Wake up early, make some coffee, put on your hiking shoes and get out there. Watch the sun light up the sky. It’s the best way to get that joyful spirit going.

I remind myself that blessings abound and another day is full of promises.

Today our middle son and his sweet girlfriend arrive at the San Jose del Cabo Airport. Also today one of my former students and her husband arrive at the same airport. We are all going to Magdalena Bay to go whale watching and spend time on the island with Paula and Carlos, our dear friends who own Explora Baja. https://explorabaja.com

My next post will feature all our fun. This is from their website:

Duration:

60 hours (3 Days, 2 Nights)

About:

Whales encounters, sunrises in the bay, view from the deck of the house into the majestic Magdalena Bay. Get to see the huge diversity of animals of the bay and island. 

Experience the real Baja. Stay in a mystical fisherman village at a fisherman´s house (4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms). Eat fresh fish and lobster from the area and support local communities. You will have the chance to have 3 whale watching trips, observing whales close at their breeding grounds in the sheltered waters of the bay. 
Spending the night on the island is an amazing experience as not many visitors get to be there at night. 
We work hand with hand with the locals making sure that the energy of the trips flow both ways, ensuring a good healthy economy in town and in the islands.

Enjoy three of the best whale encounters you can experience with these incredible gentle giants, visit mangroves, walk on endless sand dunes, observe sea birds and many times coyotes and bald eagles that lives close to the house.

In order to make reservations at the house, it’s important to book this tour as soon as possible, at least three months prior to the trip. Magdalena Bay is approximately 5 hours north of Todos Santos so expect a drive but a great reward as well.

Meeting location:

At your accommodation in Todos Santos, Pescadero, or Cerritos

What to bring:

• A reusable water bottle (Hydro Flask, Nalgene, etc.) – disposable water bottles are prohibited 
• A hoodie, jacket and beanie is also recommended to keep you warm.
• Bring sandals and comfortable walking shoes in case we go for a stroll. 

What’s included:

• Round trip transportation to Puerto San Carlos from Todos Santos
• Driver, guide & captain
• 2 nights in a house in Magdalena island
• 3 whale watching trips
• Walk on pristine dunes and the pacific beaches
• Mangroves and sea birds
• 2 breakfasts
• 3 lunch
• 2 dinners
• Snacks throughout the whole trip
• Drinks (beer and wine with dinner)

Do More of What Makes you Happy

Especially now. Especially because the whole world is on fire. Now is the time to make the most of it. Do more of what makes you happy. Make sure to laugh everyday. Make someone else laugh. Give your friend a hug. The nice thing about that is how you get a hug too. Be kind to yourself and others. We need more happiness in the world.

Sweet Emotion

Forget the angst. Give it the toss. And while you’re at it, throw out the plans you made, because maybe they’re not going to happen. Just feel some sweet emotion about what’s going on with you right now. In this moment. Your legs are strong. Let them guide your feet and take you out for a walk or a run. Smile at the passersby. Let your sweet emotions rub off on others. Look closely. Be sunshine.

Take a Hike

Take a hike, but not like “Get the hell out of here.” No, no. Really, go take a hike. Make it to a place you’ve never been before and let the trail guide your steps. Rocks in the way. Sure. Step aside or around them. Dips? Of course. Skip over them, or plow right through. Keep a good pace. This is a hike, not a walk in the park. Explore. Bring your heart rate up. Smell the great outdoors. Savor the feeling of being in nature and enjoy the view at the top of the hill.

Bring your Heart to Whatever you Do

Make every small thing into something mixed with your joyful heart, your loving heart. Are you patching something? Put your heart into it. Maybe that means making a patch in a heart shape. Who knows? Are you a teacher, grading papers? Do it with your head and your heart. Working in your garden? Tend to it with that inner glow of yours. Bring your heart and pour it in like water to let it nourish your plants.

