This morning I got in the car around 8:30 and drove over the hills and down into the Mission to pick up the bird. The sun angled low across the city into my face as I drove east on Clipper, seeing how much I could coast into a reading of 100MPG on the Prius.

There was no parking on Dolores, so I went down 18th and past the Bi-Rite, and around the corner on Guerrero, where a perfectly legal spot awaited me outside Tartine Bakery. It was by this time 8:45, and a line over thirty people deep snaked out of the bakery door and down the sidewalk. One can only imagine how much more chaotic it became as the day went on.

I walked back down 18th to Bi-Rite, which opens at 9am. A handful of other morning people stood around outside waiting for the sign to flip to “Open.” I grabbed a bouquet of orange and yellow flowers from the cart out front. The sign turned and we were let in, and within a few minutes I had our thirteen-pound hen.

I put her in the trunk of the car and then decided to see if I could get coffee at Tartine. They have two counters there: one for baked goods and one for coffee and wine. Naturally, the coffee bar was empty. So it was easy to just walk in and get an espresso as a few dozen people waited for pies on the other side of the cafe. I don’t really blame them. Tartine’s desserts are absolutely divine, and I would wait in line for one of those pies if I wasn’t planning to bake my own.

Back over the hill fairly swiftly, listening to NPR. At home, I rushed around fitting the turkey in the fridge along with the stockpot full of brine. Then I trimmed the flowers and put them into a vase. Of course after I had turned my back for a minute, Simon was up on the table with his face in the bouquet. He’s like Ferdinand the bull. I had to put the vase into the office and close the door to ensure he wouldn’t go nuts and spill the whole thing as soon as I left.

And finally, took the train to work for a half day. About to leave now, to go home and make a couple of things for tomorrow. Have to do something about the huge pile of stuff under the dining table. We’ve been throwing items we plan to give to charity there, but as yet haven’t been organized enough to actually do it.

My work is making me take my laptop home and be “on call.” Bah. Hopefully it will be meaningless.