Wrap Up

As the year rapidly wraps up and I look back at it, I can say it's been another great one. Lot's of those ups and downs and accomplishments and frustrations, sure. They are the facts of life and a part of the whole journey. It wouldn't be life without them.

I know I sometimes let the frustrations mount and I can feel them physically consuming me. But then the path becomes clear and bright, and love settles the score, and it's all good and again.

I feel like the year ahead will unfold, and a see-saw of events and momentous occasions, planned and unplanned, will occur. And in the year ahead events to look forward to, and to dread, will present themselves. As long as I nourish my loves, my home, and my own being, and as long as I make good choices and stay true to my needs and my journey, I will continue to move forward in my life with joy. And with all the craziness and uncertainty in the world, I'm fortunate to be able to do so.

The Perfect Compliment

On Saturday Will and I decided to go see the Los Angeles Aqueduct Cascade in Sylmar. It's open to the public for a short period of time to celebrate it's 100 year anniversary. After that we went to Mission San Fernando. It's been wonderfully restored with a great historical museum and a vast collection of artwork, artifacts and furnishings throughout the buildings, gardens and church.

The convento building, completed in 1822, has four foot thick adobe walls and roman arches. In this building I came upon the hospice, a room with three rustic beds and paintings of saints on the walls, and a metal pot on the floor inside the doorway with coins scattered around it. I pulled a penny out of my coin purse and tossed it, it bounced off the floor once and landed right in the pot. And I said a little prayer for Lorne, my Mom's husband, who died of cancer on Thursday.

Lorne was my Mom's third husband. When they retired, they sold their house and hit the road RVing full-time, traveling across the U.S. for several years with their two cats until they landed in South Carolina and settled down there to a quite life on the coast.

Lorne had a quirky sense of humor and loved to tinker with computers and Mom says they complimented each other perfectly. It's been rough the last few year's, but his struggles are over now. And he will be with us forever in our thoughts.

Rest in peace dear Lorne.

Lorne and Jeanette Waters

Photo taken June 29, 1980

Where There is Boundless Beauty

** Will and Ranger in the Alabama Hills w/Mt Whitney in the background **

There is boundless beauty in the Eastern Sierra Nevada mountain range and valleys. Including these two; Will and Ranger. We traveled the US 395 from Lone Pine to Bodie and explored many points along the way.

Explorations over 6 days:

• Red Rock Canyon - Nature trail
• Owens Lake - Cottonwood Charcoal Kilns
• Lone Pine - Eastern Sierra Inter-Agency Visitor Center
• Lone Pine - Horseshoe Meadow Rd. to Horseshoe Meadow and Cottonwood Creek; (10,000 ft).
• Lone Pine - Mt Whitney Portal - Mt Whitney Trail (8,350 ft) to Lone Pine Lake (10,050 ft) - 5.5 mile loop; 1700 ft elevation gain.
• Mammoth Lakes, Minaret Rd - Devils Postpile Trail to Rainbow Falls (7,500 ft) - 5.6 mile loop, 500 ft ele gain. The trail intersects the mega Pacific Crest Trail and John Muir Trail.
• Mammoth Lakes Earthquake Fissure - Nature trail off Minaret Rd.
• Bodie Ghost Town - Photog location; Buildings date from 1870-1880s.

• Mono Lake - South Tufas and Navy Beach. Photog location and nature trail.
• June Lake Loop - Scenic drive; 14 mile detour off US395.
• Convict Lake - 3 mile trail around the lake.
• Alabama Hills - Movie Flat Rd to Mobius Arch to Heart Arch loop trail and beyond + Tuttle Creek Rd.
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• Lone Pine Film History Museum - w/documentary movie.
• Lone Pine Cemetery.
• Lone Pine Earthquake Victims Grave - 1872 mass grave.

Where we stayed:

• Lone Pine - De La Cour Ranch, Main Cabin 
• Lee Vining - Murphey's Motel

Where we ate:

• Lone Pine - Mt Whitney Portal Store 

• Lee Vining - Whoa Nellie Deli
• Mammoth - Schat's Bakery
• Convict Lake - Restaurant at Convict Lake Resort
• Lone Pine - Alabama Hills Cafe
• Grillin' back at the ranch

More photos to come...
My Flickr Set
Will's Flickr Set

Landings

Very nice Sunday visit to the Museum of Natural History to see the Becoming Los Angeles exhibit. While there we traipsed through the Butterfly Pavilion. And completed the afternoon with a stop at Mel's Fish Shack for fried catfish and coleslaw. Then we picked up a peach cobbler from The Cobbler King before heading home.

