On the road again: Silicon Valley, day 2

Work dominated almost all of my waking hours, and, as usual, I can't talk about it.

I did get to have lunch at a local favorite of mine, the Pancho Villa taqueria in San Mateo. The food is nothing fancy, but, man, is it delicious.  I particularly love the Al Pastor Super Burrito, which is a thick tube of tasty goodness.  (Hold those dirty jokes.)  This restaurant also makes one of my favorite beverages, the almost-too-sweet, made-fresh-there mandarina.

While driving around the area to meetings, I saw my first Tesla Model S.  Wow, is that a gorgeous car!  I almost wish I hadn't seen it, because I'd made peace with not getting one, and now I'm lusting for it again.

Dinner was at another long-time favorite, a little strip-mall restaurant where I ate monthly for over five years, Tokie's.  The sushi is still good, and the atmosphere is that of a neighborhood bar.  I definitely recommend it if you're in the area.

On the road again: Silicon Valley, day 3

Wow, do these sales trips lead to long work days! I don't do much other than work and sleep a few hours, but the days are crammed nonetheless.

Today's food highlight was lunch at my favorite local burrito source, the Pancho Villa Taqueria in San Mateo. Their burritos are awesome, particularly the super burrito with carnitas, and they also serve my favorite sweet drink, the mandarina. I'm glad I can't obtain that beverage anywhere near me, because it's full of sugar and I could drink it all day.

Tomorrow, a long day of flights home!

Now, to pack, work more, and then crash.

On the road again: San Francisco, day 6

Today was one of those days filled with work, so I don't have too much I can discuss. After a morning of email and phone meetings, I moved hotels and am now in easier reach of clients in Silicon Valley. The process involved the Enterprise car rental company and convinced me that I really don't want to rent from them again if I can avoid it. The people in their San Francisco office were unhelpful and broke commitments they'd made.

My meals today were simple but deeply enjoyable, because they were at two favorites of mine: the Pancho Villa Taqueria for lunch, and the nearby Max's for dinner. A super burrito and a mandarina at Pancho Villa is enough to make any day better, and a patty melt at Max's is similarly powerful.

Janis Joplin has, for no particular reason I can cite, been on my mind a lot lately, so I thought I'd close with a classic from her. She was a force, a damaged, crazed beast of a singer. Enjoy.

On the road again: San Francisco, day 8

Another work day, another bunch of interesting stuff I can't discuss. Nature of the job.

I can mention that I got to eat lunch at one of my favorite burrito joints, the Pancho Villa Taqueria in San Mateo. I enjoyed their al pastor burrito and one of my all-time favorite beverages, their mandarina.

We kept lunch short so that I could briefly indulge in another favorite activity: browsing the shelves at the lovely M Is For Mystery bookshop. I managed to keep myself in check almost entirely and escaped only with a single book; my control is rarely that good.

Dinner was an amazing truffle-covered burger at Hubert Keller's Burger Bar on the sixth floor of the Macy's on Union Square. The food tasted sinfully rich, and the view of the fog-blanketed square was lovely.

Morning will come entirely too early tomorrow, and with it my long trek home will begin, so I will sign off early tonight.