First Blog Posting Follows

Nightlife
Dinner Out:
Try out many restaurants including ethnic restaurants all over the Bay Area
Formal Black Tie Dinner Out in San Francisco with Dancing
Formal Black Tie Dinner Out in San Francisco with Dancing in the Underground
Have Dinner in some of the Bay Area’s Famous Unlicensed, Underground Restaurants--
Dinner in Fremont, CA in the Afghan, Pakistani, Indian Restaurant Area
Buck's Restaurant in Woodside, California
Progressive Dinner From One Restaurant to Another

The Arts:
Visit TIX, half-price tickets in Union Square plaza for tickets the day of the performance--
Plays
Musicals
Concerts
Ballet
Opera
Classical Music
Performance Art
Dance Performances
Art galleries locally, in San Jose, and San Francisco
Museums of all types all over the Bay Area
Author Readings at Bookstores
Masters’ Music Recitals at Stanford

Clubs, etc:
Night Clubs
Dance Clubs
Comedy Clubs
Trendy Clubs
Blues Clubs
Jazz Clubs
Stanford Comedy Night
Blues for Free Wednesday Night at the Little Fox in Redwood City, California--
Redwood City Friday Evening Music in the Square
Plough and Stars Irish Pub, San Francisco, California the Home of Traditional Irish Music--
Edinburgh Castle Pub and Theatre, San Francisco
Progressive Bar Hoping Around San Francisco in a Rented Chauffeured Van--
Progressive Dance Club Hoping Around San Francisco in a Rented Chauffeured Van--
Starlite Ballroom in Sunnyvale, California, the largest ballroom dance club in the U.S.

Movies Out:
Attend a movie and afterwards meet for coffee or drinks and talk about the movie--
Attend Special Movie Showings in San Francisco or other Places
Attend Film Festivals held around the Bay Area

Theme Parties:
Costume
Hawaiian
Scottish with Kilts & Bagpipes
Viking
Roman
Ethnic Dance
Toga
Space Alien
Hippy
Punk
Disco
50's
Big Band
High School
Tattoo (fakes)
Biker
Singing
Singing & Playing Music
Face Painting
Belly Dancing

Day Trips
Mount Tamalpais
Mt. Diablo
Half Moon Bay
Santa Cruz
Monterey
Carmel
Sacramento
Sonoma
Sausalito
Stinson Beach
San Francisco
Berkeley
San Jose
Big Sur
Highway one North
Highway one South
Point Reyes
Bodega Bay
Sierra Foothills Historic Towns
Antique Shops
Arboretum's
Archaeological Sites
Casino
Candy factory
Bread Factory
Mine
A Cannery
A Farm Where You Pick Your Own Produce
A Cookie Factory
Ice Cream Plant
A Farm
A Mosque
A Synagogue
A Roman Catholic Church
A Greek Orthodox Catholic Church
A Russian Orthodox Catholic Church
A Buddhist Temple
A Meditation Center
Glass Blowing Exhibition
Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco--
Planetarium & Observatory at San Francisco State University
Filoly Gardens in Woodside
Pinnacles National Monument off Highway 101 near King City and Soledad--
Huddart County Park in San Mateo County
Visit Mansions for Sale Around the Area
Take a Train Ride down to San Jose, Shop, Eat, Drink and Ride the Train Back--
Take a Train Ride to San Francisco, Shop, Eat, Drink and Ride the Train Back--
Go to Farmers Markets All Around the Peninsula in Burlingame, Redwood City, San Carlos, Millbrae, Menlo Park, Palo Alto--
Visit the Ferry Building in San Francisco and Its Farmers Market
Take a Ferry Ride from San Francisco to Sausalito, Angel Island or other Places--
Take a trip to the wine country
Go to local wineries and taste wine
San Francisco's Anchor Brewing Co.
Hot Springs
Visit advertised estate sales
Go to flea markets
Go shopping some afternoon at the mall
Attend advertised auctions
Attend Advertised Yard Sales
Visit pawnshops
Take a cruise on San Francisco Bay, day, at sunset or in the evening--
Take a catamaran ride around San Francisco Bay
We take a ferry to Angel Island
Tour businesses such as Google, Yahoo, NASA, Ames, etc.
Go To Local Festivals held in many cities and towns throughout the Bay Area--
Going as a group to a day spa for facials, manicure, pedicure, massage, etc.--
Sightseeing Tour's by Bus or Walking Tours in San Francisco, Sausalito, Santa Cruz, etc.--
Circus
Zoo
San Joaquin Delta Boat Trips
Visit to a Christmas Tree Farm
Visit a Pumpkin Patch in October
Visit Apple Hill in Placer County in the Fall
Point Bonita Lighthouse near San Francisco in the Marin Headlands--
Fort Baker under Golden Gate Bridge
Ano Nuevo Northern Elephant Seal Breeding Colony
Butano State Park, San Mateo County, California
Phipps Country Store and Farm, Pescadero, Ca, to Pick Berries
Biking Around Napa Wine Country
Stanford Linear Accelerator
Mt. Hamilton's Lick Observatory Music and Stargazing
Exploratorium, San Fransico's Museum of Science, Art and Human Perception--
Fort Mason Center in San Francisco
Berkeley Science Museum

