mona

sunrise

2008-02-25T20:13:00.001-08:00

neener neener

2008-02-16T18:34:00.001-08:00

I don't care what the gopher says, it's spring here

2008-02-13T23:45:00.001-08:00

Dusk

2008-02-13T23:42:00.001-08:00

Aloha (?)

2008-01-25T11:50:00.001-08:00

It's been raining FOREVER.

Winter here is definitely not as intense as back east, but all this rain can really get a girl down. Now I get why people who live here go to Hawaii for the rainy season. I was making fun of those people not long ago, but today I will be doing a little air fare research.

... wish me luck!

Carrot Cake Cookie Sandwiches with Coconut Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting!!!

2007-12-29T02:11:00.000-08:00

oh my god.

I Love Photo Booth

2007-11-26T16:39:00.002-08:00

here we go again

2007-11-26T15:52:00.000-08:00

It happens every year...
The air gets a little crisper
The sky turns a deeper shade of blue
The winds of change pick up the fallen leaves, sending them in every direction

I can always feel the wind before it actually arrives to brush across my face
As soon as I feel it, I can't help but smile, as a chill dances up my spine

Here we go again.

Stella enjoys the moving process about as much as I do. Which is not at all. She sees the boxes appear, and instantly makes herself very present all of the time, to ensure I don't forget her. When the moving truck appears, she'll jump right in the back, with all the boxes, just in case I'm too busy moving to remember that I have a dog. I'm pretty certain that Stella has an above average command of the English language, but she never believes me 100% when I tell her that she's coming with me. The truth is, leaving her behind would never even cross my mind. (It would make moving a lot easier if I were sans pitbull, but i don't want to rent an apartment from a breedist anyway. Screw them. ) Stella's been the most constant aspect of my life for the past 7 years. We've moved 8 times together.

I am truly grateful to have the best (and cutest) dog on the planet.

(photo credit goes to emily on this one)

Vacation!

2007-11-10T16:36:00.001-08:00

WOO! Vacation was a little hectic, but fabulous, of course... Got to see some of my favorite people on the planet, and managed to get a little taste of all 4 seasons...

There was a bit of drama that originated from back here on the west coast, involving the dogsitter (it turns out she should be heavily medicated, and held Stella ransom...) Luckily, I was able to buy back my dog for a mere $80. But the absolute gem in this not so pleasant situation is the amazing show of support from my west coast peeps.

So thank you, thank you, thank you...

Erick, for driving to Monterey and rescuing Stella
Nathan, for providing stability, beach time, bath time and doggie bodywork
Ruggie, for taking Stella on fun trips, like the Lake house and the city
Jayne, for hosting up at the lake house, and of course offering to kick the shit out of the dogsitter

I am truly grateful, and honored to have such amazing people in my life, coast to coast

snapshot

2007-10-16T21:18:00.001-07:00

this is what it usually looks like when the 3 of us are together.

shoes

2007-10-12T15:24:00.000-07:00

I love this.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCF3ywukQYA

you can...

2007-10-05T11:55:00.001-07:00

It's hard to believe that it's been a year since jayne and i had our grand adventure traveling around the country. Our only obligation in the 3 months we were on the road was to make it to Watsu school. The rest of the time, we pretty much did whatever we wanted. We stopped to see friends, and made new ones all over. We heard the same thing, more or less, from many of the people we came across, which was; "I wish I could do what you guys are doing..." Our answer to that statement was always the same. "YOU CAN" I learned SO much in those 3 months, I could probably write a book. For now, some of my favorite pictures...

here's to the power of intention... my wish for everyone is that they find the power within themselves (because that's where it is) to make all their dreams come true...

cheers! l'chaim! so be it!

LOLA !

2007-10-02T20:27:00.000-07:00

Just your typical day in San Francisco

2007-10-01T18:04:00.000-07:00

Sabbatical !

2007-09-22T15:39:00.000-07:00

I know. Sabbatical is supposed to last about a year. Next time.

spirit lake

this is the sunset i saw right before going into a 2+ hour long water session... (incase you're wondering, no, i could not formulate a coherent sentence after that)

On our way out of town, we stopped at the coffee shop to go online to find somewhere in Calistoga to sit in the mud. We found a couple of places, but decided we didn't want to spend $55 to sit in mud. Then, I picked up a copy of the North Bay Bohemian, and flipped directly to my favorite section, freewillastrology. Here's the horoscope for cancer for this week:

"Neuroscientists at Britain's Bristol University have concluded that playing in the dirt can make you feel really good. That's because most soil is crawling with species of bacteria that interact favorably with the human body, strengthening the immune system and stimulating the brain in the same way antidepressants do. The astrological omens suggest that you capitalize on this discovery, Cancerian. You can obtain great health benefits from playing in a sandbox, wrestling with a friend in the dirt, creating mud pies, or smearing clay on your face. In fact, having any kind of messy, down-to-earth fun is highly recommended. "

needless to say, we changed our minds.

