To O'ahu We Must Go

Connor and I just got back from a quick getaway in O'ahu. It was very spur of the moment, but there was a good deal on plane tickets, so there you go. As usual, we really packed it in, but because we took time to sit and enjoy ourselves, we came away feeling well rested and relaxed.

On our first day in O'ahu, we hiked up Diamond Head to watch the sun rise. Or we almost saw the sun rise... more like we saw the sun rising. I sat and painted this scene while Connor listened in on the many Japanese tourists to see if he could recognize any words.

The hike wasn't too hard, but it was humid, so we came away rather sweaty and tired. After a nap, we headed out to see the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. You see a film, which is sobering, before you board a boat to visit the actual memorial. I think the film allowed everyone to be much more respectful as we were all on the same page about the gravity of the bombing in Pearl Harbor. We came away with a better sense of the loss that happens during war.

After Pearl Harbor we stopped by a beach to snorkel. It was the beginning of our snorkel adventures as the next day we got up to snorkel at Hanauma Bay. We arrived about mid-morning and we relieved to get a parking spot. After watching the required movie, we were allowed to go down to the beach and reef. There was a huge variety of fish in the reef. I must have seen 3-4 varieties of parrotfish alone. I got a kick out of seeing both the largest and smallest rainbow parrotfish I'd ever seen. We also saw a few Humuhumunukunukuapua'a (Hawaii's state fish) swimming around.

After two rounds of snorkeling, I was ready to warm up, so I did something I don't think I've ever done in my life: I sat on the beach and did nothing. Connor went back in for a bit longer before we left.

Eventually we left and drove to the east side of O'ahu to see what we could see. We might have chosen the best time to leave because soon we were driving through a giant cloudburst. After exploring a few places we found ourselves on Lanikai beach. It was pretty quiet and as advertised: beautiful. We decided that if we ever made it back to O'ahu, we'd have to spend a little more time here.

It was here that we decided that we could live in O'ahu quite happily

On our last full day in O'ahu, we headed north to see the Dole Plantation. The first order of business was to get lost in the biggest botanical maze in the world. We spent nearly 50 minutes looking for the 8 stations throughout the maze.

Afterwards we jumped aboard the train to see some of the pineapple fields. I've decided that pineapples are a weird fruit. They grow at such odd angles on the mother plant. We also learned that pineapples aren't even native to Hawaii, but because of Dole's success, we associate them with Hawaii. After our train ride we stopped for some Dole Whip, which is as good as they say, before going to the north shore.

In winter, the north shore if famous for its large waves and the surfers that follow them. We decided to go to Banzai Pipeline to see if anyone was there. As it turned out, there was going to be a competition the next day. We saw quite a few great surfers. Connor decided he wanted to frolic in the waves and did so while I painted. When I finished, he talked me into joining him. It was fun until the second time I got a mouth full of seawater. 

If you look carefully, you can see a surfer riding the wave

After exhausting ourselves, we found a bar/grill that served Loco Moco past breakfast. (Loco Moco is a rice/egg/beef patty/ gravy dish that is rather tasty) While waiting for our meal, we spotted some of these guys. Unfortunately, these geckos are not native, but they were sure fun to watch. One stalked a fly and another one tried to sell me car insurance. We also saw a brown one that had two tails! He was too quick for a picture.

We came away with two patches and a magnet, which was much more restrained than the last time we were in Hawaii.

All in all, we had a great time. I only wish we had a few more days to snorkel and eat a ton more tasty food. 

The Elephant Seals Of Año Nuevo

Last Friday Connor took the day off of work so we could go on a guided walk at Año Nuevo to see the Elephant Seals. Mating and pupping season are just starting. We were hoping to see some of the giant bull males, but the first view was of the juvenile and some slightly older males. One of them had the long proboscis they are famous for and it was pointed down into the sand. Every time he exhaled, a cloud of sand would blast into the air. I giggled every time.

We were also lucky to see the first pup of the season. It's really hard to see, but the little dark lump alongside the leftmost seal is it. We heard it crying for milk.

It was starting to look like we wouldn't see any big bull males as we reached the last viewing point. Someone on the tour went to the far edge of the view area, looked down, and there he was. He looks like a giant rock, but if this guy had reared up, he would have been quite frightening indeed. He is the size of a good size car.

