Showing posts with label Places. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Places. Show all posts
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Mountain Places
Today we hiked up to Aloha and Jabu through the Desolation Wilderness, which is the back border of SSCC. Pictures are not mine, since I didn't have a camera, but just to give you an idea of where I spent my day:
Neither of these pictures can completely do the places justice, but you get the idea, yeah?
On the way back we the Echo Lakes trail, which is part of the PCT, and then took Tamarack trail, which is not marked on the maps, and follows a water flow down from Angora Ridge. It was tough and gorgeous.
I was tired at this point and was trailing with Jared, and we had about 20 minutes of improv play after climbing through a vortex tree, which turned us into wild mountain creatures discovering our world for the first time, and we found a stick and made it into several things before it's final incarnation as a laser gun.
Needless to say: I had fun. Jabu lake is cold and clear right down to the bottom. Aloha is gorgeous and quiet. I swam in Jabu, had some filtered Aloha water after wading in knee high, and did some trail running. My body hurts in the best way.
 |
| (The trail marked on this map covers part of what we did today. If you follow the red line from the bottom of the map, you'll see that it passes by Jabu, around Aloha, and past Heathers. We actually took a loop that started out by lilly lake and went around, decending down Tamarack. The yellow line shows a trail up to Mt. Tallac at 10,000 feet. I've done that climb, many years ago, but I went up the Fallen Leaf side. I'll probably take the Glen Alpine Springs Trail next time, which I think will be next week before the snow comes. Map Credit: Stanford.) |
(Lake Aloha, Photo Credit: Flickr Member Slang4201)
(Lake Jabu, Photo Credit: Flickr Member PaloJono)
On the way back we the Echo Lakes trail, which is part of the PCT, and then took Tamarack trail, which is not marked on the maps, and follows a water flow down from Angora Ridge. It was tough and gorgeous.
I was tired at this point and was trailing with Jared, and we had about 20 minutes of improv play after climbing through a vortex tree, which turned us into wild mountain creatures discovering our world for the first time, and we found a stick and made it into several things before it's final incarnation as a laser gun.
Needless to say: I had fun. Jabu lake is cold and clear right down to the bottom. Aloha is gorgeous and quiet. I swam in Jabu, had some filtered Aloha water after wading in knee high, and did some trail running. My body hurts in the best way.
Friday, August 26, 2011
Harry Potter Sticks
So, yesterday I found a Harry Potter wand. I'll admit that it's a little long, but I'm pretty sure it could "stupify" an elephant. Of course I picked it up and carried it home, using it as a strut cane through the worst neighborhoods along 27th and San Pablo (in Oakland, you gotta look tough, and carry a big stick.) I was prepared to whoop some butt, if it got too close.
What I really wanted to do with this post is tell the story of my amazing day Wednesday, since yesterday was just ok, I mean, outside of finding a Harry Potter stick. (And yes, I went from an exciting day to a day where finding a stick was the highlight of my day)
Wednesday started off with a dog walk. I would just like to take this moment to say I hate dog leashes. Dogs like to sniff things, people like to get places with out stopping. Leashes do not equal fun for either party in this equation.
I had a job interview that went really well, and then had some amazing sushi in celebration, and from there, went to Berkeley to hang out with some people I hadn't hung out with in a while.
We went to Venus where one of them works, and by the way, Venus is lovely and the head chef Kevin is a super nice guy. They also make beautiful cocktails. Well, specifically, Lauren, who is one of the servers there and happens to be my friend, makes beautiful cocktails. On our walk back to the Ashby heaven that is James and Lauren's apartment, we were gently accosted by a small quiet asian girl, asking for donations for world peace. Yes. Give a dollar for world peace. None of us had any cash on us, so we politely declined. As we walked, she followed us, and ended up coming across one of the addicts that sells the addict newspaper for a dollar on the street. In a serendipitous moment, they happened to ask each other for a dollar at the same time. It was picture worthy, and is still making me giggle.
