www from the W.

I'm coming at you live from the W San Francisco, where both Bill & I are on business. He's attending a conference at the Moscone Center, and I'm here to do a couple of stories for the magazine. For once, our friggin' plane was ON TIME (albeit a 4.25-hour flight).

We drove to Mill Valley yesterday afternoon for the first interview immediately upon arrival. I GOT TO DRIVE OVER THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE! AND WE COULDN'T SEE IT! BECAUSE OF THE FOG!

Bummer.

It was bright and clear on the way back, however, which also afforded us a view of Alcatraz.

The hotel is fabulous -- a mix-up at check-in resulted in three free bottles of Voss water and an upgraded room, and we are now sharing a "Fabulous Room" rather than a "Cool Corner Room."





We also had to call for a remote control for the flat-panel television. Apparently the remote fairies took off with ours and we had no way to get Judge Judy, which was on when we entered the room, off.

I have to admit, this city is nothing like I'd imagined. For one, it's warmer. I wanted to thumb my nose back home by bragging about 64-degree weather while they baked in 105-degree heat. Alas, it's a temperate 75-80. I wore a long-sleeved T and jeans to dinner last night at Ozumo, where Bill & I gouged ourselves on miso soup, sashimi and rice. (Yeah, I know, it's not South Beach-friendly. Nothing I stuffed in my fat face yesterday was South Beach-friendly.)

We walked out onto Pier 19 (or was it 17? Hell, I don't know. They all friggin' look alike.) long enough for some pix...





... and then hoofed it back a couple of blocks until we could find a taxi (what's up with that, by the way? I practically had to stand on the sidewalk and flash my girls to get one of the very few that came our way to stop. You'd have thought we were in Harlem or something.)

Last night, after dinner, Bill & I returned to our room, and it was stiflingly humid and hot in here. We called maintenance, and the little dude came up and put a thermometer into the air vent, proclaiming it 64 degrees. He then told us that the room is action-activated -- meaning when we leave the room, it shuts off the A/C. We felt super lame for having called him up here.

Room service just brought our breakfast. ($11 for about a half-cup of granola and some fresh fruit. $10 for steel cut oatmeal. $8 for coffee strong enough to make the biggest grown man cry like a little girl. You know it's bad when Bill and I are wrestling on the floor over the few Splenda packets. Ick.)




I miss Lynn's. Yes,Josh, I know you got food poisioning there, but that's what you get for eating biscuits and gravy. For lunch.)

Today, I get to bum around Union Square (shooooooping) while Bill's at the convention center. I have an interview at 4 p.m. (Yay. Work.)

Gotta go. Maintenance is here. Bill clogged the toilet. (Nice.)