With the holidays moving full steam ahead, it was nice to get out and have some peace and quiet. After seeing these amazing animals, we walked back and had lunch by the Marine Education Center. Connor closed his eyes for a bit and I just took in the view. I can still smell the salt air and hear the loud grunting the seals made.

The house in the background belonged to the lighthouse keeper. It hasn't been maintained since 1948 and the seals and birds live in it now.

I had been to Año Nuevo before, but hadn't been on the look out for a patch at the time. I think the current patch looks great. We also got a magnet to add to our fridge.

In what ways have you all been able to reclaim some peace during the busy holiday season? 

Morro Bay Weekend Pt.2

The weekend adventure was far too short. I could spend quite a bit more time in the peace that is Morro Bay. In the morning we stopped by the Elfin Forest before heading back home.

It's called the Elfin Forest because the oaks here are stunted because of their location on an ancient sand dune. They are a few hundred years old, but only four yards (4ish meters) tall.

We said good bye to Morro Bay, but decided to drive up the coast a bit to tour Hearst Castle. Connor hadn't been before and I thought he might like it.  I was right.

Hearst Castle is full of artistic treasures. There are tapestried from the 16th century. The Louvre has the same tapestries, but they are 17th century copies of the ones at Hearst Castle. The piece of art that Connor found most impressive was the statues of Sekhmet. The bust on the right is the oldest at 3500 years old. The others are a mere 3000 years old.

We were just about ready to head home, but before we finally committed, we stopped to see the Elephant Seals that were 5 minutes up the road. At the moment the beach is filled with juveniles. The big guys won't show up for another month. 

Of course Connor and I were lucky to see two juveniles practice their fighting. Although rather than fighting over females, there were fighting over a prime spot on the beach. The guy on the left won and pushed the previous occupant off.

And with that we headed back home. There were accidents all along the way, so we took back roads and enjoyed seeing the stars come out and we drove into the night.

We did come away with a few more patches for the future quilt as well as a magnet. I've already posted the patch information onto the patch map.

The List Is Long And Full Of Terrors

I'm sure we've all had a time or two in our lives where the list gets longer than a trip to the moon and you are about to crack. At the moment, I'm not sure if I've cracked or am about to, but the list has gotten rather long.

Indefinite Projects
*Drawing/ Editing/ Uploading the daily comic - This is a big time sink. It's hard to know if it is worth it, but at this point I've spent nearly half a year on all the editing, so I think I shall just keep going.
*Keeping the household relatively clean - (Haha.) When the mold in the shower starts to become sentient, I clean it.
*Blogging approximately once a week - This includes thinking of something to talk about and taking pictures. I do like keeping my writing skills polished, which was the reason I started the blog in the first place. It's also so that all the family members who don't see us all that often can discover what we've been up to.

I draw four comics per page in my sketchbook. When editing it for the internet, I crop out each comic so it can be posted individually.

Long Term Projects
*Souvenir Patch Quilt - While it is kind of an indefinite project because of the continual collection of patches, most of the work is embroidering the USA and quilting the rest of the of the quilt.
*School - Luckily I like what I'm learning, but I'm a little stressed out about deciding how far to take it. Do I want to just learn some things or do I want to go for another degree? For now my decision is to not make a decision.

It took me two and a half hours to embroider Maryland. I don't have positive feelings towards the state of Maryland at the moment.

Projects Where The Finish Line Is In The Distance
*Christmas knitting/ weaving - I don't usually do handmade gifts for more than one or two people, so this year is an anomaly.
*A thank-you woven scarf - There is someone who I can only thank with a handmade scarf. The only deadline I have is my personal guilt of not doing this sooner.

This is one of the last Christmas gifts left to do

Short Term Projects
*Most of these are the annoying things that come up to prevent me from finishing anything else. Things like a doctor visit, taking the car in to be looked at, and various other errands. All important, but I wish I didn't have to.

Projects On My Mind But On The Back Burner -
*Comic Stories - I have four distinct comic story ideas in mind. Unlike the daily comic, they all have a definite end. I've tried to forget about all of them, but all the ideas swirl around in my head, so I occasional write or draw a little thing about each one to stop it from bothering me.
*Other Book Ideas - I have three other book ideas. One a humorous depiction of Silicon Valley and two others that relate to business and creativity. I've been taking notes for them whenever inspiration strikes...which is usually in the bathroom.
*Painting - While I am taking a watercolor class (thank goodness, or there would be no time carved out) I really would love to have a little time to make a small painting or two to apply what I've learned in class and have a little creative release.

