Both boys have gone, Sam this morning, Gus a few days ago. Great visit, too short, but now Mary Lou and I think ahead to our flight tomorrow evening and to activities in Cambridge.

Today Mary Lou and I ran down through Golden Gate park to the beach, and then south along the beach to the zoo. The fog cleared to give us a very nice day, quite warm on the beach with the sun in our faces and the wind at our backs. A vigorous surf and a very high tide pushed us to the upper limits of the beach in the narrow stretches. Sam and I ran the reverse route yesterday, uphill and much faster. We three (Dave, Mary Lou and Sam) ran various routes through the park and along the beach during our week together. On New Year's eve the three of us joined more than 100,000 other people down near the ferry building, an easy walk from our hotel, for the midnight fireworks.

With Gus, we shopped, drove up to Muir Woods (for a picture, see Mary Lou's blog at www.tettimes.blogspot.com), and rode the cable cars. We walked along the bay and visited the Exploratorium. We ate at California, Chinese, Mexican, vegetarian, and Spanish restaurants, some of them excellent. We also made frequent stops at one or the other of the nearby Whole Foods groceries for our snacks and supplies.

Earlier, before family members arrived, I took the train to Redwood City to see my Swanson cousins (picture above). From left to right, for those of my friends and siblings who do not know: Barbara (daughter of Harry), Evelyn, Betty and Elaine (daughters of Clarence), Vincent (son of Art) and Dave (son of Lorraine). Barbara lives in Bakersfield and had driven up to visit her step-son in San Francisco. Vincent came over from the east Bay. Evelyn, Betty and Elaine live in Redwood City.

We had great fun, laughter and conversation and pictures. Elaine teases Vincent mercilessly, and he gives the same right back. We started on health and family news, what we knew about siblings and cousins not present. We then talked about pets (stimulated by the local cat), which led to horses and pictures. Once we had started on the Cambridge pictures from my iTouch, we rapidly moved to the old Swanson pictures and the enjoyable discussions about who made what visits, California to Illinois or vice versa, when, about who moved from where to where and when, and about small things we remember about visits, trips, or locations from Honey Crick, Wisconsin to Geneva, Illinois to Arvin, California. We enjoyed our afternoon together. I rode with Barbara back north into San Francisco that evening. Later, Mary Lou, Sam and Gus and I met again with Evelyn, Betty and Elaine at the San Francisco airport on the day Gus arrived.

For Mary Lou and I, a long flight overnight on Sunday will get us back in London around mid-day on Monday, and back in Cambridge by the end of the afternoon. We hope.