Cousins visit Cali

Saturday through Tuesday I spend four awesome days with my parents and my cousins, Andrew and his wife Angie. Amidst our sightseeing and beach-going, I aim to register between two to five California voters a day, and I meet my (albeit meager) goal, but with some interesting twists. One night when we are at Pier 39 on Fisherman’s Wharf, my family goes into the Giants and 49ers sports merchandise store and I, of course, opt to stay outside, and end up approaching the crowds of tourists milling about the plaza. My voter registration efforts are tainted by the fact that about 80% of the tourists I encounter are visiting from foreign countries and therefore aren’t citizens. Nevertheless, I still manage to fill out two voter registration forms, and I persuade the woman working at the American Express credit card booth to look more into Kerry as a viable candidate, against what her male counterpart co-worker says. That night, after my mom and stepdad leave to go home, I take my cousins to a karaoke bar in the Castro—The Mint Karaoke Lounge, to be exact—and we sing lots of great songs, including my solo “I Will Survive” performance. We left the city feeling like fat and happy buddhas, full of the abundance and chaos served up by a day in the city, complete with a cable car ride, a family style Italian dinner at Buca di Beppo, a drive zig-zagging down Lombard Street, and a picnic in Golden Gate Park.