Take Time for Yourself

A nice hot shower (or cold) can invigorate you and at the same time it can relax you. Why not take a nap? Or just lie down and read for a spell. If It suits you, get a manicure. Or a pedicure. Or both. Can’t afford it? Do a nice foot soak in epsom salts and put some of your favorite oil in the water with it. Breathe in the sweet smell.  And speaking of breath, take some deep ones. Start with breathing into your belly and move up to your collar bones. Hold it. Then breathe out slowly through your mouth. Listen to music. Let it take you away from the doldrums. Sing with the music. Who cares if you can’t sing.?Dance to the music. Who cares if you can’t dance.? Don’t listen to the news. Don’t watch the news. Stop scrolling. Live in your beautiful life moments. Smile at yourself in the mirror. Tell yourself what a badass you are. Just be.

I am fascinated with the moon in all its stages. For example, how it manifests high and low tides as if on cue, its incredible craters, the fact that men have been on the moon, and how many songs have been written about it. Looking at the moon makes me feel small, but not necessarily insignificant.

I read somewhere that the cow jumped over the moon.

The moon on its way down in the morning at Bahia de los Muertos

Taken one early morning while I was on a walk.

Some interesting things I learned from the internet:

How Craters Form

Craters on the Moon form from impacts by asteroids, comets, and meteoroids. The lack of atmosphere on the Moon means that when objects strike the surface, they don’t burn up or slow down, as they would on Earth. Instead, these impacts create depressions that can range from small, subtle indentations to huge, massive basins.

• Small craters form when smaller objects (like meteoroids) hit the surface at high speed.
• Larger craters form from much bigger impacts, which can lead to the formation of massive rings around the impact site.

https://science.nasa.gov/moon/lunar-craters/why-study-craters/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Craters and Lunar History

Each crater on the Moon serves as a time capsule. The size, depth, and structure of a crater can give scientists clues about the age of the Moon’s surface, the objects that impacted it, and the overall history of the solar system. For example, by studying crater density in different regions, scientists can estimate the relative ages of the lunar surface features.

The first moonwalk, also known as the Apollo 11 Moon landing, occurred on July 20, 1969. Astronauts Neil Armstrongand Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to walk on the lunar surface, while Michael Collins remained in orbit around the Moon in the Command Module.

Armstrong’s First Words Were Not “One Small Step” Initially

Neil Armstrong’s famous quote, “That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind,” almost didn’t happen as planned. The transmission was slightly garbled, and Armstrong himself later said he intended to say, “That’s one small step for a man.” The “a” was barely audible in the broadcast.

Occasionally the moon is orange as it goes down in the morning over the ocean where I live. Does it turn orange where you live?

I bought a Nikon Coolpix P950 for my 79th birthday last October. It has a moon setting on it. That’s how I got these photos. Pretty cool, huh?

I zoned in on it and took up close photos of parts of the full moon.

I like how you can see more of the surface and the craters.

A song that was popular when I was in high school was “Blue Moon.” The song was written by Richard Rodgers (music) and Lorenz Hart (lyrics) in 1934, but it was recorded by The Marcels in the 60s. Their rendition was uptempo doo-wop and was fun to dance to. Didn’t Elvis Presley also make a recording of the song?

I never really thought of the moon really being blue, but this is another shot I took early morning at Bahia de los Muertos, (see the one in the beginning) and sure enough it’s blue .

Moon River was also popular when I was a kid.

From the internet: “Moon River” was composed by Henry Mancini with lyrics by Jonny Mercer  in 1961. It was famously introduced by Audrey Hepburn in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany’s. While Hepburn’s version is iconic, Andy Williams recorded a hit version in 1961, made it his signature song, and performed it at the 1962 Academy Awards. 

Whether it’s silver or white or yellow, blue, or orange, the moon shines on all of us, no matter where we live. Just think, the moon here in Baja is the same moon that shines on you where you live.

There are many books about the moon. Go to the library and find out more if you like. I don’t think moon books are being banned.

Good Night Moon.

Moon with Palm Trees

Woo hoo! We did it. It was such a calm day on the water there yesterday. We were blessed.

It was a happy moment! Only my second time on a stand up paddle board.

There was a storm lurking, but it never got to us while we were enjoying our morning.