Evenings In
Dinner In:
Ethnic Potluck Dinner
Ethnic Potluck Dinner With Ethnic Music
Ethnic Potluck Dinner With Ethnic Music & Ethnic Drinks
Ethnic Potluck Dinner With Ethnic Music, Ethnic Drinks and Ethnic Dance Teacher--
Ethnic Potluck Dinner, Ethnic Music, Ethnic Drinks, Ethnic Dance Teacher & Ethnic Guests--
Barbeque Dinners
Theme Dinners

Evening Activities:
Geography night - Play "GeoSafari" or "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego"--

Watch a Rented Movie, Popcorn, Drinks, Discussion
Wine Tasting
Beer Tasting
Wine Making
Charades
Jewelry Making Night

A series of get-togethers where each person in the group presents a short autobiography. One person would be featured at each meeting. The person would tell us all about his or her life, show photographs, yearbooks or whatever else the person wanted to show. Great way to get to know each other better.--

We could have an evening on bizarre games played around the world. Each person could research an unusual game played in another culture. We could go around the room and each person would discuss his or her game.--

Careers Night - Nuts and Bolts. Each person could discuss in-depth exactly what that person does on any given day in his or her job. It is sometimes fascinating to find out exactly what people do each day.--

The "Perfect Life" evening. Each person could describe in 10 minutes the characteristics of the perfect life for that person. Interesting!--

A "If I won the Lottery" evening. Each person could describe what he or she would do upon winning 500 million dollars after taxes.--

A "Perfect Charity" evening. Each person could describe what he or she believed would be the perfect charity to set up and why.--

An evening of painting. We could each bring some paper or canvas some brushes and some kind of paints and we could create some paintings together. --

A "learn how to write" evening. We could invite a professional writer to meet with us and give us the ABC's of how to write a short story. We could then all try to write a short story and a few weeks later get together and review our short stories.--

A "Three Best Things That Ever Happened To Me" evening. Each person would talk about the three best things that ever happened to that person.--

An evening where each person would describe the things that were the most fun for that person when in grade school, middle school, high school, in college and after.--

An evening where each person in advance would pick out a short piece of music listen to it and then in our group try to describe what feelings, colors, textures, smells and sights the music evokes.--

An evening in which each person describes the three pieces of music the person likes the most and why.--

Playing cards, poker, hearts, pinocle, etc., or board games like Monopoly.

Sports & Lively Activities
Sports To Play Together:
Archery Range
Rifle Range
Basketball
Baseball
Touch/Flag Football
Soccer
Volleyball
Golf
Golf Driving Range
Bowling
Disco Bowling in Redwood City or San Mateo
Billiards & Pool
Ping-pong
Badminton
Tennis
Horse Shoes
Bating Practice
Miniature Golf
Bocce Ball
Ice-skating
Roller skating
Paintball
Darts
Batting practice
Horse Back Riding
Gym Workouts
Arcade Games
Dance Classes

Outdoor Activities:
Hang Gliding
Aerial Glider Riding
Ultra-light Aircraft Flights
Crew Private Plane Flights
Beach Bonfire
Picnics Everywhere
Hikes
Nature Walks
Beach Trekking
Back Country Hiking
Rock Climbing
Hot Air Ballooning
Bicycling
Motorcycling on Rented Motorcycles, Vespas, Mopeds
Skydiving
Trampolining