After the Tahoe crew drank lots of whiskey, and I took over the kitchen to make dinner, and many things were discussed on the porch, (including near dead languages, obscure middle eastern countries, and other things I don't necessarily remember) we retired to the dining room to play a Russian card game called Durok (and of course in Russian it's spelled differently), and it was fun, and complicated, and really hard, and did I mention fun? Because it was. Then somehow I ended up on an air mattress in the empty room of the neighbor's house to sleep. The next morning we took a breakfast walk, hustled me to my JFK session, and finally the finding of the Harry Potter stick before taking a shower and a nap.
So what's the point? The law of attraction, if you must know. Because for a minute there, it felt like I was just manifesting all the things I wanted in life, coziness, food, Tahoe friends, ice cream. All I had to do was mention it and like magic it was there. I wasted at least one of my manifests on ice cream. So what happened yesterday? Yesterday I did not get hired. Though really in the grand scheme of things, maybe manifesting ice cream is not the same as manifesting a job offer.
Not that this is all that different from the rest of my days this summer. I've spent an entire summer not getting hired! Only this time, my references got called, and said they gave me good reviews, but still, I did not get hired.
Law of attraction says I want something more than these jobs. Or, perhaps that something wants me more than these jobs do. Logic (at least mine) follows that this must be mutual. If that's the case than the mutual pull is warping the universe and keeping me really poor. And I wish I knew what that something was. Suspense and me don't get along very well. Dear something! Reveal yourself to me!
(Here is where I was going to insert a hand drawn picture by me, of the universe warping, but it turned out very poor and nothing like what I had envisioned. Instead I give you this:)
(image was found on Quest.)
I think the G on the left is the mystery something, and the g on the right is me? That's how I'm choosing to interpret this. Regardless, I'm no closer today than I was yesterday to figuring out what that "something" is. I see my role in this whole law of attraction thing as the choice maker. I choose where to apply, each being something I would like to do or am qualified to do, in places I would like to live. The universe decides which one of these places is right for me. In the mean time, all my money exists somewhere between the up vector and the down vector. Or something. Either way it's not in my pocket. Or my wallet. Or my bank account.
What I really wanted to do with this post is tell the story of my amazing day Wednesday, since yesterday was just ok, I mean, outside of finding a Harry Potter stick. (And yes, I went from an exciting day to a day where finding a stick was the highlight of my day)
Wednesday started off with a dog walk. I would just like to take this moment to say I hate dog leashes. Dogs like to sniff things, people like to get places with out stopping. Leashes do not equal fun for either party in this equation.
I had a job interview that went really well, and then had some amazing sushi in celebration, and from there, went to Berkeley to hang out with some people I hadn't hung out with in a while.
We went to Venus where one of them works, and by the way, Venus is lovely and the head chef Kevin is a super nice guy. They also make beautiful cocktails. Well, specifically, Lauren, who is one of the servers there and happens to be my friend, makes beautiful cocktails. On our walk back to the Ashby heaven that is James and Lauren's apartment, we were gently accosted by a small quiet asian girl, asking for donations for world peace. Yes. Give a dollar for world peace. None of us had any cash on us, so we politely declined. As we walked, she followed us, and ended up coming across one of the addicts that sells the addict newspaper for a dollar on the street. In a serendipitous moment, they happened to ask each other for a dollar at the same time. It was picture worthy, and is still making me giggle.
After the Tahoe crew drank lots of whiskey, and I took over the kitchen to make dinner, and many things were discussed on the porch, (including near dead languages, obscure middle eastern countries, and other things I don't necessarily remember) we retired to the dining room to play a Russian card game called Durok (and of course in Russian it's spelled differently), and it was fun, and complicated, and really hard, and did I mention fun? Because it was. Then somehow I ended up on an air mattress in the empty room of the neighbor's house to sleep. The next morning we took a breakfast walk, hustled me to my JFK session, and finally the finding of the Harry Potter stick before taking a shower and a nap.
So what's the point? The law of attraction, if you must know. Because for a minute there, it felt like I was just manifesting all the things I wanted in life, coziness, food, Tahoe friends, ice cream. All I had to do was mention it and like magic it was there. I wasted at least one of my manifests on ice cream. So what happened yesterday? Yesterday I did not get hired. Though really in the grand scheme of things, maybe manifesting ice cream is not the same as manifesting a job offer.