Swimming was the best yesterday too, and Kailani loved chasing butterflies and digging holes. Why do dogs dig holes anyway?

There’s a lot of coral on the beach there, and sadly we’ve not seen a lot of fish on the reefs there lately. But Greg did go snorkeling for about 20 minutes and saw a parrot fish and some white trigger fish. That’s different from what we’ve seen, so that was thrilling.

We could see the storm clouds brewing, but we were hot and dry the whole time. No wind. Which is very unusual. All in all, a great time.

We left the bay about 12:30, and didn’t get very far when the skies darkened and sure enough we caught up with the rain. Quite lovely actually, but it didn’t make it to our neck of the woods. We need rain. It’s been dry for the last couple years.

By the time we got to El Truinfo, the rain had stopped. We love going to the bakery there. We bought two almond croissants, and one apple tart. Just because we could. So yummy. We took the croissants home, but ate the apple tart. We always stop at this cafe when we go to Bahia de los Muertos. Why would we not?

This is a very happy place, and their food and pastries are top notch.

Hope your summer adventures are as fun as ours. Life is good.

Our friend Sean gave me this Garmin Forerunner 945 watch. He just took it off his wrist and said, “Here, this is for you.” What a great gift. Among many other excellent qualities, this guy is generous beyond expectations.

As I reported in my last post, we are training for our Grand Canyon trip next year. This was what we did today! It makes me happy to see this all on one screen. Of course I can save all the info from our hikes and I do that too. We can set new goals, and today marks the second hike that I’ve used my Gregory day pack to load up on weight. I’m mostly carrying water right now and am putting 15 pounds on my back. The first time I did that, it was brutal. But today was only the second time, and it’s already easier, so we did a full loop and all went very well.

We had rain yesterday, and from the looks of the clouds up there, we knew we’d get more today. We didn’t get any on our hike, but shortly after we got home, it started. Here in southern Baja California we need a lot more rain. It’s been so dry for a couple of years.

On these hikes we’re pumping constantly. Very few stops and mostly those are for giving our dog, Kailani, water. We can drink from our hydration packs in our backpacks, so we don’t have to stop. But Kailani is at our mercy. She is such a good hiker, staying close to whomever is up front and checking on the one in last place (me) all the time.

I’m keeping up though, and my stride matches my short legs, so I’m about 20 yards behind Greg all the time. He keeps checking on me, and I appreciate that.

We get into a rhythm and just motor along on our hikes, finding places on the trail with fewer rocks, and pushing without stopping. I would be taking more photos, if it were not for the training aspect of these hikes.

My Garmin watch is great, but not as accurate with noting sea level as it should be. There are lots of natural reasons for that, and it’s certainly not a big issue.

We sure do sweat a lot on these hikes. You can tell in the photos how wet my husband is.

He’s pretty darn cute, though.

I’ve gained a lot of strength and lost a little weight since we started these hikes. I highly recommend this type of activity for the endorphins and how good our moods are because of them.

I am getting used to hiking poles too. I only use them on the uphill. In some ways they slow me down. But the assist they give is crucial. When we do the GC we will only be going up anyway.

Because it was our second time using the weighted packs, we added mileage today to descend to the “Old Port” (it’s called the sugar port on google maps). So we did the full 5.3 miles. It’s such a gorgeous hike, but mostly I’m just looking at the trail so I don’t slip on rocks.

It’s called the Sugar Port because it’s where they loaded the sugar on the ships for export. There are lots of old buildings where they did the processing down at the bottom where we start the hike. I’m surmising they used horses to carry the sugar up and down. This was a long time ago. I think I need to read up on the history.

Greg is always reminding me that we have to step carefully so as not to stumble and fall. No ankle twisting, no falls. No broken bones. Being mindful like this is good for me too. Practicing being in the moment is healthy and productive. One step in front of the other.

I’ve been active my whole life, but this hiking we’re doing 3 days a week is my new high, and the togetherness is pretty sweet too.

Happy Trails.

Oh, and Kailani was tired when we got back to the car. She drank water while lying down.