Photos here.

One Journey's End ...

      is another's beginning.

Here's Will receiving his certificate of completion at the graduation ceremony - Rio Hondo Police Academy Class No. 2012-1.

Now, a note to my sweetie - Will, I'm incredibly proud of your accomplishment. I also look forward to the next steps in your journey and I admire your commitment to a career serving and protecting all animals. You will have opportunities to make a difference, and I know how much that means to you. It's an honorable and meaningful path. I love you, sweetie.

Repurposed Library Book Shelf

I (meaning I wanted it and my husband carried it) brought this library book shelf home after finding it left on the curb during one of our morning walks. 

A great thing around our neighborhood, and neighborhoods all over I'm sure, is that if you no longer want a piece of furniture just put it on the curb and someone will come along and take it. We've picked up a whole bunch of cool stuff on our morning walks. And since we're out at dawn we get a good head start on the rest of the scavengers. 

We don't always know what we're going to do with the pieces we pick up, and they usually sit wherever they fit for some time before a place is found where they have a purpose. In this case the shelf sat in a corner of the landing room. Just sat there with nothing going on, no purpose, not being used. Then Will rearranged a few things and found a new home and a purpose for my birthday dresser as our telephone station. Then I started looking at the library book shelf and thought I'd see if it fit in the kitchen. I had an idea that it might make an interesting produce bin.

We typically have several bowls holding grapefruit, oranges, bananas, apples, lemons, limes, potatoes, and onions sitting on various surfaces from the dinging room table, the island, and on top of the microwave. So I pulled the library book shelf into the kitchen and what a wonderful produce bin it now makes topped with a couple of recipe boxes and a jug of fresh cut flowers from the yard and a juicer (also a found item).

An American Classic

I discovered Ivan Doig's Dancing at the Rascal Fair at a local independent book store in Echo Park.

I've been drawn to early American literature for some time. I think the seed was planted during my trips to Montana over the past several years. The first of which was a 2006 road trip through 7 states (plus a short hop up into Canada) geared around being at my Grandma and Uncle Jim's in Troy, MT for the 4th of July.

That's some beauteeful country, that is. My pioneer spirit was awakened and my longing has been fulfilled by immersion into these books.

Dancing at the Rascal Fair is the middle book in Ivan Doig's Montana Trilogy. I will be searching for the other two as well as the rest of his literary collection.

All Tied Up In a Bow

Ranger dressed for the holidays.

Happy Thanksgiving

All my life I traveled to Grandma and Grandpa's house for Thanksgiving. Whether I lived in the same town, a neighboring state, or at opposite ends of the state, I made my way to their hearth and home. When I flew the coop as a young adult and moved to Los Angeles, my Mom would pay for my airfare. Those trips home where a wonderful time for me. My family gathered around me like a warm blanket.

Of course we eventually moved and settled further apart and those of us still on this earth now have thousands of miles between us. I believe 2004 was the last pilgrimage I ever made to Grandma's house for Thanksgiving.

So it wasn't until then that I got to cook a turkey. This year I think I finally got it right.  I watched several YouTube videos for tips and settled on one that seemed right for me. A 14lb Butterball, sitting on a bed of chopped fruit, vegetables and herbs.Herbs and apples in it's cavity, and rubbed with butter and herbs all over. Pop it in the oven and leave it alone. I didn't use a thermometer though. I trusted the timing and when It came out of the oven at about 3 hours I pierced the thigh and the juices ran clear and I called it done.

 And so it is with my husband and my mother-in-law beside me, I think of my family and Thanksgivings past and present, and give thanks to all. I love you all.

Rejuvination is Spelled I-d-y-l-l-w-i-l-d

Spending a weekend in Idyllwild will rejuvenate the tired and weary soul. It's just the perfect escape from the grind. A mountain hamlet to while away the time. Breathe deeply, the air is infused with the scent of pine, the summer sun, rain.  Walkable, dog-friendly, and super laid-back. And only a couple of hours from home. Who knew relief was that close.