Not that this is all that different from the rest of my days this summer. I've spent an entire summer not getting hired! Only this time, my references got called, and said they gave me good reviews, but still, I did not get hired.
Law of attraction says I want something more than these jobs. Or, perhaps that something wants me more than these jobs do. Logic (at least mine) follows that this must be mutual. If that's the case than the mutual pull is warping the universe and keeping me really poor. And I wish I knew what that something was. Suspense and me don't get along very well. Dear something! Reveal yourself to me!
(Here is where I was going to insert a hand drawn picture by me, of the universe warping, but it turned out very poor and nothing like what I had envisioned. Instead I give you this:)
(image was found on Quest.)
I think the G on the left is the mystery something, and the g on the right is me? That's how I'm choosing to interpret this. Regardless, I'm no closer today than I was yesterday to figuring out what that "something" is. I see my role in this whole law of attraction thing as the choice maker. I choose where to apply, each being something I would like to do or am qualified to do, in places I would like to live. The universe decides which one of these places is right for me. In the mean time, all my money exists somewhere between the up vector and the down vector. Or something. Either way it's not in my pocket. Or my wallet. Or my bank account.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
No Plans, Only Ideas
Hold your body strong against these winds of life.
I had a rough morning. So the news is this: Tahoe called me back and said "Not this season...I don't think." The catch is that if someone drops out or doesn't come, or they need an extra hand around the place, there might be space for me. Fingers crossed, but conflict rages in my bones from not wanting my friend to have to stress about someone not showing up, and having my home back. Mostly, in truth, I want to go home. Neither of my parents think I should be here. I don't want to say goodbye, but I know I need to if I'm going to survive.
In the mean time I'm looking outward with my sights on other places. Point Reyes, Big Sur are both in my sights, a spot in Texas is on my radar, and two outdoor schools in Big Bear and Santa Barbara have programs I'm interested in, respectively. I've also put my name on the crew list for the Baja Ha Ha to get down to Mexico and stay mid peninsula January through March... There's piles of paper work to be filled and a severe lack of funds to make this happen, but I could call upon some magic.
I had a rough morning. So the news is this: Tahoe called me back and said "Not this season...I don't think." The catch is that if someone drops out or doesn't come, or they need an extra hand around the place, there might be space for me. Fingers crossed, but conflict rages in my bones from not wanting my friend to have to stress about someone not showing up, and having my home back. Mostly, in truth, I want to go home. Neither of my parents think I should be here. I don't want to say goodbye, but I know I need to if I'm going to survive.
In the mean time I'm looking outward with my sights on other places. Point Reyes, Big Sur are both in my sights, a spot in Texas is on my radar, and two outdoor schools in Big Bear and Santa Barbara have programs I'm interested in, respectively. I've also put my name on the crew list for the Baja Ha Ha to get down to Mexico and stay mid peninsula January through March... There's piles of paper work to be filled and a severe lack of funds to make this happen, but I could call upon some magic.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
The Alameda Beach Fiasco
Or: The Fine Line Between an Adventure and a Fiasco...
Adventure: Noun: An unusual and exciting, typically hazardous, experience or activity.
Fiasco: A thing that is a complete failure, esp. in a ludicrous way. (Ludicrous: Causing or deserving laughter because of absurdity)
This was my day:
Wake Up at 10:30, groan because I didn't go to sleep till 6:00AM, nap till 11:15, open eyes, sit up. Groan more. 11:45, get text that says meet at 1:00pm instead of 12:00. Much better. Get up, get dressed, make Dark Wizard Lemonade, pack up the bike, ride to Mosswood, almost get killed 2 blocks from my house when a lady runs a stop sign and only sees me at the last minute, be real scared for a minute, logically think I should wear a helmet more, illogically think I'm invincible. Bottom line: Today was not my day to die, however Death, you're getting a little too close for comfort. Step off bro.
It was ridiculous and fun, and I'm glad I was with everyone I was with.
