Adventures in California

“Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.” – Miriam Beard

Last fall E and I ventured to the coast of California, where we discovered elephant seals, monarch butterflies,  rolling sand dunes, and bubble-gum alleyways. It was a quick trip with its share of hiccups thanks to the wonderful world of non-rev travel (benefit of Evan's luggage handling job over the summer), but it was well worth it for a few days in a fresh environment.

We flew into LA and drove north a few hours to Pismo Beach, a quaint beach-town known for its clam shell festival, gelato, and Italian cuisine. Our first full day was spent exploring the sand dunes right along the coastline and soaking in as much sun as possible before heading back home for Minnesota's "hibernation" season. Tip: By entering the dunes via the Oso Flaco Lake entrance we avoided ATV craziness and noise. 

Another day took us up North to a hike in San Luis Obispo called Bishop's Peak. We were told there's a spectacular view of the ocean from the summit, but we enjoyed the mystique of fog-wrapped cliffs instead. 

A few years ago I spied an awesome photo in National Geographic of an alley covered in bubble gum. It wasn't until after we made our travel plans to California that I discovered we were headed right towards the famous bubblegum alley ... 

Other adventures included checking out (and smelling!) the elephant seals, which migrate along the coastline that time of year. After we returned home I got in the habit of visiting this live seal cam every day! Up close they really look like creatures from some horror movie ... and wait until you see them fight! 

FOOD

My favorite dinner was probably at Giuseppe's in Pismo Beach. Giuseppe himself, an elderly Italian man, sat by the front door playing his xylophone all night! The fresh clams at Steamer's weren't bad either. Since Pismo Beach is known for their clam chowder we had to sample some at Splash Cafe - quite tasty, although we had to fend off seagulls. As I alluded to earlier, our return trip from LA didn't go very smoothly, so we spent our "extra day" at Venice Beach and dined at a little cafe right on the boardwalk called the Figtree Cafe. 

LODGING

We loved our cute little unit, just two blocks from the beach. It was cozy but had everything we needed, with a little courtyard out front. Completely furnished with Ikea ware! 

Now that spring break season is upon us we're kind of sad we aren't jetting off to somewhere warm. That's why I made this little slideshow to recap our travels last fall - come enjoy this virtual spring break trip with E+C!

Music: "Learn Me Right," by Birdy and Mumford & Sons - from the Brave soundtrack

Perfect for St. Paddy's Day!

Check out our other travels: last spring we were skiing in Colorado and two years ago we were in St. Louis!

Anyone else getting the travel bug this time of year?

Birthday Business

......

old, you say? there's no such thing

.......

(Kirst, note the childhood memory reference in the line above?) For Kirst's big 30 bday, sister Karrin and I flew out to St. Louis to help her celebrate. Of course we wish that Sarah, our youngest sister, could have been there too, but she is off having grand adventures in Alaska. Our weekend was filled with biking, wineries, breweries, shopping, eating, and even tree climbing! Here's a little slideshow from the festivities ... and I threw a few old photos in there too, just for kicks. (Thanks for sending your pics, Karks!) Have a happy happy birthday, Kirsto!

Adventures in Finland

"...We have joined the greatest of all communities, which is not that of man alone but of everything which shares with us the great adventure of being alive."

Joseph Wood Krutch

This past June my dad and I spent a weekend in Finland ... Finland, Minnesota, that is. My sister Karrin had just completed a year as a Student Naturalist at Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center, so it was a weekend filled with commencement celebrations, hiking and exploring, and fond farewells.

Below you'll find a little slideshow I put together of our weekend. If interested in hearing the story behind Karrin's photos with the canoe ... well, you better ask her ; )

You may notice some familiar scenes from our visits last August,


October (click link to see blog post); didn't make it to Marshall Mt. this trip,


and February (click link to see blog post).

And now in June (it was really foggy)!

My, how the landscape changes with the seasons!

As you will see, Wolf Ridge is a place where the word "adventure" is truly at home. I noticed it popping up in speeches, goodbyes, and casual conversations -- certainly these young naturalists have many more adventures in store for them.

(Once the video starts playing you can change it to higher resolution -- even HD if your computer can handle it!)

"It's a magical world, Hobbes, ol' buddy ... Let's go exploring!"

Farm Tour Adventures

The other day I got you wondering what all of these plastic-covered shoes were all about:

Well here's the rest of that story!

Evan grew up knowing the terms mastitis, sire, and oxytocin; he was able to differentiate a field of alfalfa from barley at a young age; and he knew the meaning of hard work. Even now that he lives in the city he reminisces about the smell of milk replacement powder (mmm, pudding) and the wonderful bouquet of smells that are home to a barn. He will forever appreciate manure. As you may have guessed, or already knew from this post, Evan grew up on a farm. A dairy farm, to be precise.

Sapa Ska Farm, in Lake City, Minn., was founded by Evan's grandpa and is currently run by Evan's dad and uncle. The National Dairy Convention was held in Minnesota this year, and Sapa Ska Farm (which means black and white in some Native American tongue) was lucky to be one of the few properties to be toured by the convention participants. After a lot of hard work cleaning up the barn and renovating the old cheese house to hold the calves, Evan's family opened their doors to about 200 people from around the country. It was an exciting day to be a part of the family, and as you can imagine, I had a blast photographing the event. Here are a few of my favorite photos:

Farmer Denny

Evan's sister Riley painted these -- how clever! I loved them and couldn't help but take a photo.

Evan's cousins, granddaughters of Farmer David, keeping each other company as they survey the newcomers with some trepidation. Evan's sister Tessa enjoys the day.

Turn up your speakers and enjoy the slideshow! If your computer is able, select for it to be played in HD (a button appears once you hit play).