It’s best to start out early. The mornings are so beautiful and most people are still in bed; we enjoy the peace and quiet as we watch the sun come up.

Everywhere you look the view is expansive. We are hiking a lot these days for fun and for training. “Training?” you ask.

Yes, we have booked a hiker’s special Grand Canyon oar rafting trip for next year. We will enjoy the upper river and we have to hike out 8 miles on the last day, gaining 4400 feet of elevation. The hike takes between 8-10 hours and it’s ALL uphill.

I will be 79 when we go next April, and Greg will be 72. At our advanced ages, we need to power up for this. Actually, from what we understand, even young ones say that hike is not for the feint of heart. We’ve watched a lot of videos of hiking up the Bright Angel Trail. It’s intimidating to say the least.

Even though we’re training, we are so excited to get out 3-4 times a week to climb to these gorgeous high places. It’s good for our souls. Life is so sweet these days.

Thursday this week we took our much younger friend with us. She loved it.

What’s not to like, right?

This is a panorama.

We need to build up to much more strenuous workouts, but you have to start somewhere, and that’s what we’re doing.

I was in my art studio with my dear friend, Sonia, when my new hat arrived. She snapped this shot of me in my apron (as we were painting) a month ago. Greg calls it my doofus hat.

Close to home, looking down at Los Cerritos beach. I very much dislike all the condos and BS down there now, but I have to accept things over which I have no control. Doesn’t mean I have to like it though, does it? There’s just nothing I can do about it.

Back behind the little town of El Pescadero going east, there are remnants of gold mining operations to investigate and lots of hills to climb. Again, we like to be there to watch the sun come up. The next ones are from a recent hike there.

We took a different young friend with us on this hike. She is my pal with whom I do my beach workouts. She’s a great coach.

We took our buddy Ruthie with us on this hike. She and Greg are investigating one of old mine shafts. It is a long way down.

Ruthie is my beach workout coach. I just love her.

See you again soon! Here’s a little buddy we came across last week. Isn’t he beautiful? We left him alone and he left us alone. No rattling going on.

One of the things I’ve learned about mindfulness, is how looking at things up close can keep me in the moment. Recently I’ve been taking photos of things around my yard and really seeing things up close.

It’s been a lot of fun and giving me ideas about how patterns in nature are mimicked in our human-made world.

I have a thing for patterns. I love to explore them in my painting.

And here’s a feather I added to one of my patterned watercolor designs.

Before I was retired and living in Baja Sur, I seldom took the time to stop and look closer. Now I can hardly go anywhere without digging in deeper.

The details are surprising. I’ve found a lot of uneven numbers show up in flower petals. Not always, but often.

I am mesmerized by the patterns in the palm and cactus plants.

Looking at things with the perspective so zoomed in, sparks my imagination for abstraction in my painting too.

The birds are full of patterns too.

This guy is a Grey Thrasher and is only found in Baja California. I never would have known that, had I not used my Cornell bird identification app. I keep learning! While this bird is not that colorful, his breast is definitely in my pattern wheelhouse. I use a lot of dots in my paintings too.

Hibiscus are fascinating and this detailed shot of the stamen will help me to capture it in watercolor.

This reminds me of curly hair. It’s part of the blossom that comes out of the Washingtonian Palm tree.

I turned the urchin skeleton right side up for this shot.

I’ve been dehydrating a lot of fruit lately. This is from one of the oranges I did to add to our Mocktails we have every evening. I love the patterns in the cut orange.

Thanks for stopping by. I’m going to leave you with a photo I took of the sun in the clouds.

What’s a good way to spend the holidays? Why camping at East Cape of course. We took our time to pack our VW Westfalia and off we went on the morning of the 24th. I prepared a lot of food to put in the refrigerator and Greg got all the things we’d need piled on top of the van and off we went.

The drive over was pretty easy except that Kailani, our 2 year old German shepherd, wanted to be up front with us and it was annoying. Other than that, it was a smooth ride to our spot. Most people were off doing other things and the surf wasn’t supposed to be good, so we figured we’d have the beach to ourselves.