Professional & College Sports:
Professional, College and other Sporting Events
Basketball
Baseball
Football
Rugby
Soccer
Volleyball
Boxing Match
Horse Races
Stock Car Racing
Drag Racing
Rodeo
Hockey
San Jose Giants Baseball

Water Related Activities:
White Water Rafting
Water Skiing
House Boating
Whale Watching
Parasailing
Tubing
Kayaking
Canoeing
Sailing
River & Lake Fishing
Deep Sea Fishing
Scuba Diving
Snorkeling
Hot Springs Soaking
Swimming at Pool, Lake, Ocean
Jacuzzi Party
Hot Tub Party
Beach Party
Coyote Point Yacht Club
Crabbing

Winter Outdoor Activities:
Downhill Skiing
Snowboarding
Cross-country Skiing
Snowshoeing
Snowmobiling
Sledding
Tobogganing
Snowman/woman Making
Snowball Throwing
Snow Cave Making
Igloo Making
Ice Skating
Ice Carving
Snow Camping

Brainstorming
Brainstorming Get-togethers to Come Up With:
Song Lyrics
Song Melodies
How To Be Happier Ideas
How to Make & Keep Friends Ideas
Inventions
New Games
Role-playing Games
Educational Games
Games Relating to Other Countries, Religions, Cultures
Short Story Ideas
Book Ideas
Movie Ideas
Poetry Ideas
New Internet Web Sites
New Businesses Ventures
Ways to Help Other People
Ways the Group Could Help a Specific Member of the Group
Ways the Group Could Help the Group
Ways the Group Could Help Some Other Group
Ways the Group Could Help a Charity or Other Organization
Ways of the Group Could Help Someone in Need Mentioned in a Newspaper Article--
How To Change the World

Other Activities
Each member of the group could pick out a project the person would like to complete at their house or apartment. All members of the group could participate in completing that project at each person's house. Theoretically, if all the projects take about the same amount of time, then we will all spend about the same amount of time completing everyones’ projects as we each would have spent completing our own. However, with this plan we all get to enjoy the companionship and expertise of all the members. This plan would also insure that all the projects actually get done.--

Create a list as a group of things we have learned by dating, getting married, having kids or not having kids, divorcing and trying to figure out where to go from there. We could each keep a copy for future reference in our lives ahead.--

As a group we could practice techniques of acting found in a book from the library and then we could all audition for part in a local theatrical production.--

As a group volunteer to work on the set of a play--

Attend Lectures at Stanford University--
Plant Communal Garden--
Guys vs. Ladies Cooking Contests--
----Baking
----Barbequing
----Mixed Drinks
----Spaghetti
----Chile
----Deserts

Travel To
Lake Tahoe
Reno
Las Vegas
Yosemite National Park
Kings Canyon National Park
Sequoia National Park
Redwoods National Park
Lassen Volcanic National Park
Clear Lake
Lake Berryessa
Hawaii
Three-day cruise wherever
Backpacking
Camping
Group rental of a large recreational vehicle motor home with a trip to the campground--
Rent a vacation rentals in Santa Cruz on the ocean--
Disneyland
Festivals
Exotic Places
Hostel’s Travel all Over

Volunteering
Get involved in local volunteer organizations as a group such as:
http://www.onebrick.org/
http://www.habitat.org/

Get involved in travel related volunteer organizations as a group such as:
http://www.crossculturalsolutions.org/
http://www.globalvolunteers.org/
http://vfp.org/
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/
http://www.i_to_i.com/
http://www.villagevolunteers.org/
See the book "Volunteer Vacations" (Chicago Review Pres, 2006) by McMillon, et. al.

Web Resources
Website Resources For San Francisco and surrounding areas:
http://sf.funcheap.com/
http://www.thingstodo.com/states/CA/san_francisco.htm
http://sfgate.com/traveler/guide
http://www.sfgate.com/eguide
http://www.viator.com/San-Francisco/d651-ttd
http://www.jmmgarza.com/html/thingstodo.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Francisco_Bay_Area
http://www.stanford.edu/~phartke/activities.htm
http://www.carnaval.com/sf/free_todo.htm
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g60713-Activities-San_Francisco_California.html
http://cityguide.aol.com/sanfrancisco
http://www.daysinnsantaclara.com/san-jose-top-ten-to-do-hotel.asp
http://www.sfgate.com/listings/pages.php?performance,picks
http://www.mikefoor.com/ Real Estate Resources for the San Francisco Bay Area