Our Sunset in the East

2007-09-16T21:23:00.000-07:00

It's the colors that are on the tail end of daylight. The horizon turns pink, then purple, then turquoise, than a hazy sky blue. We watch the colors rise out of the east bay, over our house, and sink into the ocean, out of our sight.

Sometimes, It's extra special...

GRASS ! ! !

2007-08-23T19:40:00.000-07:00

Vacation Tuesday #18...

Crystal and I ventured into the big city for this spectacular vacation tuesday. We found ourselves immersed in nature, nonetheless. We spent most of the day in Golden Gate Park, at the Conservatory of Flowers...

Beautiful, right? Still, none of the exotic flowers from far away lands got me quite as excited as THIS:

IT'S GRASS !!!! laying in the grass when one lives in a place where there really is no grass, is nothing short of an estatic experience.

Exceptional.

2007-08-14T11:33:00.000-07:00

I managed to get to the beach 2 days in a row... today's vacation tuesday, so there's a good chance of making it 3. It's been exceptionally beautiful here lately.

Sunset at Ocean Beach . . . The birds in the sky are pelicans.

Muir Beach . . . It's always beautiful here, but for some reason, it was extra sparkely yesterday . . .

July (?)

2007-07-29T21:24:00.000-07:00

Can't believe it's almost over! It was, all in all, a very productive month.

We got a love seat!

And a telescope!

And a houseboy!

Actually, the houseboy didn't really work out. long story.

Some other highlights...

I got to spend some quality time with Chris, before he flew back east.

This is my favorite part of the drive into the city. I was actually pretty happy to be stuck in traffic.

Fairfax. :)

Spent some time up in Middletown. Snuck into Harbin. got busted. glad i can now say that i snuck into a clothing optional community. and got caught. This is my view about 90% of the time that i'm up there. the view from the porch that i sit on. alot.

Mt Tamalpais

Hope everyone had a sunny july! XOXOXO

It's all good.

2007-07-19T23:41:00.000-07:00

That's pretty much it.

As If...

2007-07-05T23:52:00.000-07:00

I saw a bumper sticker on my way out of the city today. I've seen it a thousand times. I'm sure ya'll have too.

Work as if you don't need the money
Love as if you've never been hurt
Dance as if no one's watching

Those of you who know me probably already know where this is going. Yup, it's the second line that got me today. Imagine that.

Something has been on my mind recently, and this ties right in, I think. It does in my brain, anyway, and this is my blog, so play along...

Everyone has this amazing light within them. It's their true essence, their core. Everyone also has varying amounts of bullshit that they use as a dimmer switch, because it can be a little scary to put our true selves out there, 100% . It's much less painful to have our bullshit rejected than the very essence that makes us who we are. I feel as if I have a gift/curse to be able to see beyond the bullshit, and really see the person for who they ARE. Gift because it's a beautiful thing to see. Curse because it's frustrating to have to interact with the protective layer, when I know what's really in there.

And then there's LOVE. As far as I'm concerned, Love IS the light. Hurt and fear are what take hold of the dimmer switch and turn it counter clockwise.
But what if we really could love as if we've never been hurt? Can you imagine how bright we would be?

I can.

Stories

2007-07-04T12:51:00.000-07:00

I learned a whole lot in school last week.

If I were to sum up the week with one golden nugget, it's that everything is a story. We create them, and have all the power to create them as we wish. We can make them heavy and dark, light and airy, or somewhere in between. We can also recognize how much of our lives have been guided by these stories, and then we can let them go, and see what's right in front of us.

On the most superficial layer, I learned an entire Healing Dance sequence. Pages and pages of pool notes hung on the wall of the lower pool at the Harbin Domes. It was amazing how many different moves they managed to cram into a week, and we as a class learned them all by wednesday. The tone of the entire week was gentle, supportive, patient, and reverent. Really beautiful. On my evaluation sheet, My teacher wrote "keep softening and letting go of the story that this is hard work. Your work is lovely." hmmmm.....

Something else that presented itself as a story is the idea that "deep" implies a heaviness, that going deep has to have a texure of darkness. I learned that Going deep doesn't necessarily need to be heavy. When an emotion or feeling or realization comes to the surface, It should actually make us lighter, because it's one less thing that's in the dark, lacking clarity.

