4-17-08 Busy Bee

Last night I didn’t sleep very well. I had to stay up and do two journals. This kept me up until one and when I woke up in the morning, I felt as grouchy as a bear. I didn’t want to talk to anyone for fear of yelling at them, so I was silent for most of the morning. The ride to Santa Cruz city hall didn’t go so well. I got really frustrated that Thomsen decided to take off because we hadn’t gotten ready to go, even though he told us last night that we had to have the truck loaded and on the street biking by 7:30.   Luckily, city hall was just seven blocks away, so that wasn’t a problem. The building was amazing! I loved the rustic look it had. When we walked over, Tina Shull greeted us, she was one of the coordinators for our event. She invited us to eat unhealthy food, which we happily ate! After a couple of minutes several people started to show up, and as we explained our project, they all asked questions. Everyone was incredibly nice, and Tina was especially helpful when we needed directions to our next event. After we said our goodbyes, we headed out for San Jose. When we arrived at San Jose, I was a little ticked off. Not only was the contact, not picking up the phone, I wasn’t sure if there was going to be a meeting or not! The only things that lifted my mood were the amazing buildings. In little less than a half an hour we met with Jeff Janson. He talked about amazing plans for the city and what they were trying to make happen within a 15-year range. It was all interesting, but we were pressed for time, so we politely excused ourselves and left for Palo Alto. It was an easy ride to Palo Alto, but again we were late! I actually have to say, that even though T.C Williams impressed me, the campus of Palo Alto High school impressed me as much.  Not because they were eco friendly, but because of how friendly the people were. The event that was going on was called Not in Our School. It was all about breaking through discrimination, and how to overcome stereotypes. It was really neat, and to top that off we got to get free hugs! I was really sad that we had to leave, but we were already late so we had to go. Since we were running late, the Rotary Club wasn’t able to see us, and they cancelled the event.  Needless to say Thomsen wasn't too happy.  He had told me this morning to keep them updated and I completely forgot, and by the time I called them all I got was voice mail. I was very disappointed, but on the bright side, we got to see the amazing Golden Gate Bridge! Since Sausalito cancelled, we were back on time for our San Rafael event. The only problem was that I didn’t get specific directions to the high school and so it was a bit hectic trying to find out where to go.  While I was frantically calling on the phone, Drew asked a meter maid for directions and she escorted us right to the high school.  Everyone’s energy seemed to be great! The Health Club and the Physics Club got to explain what they were doing and what they wanted to do for their school. They were really big on solar energy and were interested in making a garden. I thought that these were really great ideas! After a quick presentation from us and a little question and answer session we were on our way to Sonoma. Without a doubt I would have to say that Sonoma was my favorite stop of the day. Because of another little bit of miscommunication, the car I was in and the other two cars got separated. I was so mad because I knew that we were going to be late if we didn’t get moving, so with Thomsen’s approval we headed for Sonoma City Hall. When we arrived I was shocked to see my grandparents! It was great to see them and later on they took us out to a lovely dinner, which was fantastic! Anyway, so after I was done talking with them, Tim, Sydney, and I all were asked to talk about our trip. I don’t know what happened but as soon as we started talking it was like we couldn’t stop! The chemistry going on between us three was perfect, which made the speech all the better. When the Penske finally caught up with us, we loaded out bikes out and headed for the high school. It was really cool to see how happy the students were to see recycling bins at their school. Also, what was even better was when they showed us the ravine they cleaned up! It looked great and from what they told us, it sounded like they had done a tremendous amount of work. After we planted a ceremonial tree, we ate a collection of local foods and got a tour along the ravine, which was awesome. When we got back, we got to chat for a little while longer until we had to leave for dinner. Dinner was delicious! I was so glad to finally sink my teeth into a good steak. Also the people at the restaurant were so kind and seemed thrilled about our trip! Overall I think that tonight went really well! Now I’m at the Double Tree hotel and I am getting very sleepy, so I’m going to log out!