Photos here
And here

My Husband's Heart in an Anvil - 7th Wedding Anniversary

Yesterday was our 7th wedding anniversary.

There's been a small box sitting on the floor next to my desk for about a week. It was a heavy little box. So when my husband and I began to open our gifts to each other, I've got the box open and whatever is inside is wound up in bubble wrap, and I'm unwinding it, and it's heavy, and he begins to tell me a little about his search for my gift that ended with him being outbid on ebay. But the next find was a 'buy it now' transaction, and I'm still unwinding my gift from the bubble wrap, so he found this anvil, and before I can even see it, I realize what he's said and that the weight in my hands, right there in my hands, is an anvil, and the tears just come and I'm laughing and crying and laughing. I found out after my Uncle died that my Grandpa's anvil didn't make the last move with my Grandma. Which I understand, it weighed a ton. But I loved that anvil, I wanted that anvil. My Grandpa's anvil. And now may husband, who knew how much it meant, has given that to me, and it's my husband's heart bound in an anvil wrapped with my Grandpa's memory. Thank you sweetie. I love it. I love you.

Memorial Day Weekend

The Plan. Spend Saturday morning volunteering for the Silver Lake Jubilee.

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Take a day trip to San Juan Capistrano on Sunday and explore the historic Mission and the area surrounding it.

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Chill and grill on Monday with cold Corona's and Rib Eye steaks.

Generations

That's my Mom Jeanette on the left, my Grandma Laura in the middle, and me on the right. My Grandma's neighbor and good friend Tess took photos of the three of us during our visit to my Grandma's this past March. Though you wouldn't know it from this photo, it's a tough time for the three of us. My Grandma now lives by herself. My Mom and I live so far away and although my Grandma is able to live independently and she has wonderful and caring neighbors and friends, like dear Tess, as she approaches her 92nd birthday this year my Mom and I worry about her.

Being the new steward of our family photos, I've gone through them several times and there are some wonderful photos of my family, some dating back to the 19-teens. There are photos of my Grandma as a young woman with my Grandpa and her children, to my Mom as a toddler and a young girl growing up, to those from my childhood bringing back the memories of my life.

And here we are many many years ago. Me on the left, my Mom in the middle, and Grandma on the right.

 

This was probably 1968 or so, and I'm probably about 9. I remember that dress. I just love my Mom's hairdo, and I believe my Grandma is younger than I am now in this picture.

Another one found in the family photo shoebox. This is in the 70s. I'm in my teens.

I have a wonderful relationship with my Mom, and my husband and my family mean everything to me, but I do wish I had a daughter. With no daughter to continue the generation of our family the lineage will end with me. I am the last in the descent of our family of women. But, so be it. That time has long passed, and I've got my dog, five cats, a tortoise and a tree frog. I'm their Mom.

Joshua Tree NP Day Trip

I spent a glorious day at Joshua Tree NP.

We had been considering a quick trip to Death Valley this month and then decided to give Joshua Tree a look since neither of us had been there before, and it's closer, more like a two and a half hour drive versus the five hours to DV.

My research began weeks ago and I had narrowed it down to some of the trails I thought would be most interesting and the most accessible for the limited amount of time we had.

Up at about 3:30 am on Saturday morning, after showering, feeding the animals, and packing up photo gear and provisions for the day we hit the road a couple of hours later and rolled in at the Cottonwood Visitor Center at about 7:30 am.

We traveled from the south entrance, which is Colorado Desert side, to the north's Mojave Desert side, exiting at the town of Joshua Tree. Along with many 'Exhibits' along the road (otherwise known as points of interest), these are the sights and trails we hit:

Ocotillo Patch

Cholla Cactus Garden

Arch Rock Trail at White Tank Campground

Skull Rock Trail at Jumbo Rocks Campground

 

Keys View

 

Barker Dam Trail at Hidden Valley Campground

 

Ice cold beer and onion rings at Joshua Tree Saloon

It was a perfectly sunny 76 degree day with a light breeze. We laid down a blanket in the shade of a big boulder mid-day and ate our lunch. The rocks are fun to climb and they have a rough grippy surface. The landscape is also very navigable, with soft gravelly washes that make natural trails through canyons in the rocks, with plenty of pops of vivid wild-flower color everywhere.