I came to terms with some stories involving relationships, as well. It's the implied pressure story. When two people allow themselves to feel love and connection, there's this implied pressure that something needs to happen, the relationship needs to move somewhere, "forward". So the two people can choose whether or not to move "forward" or to simply acknowledge their feeings, and let the pressure go. Seems easy enough, but there's a second part to the implied pressure story, and it's the unavoidable responsibility that goes with holding someone's heart and vulnerability. It can take up all the room in your heart so there's no room for anything else, including yourself. And we've all heard that we need to love ourself before we love someone else. We also need to make sure we always reserve space in our heart for us. When we've forgotten that, it's time to create another story, one that comes from the heart. What an amazing gift...

Flowers growing through a fence at Jayne and Derek's house

A heart in the sky at Harbin

H2OM

2007-06-24T09:31:00.000-07:00

I'll be leaving for school within the hour. Hopefully within the half hour. Once there, Life, as I know it, will change as it always does. Something happens to me when I'm in the water for 6-8 hours a day. Something somewhat difficult to explain. The only explanation I can offer is that the water gets me closer to my true essence. The walls that I've so neatly constructed around myself seem too heavy to hold up. Every time I take a class up at Harbin, I come home a softer person.

This time, I will not only be coming home a softer person, but a softer, THIRTY year young person... I'll be turning 30 a week from today, and I will be surrounded by beautiful shiny people. And I have a feeling that if my Sylvia Rose has anything to do with it, there will be stellar festivities...

Off to school I go.

THE MEANING OF LIFE IS TO LIVE IT

XOXOXO

Tarita Teak

2007-06-13T09:55:00.000-07:00

Guess Who's Here!!!

Hard to believe that it was only a week ago that Sara called to tell me that she booked a flight....

We had a fabulous day in San Francisco yesterday, starting at ocean beach. Sara still had sand in her toes from the Atlantic, having woken up in Atlantic City Monday morning. 24 hours later, She got to rinse it off in the Pacific... Crazy.

lunch at the Park Chalet, at the entrance of Golden Gate Park, across from the beach

We spent the afternoon in the Haight, where I had to literally drag Sara by the arm, to save her form getting sucked into EVERY shop. We then went up to North Beach, for some lovely live music, wine, and snacky treats.

Before heading back over the bridge, we stopped at my favorite pier to catch the sunset (thanks Janelle!)

Flying

2007-06-08T12:46:00.000-07:00

Who, I wonder, wouldn't fly if given the chance? I imagine that even those afraid of heights would throw caution to the wind, no pun intended, to experience the feeling of the air rushing past their face and to see the world below as the birds do.

I consider myself very fortunate that even without wings, I have experienced moments in my life that feel like flying. I have felt weightlessness, freedom, suspension, and all of the bliss that goes along with it.

I have flown through the water, completely supported by the person holding me and by the water itself. And in that support, I have been able to let go of everything else that holds me, and all that I hold onto.

I have flown on the bottoms of someone's feet, completely trusting that he wouldn't let me fall, and with every exhale, I let go, until all of the muscles in my body surrender, along with my heart and my mind, trusting that my entire being was held in that moment.

All The Freaky People Make The Beauty Of The World

2007-06-05T16:17:00.000-07:00

I love suprising people.

As soon as I knew the dates that Jayne, my Sylvia Rose, was going to be here, I checked the tour dates for Michael Franti. Low and Behold, May 20th, at the Le Colonial in San Francisco, there was a fundraiser for the Power to the Peaceful Festival, ( http://www.powertothepeaceful.org/ ) . TIckets included beer and wine, a french/vietnamese dinner, a silent auction, and an intimate performance with Michael Franti. Perfect. Keeping secrets is NOT a strength I have, atleast when they're my own. It got even more difficult to keep my mouth shut once a friend offered to pick us up in a big white limo. But I did it!!! I kept my mouth shut.

So Syl and Mona, looking fabulous, got the rockstar treatment they deserve, and got picked up in a big white limo, complete with champagne, smokey treats, and a wonderful chaffuer. We had an excellent time. The show was amazing. Michael Franti is a truly beautiful soul, and has a way of bringing the energy UP. And of course we made sure to get a hug from him before the night was over...

AND.... (DRUMROLL PLEASE)... SYLVIA ROSE AND MONA ROSE WILL SOON BE REUNITED AGAIN!!! All will be right with the world. Syl will be hitting the road in a week or so, and heading west, to spend some quality time with the water, the sun, the city, and of course, with me! I can't wait. Won't be long before we're famous...

