An appropriate April Fool's Day picture.

I really was NOT stalking Michael when we went to Pt. Reyes yesterday, though it might have seemed so. Sunday, since we were stuck in town, I started trying to think of places to go the few times this week we were actually free. We always like beachcombing and I started thinking about that, then remembered that since the whales are still migrating, we could go to Pt. Reyes. If it wasn't foggy, we could look out to sea, and we could also get in a good walk, and we could see Tule Elk.

Due to two (count them, TWO!) refinery fires in the last month, plus all the clean-air laws for California gas, the price per gallon has gone up 50 cents in the last two weeks, to $1.50. Hardly the time to decide to gallivant, I suppose, but we were ready anyway. The weather was clear, unlike last May when we went and it was so foggy. We could see snow on one of the mountains near Clear Lake, off in the distance.

At Pt. Reyes, the wildflowers are out in great profusion. We set off at a jaunty pace, and every time we got a good view of the ocean, particularly if we were going uphill, I stopped and scanned the horizon for whales. I had no luck with that, but down toward the point I saw some seals hauled out at Bird Rock.
This is a deceptive walk. Once we got past the place we were last year, we'd climb a rise thinking it would be the last one, and behold, another dip and rise. There were plenty of elk, and I finally realized why we weren't seeing any babies (are they calves?) The herd is under birth control, to avoid the necessity of shooting them to cull them. Off in the distance, we saw another group of 50 or more elk, and another dip and rise, and on we trudged. I was making a lot more "whale-seeking" stops. And another rise, and another disappointment. Finally we climbed yet another rise and actually saw the point, about a half-mile down. We turned around here and started back, since if we went DOWN, that would mean we had to go back UP. There were plenty of other places to do that.
It took us about 2 hours each way, just like Michael. I was getting lapped by hikers: they would pass going toward the point and then pass me coming back. The turkey vultures kept hovering nearby, but I kept telling them I was Not Dead Yet, go away. The sky was clear, and it was windy and cold.

Back at the car, we ate our lunch, then went to check out the beach. From there we went back to the Visitor's Center, where a covey of California quail were quite entertaining. On the walk (8.2 miles) we had seen a couple of different kinds of hawks, and a falcon, and flickers, and white-crowned sparrows. It's too early for the gophers, I guess.

It's my theory that a good trip has longer at the destination than it took to get there and back. There's a young family I know who are making a 4-day each way trip for a 4-day visit, not that they have any choice in the matter. We managed to accomplish a longer stay almost on the walk, and then added the Visitor's Center, so it was a good day. Then, coming home, we saw

CELESTIAL WONDERS!

It had been clear and sunny all day, and then we could see the dark clouds ahead of us over Vacaville. It became apparent, from the bright glow of approaching headlights, that it was raining there. Still, the sun shone on us, and we could see ahead the black sky and the shining neon green hills. Beautiful. And then, suddenly, a rainbow pillar! It seemed to be struggling to get bright enough to get high enough to arch. Eventually it made it to the top of an arc, but never quite made it over. Standing next to it were two other, fainter, rainbow pillars. As we travelled along, it seemed the batteries went out or something, and the rainbows faded away and sputtered out.

We travelled through a burst, and then there was no rain again, but off in the distance, over the mountains, I could see black clouds. Suddenly there was a patch of white cloud, I thought, no doubt illuminated by the setting sun. Another patch. Then it seemed to explode into white cloud and for a minute I thought it was a bomb-burst, till suddenly I realized it was the full moon, the blue moon, peeking through the clouds. The clouds covered it again and the next time the moon appeared, it actually looked like the moon.

At the Pentagon, military strategists admit privately they were pushed into the Kosovo campaign by a President eager to prove his manhood and divert attention away from the many scandals that have plagued his administration.

"This is President Clinton's war," one high ranking officer says, "and we all know how much military experience the President has."

But China's still there. And I'd sure hate to be Taiwanese these days, 'cause what happens when China threatens to use the nuclear stuff Clinton sold them, over Taiwan, and we have no ordinance left? (We're spending a Starr-investigation per day on this thing.)

I'll tie yellow ribbons around trees for the hostages, but I'm too ashamed to fly the flag.