumbled - literally - over to the bar area - trying to organize and decide where to go next. We decided on a little dive called Place Pigalle down the street. It was kind of a hole in the wall - dark - with sunken couches and beat up coffee tables - 2 pool tables in the back and a long battered bar along one wall. We commandeered the L shaped section at the end of the bar - near the front door and ordered more rounds of drinks. And then more. People began to say their goodbye's and head home. Kevin still wanted to party - for good reason - so we put our sights on Balboa. I never made it though - too much to drink - my feet were killing me (damn stiletto's) - and i was tired and wasn't interesting in partying anymore. I called rich on my way home - he was laughing because he could tell from my voice how much i'd had to drink. I fell into bed around 1am.

Saturday was recovery - i was hung over. Big time. So i popped some advil - drank lots of water and chilled on the couch. I didn't feel better until that evening and while i had offers to go out - i decided to stay in. I saw the movie the Grudge a few weeks ago - i love scary movies - and this didn't disappoint. Very scary - creepy actually. It's a take on the japanese film - Ju-On - which means Grudge (from my understanding) - about a murder/suicide that happened in a house - the spirits stayed at the house - and take out their pain and suffering on all those who enter. Well, i've heard the japanese version was even more frightening - and it was on - so while rich was out at a friend's birthday party in the Village - i turned off all the lights - lit candles - sunk into my couch - and watched the movie. It was definitely scary - and i could totally see how they americanized the version with sarah michelle gellar. I'd recommend both actually.

Sunday i headed over to the farmer's market - there is one right near me - and bought some fresh peaches, strawberries, some organic field greens and 2 croissants. MMM. Went home - fussed about and then headed out to one of my favorite stores - they were having a huge sale and i couldn't pass it up. I've talked about this secret store before - the most decadent gorgeous designer goods at a fraction - literally a Fraction of the cost in the stores. I got a gorgeous watch - it looks like a sterling silver rectangular pill box - topped with 2 small carved flowers with center stones flanked by a pearl - and it has an alligator band. Very very pretty - i think it was originally marked at over $400 - i bought it for $41. But the best deal i found were the Christian Dior boots - MEOW - so fucking hot - over $1,200 in the stores - i picked them up for under $200. What more could a girl ask for. Um - could those BE any sexier??

I got a few other things - almost purchased a pair of D&G stiletto's but passed - but i did pick up a darling little top - sprinkled with opalescent sequins at the botton. Very cute.

My parents called and asked me to join them for dinner. My uncle bill is in town and i hadn't seen him in a while so i thought that would be great - my sister/her husband and the babies were having dinner with friends and we would all meet up afterwards. I headed to marin - we were going to meet in tiburon for chinese food - but it was closed so we went to Rooney's - great little local place. Had a nice dinner - met up with the babies afterward at the waterfront pizza place - and hung out. Played with the babies for a bit - the little one loves my hair - likes to hold it in his hands and rub it together - i think it's darling - but i end up with a knotted 'fro afterward once he gets done. We all said our goodbyes - i'm sure i'll see bill again before he leaves back to NY. Headed back home to SF with rich in my ear.

Work is crazy so that weekend was needed - i've got a charity event to go to on thursday - i'll update after that party - should be Fun!

Meow - K

Sanity vs Stilettos

A recent SF event to mark the nightly airing of Sex in the City had women lining up at midnight this past saturday in Union Square - sleeping in queue overnight (SF is not warm) for their chance - CHANCE - to snag one of the 1000 pairs of Jimmy Choo's being given away as promotion for the event. These women - not even guaranteed their size - spent hours - waiting for their chance to be handed a pair. Oh please oh please oh please...

WTF. Are you kidding me? If i happened to be down there shopping - not unlikely - the square is flanked by gucci - dior - saks - neiman's - loro piana - etc - and saw that madness - certainly i would check it out - however - i would never - ever - park myself overnight - outside - for a 'chance' to get a pair of Choo's. They're beautiful shoes - decadent even - but to subject myself to being one or two rungs on the social ladder above the 35 year old basement dwelling dungeon and dragon playing virgins who camped out in front of the WRONG theatre in LA awaiting the arrival of the latest Star Wars episode - is something i would never do.

To each their own - but the funniest thing about this whole mess is that now - swarms of girls are selling the shoes on craigslist - because they don't like the colors and the sizes are wrong. So after 8 hours in line - you aren't even happy with the result. Faaaaaabulous.

Go to Neiman's girls - you'll be much happier in the long run...

