Carnaval

Today I left the apartment to go grocery shopping and got stuck at a parade. This is one of the things I love about my new neighborhood -- there seems to be some sort of festival about once a month.

I have to admit, I'm a bit confused about the event. I thought carnaval was basically the same as Marti Gras, but that was months ago. Unfortunately, the parade didn't do anything to actually educate us. In fact, the main point of the parade appeared to be to have very scantily clad woman shimmy up and down the Mission.

Here is what the web has to say:
For three decades, Carnaval San Francisco has been a much-cherished occasion for many cultures to come together in one spirit: to share in the exhilaration and creative expression, the abundance of beauty and community, the sheer joy and good times that makes Carnaval San Francisco such a rich experience and a spectacular sight to behold.

Once again as spring ends and summer begins with Memorial Day weekend we can all look ahead to brighter days on our shared planet by taking positive steps to leave a lighter footprint for those who follow. Just another reason to celebrate!

Still, it was good for photography.

Sad little writer

It has been almost two months since I wrote. I've probably lost all the readers that I somehow managed to obtain in two entries. If you are still here, I apologize for my neglect. I have good reason for being away and I hope I can fix this in the coming months.

So what could an unemployed person be doing to keep them so busy that they can't write a blog entry once a week? Oh, getting a job comes to mind. Moving to San Francisco doesn't help the time crunch either.

Yep, I'm now fully employed with an environmental nonprofit in San Francisco. This means I have been not only working full time (since March 22), but also trying to move and get settled in San Francisco. Let me tell you, moving across the country is no easy task. It isn't the same as moving a few states away -- this move has meant I had to change bank accounts, manage two moves (one from NC and one from VA) and learn an entirely new city. I also actually got rid of a lot of stuff before I left for Sri Lanka, so I've had to do some shopping. I now am the proud owner of a wonderful, semi-organic Keetsa bed and a not so environmentally sound sofa.

I've moved to the Mission, which is a very interesting neighborhood in San Francisco. I chose this neighborhood because it means a flat bike ride to work and I found an awesome apartment. More on that later.

For now, here are some shots of my new neighborhood. There is a great pie shop just around the corner from my place (in case you need pie in order to come visit!).