Matt Keally's Blog

I got killed on taxes today. The California state taxes weren’t that much, but the federal stuff was a real kick to the shins. The tax increase seems to be exponential compared to what you make. What I really don’t get is Social Security. I don’t get why the government can’t let everyone save for their own retirement. I can guarantee that I won’t get nearly as much out of Social Security as I put into it. If I put all the money taken out by Social Security into my own retirement account I would be much better off.

On Saturday I took the train into San Francisco. I don’t ride trains very often so it was a cool experience. I drove to the station in Mountain View, which is only a mile or two away. I could have biked, I guess, but the trains only leave every hour on the weekend and I didn’t want to be late. Good thing they don’t make you pay for parking on the weekend either, because they have some weird pay system for parking that I couldn’t figure out until after I left. I guess you have to pay at some kind of stand that gives you a ticket to put on your dash. Everywhere at home you can’t get into a lot without paying first or paying a cashier as you leave.

The train took about an hour and 15 minutes because it made all the stops. It was pretty full, too and I wound up sitting next to some people who were drinking vodka and lemonade out of plastic cups. They were out of it from the start and it was kind of funny to listen to their conversations. The train cars themselves had two levels of seating and there was a hole in the center ceiling so you could see everyone above you, which was weird. The entire ride was above ground except for a few tunnels and the tracks pretty much paralleled 101.

The train dumped everyone off pretty far outside the CBD, so I had to walk to get into the main part of the city. The train station was in a pretty sketchy area, at least by my standards, so I didn’t want to be there long. It was a straight shot from there to Union Square, up 4th Street. At Union Square, I more or less just hung out there for awhile. I got a drink and just watched everyone go by. There were some people with megaphones protesting the Iraq conflict as well as a band playing. There were mobs of people going in every direction. There were lots of foreigners, mostly Asian. There aren’t many Asian tourists at home — Canada is about as exotic as it gets. I probably could have sat there all day watching everything that went on. It was nice just to get away from work and the lodge.

Eventually I got up, and on my way out, noticed there was a Niketown. Niketowns are supposed to be the high-end retail stores for Nike, but they still didn’t carry any normal running shorts. All they had were the giant knee length basketball-style shorts. The last Niketown I was in at least had regular running shorts and it was only a fraction of the size of the one in San Francisco. I gave up and headed down Market towards the waterfront.

I walked around by the waterfront for awhile and got dinner in the ferry building: a hamburger on sourdough with sweet potato fries. The hamburger had barbecue sauce on it, which was unusual, but provided good flavor. The fries were great — they didn’t need any ketchup. The food was good overall, but expensive, and was the first time I’ve eaten out anywhere since my first week.

At this point I realized it was getting pretty late and I rushed back to the train station just before the train left. Gobs of Giants fans were pouring out into the streets at the same time. It had taken 13 innings for the Giants to beat the Yankees, so everyone on the train was going nuts, especially the conductor. He had some weird comment to make at every stop. Eventually, I got off and was relieved to find out my car hadn’t been towed.

Yesterday was grocery day and I picked up a few frozen things along with a salmon fillet. I figure there would be some good seafood here, so I decided to get some. But, I drive 3000 miles away from the Atlantic and the first thing I see in the seafood section is Atlantic salmon. There was also Copper River salmon, which is what I wound up getting. I got some shrimp, too, as well as some fresh Rainier cherries which we get at home sometimes.

This morning I was finishing my run when I saw the guy from last week that had put on a real show. I saw him in nearly the same place as before — just as I was about to cross the 101 and go into the base. I passed him just as I went through the gate onto the base. I figured he lived in the base housing (and was military) since he turned off as soon as we went in. That would explain why he chased me over the bridge last week. There isn’t much reason to go over the bridge unless you are going to the base. Then, after I get to the lodge and am just about to go into my room, the guy comes around the corner and I see his face for the first time. The weird thing is that I already know him — he is an intern who sits two cubicles down from me. How weird is that? We talked for a minute and went on. At least I’m not the only one here who takes running seriously.