Insomnia - yet again

I have bouts of insomnia when i'm very busy and stressed out. It's end of quarter at work and i'm slammed. I'm working on about 7 deals right now - 2 global and the other 5 for the 'Americas'. I know i'll get more. That's guaranteed. I'm also working on the grand reopening of a San Francisco museum - a huge celebrity filled gala in October. I'm not complaining - i wanted to be on the Board of Directors - and i love it. It's just a lot of work. A lot. But who am i kidding, i'm hardly complaining about fielding phone calls from Nick Cage and Chris Issak - haha.

It's not so much the work - it's the byproduct which is the insomnia. The tossing and turning - eyes wide open - the clock taunting me - clicking away minutes and then hours. I was up for about 3 hours last night - restless and beleaguered by lack of sleep. I actually pulled my comforter off my bed and attempted sleep on my couch. For some reason, a different location other than my bed sometimes allows me to fall asleep. It worked this time, for about half an hour. Finally - around 4:30am i trudged back into my bed - curled up - and fell asleep. I slept so soundly that my alarm, which normally bolts me awake with progressively louder and faster chirps - sitting out of my reach so i actually have to get up to turn it off because it's that unbearably loud and annoying - failed to even stir me. I only woke when rich made his morning phone call to me - to make sure i was awake and starting my morning.

The one thing that made last night less pained were the beautiful roses on my coffee table (pictured below) - sent by rich yesterday - with the most amazing card. He surprised me at work with an afternoon delivery of 2 dozen multicolored roses - totally gorgeous. They made last night less tortureous knowing that part of him was there with me...

Rich's visit - recap

Rich left last wednesday and headed back to NY. I so did not want him to leave. It was so tough to drop him off at the airport - but with work mounting - for both of us - we had to say goodbye and return to our lives - living on opposite coasts. We had the best time - so much fun and i'll try to chronicle the days and nights as best as my memory serves.

Wednesday i picked him up at the airport - peppered him with kisses and hugs and headed back into SF to show him my city. He was pretty shocked at how small SF was - where were the skyscrapers - where was the 'downtown' area - where were the towering apartment buildings - well, darling, i live in the Marina - and there aren't skyscrapers and towering apts - there are boutiques and cafe's and and victorian duplexes and great restaurants and wine bars. I love my neighborhood. We schlep his stuff upstairs - hello 60lb suitcase - and head out to have lunch on Chestnut street. Lots of good restaurants to choose from and we decided upon Andale - great mexican food. Some chips, guacamole, sangria, grilled shrimp and a burrito maya later - we're exploring the rest of Chestnut. After a bit of walking around - we headed back to the apartment where rich took a nap. I put some of his stuff away - and then napped along side him for a while. We got up around 7pm and decided to go to Cozmos for dinner. Fun place - great vibe - has that NY/LA sort of feel. Dinner was wonderful - they have a new chef - thankfully - and he's done wonders for the menu! After dinner we headed back to my apartment and hung out for a while then fell fast asleep...

Thursday was spent sightseeing - we headed down to Chrissy Field - and walked around - it was quite foggy and really chilly (rich ended up buying a fleece to keep warm) - but we had fun. We walked along the water - took pictures along the pier - perused the giftshop/warming hut. I wasn't feeling 100% - my back was hurting me and so was my stomach - so we ended up driving around a bit and then heading back to my apartment where i took a nap. Woke up several hours later - still not feeling well - we decided not to go out - so instead we ordered chinese and relaxed in front of the tv. It was a nice mellow night. The next morning rich went out and got us breakfast from noahs - yum - and we decided to do a bit more shopping/sight seeing. We tried to get tix for alcatraz but they were sold out - so we ended up at the Masonic auditorium on Nob Hill - taking in the exhibit - the Universe Within - completely wild - amazing actually! Basically it's an exhibit featuring actual human bodies that had been 'plasticized'. Sounds disgusting and mind you - some of it was completely bizarre - but it was incredible at the same time. To actually see the inside of the human body - to see the arteries, the veins, the organs - how it all interconnects - each area defined by a different colored liquid plastic (that had hardened) - was really just so cool. If it comes to your town - GO.

After the exhibit - we did a little shopping and then ended up on Union street. I wanted to take him to Betelnut for dinner - but the wait was out the door - as was the wait for Home - so we ended up having a lovely dinner at Prego. We bought our tickets to see "The 40 year old virgin" prior to dinner - so after dinner we headed over to the theatre - stopping to window shop beforehand. The movie was hysterical! So funny! We headed home after dinner and fell into bed.