Family Photos

I met up with the C family the other weekend for a photo shoot in their backyard. We had a lot of fun playing under the willow tree, rolling around in the grass, and since they live right on a little pond we got some great photos hanging out on the dock. I hadn't seen little A since she was just a few months old, so it was a real treat to see how she has developed into an adorable one year old - who is just starting to stand on her own! R is such an energetic and curious boy - showing me snails he caught in the pond, gathering up the biggest sticks he could find, and swinging from the branches of the willow. No one can make A laugh like her big brother. Just about all the smiles you see in the photos below are thanks to him! C family, I hope you enjoyed the photo shoot as much as I did!

Enjoy the slideshow! (If your computer can handle it you can up it to 1080p HD with the little button at the bottom that appears once the video starts. And I recommend getting rid of that ugly ad that appears across the bottom).

Sounds of Music

When I go to concerts, whether they be local men's choirs, college gospel singers, or professional performers, I am always struck by the fact that these individuals who just spent hours (and often months) rehearsing and perfecting their music, are actually in the act of saying goodbye as the song is born to my ears for the first time.

I first became conscious of this paradox when I was in seventh grade playing violin with the Strings Preperatory Orchestra in Princeton, NJ. We spent months working on difficult pieces like Tchaikovski's Marche Slave -- working on fingering, bowings, dynamics, difficult passages, and bringing it all together with the full orchestra. We were so wrapped up in preparing the piece that it wasn't until I was sitting in my chair at the concert about to perform a difficult passage that I'd remember "hey, this is my last chance at this run!" This revelation always came with a sense of surprise, because who thinks about saying goodbye when you are rehearsing to bring it to life for the first time? You may play the piece someday in the future, but the truth is that at that moment you are saying goodbye to that piece of music as you know it right then -- with those musicians beside you, the late night rehearsals behind you, those ears and eyes in the audience, even who you are at that time in your life -- you are saying goodbye the moment you deliver it to the world. As you speed through the familiar stanzas, all the discussions and jokes that occurred with those pages opened on your stand play through your head one last time -- you barely have a chance to absorb the fact this is your final moment with the piece when you nail that final chord. The music lingers in the air; you can feel it leave your strings, your bow, the crowded warmth that was its home, and stretch out to feed the audience.... applause.

I was inspired by these thoughts while listening to Evan's latest Minnesota Valley Men's Chorale concert a few weeks ago and jotted some notes down in one of my many notebooks I carry around with me (more on that someday later). One of Evan's favorite pieces from this most recent concert is "Sure on this Shining Night" by Morten Lauridsen (arr. by their conductor, Steven Boehlke). I'm pretty sure Evan will never fully say goodbye to this piece as it is one of his favorites. (Evan is in the middle -- can you find him?)

Last weekend Evan and I buzzed down to Northfield to enjoy my sister Sarah's concert with the St. Olaf Gospel Choir. What an enthusiastic and spirited group! (Sarah is the third from the right in the second row)

Last fall Evan's choir concert had a special treat: Mary Wilson, world-famous soprano opera singer and daughter to the conductor (also a graduate of St. Olaf!), graced us all with her presence, and beautiful voice! Here is a slideshow I made with some of my favorite nature photos taken throughout the past few years - and the wonderful voice of Mary Wilson in All is Well. (You may need to turn the volume up as it starts much softer than the previous gospel clip).

I promise it won't be so long before I post again! I have some photos to compile to show you what we've been up to!

Snowy Adventures Up North

"What is beautiful is a joy for all seasons"

Oscar Wilde

I received that quote on a card from my grandma Haze earlier this winter and have had it sitting on a shelf in my dining room ever since. It's a nice reminder when looking out the window at the huge pile of snow in our driveway, or feeling the draft coming up through the floorboards. Sometimes it is hard to enjoy all that winter has to offer because of the many challenges it presents - both physical and mental. If you remember my post from last year you'll know that I take this time to focus in and work on making my own warmth and brightness. But it is also a good time just to bundle up and get out there because when everyone else cringes at the winter world around them and you decide to embrace the frozen tundra and howling wind -- that's when the best adventures begin.

Over Valentine's Day weekend Evan and I drove up north to visit Karrin at Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center in Finland, MN where she is working as a naturalist. Mike, her boyfriend, is currently working at nearby Lutsen Ski Resort, so we were able to enjoy the weekend with him as well. What a treat to hike up Marshall Mountain (it looked different last August and October. Here's an old post!). We also learned about the Center and all the lessons Karrin teaches (we even went in an igloo!), did some star gazing (we don't have stars like that in the cities!), and spent a day skiing down the mountains of Lutsen against the backdrop of beautiful Lake Superior.

It has taken my dad and I a long time to figure out how to post high quality slideshows with audio on my blog without spending a fortune, but finally -- here's the first one! You might want to wait until your computer has rendered it a little (the red bar goes across a bit) before trying to watch the whole thing. I have it set so that older computers can view, but if you have a newer computer (with an intel chip) you can watch it at 1080p - HD! Just click the arrow next to 360p or 480p along the bar at the bottom and select 1080p (this option isn't available until after you hit play). Let me know if you have any problems. Turn up your volume and enjoy!

You can view these photos individually at my shutterfly website.

Prior Lake

I am trying to figure out this whole slideshow thing. This isn't exactly what I want, but it will do for now...

We spent Friday night at Marit's family lake cabin eating grilled chicken and sweet potatoes (we take advantage of grilled food whenever we can since we can't have a grill at our apartment), relaxing in adirondack chairs by a bonfire, and playing intense games of Sequence into the night. Saturday was a beautiful morning so we took a spin out on the boat. The lake was only half an hour from our house, but we were so relaxed when we came home we felt like we'd been up north!