Point Reyes Station is the small township (about 800 people) on the edge of the Point Reyes National Seashore. I didn’t go all the way down to the ocean this trip. Instead I spent my time wandering the main street of the village.
Bovine Bakery gets rave reviews, and this seems to be valid, since the place has been packed every time I’ve been in town. This day was no different. The Cowgirl Creamery Annex appeared to be closed when I got into town. They make some of the best cheeses in the Bay Area, but I never seem to get there when they are open.
In Point Reyes Bookstore I bought two new books (they have new and used). I bought On Looking by Alexandra Horowitz. Horowitz wrote one of the best canine books ever, Inside of a Dog.
I also bought Assholes, A Theory by Aaron James. Yes, that is the name, and it is a scholarly work, discussing the causes and suggested treatments of asshollery. James has a PhD in Philosophy from Harvard, and is looking for some balance in his academic writing career by writing some “lighter” works and this is one of them. It is not a humor book (although it is funny in spots); it is not particularly glib. He has a real theory of what makes people behave like assholes, why they make us crazy and how we can manage them. I’m looking forward to getting farther into it.
Both of these probably qualify as “pop science” books; they are well written and have serious themes and ideas, but they are not academic and are marketed to lay people.
When I decided to go to Point Reyes Station I knew I wanted to stop at a gallery/gift shop called Vita and look at the steampunk bird sculptures she carried. I walked to the east end of the street where her store is. It looked closed, and a card on the door listed the hours as “Wednesday through Sunday.” I walked down to the intersection, took a few pictures, and looked around. On my way back, from this angle, I saw that there were lights on. I saw another card on the door that read, “Open Tuesdays by appointment or chance.” I tried the door and it was unlocked. Appointment or chance? I don’t know, but they were open, and I bought this guy.
It looks like there are three restaurants in town. The two on the main street looked fancier than I wanted, so I decided to head back and eat at one of the places in Tomales or Valley Ford (a bad decision, as it turned out). One of these days, I will get to town early enough to eat at Bovine Bakery before the rush; or pick up some fresh bread and a couple of specialty cheeses, and eat at the West Marin Commons, a pocket-park at the west end of Point Reyes Station.
The graffiti on the derelict buildings was pretty fascinating.
I liked the crazy-quilt effect of the door, but on the window it says, “Communism will win.” Really?