Adventure: Noun: An unusual and exciting, typically hazardous, experience or activity.
Fiasco: A thing that is a complete failure, esp. in a ludicrous way. (Ludicrous: Causing or deserving laughter because of absurdity)
This was my day:
Wake Up at 10:30, groan because I didn't go to sleep till 6:00AM, nap till 11:15, open eyes, sit up. Groan more. 11:45, get text that says meet at 1:00pm instead of 12:00. Much better. Get up, get dressed, make Dark Wizard Lemonade, pack up the bike, ride to Mosswood, almost get killed 2 blocks from my house when a lady runs a stop sign and only sees me at the last minute, be real scared for a minute, logically think I should wear a helmet more, illogically think I'm invincible. Bottom line: Today was not my day to die, however Death, you're getting a little too close for comfort. Step off bro.
Meet up with the peeps at Mosswood, ride to the tunnel, ride through the tunnel, find route to Park ave, Devin gets a flat, Devin fixes the flat, Devin gets a flat, stop at Stone Cyclery to fix the flat, walk through the food and wine festival for a block, decide it's hell, ride up a block, meet the rest of our group at Trader Joes, ride to the beach, a block away, find a spot, eat hella good food, drink tecate, run into the ocean, dry off in the sun, 
discover that Celina has two flats and Devin has another flat. Send an exploratory group to Big 5, while the rest of us decide to drink the bottle of wine while we wait for the return of said exploratory group. Wine drunk in 10 minutes, group migrates to Big 5 where we hang out in the lounge chairs out front until the flats are all fixed, ride home.
discover that Celina has two flats and Devin has another flat. Send an exploratory group to Big 5, while the rest of us decide to drink the bottle of wine while we wait for the return of said exploratory group. Wine drunk in 10 minutes, group migrates to Big 5 where we hang out in the lounge chairs out front until the flats are all fixed, ride home.It was ridiculous and fun, and I'm glad I was with everyone I was with.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Big Sur
None of these pictures has been edited. Matty is magic, Alex is hilarious, Resham and Lindzie are great. The Beginning.
Day One: Driving packed in a corner with all of two men's things. Andrew Molera SP. Resham and Linzie arrival. A spewing of A-C couplings. Stars on the beach accompanied by flow harmonica. Flashlights and wiggly path adventures in the dark.
The Coast.
Andrew Molera State ParkDay two: Recovery. Sandstorm beach hike. Driftwood homes. Aggressive Critters. Books in tents. Ramen partial failure. Tented mandolin serenaded cuddle puddle.
Fred. The squirrel who bit me.
Driftwood shelter on the beachDay three: Goodbyes! Red River Inn. Campsite search. Henry Miller Library. Ragged Point. San Simeon. More wine. Amazing U-haul house tent bacon cooking latino neighbors.
Red River Inn. So much de ja vu about this place.
Henry Miller Library
Ragged Point, top of the very very steep path to the beach.
Our San Simeon camping neighborsDay four: Cambria! Coffee! Garden. Sandwich. Beach. Chris!
Fairy Garden in Cambria
Rainbow Coffee in Cambria
Matty at San Simeon Beach playing with the sea weed.Day five: Back to Sur. Best Campsite EVER. One more night. 12 dollar bacon. Short path down the bluff, across the creek, out to the ocean. Cold Water. Warm Sun. Banjo. Phone Calls. Magnificent Sunset. Stolen Bacon.
Beach! Ocean! Rocks!Day Six: Bacon Found! Goodbye, Much Love. Nepenthe. Missed the bus. Sculpture garden. Caught the bus. Passed by Jordan! "I know that guy!" (it never ceases to surprise me!) Monterey. San Jose. Afghani conversation. BART. Sad Gingers. Shower. Bed.
BACON! Returned mostly unharmed. I think it was the rabbits.
Horse Sculpture in the sculpture garden , where everything was priced at $12,000 or more, across the street from Nepenthe. (They charge extra for the view.)All in all, I would say it was a really good trip, save for that incident with the bacon. But we got it back! So it's all ok! The End.
PS. Angry Catfish Chasing Around Aquatic Creatures.
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