This is a quick color study for a much larger painting due my class

It's tough to know what to give up when it comes to all these lists. They all seem like personal projects, but at the same time there is limited payoff because either I'm not getting feedback or the project is starting to feel like a slog. My bad habit when all my projects aren't feeling like fun is to start a new one, but as this list is showing me (and maybe you) is that a new project is probably ill advised. So I'm not really sure what to do except lean into it and get some things off of the list. If anyone has any advise or commiseration, please do share. I'm sure many of you also have a list that is long and full of terrors!

Channel Islands National Park

Connor and I had been keeping a close eye on the weather around the Channel Islands for the last 8 months. There is a narrow window where the weather isn't too hot and the water isn't too rough. The weekend before last we saw that our time had come. Friday we jumped in the car and drove 6 hours (there was so much traffic...) to Ventura so that we could catch the morning ferry to Santa Cruz Island. It was worth the wait, the weather was glorious.

We took a morning kayak tour to see the different sea caves. Our guide, Mel, was lots of fun. We also made friends with the other people on the tour who were all pals from Quebec. Connor learned a new-to-him French phrase when one of the ladies jumped in the water: "C'est froid! C'est froid!" We already knew how cold the Pacific Ocean is around California, so we didn't jump in.

After kayaking, we opted to go for a hike to Potato Harbor. Along the way we saw one of the famous island foxes that is endemic to Santa Cruz island.

This fox was grooming itself rather vigorously. I got a picture when it came up for air.

It was good it wasn't too hot out because most of the five mile hike is exposed. But, being out there made us feel so free. On occasion we would pass someone, but for the most part we were alone on an island in the middle of nowhere.

Part of the hike is along the sea cliffs. Before we had gotten on the ferry, we picked up a patch. I thought it would be nice to get a picture of the patch that included the sea caves we had been in earlier.
There are whale tails on the patch, but we didn't have the pleasure of seeing one on the ferry ride to or from the island. They said that sometimes you can see a Blue Whale. I hope one day I'll get to even if it didn't work out to on this trip.

Once we made it to Potato Harbor, we sat and enjoyed the view. I thought about painting, but I opted to just take it all in instead. We live such busy lives, sometimes it is hard to remember to sit still and just be.

We ended up bumping into our Quebecois friends again on the trail and walked with them for a bit before splitting in different directions.

We timed our hike carefully. It's important that you make it to the dock in time for the ferry. They don't wait for anyone and if you are late, you get to camp. There isn't any food or water to be had on the island, so an unplanned camping trip is rather unpleasant. We got to the dock on time and found seats on the back of the boat. After such a big day, Connor couldn't help but nod off while I meditated on the day.

Funnily enough, we went out to dinner and bumped into our Quebecois friends again. Even though it was a quick trip, I'm glad we got to have it. The only regret I have is that we only had one day to explore. I hope that this isn't our last trip to Channel Islands National Park.

The Oregon Caves

Last weekend Connor and I went up to Oregon to visit my family. Part of the trip was spent making recordings of my Oma's stories of growing up in WWII Germany, but we also were able to visit with a number of other relatives too. I also was able to share the Oregon Caves with Connor. I hadn't been in a number of years. They aren't open year round, so we took advantage while we were in the area.

Oregon Caves National Monument set aside by President Taft on July 12, 1909

My aunt, uncle, and their grandkids joined us. We've been to a number of caves, but it is interesting how different each one is. We were told that the Oregon Caves are made of marble, which is rather unusual. I noticed that these caves were much colder than any of the other ones I'd been in before, although I'm not sure why that was.

The Paradise Lost formation

Part way through, one of the kiddos wasn't feeling so well, so my aunt left with him through a rather handy door that was available to exit by at the 40% mark of the tour. After going through the caves, Connor and I opted to do the extra nature hike that looped down to the visitor center. My uncle took the remaining kiddos directly down.

After doing the short hike, Connor and I had a look at the visitor center. They have this neat model that shows you the route you walk on the tour.

We also picked up a magnet and patch while we were there.

I'm glad I got to share a childhood memory with Connor and make some new ones with my family.

