A quick visit to Ocean Beach...

Lots of time to rest, visit and watch the waves.

Oysters on the half shell "reflected" in this photo.

Outdoors, lots of food

Bougainvillea

Had some really interesting news today.  Seems like I will be back in Davis next week.  Not what I expected but one must be ready to accept change.  Actually, I am looking forward to having the time off before the trip to Okinawa, lots of time I didn't expect, so I may get many things done that I haven't had time for in over a year.  It will be great to be at home with Jo.

Saying Goodbye.....Jo

It's time to say goodbye to Alaska.  I am startled at this rotation to find so many kindred spirits.  It definitely has been a kick and I've had a good time. Still, I'm glad to be heading home where the sun will be shining.  Today I walked around with a coat and 2 other layers on.  Really bizarre that it's August.

Here I am at Hatcher Pass, about 30 miles away from Anchorage.  Beautiful, rolling green hills...more like I imagine somewhere like Ireland.  I picked blueberries here but they were scarce and not ripe yet.  Best part was that I felt safe away from bears or at least I could see them coming since it was so wide open and clear.

Goodbye, Alaska. 

Leaving Alaska....Jo

Well, here I am at the muskox farm.  Thom bugged me to go there and on Sunday I found it after months resisting his nagging about it. And it was a hidden treasure.

These are incredible animals....big and bulky and they "shed" their soft quiviut which Native women then weave and knit into beautiful scarves and hats.  At my husband's urging, I treated myself to one of these beautiful scarves which, I'm told will last me a lifetime.  Finest wool in the world.

Read about these amazing here.  

I forgot this guy's name but he was gentle and slow moving. 

So more later about my latest rotation.  It has been disgusting weather for summer in Alaska but the people I have met here have been amazingly friendly and generous.  I'm ready to go home but I leave with the idea that I would come back here if I had a chance.

Each day gets me closer to seeing my Thom. 

Seems like we start and end life in much the same state.  Concerned about independence, or concerned about how we fit in.  Every thime I go to a cemetery I ponder the folks who are looking at the grass from the other side.  It is amazing how many of them I have outlived.  The National cemetery on Pt. Loma has about 50,0000 people  interred.  It is an amazingly beautiful location and it is beautifully kept up.

Gratitude.....Jo

I am grateful for the reminder from Thom's post that life is exquisitely good at times.  I remind myself that in my heart I am never far from Thom.  He is close by, a phone call away, and even with the miles between us, I can feel his love for me and mine for him.  We indeed are lucky people. 

When I see these mountains that take my breath away, I know that beauty and love are just about everything you need sometimes.   

Palomar is still impressive....Thom

After fifty years, ( since I saw it first) it is still impressive and gigantic. Palomar Observatory and the view are both impressive.  Not much to say about it.

Mexico is only a stone throw away...how different it would be...Thom

You wouldn't know it by looking  but you can see the Tijuana Bull ring in the upper right of the above photo.  The foreground in the US and is called the Tijuana Estuary Preserve I believe, sort of a wetlands.  the other two photos are from Imperial Beach.

Missing Jo.  This is a strange rotation and it creates anxiety which I don't need.  The anxiety is real and uncalled for as is most anxiety.  Jo and I have lived very blessed lives, we've both done many things we want and as we wanted to boot.  We both have enjoyed good health and continue to do so.  We have wonderful children of whom we can be extremely proud and grateful.  To cloud that with unneeded anxiety is a gigantic waste of energy.

On a brighter note, I'm going to Palomar Observatory tomorrow, it will be interesting to see if it still holds the same magic for me today that it did 45 years ago.

By the way I would miss Jo with or without the anxiety, I love having her in my life and sharing with her and having her share with me.

Rain, Rain Go Away....Jo

It's raining again tonight!  What the heck?  This weather is really getting old.  But I did see some of the sun under yummy, beautiful clouds tonight.  Here's some of my photos from atop a hill overlooking the inlet.  Really regretted that I didn't have the 20D.

I found this field of poppies.

So that's about it for the sun for us today.

Life in the fast track......Jo

Wonderful photos from my beloved.  You are truly doing stunning work.  I love seeing your pictures. 

It seems like everything is going so fast now.  Only 10 more days and I'll be home and then the wedding.  Last minute changes with Mexicana suspending all flights from Sacramento and the realization that now I have an extra day in Cabo.  Wow.  Amazing the silver lining in this one. 

Here I am with White Eagle, a woman who taught the drum making workshop with last Saturday.  An all day experience that I will not forget.  I love my drum and play it every morning and night.  Very special day.  White Eagle is part of the grandmother drum project .  I got to see and be with the grandmother drum while at this workshop.  Quite powerful.

So as I do my work here and experience sadness and grief with the loss of experienced pilots it reminds me to be grateful to be alive.  And so very grateful to have my very talented and brilliant husband.  And my beautiful sons and now my soon to be daughters.  Life is fast but it sure is good.

Heaven and...the eye of the beholder....Thom

Couple of weeks ago I went to Niland, Ca.  It is near the Salton sea and a basically scruffy, tough and ramshackle desert town.  Right outside of town are two locations withing 150 feet of each other that I found fascinating.   The top photo is from the first, and is a sandstone hill that has been painted with latex, (and whatever else I suspect) as one man's homage to God.

The other two photos are from graffiti painted on an old water tank ( reservoir) and I don't know who did it but it is safe to say it is an homage to the Kama Sutra.  Of course I may be totally wrong about that, I could find no one to explain about it to me.

This is from the weekend in Anza-Borrego...by Thom

I've hiked up about 120 feet to get a picture of a barrel cactus you can see a little later in this series.

Crosses are made out of concrete, this cemetery principally serves the Native Americans in this area.

Santa Ysabel Mission Church has a 

cemetery attached as most do, but this one is very colorful.

The good Padre is located in Borrego Springs with many other sculptures on the desert floor in the town.

 

It would work a lot better if I knew how to move photos and text around in this program, but I don't, so anyway.  I had a really good time this weekend.  Some of it gave me a moment to pause, particularly when it was getting dark and I was still in the canyon.  It was OK, I had a small flashlight, a compass and plenty of water.  I unfortunately was thinking about the mountain lions, slipping and falling, being bitten by rattlesnake, or just being embarrassed by having to spend the night in desert.  It is very quiet, and very peaceful.  It is really as beautiful I hope my photos reflect. 

Adventurous Days...and a little bitty bit of night

I think this photo, which by the way is in infrared, sums up the essence of the desert much better than the more colorful ones I usually display.  Saturday and Sunday were filled with adventure, but the predominant feeling was mostly missing having you (Jo) to share this with.  I did a sum total of about ten miles, with elevation gain of a little over 1000 feet.  Not bad for an old man, in 118 degree weather.  Actually speaks to a weak mind more than physical fitness.  There is lots to write about and more photos, but I'll save those for tomorrow when I am less tired.  I hope you are sleeping well and feeling better, I'm also eager to hear about your drumming, drum building experience.