Spring Lambs

You may have seen my earlier post about the sheep that perform prescriptive grazing at The Sea Ranch. Well, spring has sprung and there are dozens and dozens of adorable baby lambs.

They are so playful and wobbly. At the same time, they are very demanding for their mothers, bleating loudly to find their mom and then when they do, aggressively hitting her udders to make the milk drop so they can be fed. Well, enough text, let's get on with the adorable lamb photos!

We are now waiting for the seal pups to be born. I suspect that will be another post of adorableness. In the mean time, enjoy the spring where ever you are.

#37 - Participate in a Scrabble Tournament

Last night I had an opportunity to check off another item from my life list (participate in a Scrabble tournament). Bob's parents were also in town, so the four of us made the short drive up the coast to attend.

The event was held at the library in Point Arena and included 14 tables/28 players. Each participant played three games/rounds and the overall winners were based upon who had the highest combined score from the three games. I wasn't sure what to expect, or how I would do. Bob and I like to play Scrabble and I play an on-line game called Literati (a Scrabble knockoff).

The game play was a little stressful. Each game was 25 minutes, so you needed to play pretty quickly. That had to be balanced with not playing reckless, so as to miss opportunities or set your opponent up with valuable squares. Some players were serious, others were there to have fun. I tried to blend the two.

Ready for the Scrabble fun. Can't quite contain my excitement.



Opening play. I guess Scrabble "action shots" are not very exciting, hah!



Bob waiting for his opponent. That's his unassuming "I will trounce you with a triple word score before you know it" look.

I ended up in the neighborhood of 800 points between the three games, which put me in 4th place (!!!) at the finish! Local merchants donated prizes for the top four finishers.

Folks, guess what my prize was ... it was a truck full of z'nure. Z'nure, you might ask? It's zebra manure. There is an animal preserve up here and they donated poop! Apparently it is fantastic for gardens. Unfortunately we don't have a garden. So, I'll be looking for someone to gift the poo to, so  it won't be wasted. Seriously, winning a couple rounds of golf or dinner for two sounds pretty mundane compared to a truck load full of zebra manure!

I'd be remiss if I didn't share some photos of the adorable sweet treats that the little local bakery, Franny's Cup and Saucer made. Cute shortbread cookies that looked like Scrabble tiles and cupcakes with edible tile toppers. Adorable AND delicious!



Overall a fun and well-organized evening!

Seal Docent Training

Yesterday we attended a four-hour seal docent training about the two harbor seal rookeries at The Sea Ranch. There is a very robust all-volunteer docent program that works the two rookeries during pupping season. Since we will be up here during the pupping time, we decided to volunteer.  

As docents our role is to educate visitors and divers on the issue and to try to keep disruptions to the seal mamas and pups to as much of a minimum as possible. There will also be some observing/documenting on our shifts.Shifts will start in a few weeks and run through June. That covers the period of birth and weaning for the majority of the seals that haul out in this area. Until that time, we have a binder of all sorts of information to learn. We've already been warned that 10 percent of the pups born on the beach will not make it (some years the mortality is higher), and that about 50 percent don't make it to the age of one ... so there is surely going to be some sad time mixed in with the all the fun seal pup viewing. As appropriate, I'll try to take photos and share on this blog.





39

Yesterday was my 39th birthday. Bob took me to lunch at the lodge and we went to a talk at the local art center in the evening. A simple, quiet birthday ... which reflects how we are living our life up here right now. Oh, there were presents too ... a cheese making kit, a "Quilting for Dummies" book and a new pair of warm woolly slippers. I am looking forward to eating cheese while I make my first quilt while wearing my new slippers. I sound like an old lady.

I feel thankful for all the good things that seem to find their way into my life: my partner in adventure and life ( Bob!), my supportive family (both the Habl and the Mitchell clans) and my inspiring and eclectic group of friends. You are the best and I appreciate you, even if I don't tell you it often enough. Thanks for making my first 39 years pretty freakin' awesome.

The Sheep Are Here!

The Sea Ranch uses a rotating group of sheep to do prescribed grazing. The flock, which has about 350 head, rotates from common area to common area to do their work.

There are a dozen goats or so in the mix to take care of the really tough stuff that the sheep won't touch.

They stay in each spot for a day or two, and are they moved to the next by the shepherd and his dog. They are kept in place with a solar-powered electric fence. Finally, the flock has gotten close to our house. We went out twice yesterday to watch them. I had no idea what loud eaters they are, quite the noisy group. Here are a few photos from the outing.

The SF Chronicle actually did an extensive article on the whole operation in 2005. Here is the link if you want to read more.

Real time map of where the sheep are can be found here.

Road Trip: Humboldt

This past weekend we made a quick trip 36 hour trip to Humboldt. It's about 4.5 hour drive from here, all quite scenic. The purpose of our trip was the see Frank Warren of the PostSecret project speak at Humboldt State. It was such a great experience, it deserves its own blog post (coming soon!)

I love Arcata. Living there for four years while attending Humboldt State made a lasting impression. When I left Arcata in 1996 to move to San Diego, I literally cried for the first hour of driving. I've been back a few times since graduation, but this was Bob's first trip to Arcata. What is always strange to me is that I feel like I met Bob while I was at Humboldt, and when I tell college stories, I just assume he was a part of them. I didn't meet him until four years after I left Humboldt, but I guess after a while we just weave the love of your life into all the stories of your life ... whether they were there or not.

While in town, we dined at Folie Douce, picked up bagels from Los Bagels, a loaf of Brio Bread and a case of Larrupin's mustard. We took a quick side trip to Trinidad to walk on the beach. That was Tender's favorite part.

On the drive back home, we took the Avenue of the Giants route, which runs through Humbolt Redwoods State Park and parallel to Highway 101. Man, oh, man how I love big trees. There is a nice visitors center along the route where we watched an old-school video of the 1964 Eel River floods that roared through the area. It wiped out dozes of key bridges, rail lines and essentially shut off much of the north coast area for months. Some towns were completely destroyed and never rebuilt.

The final leg of the return was down Highway 1. We were treated to a gorgeous sunset and super calm ocean waters. Just perfect. Bottom line, there is no place like Northern California.

Doing What You Love

We've had a lot of discussion in our house the past couple of months about work and life and making sure that we enjoy every minute of it. I do feel like our time up here at The Sea Ranch has been a gift. So much uninterupted time for reflection, planning and really enjoying each day fully ... all while listening to the sound of crashing waves. I haven't felt this calm in years.

I really find inspiration from people who truly love what they do. I'm not just talking about work/career, it may be their hobby, their commitment to family, or they way they throw themselves fully and joyfully into volunteering or creating things. Enthusiasm is contagious.

I want to share with you this video about a man who makes pizza.  This video makes me smile each time I watch it. It's worth the 16+ minutes it takes to watch.


The Best Thing I Ever Done HQ from MargaretEmily MacKenzie on Vimeo.