Voldemort

So it was a difficult day for our country this past Friday.  I recognize that I grew up in a liberal bubble (Seattle) and now reside in another liberal bubble (San Francisco).  I recognize that I have never lived anywhere outside a liberal bubble (even Ithaca, NY is a blue island in the sea of red Upstate New York), but I know that my beliefs on equality for all, justice and taking care of our planet is the right way to live.  I recognize that I have incredible privilege in being born into a family that financially and emotionally supported me.  I recognize that right now, I have so many layers that buffer me from the potential changes that our new leader, Voldemort (I refuse to actually say the name out loud for until he is out of office) may try to enact or repeal.  But now, and I have to say sadly a little late in life, that I too, like many of us who were surprised by the results of the election (or more importantly, suffer through the stupid electoral college the gives so much weight to voters in the Upper Midwest) that we are too complacent.  What are we going to do?  Well, I hope my actions from yesterday's march aren't indicative...

I finished up my shift at Open Hand and walked down Polk Street to Civic Center and the rally in full swing.

That "TRUTH" on the side of the building was already there before all this.

Not being a fan of crowds and the rain starting falling, I decided head home.  See?  There it is again, not sticking it out.

There were so many great signs, but this one speaks to me and one that I believe in.  I always feel that even though extremism and hate takes hold for a small amount of time, ultimately, it gets beaten down and that good wins.

Sonoma Weekend #2: Bald Mountain

On Monday MLK day itself, Onions and I met up with Hans and Teresa to hike up Bald Mountain, which is located in the Sugarloaf Ridge State Park.  The park is located in that range between the Napa and Sonoma valleys.

It was amazing that as we hiked up, we got high enough to see that the clouds were still blanketing the Sonoma valley to the west all the way to the ocean.

Clouds over the Napa Valley.

Hans and Teresa pulled out and IMPRESSIVE lunch/snack spread.  Picnic in the sun!

I must be in good shape because I'm at that point that I prefer uphill and don't think of it as suffering.  It's the downhills that I am starting to dislike.

After the hike, Onions and I drove into Santa Rosa to see the Charles Schulz Museum.

So it turns out that Onions had seen Snoopy in China, but Charlie Brown and his Peanuts group hadn't made it there.

This mosaic.....

....is made up of actual Peanuts cartoon strips.

I'd vote for Lucy and Charlie.

Or any of the Peanuts characters

Isn't this strip from the 60's a little prescient.  Too bad it didn't come true this year.

They moved Schulz's office into the museum.  This is where the magic happened.

Onions first taste of In-and-Out!

The end of the weekend was a Cedar Enzyme Bath. It's apparently helpful to digestion.   We usually like to go to the mudbaths in Calistoga but I decided to have us try something different. 

It's like soaking in "pork floss."  This is cedar chips and other wood ground up and it reacts naturally to create heat that is 100 Fahrenheit to the skin.  I think the best part about the experience was the fact that we got to sit in the chips and look out over a Japanese garden at sunset!  I think Onions and I will choose the mudbath over this cedar bath.

Sonoma Weekend #1: Fort Ross

MLK Weekend 2017, Onions and I took a trip to Sonoma County.  We left on Sunday morning and drove up north of Bodega Bay to Jenner.  This is where the Russian River meets the sea.

Goat Rock

12 Miles north of Jenner is Fort Ross State Park.

On this spot in 1812, the Russians built an outpost as a place to supply their Alaska settlements.

The built this "fort" here and called it Fort Ross (as in Rossyia)

Of course this is a reconstruction, but apparently this is what it looked like.  Onions about to enter the compound where the high ranking Russian officials lived.

The compound had many residential buildings, storage houses and a chapel.

In two corners of the rectangle are towers.

The recent rains...flowers out!

The Russians were here from 1812 to 1842 at which time they sold their land here to John Sutter.  The seals have been forever.

These aren't the original cemetery crosses, but there are Russians and other natives who died buried around the Fort.