SFO to SJD

Mexico, here we come. Specifically, San Jose del Cabo. I always consider it a great year if it includes a trip out of the country. I've managed to do that every year since 1995, and I think it would be a find tradition to continue.

We will be spending 10 days in Mexico. I am looking forward to: catching up on a stack of books, some good cat naps, and reflecting on 2010/planning for 2011 by completing some of the Reverb10 prompts. Being 100% unplugged from work won't be so bad either. As I sit typing this, the rain is coming down it buckets and the temperatures are in the mid 50's. The 80 degree weather in Baja will be a bonus.

I wish all of you the best of the holiday season. Depending on internet access, I may do some blog updates. However, if not, I'll be back in full swing in a few weeks. Safe travels all!

Photo credit: monalisa

Day Trip: Timber Cove

We were married on October 12th, so the 12th of each month we try to plan a special breakfast. Sometimes it's a nice breakfast at home, or we might go out. This month, the 12th fell on a Sunday, so we decided to make it a day trip. We headed down the coast to the Timber Cove Inn. The inn sits on a dramatic rock outcrop and provides 270 degree ocean views, depending where you are on the property.

One of the more outstanding feature at the inn is the 93-foot tall statue/totem called Peace by artist Benny Bufano. It has paintings on both sides and kind of looms about where ever you are on the property. One things I learned about the artist is that he was very outspoken about war. Considered an outspoken radical at the time, he actually chopped off his trigger finger and sent it to President Woodrow Wilson at the onset of World War I as a protest against the war. Ouch!

I had a veggie omelet for breakfast and Bob had the Belgian waffle. The dining room has a cozy fireplace and floor to ceiling windows which provide dramatic coastline views. After breakfast we walked along the bluff top trail, enjoying the ocean breezes and nice vistas. There were seal lounging on rocks below us and it was really relaxing. The inn even has cute little red chairs scattered around the property for lounging and reading. Wouldn't it be nice to sit here and write in your journal or enjoy a glass of wine?

A Network of over 1.2 Million

On Friday, I was inducted into the Gualala Rotary chapter. I attended some meetings as a visitor when we arrived up here and I was delighted when they extended an invitation to me to become a full member. Rotary has a long history of national and international service. In fact, their motto is Service Above Self. When we were in San Diego, I had considered joining a service organization. My father-in-law enjoys his Kiwanis club and I had a friend who was involved in Rotary and another in the Thursday Club. However, about the time I got serious in searching out the right organization, we had already planned our move up north. I figured I would wait until we were up here to make a commitment. Here is a photo of me after I was inducted and "pinned". I am getting a congratulations kiss on the cheek from the charming Mr. Fisher.

The Gualala Rotary group has a strong emphasis on supporting the local schools. The provide a fully-illustrated dictionary to all 3rd graders in the local elementary schools and they do a student scholars luncheon to recognize outstanding local students. In addition to supporting the local schools, they participate in "Project Santa" during the holidays and support other community activities as an ongoing basis. There are probably more activities that I am forgetting or not even aware of yet! Aside from the local activities, there is all the good work that the national Rotary does on global polio eradication and clean water projects. Needless to say, I am excited to be part of this great local group and the larger global Rotary network of over 1.2 million people. We are going to Mexico later this month, and there is actually a "Club Rotario" in the town we are visiting. Might be fun to check out a Rotary meeting in another country.

#31 - Make a Dutch Baby Pancake

Ever since I saw a photo of my friend Carol and her daughter holding this huge puffy breakfast pancake thing in a photo, I said "I've got to make one of those." It was called a dutch baby pancake (sometimes referred to as a German pancake). Heck, the name alone holds so much cuteness, how could you not want to make one?

I figured it had to be complicated ... since it puffed to such incredible heights.  Well, it ended up being pretty much the opposite ... it was easy! I decided to make a small one in a pie plate, and it turned out just fine! Just takes some flour, egg, milk, vanilla, cinnamon and butter. You finish it off with a little lemon and powdered sugar. I used this recipe (2 to 4 serving size).

We topped it with a warm apple/butter/sugar/cinnamon mixture. Yum. Next time we have visitors, I plan to up the ante and make one that is larger. However, in the mean time, I will say I have successfully made a Dutch Baby pancake. For now, I am crossing it off the list!

Day Trip: Armstrong Redwoods

On Sunday, we had to drive down to Bodega Bay to drop off my niece. On the way back we decided to take a side detour to Guerneville to do a grocery run (they have a Safeway!). The town of Guerneville is eclectic. It actually has an old school Five and Ten. It's packed with just a little bit of everything: craft supplies, toys, cards, puzzles, gifts, candy. It reminded me of Woolworth's, but at a much smaller scale. (Tangent: My first job was at Woolworth's. I made minimum wage - $3.35/hour. I still have my name badge.)

Just a few miles north of Guerneville is the Armstrong Redwood State Natural Reserve.  How is it that I grew up just 1.5 hours from this place and never heard about it before? Well, I guess it's not surprising, since my parents considered the 15 minutes drive from Napa to Vallejo a long drive.

