The night was dark, the lights were bright, the costumes were loud, the dust was flying, and the scene was awesome... almost like a party.

It's lonely at the top! I raced, and won the A class race at Livermore last Saturday. Or should I say I was dead last? There were a dozen women out racing with me, but I was the only one who registered as an A.

What I remember most of all about Copperopolis was the late night drive in, the copper cattle creeks, the full moon bright light (i brought a flashlight but didn't need it to pitch my tent), the animals we heard (geese, frogs, a lowing deer or cow, coyotes, mice) and the sense of community in the race... inside the W 1/2 race, we were cheering each other on. Competing, yes, not bloodthirsty, more like a witty conversation, stimulating. I totally forgot whatever it was I stressed about last week.

November 30, 2007 I went back east to Washington DC for thanksgiving with the DC family branch. they prepared a vegan feast in my honor, to go along with the standard american feast. i told cousin David that i'd be okay with boiled potatoes, since my main goal was to see my peeps, but he wasn't going for it. -david made asparagus with basil, cannelini beans, rice, and a big salad. aunt delabian made a vegan version of her famous sweet potatoes, with the spices, walnuts, raisins, and rum. Grandma made cranberries, the kind that's just plump and bursting.