We saw plenty of lizards, squirrels and ravens. We also saw a wonderful black-tailed jackrabbit aaaaand a huge desert tortoise crossing the road.

Future trips are definitely in store.



More photos on Flickr

Where I Can Breathe

It's about time I put something new up. The new year seems to be flying by, already. I'm getting back on track with routine walks in the pre-dawn hours of the morning. The only thing that gets me out of bed on these 'chilly' mornings is waking up to my wonderful husband and our sweetie dog, all waggy tail and giddy-up lets go.

We got out on some local trails for a couple of 4to5-milers in January.

The Verdugo Mountain Trail and Bronson Canyon Trail (with its notorious cave, featured in commercials, tv, and movies). They're both wonderful trails and dog friendly.

The Verdugo's a little less crowded. This was on New Year's day, and I was feeling like I needed to get up out of the city, up where I could see, where I could breathe. It was the perfect remedy.

Happy New Year 2012

If it's New Year's morning, it must be time for a Mimosa.

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Happy New Year

Town and Country

Last weekend Will and I visited the country town of Julian, CA.Home to rolling hills and apple orchards and a small town out of the 1870's. We picked apples at the Raven Hill Orchard and had lunch at Soups and Such, visited the Pioneer Museum and a one room schoolhouse, we walked up to the hilltop cemetery, browsed the bookshop and art shops, all under a glorious blue sky.

On the way out we strolled those rolling hills in the Wildlife Sanctuary.Today I made a Granola Apple Crisp with the Empire apples we picked. It's topped with Apple Cinnamon Granola and Honey Crisp Pecans from the Julian Cider Mill.
More photos on Flickr

Ever Gentle on My Mind

There was something so deeply intimate about being there in Troy, going through my Uncle's space, a space now empty of his physical presence, and yet he was everywhere. In the look on Rusty's face, the notes left on the table, a book on the nightstand, boots kicked off and laying on the floor.His ashes are heavy in my arms. And just like he did with my Grandpa before him, with my bare hand I lift the ashes out and let them fall through my fingers to the gentle wind, to the tall grass, to the river rocks, and to the wild river.There's deep sorrow and a calming peace in doing so. He's where he wanted to be. And I look at the bend in the river and tears of joy might stain my face, and the summer sun might burn me till I'm blind. But not to where I cannot see him walking on the back roads, by the rivers of my memory, ever smilin', ever gentle on my mind.
Those song lyrics have been in my head and I take a moment to say goodbye before I rise from the riverside, and return to the others.

I Come From a Family of Fishermen

I've wanted to fish all summer long, and it seemed there was a reason this feeling consumed me. I come from a family of fishermen, says my Mom, and so it is with thoughts of my Grandpa fishing the rivers of northern California's Shasta county, with a bond so strong and a connection everlasting, that another member of those fishermen was dying.

I learned in July that my Uncle Jimmy had terminal cancer, and by Saturday morning, September 3, 2011, he was gone. Jim passed away, quietly, at home with my Grandma.
Thinking about it all summer long, Will and I were up early yesterday driving east to the San Gabriel River. The sun rising before me, tears in my eyes, and my fishermen on my mind.
I didn't catch any fish (this time). But I connected with my fishermen, and had my husband at my side.

Will and I stood on the banks of the river, casting our lines into the current, practicing more than expecting to catch anything more than twigs. And with the cool rushing water circling my legs and the warmth of the sun on my shoulders, I thought of my Grandpa and my Uncle Jimmy.

Jim was a mountain man living in northwest Montana along the Kootenai River. Smart, strong, a master craftsman, always with a dog by his side, sometimes troubled and made mean by drinking, yet loving and loved deeply. I will miss him in my life.
Rest in peace Jimmy.

OMGoats Are Cute

The goats are clearing the brush on the slope around and under Angel's Flight downtown. After going to a movie we thought we'd stop by and say "hay". They are just about about the cutest ever.More Goats on Flickr