The Armstrong Redwoods SNR is an old grove of majestic coast redwoods. Nothing quite compares to standing among trees that are 1,000+ years old. Talk about perspective. What I love about forests and groves is how quiet they are, yet, when there is a sound, it is super amplified because everything around it is so quiet. Did that last sentence make any sense? I think you know what I mean. For example, a squirrel in the leaves sounds like something ten times its size.

The reserve has a nice walking trail along the valley floor which takes you by some of the largest trees. They do a good job about keeping cars out of the reserve. You can park in a lot in front of the grove and walk in for free, or pay $8 to drive in. Since most people are cheap like me, most people walk in for free!

Project: Life List

Picture by flying white

Here is my life list - a running list of things I want to do, in no particular order. This list is inspired by a blog I read, Mighty Girl.

What is this life list stuff? It's all those things that have words associated with them like “I’ve always wanted to visit that place” or “wouldn’t it be fun to try this” or “I’ve always wanted to learn how to do that."

Sometimes I forget the things I want to do and try, so this list will be helpful in that regard. It will also be a good reminder that I just need to make time and plan for these adventures and experiences.

So, without further ado ... my list:

1. Gondola ride in Venice
2. Visit the Biggest Ball of String in Minnesota
3. Go on a tour of the US Capitol
4. Southwest US National Park Tour
5. New England in the Fall to see the changing leaves
6. Multi-month Mediterranean trip (Northern Africa/Southern Europe)
7. Give a talk to an audience of over 500 people
8. Help during harvest on a farm
9. Milk a cow
10. Participate in an overseas service project
11. Take dancing lessons
12. Learn to bake really good bread
13. Start my own small business
14. Have a repertoire of 12 songs on the accordion
15. Spend the night in the wilderness, alone
16. See a space shuttle launch
17. Read the texts of the major world religions
18. Pet a lion, tiger or other big cat
19. See the Aurora Borealis
20. Help five other people achieve something on their Life List (#1, #2, #3, #4 and #5)
21. Own a potter’s wheel and kiln
22. Learn to play the harmonica
23. Attend each of my nieces’ high school graduation
24. Take my nieces on a memorable trip
25. Participate in a Moth storytelling event
26. Have a “Readers Write” piece published in The Sun
27. Write lyrics for a musical
28. Host a fantastic girls’ weekend
29. Create an anonymous public art project
30. Take a photography class
31. Make a dutch baby pancake
32. Attend a TED event
33. Make a quilt
34. Ride on a motorcycle
35. Visit all four of my grandparents' graves
36. Make an article of clothing for myself
37. Participate in a Scrabble tournament
38. Attend the Olympics
39. Attend a rodeo
40. Have a mud bath
41. Help someone overcome a fear
42. Go on a multi-day kayak trip
43. Live outside the country for a year
44. See the monarch butterflies in Michoacan, Mexico
45. Walk across the Golden Gate bridge
46. Chicago for St. Patrick's Day
47. Drink a mint julep at the Kentucky Derby
48. Watch plane land at Princess Juliana Airport in St. Maarten
49. Refinish a piece of furniture
50. Put a lock on the Locks Fountain in Montivedo with Bob
51. Make a two-tier chocolate cake (and frosting) from scratch 
52. Spend the night on a sailboat
53. Attend a taping of a TV or game show
54. Be an extra in a movie or TV show
55. Attend a sporting event in another country
56. See the 9/11 memorial, Reflecting Absence, in NYC
57. Host a multi-course vegetarian dinner party for 12.
58. Take a painting class
59. Take a cooking class in another country
60. Learn to hula hoop
61. Make a meal from mushrooms that I foraged
62. See a silent movie with piano accompaniment
63. Drink beer, eat chocolate and see the Manneken Pis statue in Belgium
64. Go to the Thanksgiving Day parade in NYC
65. Go to Cuba!
66. Attend Burning Man
67. Self-publish a book of my own
68. . ...more to come

Have you created a life list? Feel free to post a link below. I love seeing what others have on their "list". Also, if you need some inspiration to get started, you can check out these tips at Chookooloonks.

Here's to new adventures, learning new things and "going for it."

Day Trip: Mendocino

We were planning to go to Denver last weekend, but our trip was postponed due to Chaucer the cat getting sick. (I am happy to report he is doing much better!) Not wanting to call the weekend a total waste we hopped in the car and drove up the coast to the town of Mendocino. Just about 1.5 hours away, the town of Mendocino is picture perfect (but I totally forgot to take pictures).

Mendocino is where episodes of Murder, She Wrote were filmed. Do you remember that long-running 80's TV show with Angela Landsbury as the mystery writer who helped solve murders? The town was hopping with a lot of visitors since Mendocino was one of the hubs of the County-wide mushroom festival. The downtown main street is super charming, with dozens and dozens of 100+ year old hotels, stores and homes. Early logging money built the town, but now it's clearly a tourist destination.

Highway 1 between The Sea Ranch and Mendocino is dotted with a few tiny towns here and there, but it is really undeveloped with sweeping ocean views or lush green fields with cows or sheep.

I've never been to Ireland, but I imagine it would look a little something like this stretch of the coast.