I am the worst blogger on the planet.

2007-06-04T14:07:00.000-07:00

It's true. Going 6 weeks without a post is not acceptable, I know. I have a ton of excuses I could offer, but I'll spare ya.

Life is good. Crystal and I have opposite work schedules, except for one day... VACATION TUESDAY!!! it's by far the best day of the week. Here are some Vacation Tuesday highlights:

A short hike, somewhere in marin, brought us to this lovely view:

Breakfast at the Half Day Cafe, Yummy.

Naturally, the car of choice for Vacation Tuesday is a convertible

Sometimes on Vacation Tuesday, we drive to the beach to catch a sunset...

What look like waves...

...are actually clouds.

I promise, I will try to be better about staying in touch via typing shit on my computer and putting it online... it just isn't the most natural thing for me because,

a. I scuk at typing. ha
b. I often have a difficult time expressing myself unless i am looking at the person i am speaking with.
c. I am no longer a gifted writer, ever since i learned all of that anatomy and physiology, pathology, kinesiology, it's as if it took up all of that space.

Anyway, lots of love to everyone. XOXOXOXO

East Coast Love

2007-04-29T23:24:00.000-07:00

It's been a wonderful, and busy, couple of weeks. Considering I just wrapped it up with 7 straight hours of massage, I'm pretty much toaster cakes. But what a great 2 weeks!

It started off with a wonderful visit from my Mom and Peggy. It was SO good to see them both, and I got to play tour guide! I think I came up with some pretty good sights to see, considering I haven't lived here long... Here they are at the Marin headlands, where there are amazing views of the city, the golden gate bridge, the ocean, and the surrounding hills.

We also trecked all over Marin county, which is beautiful beyond words. A couple of trips into the city included the Deyoung Museum, Ocean Beach, North Beach, Golden Gate Park, and the Japanese Tea Gardens... It's amazing how much nature is in the city.

We had a great time, ate great food, saw beautiful sights everywhere. I miss them already, and can't wait for them to visit again!

As they were flying back east, my cousin Ashley was en route to San Francisco. I imagined we'd do a similar whirlwind tour, but decided to do nothing instead, and took a trip up to harbin, to just chill, and soak and have endless hours of girl talk. How refreshing... we've never really had the chance to do that before. Here we are in Union Square, before I dropped her off at the airport.

...AND... a week from wednesday, Syl and Mona will be reunited! finally!!! the amazing Sylvia Rose, my cosmic sista, will be flying in for 2 weeks. I can hardly wait.

Much needed...

2007-04-27T13:20:00.000-07:00

Out of the clear blue Sunday morning, It became abundantly clear to me that I needed to get away for a couple of days, and go spend some quality self care time up at Harbin Hot Springs. Since I've gone to Watsu school, It's become apparent to me that every so often I need to just sit in the water for a while. The best part was, my cousin Ashley is in San Francisco, visiting from New Jersey. When I asked her if she would want to go with me, her answer was not yes, but HELL yes.

aaaaahhh... vacation... healing waters to float in, sun to lay in, lovely people to spend time with, and best of all, quality time with Ashley, who I only really see at holidays, so this was the first time we got to really connect and talk, and just do nothing.

Once back in San Rafael, I got a fantastic massage from Crystal, my lovely and gifted roommate. The next day, I got the most amazing watsu session to date, in San Anselmo, just 10 minutes from home. It was beyond words, and I'm still floating... and occasionally bursting into hysterical laughter...

perfection

2007-04-27T12:57:00.000-07:00

There's no other way to describe it, really... As soon as I woke up this morning, I knew it was a day for the beach. Alana, the genius, suggested Kirby Cove, which is just north of the Golden Gate Bridge, and, luckily for our white asses, is a nude beach. YAY. So Crystal, Alana and I grabbed our towels and headed out. After a short drive and a 20 minute walk, we arrived at our own little paradise. We had the beach all to ourselves. It didn't seen real... lying naked on a beach, listening to the waves, And the views... well, see for yourselves...

And finally... the icing on the cake... a trip to The Scoop in Fairfax. Extraordinary indeed.

2007-04-12T12:22:00.000-07:00

There have been some wonderful photo ops since I've been out here in Cali, the ocean, the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park, and new friends...

Allright, I give up...

2007-04-12T11:44:00.000-07:00

Hello friends,

So, I've finally caved and started a blog... Mostly thanks to Jen, who gently suggested that I share my thoughts and pictures with my loved ones back east.