I wisely left my wallet in the car Thursday night when I made a brief stop in at Canvas to see what I could see at Feria Urbana. Dozens of local merchants and artists were hocking jewelry, bags, pillows, clothing, belts, paintings, magnets...most all of it fantastic. I made some mental notes for future gift-giving opportunities and then ran like hell.

Saturday afternoon I scoped out a potential studio for my boy (cross your fingers! and your toes!) and then made my way down to Woodside for the Theatre in the Woods production of David Mamet's The Woods, starring Carolyn Zola and Victor Carrion. I nearly got wiped off the one-lane Bear Gulch Road West twice by impatient locals, but I made it to the site in time to enjoy the leisurely hike down to the theater area. The play itself was classic Mamet: the man was a beast and the woman was off-balance and it made me squirm a lot. That's a drastic simplification, of course, but Mamet's work often leaves me feeling like I'd rather not be watching what I'm watching. But I like that. Zola and Carrion were both fantastic, literally throwing themselves into the roles. I can't wait until Theatre in the Woods offers subscriptions.

That evening I crashed hard on the couch with Sleeper. I'd tried to watch it a few years ago and at the time it had bored me stiff, but this time I loved it. Maybe I've just schooled myself in enough of the science fiction it was spoofing to appreciate it more this time. Maybe I'm just less of a snob.

It took some work to get Sophie into her sandals Sunday afternoon, but finally the task was accomplished and Aimee drove us over to the city to check out that weekend's selection of Open Studios. Really it was just an excuse to get a huge brunch at Ti Couz, but the crepes provided fuel for our perambulations through the Mission. Again I left my wallet in the car to save me from myself. It was so much fun to stroll into artist's homes and workspaces and to see all the great things people are doing. I let it all wash over me and soaked up the sun and did little to hide my excitement at all the planes flying overhead for the Fleet Week activities. Engineer's daughter.

School of Rock
Feria Urbana
Canvas Cafe & Gallery
Theatre in the Woods
SF Open Studios