In June 2018, we embarked on a whirlwind road trip from Big Bear Lake to Napa Valley, so that Dan could attend a work event tied to NASCAR at the Sonoma Speedway.

I was mildly envious that Dan was going to have a VIP NASCAR experience, but I ended up having a grand adventure of my own. More on that in a minute…

We woke up early on a Friday morning and hit the road in our brand-new Hot Wheels 50th Anniversary Edition Camero. I’m happy to report that we made it to the Bay Area in record time and did not incur any speeding tickets in the process. A road trip miracle!

We drove without stopping until we hit Merced, California, where we stopped for a bathroom break at the “Welcome Center.” There are always signs for “Welcome Centers” throughout the state, but this was the first time that I had stopped at one. It is an information area with brochures for local attraction, which also serves as a bus station. The building was very empty, but most important, the bathrooms were immaculate!

Our first night, we stayed at an Embassy Suites in Sacramento. Dan has diamond status through Hilton, so we are fairly loyal to the brand. I like the Embassy Suites hotels, because the rooms are so spacious. Technically, we don’t need the space of a suite, but having a separate living room is nice. The breakfasts tend to be a notch-above other Hilton brands.

This particular stay provided amusement via a teenage beauty pageant that was being held in the atrium. We didn’t see the pageant, but we did see the contestants prepping. The table next to us at breakfast had a young teen girl sitting very rigid ( miss perfect posture), trying to hold a conversation with three elderly women, one of whom was clearly her grandmother. I couldn’t help but think that this young girl probably had a million other ways that she’d rather be spending her Saturday morning. As we were checking out, we spotted the reigning pageant winner wearing her tiara and sash while filming a YouTube video in front of the hotel’s Starbucks. It was all low-rent glamour and awkward.

Our destination was Napa Valley, although a very famous part of California, an area that I had not previously visited. We had no time for wine tasting or touring.It was a beautiful area, however, we did not stay long. We checked-in to our hotel to discover that the air-conditioning was broken. We enjoyed the pool, while engineering looked into it, but they could not fix the problem and the hotel was sold out. It was simply too hot in the room to stay, so we left.

Since Napa was jammed for NASCAR, the closest hotel that we could find was an Embassy Suites in Walnut Creek. It was under construction and some of the amenities were closed, but it was quite a nice hotel.

It was surreal being in Walnut Creek. I attended Mills College in Oakland in the late 90’s, but I spent a lot of time in the Walnut Creek/Antioch area visiting my then- boyfriend and his family. I had not been back to the Bay Area since 1997, yet many things were very familiar.

Staying in Walnut Creek was a hassle for Dan, who had to drive back to Napa for NASCAR, but it was actually great for me, as the hotel was located across the street from a BART train station. I had never taken the BART before, but I wasn’t about to miss the opportunity to visit San Francisco. Taking the BART was extremely easy and inexpensive.

Luck was on my side, as I called my high school friend, Bekah, to see if she could meet up and not only was she free, but she had an extra ticket to the afternoon Giants game at AT&T Park. Bekah lives a fair distance from San Francisco, so it really was kismet.

As soon as I got on the train, I realized that something special was going on. The train was packed with people heading to the Pride Parade in San Francisco. Pride Parades happen all over the world, but certainly San Francisco has one of the most famous events. As soon as I stepped off the BART, I was in the middle of the festivities. I even caught the float from my former employer: NBC-Universal.

I stepped out of the sweltering heat to grab an iced-latte at Starbucks. Starbucks also got in on supporting the love.

The Pride Parade was a cool thing to experience, lots of positive vibes. The only negative is it made it very difficult to find Bekah. It was so crowded that it was hard to connect. We finally made it and we walked down to AT&T Park for the afternoon game. We were handed pride flags as we walked down the street!

Bekah and her kids love baseball and attend Giants games whenever possible. I have a complicated relationship with baseball. When I was in kindergarten, I was picked to be an Honorary Dodger Bat Girl for “Glendale Night” at Dodger Stadium. I was given a uniform and I got to go on the field, pose with the players. I threw a ball around with Rick Monday and Steve Garvey.

I hated it.

I was very shy and nervous. It was not a good experience and then somehow, in third grade, I had to do it again. I begged my mom, but she forced me to do it. The crazy thing, is my mom was in the hospital for gallbladder surgery and didn’t even go to the game. I acknowledge that it was a special experience, but even in retrospect, I wish that they had picked a kid who wanted it. I didn’t even like baseball. I still don’t like baseball. The last Dodger game I attended, I brought a book to read. I go for the Dodger dogs!

Going to AT&T Park was 100% about catching up with a close friend and getting to know her lovely children. I had a blast! The best part was getting champagne in the beer garden. I have no idea who the Giants played against or who won the game, but the catching-up was priceless.

After the game, I caught the train back to Walnut Creek. Being in San Francisco made me realize how much I miss San Francisco. I’m not sure that I’d want to live in the Bay Area again, but I certainly would love to do a longer trip.

The next morning, Dan had a quick meeting in Silicon Valley, while I browsed at Ikea and then we began the long drive home.