Pinnacles National Park

This past weekend, Connor and I went to Pinnacles National Park. Going to a new national park is on my goal list for this year, but if you've been following this blog long enough, you'll know that I've been before, so that goal hasn't been crossed off just yet. Connor, however, hadn't been before. I was excited to share this park with him.

I haven't been on a challenging hike since July... or any hike really since then. (I briefly felt well enough to go up Sierra Buttes back in July.) But after walking 7 flat miles (or 11k) in a day last week, I was feeling like I might be up for the 9.2 mile (15k) hike up, down, and around the mountain. 

Halfway up the mountain, we bumped into a pair of hikers that started when we did, but were a little faster. We took each other's pictures.

We took our time as we climbed up and up and up. I was huffing and puffing the whole way. Connor kindly reminded me that most people would be breathing hard on the trail we were on. Eventually we made it to the top, where we had lunch.

I can see the top!

One of the main reasons to come to the Pinnacles other than for the rock formations is to see the California Condors. There were once 27 left, but now there are many more that survive in three different locations; the Pinnacles being one of those. As we ate lunch and enjoyed watching the condors, the pair of hikers that had taken our picture earlier in the hike joined us. We had a great chat. For the rest of the day, we would sometimes see each other on the trail and talk a bit before one group out paced the other.

The California Condor has a 9.5 foot (3m) wingspan

I'm really proud to have done the entire hike without too much trouble. I feel like I've graduated from being too sick to leave the couch to finally being able to hike the way I used to. Also, in the end, we beat that pair of hikers who had been ahead of us at the beginning of the day.

Connor and I added a new patch to our collection, too! We picked up this patch at the visitor center at the east entrance. I've added a "Pinnacles National Park" entry on the souvenir patch map for those who may want to find one of their own.

Souvenir Patch Map

A little over a week into the new year and I'm pleased to say that I have completed one goal for the year: I've made a map that shows where each patch was bought.

Sometimes I was able to find multiple patches at one location. To accommodate that, each point's title reflects what patches were bought and includes an image of all the patches that were found in that location. For example, I bought the Big Cypress and Everglades patches at the same location, so they share a pin, a title, and a photo. Each pin also includes a little extra information if the patch wasn't easy to find at said location. (Las Vegas, I'm looking at you.)

There is now a little button on the side of the blog to help you guys go directly to the patch map. 

Now the big question is, which place should I try to get a patch from next? Any suggestions?

Shasta Caverns, Crater Lake, and Oma

As with many other people in the US, Connor had a three day weekend for Labor Day. We around different ideas until we realized that we could see Oma. Connor and I last saw her in January and I had hoped we could visit her again after we were married. Mum had said she wanted to go up, so quick arrangements were made with my aunt and uncle and away we went. Of course we thought we'd do some sightseeing on the way up. Mum and I had talked about going to the Shasta Caverns for some time and Mum thought this trip would be a perfect opportunity to finally go for it. 

You can see how bad the drought is here in California. The treeline is where the water ought to be.

After purchasing tickets we walked down a long and dusty path, got on a boat, and crossed Lake Shasta.

After disembarking we piled onto a bus and drove up and up and up.

The view was fantastic. It was hard to believe that we started out on the other side of the lake.

Then we toured the caves. Mum had been before as a child and she didn't mention that at the end of the tour you enter a large cavern called the Organ Room. It was breathtaking. Once upon a time it was used as an Oddfellows meeting spot, long before paths were cleared and tours were given. And honestly, if you saw the way people used to go in, it was obvious why it was a place for secret meetings.

Connor is wearing his new Angel Island shirt

We got in pretty late, so we didn't see Oma until the next day. As usual, we surprised her. Later on she told us she didn't want to change her shirt because our hugs were still on it.

After a nice visit with Oma, we decided to go to Crater Lake. Connor had seen it in a previous blog post and wanted to visit himself. The crowds were legendary, so Aunt Janet and my Mum told us to get out and enjoy ourselves while they looked for parking. As soon as he saw the lake, Connor exclaimed, "It's like I'm in your blog!"

We got a few more doodads for the future patch project. I already had a Crater Lake patch, so we got a magnet for the fridge instead.

Since the trip, we've taken it easy. After three straight weekends of fun and adventure, we decided to spend time playing Super Mario Sunshine instead. We'll probably keep playing until the urge of adventure is overwhelming once again.