Saturday was spent sightseeing again - back to Chrissy Field and Fort Point - the Palace of Fine Arts and the Legion of Honor. Rich took some great pictures - i'm sure he'll post them. I have scattered some throughout this post - as well. I was a little nervous given that rich and my parents were meeting for the first time that evening - so i was a little preoccupied. We headed back to my apt around 5ish - i wanted some time to relax and get ready without being rushed. I chilled out - and spent a little over an hour getting ready. We taxied to the restaurant - Town Hall - owned by a friend - it's wonderful - and has gotten amazing reviews - despite being a bit noisy. My parents were a bit delayed due to the city setting up for the Grand Prix the next day (SF's very own tiny tour de france - usually Lance rides - but this year he passed). They arrived - the introductions were made and we were seated immediately. We had a great table with a view of the entire restaurant - and we ordered some wine while we decided what to have for dinner. The conversation flowed and everything was going well. PHEW! I was so nervous. But everything turned out okay. Dinner was great - and we took a quick tour of the mansions in pacific heights on our way home - mom and dad were cool - and the evening was just wonderful.

The next day - rich and i awoke to the sounds of the pace cars and the bicycles zooming past my apartment - very very cool - with an amazing view right outside my bay window. We just chilled out for a bit - knowing we had to be in marin to meet my dad. He and rich were heading to Oakland to watch the Yankees beat the A's. From what i heard - they had a great time at the game - watched batting practice - rooted for their team - ate 'game' food and cheered when the Yanks trumped the A's. I picked rich up at my parents house after the game was over. We stayed for a bit to say hi to my parents - dad took rich on a mini tour - and then we headed out - and headed home. Monday was Labor Day - and we mellowed out in the morning and then headed over to my parents for the afternoon. My sister and her husband, along with the babies were already there when we arrived. Everyone was in the backyard when we came in - and we joined them - taking a lounge for ourselves. I introduced rich to my nephews - my sister and her husband - and we all hung out and had a relaxing afternoon. Dinner was wonderful - grilled chicken - lamb chops - my mom's macaroni and cheese (which is simply amazing and so not like your traditional macaroni and cheese) - champagne and wine and sparkling water. It was a great afternoon - we had a lot of fun - rich and i played with my nephews - and he chatted with my sister for a bit. We left around 9pm - tired - sated - happy - and ready for bed. Although rich wanted to go out for a drink - i kind of convinced him otherwise... :) We decided to go up to my roofdeck and relax and take in the view - it's really beautiful at night.

Tuesday was spent working a little - until around 2pm - and then we hit Union street for some shopping - rich wanted to get his sister and parents some SF treats - so we headed to some of the cute shops. I ended up buying another pair of sandles ( i have 3 now of the same pair - they're awesome) - and rich picked up some great gifts for his family. After we finished walking around - we got a jamba juice to share and headed back to the apartment. Rich's friend - ari - was going to be stopping by - they hadn't seen eachother in a few years and i wanted to make sure we weren't late returning home. We got upstairs - put our packages down - and the phone rang. Ari was downstairs. Good timing! Ari was great! So nice - funny - genuine - just an all-around great guy. He stayed for a few hours - and we had a fantastic conversation. I really enjoyed meeting him. After we said our goodbyes - rich walked him downstairs - and i fixed myself for dinner. We were going to go to Bistro Aix - but the menu was somewhat lacking and the atmosphere a bit more formal than desired - we headed across the street from Aix to Izzy's - an awesome steak house. It's a regular place for my friends - we love it. I had the drunken shrimp and rich had a filet (i think...) - we had a private booth and had a great last evening in san francisco dinner together. Kevin called from the airport and we made arrangements to meet up - rich and kevin had to meet - they'd already spent time on the phone together - not to mention IM/email - he couldn't leave SF without meeting him. We would have actually spent a lot of time with him had he not flown to chicago on a whim to hang out with a friend who moved there last year. We finished dinner - and headed back to the apt. Kevin called from downstairs about 5 minutes later - and he came up for a quick hello. I was glad they got to meet. They're 2 of the most important men in my life :)

Rich started packing - pulling shirts from the closets, boxers and socks from the drawers - and i got sad. I didn't want him to leave. It had been too perfect - it's always so perfect. He told me not to be sad - that he'd be back soon - and i would be heading to NY in no time. We finished packing - and pulling his stuff together and climbed into bed. I curled up next to him - and fell asleep in his arms. Wednesday was a little hectic - i worked on the couch - fielding emails and phone calls while rich did the same - he finished packing and we headed off to the airport. ug. So hard to say goodbye. I dropped him off at united - helped him with his stuff - hugged and kissed him and tried not to be sad. It wasn't easy. But it's the way it is for the time being. We love eachother - and despite the distance - it's the knowing of what's to come that makes it bearable.

It's been hard since he left - i miss him. But i'll be in NY in october - and he should be coming back out to SF in december. So all is well. We had a great time - the visit couldn't have gone better - it was awesome! I can't wait to get back to NY - that city has my heart - in more ways than 1...

Must go - masses of work to do - very very busy week - i'll update later this week - lots going on.

Meow - K