Arriving in mid morning to a secluded spot we let Kailani out of the car and off she went in search of a stick.

The water looked pretty nice, though not in terms of of surfing. But all we wanted was some down time in a beautiful place.

Setting up takes some time, but it’s worth it. We had 4 days of hanging out, exploring, reading, napping. Oh glory days.

Nobody for about a mile. It was mostly like that the whole time. A few day trippers down about a half mile and a couple who were fishing.

Time for lunch and then we’ll take a walk.

Here’s my outdoor kitchen. Everything in its place and the refrigerator in the van held everything we needed. We have the van on solar, so the sun was definitely a boon to the trip.

Greg sets up our umbrella and we put up our shower tent. Pretty cool.

We spent a lot of time in those beach chairs, but we took off for hiking too.

Kailani led the way, then Greg, then me. I like following the leaders.

We mostly followed the cow trail, complete with cow poop. Watch your step.

If you look closely you can see our camping spot at the end of the arroyo right on the beach.

Early morning brings the sun over the water. Such a thrill to wake up to.

It’s fun getting up in the morning with the sun, spending some time in our beach chairs at night looking at the stars and watching the myriad of satellites and even airplanes in the sky. Then getting to bed to read and sleep. So cozy in our VW van.

One early morning before breakfast, we hiked up the arroyo behind our camp. So much to see.

There had been a storm bringing 10 inches of rain not that long ago. You can really see the path it took, washing everything down, leaving rock exposed.

You can see the ruts the rain creates.

Life in harsh places.

Plant living off the tree

Such diversity. Do people have strong roots like these trees and shrubs? They hang on for dear life.

They just keep on thriving.

Can’t get enough of that blue sky

The views on the way down are spectacular and we’re ready for another swim.

The cormorants were. posing for me.

I guess you could say I was posing too.

On the last morning we were there, it was a bit cloudy and you could tell the weather was changing a bit.

But you can’t beat that blue sky.

Greg is feeling grateful I think.

The osprey caught a lot of fish while we were there.

Bye Bye East Cape.

Back at home and just in time for unpacking and watching the sunset.

Living such a great life here in southern Baja.

What do you think sobriety is? Do you think it’s just not drinking? Of course it’s not drinking. But it’s so much more than that. 

Sobriety is a journey of rediscovering yourself. I had to admit I was powerless over alcohol. I  had to do the work to get sober, but this work provided a magical self reconnection, a resetting, and resting in recovery. I found financial wellness, educated myself in many areas, and began prioritizing self-care. 

In sobriety we learn how to set boundaries and find purpose In our lives. Instead of playing old narratives and blaming others, we accept responsibility and we grow and learn how to match our values with our intentions. 

In order to manage stress in healthy ways, we may find ways to learn new things. I have taken up yoga, meditation, and expressing myself in creative endeavors like watercolor, and making shell sculptures, writing and illustrating children’s books. At my age, I know how important it is to keep moving! Exercise class on the beach once a week, yoga three times a week, and walking every single day.

The routine I’ve set for myself is to get up very early, make my bed, grab the coffee that Greg has made for me as we head to the beach with our dog. Feeling my feet in the sand, watching the sunrise, seeing and hearing the waves crash on the shore, witnessing whales breeching, and seeing female turtles laying eggs, and then, in time, baby turtles hatching before working to get to the ocean. Blessings abound, and gratitude swells.

Drinking alcohol is giving up everything for one thing, while sobriety is giving up one thing for everything. I’ve been sober for 45 years and 8 months. This journey has taught me to live one day at a time. It’s not always easy, because life isn’t easy. There is always something. But now I have the clear headedness and courage to face whatever problems present themselves. It’s easier to have a graceful approach to problems without the alcohol clouding my brain. And matching my values with my intentions, as I mentioned already, is my ticket to a better life. 

Am I perfect? Hell no. I work on myself all the time. If I’m upset with someone, and I want to react, instead of pausing and using my words with integrity, I can ask myself, “Does this need to be said? Does this need to be said right now?” I admit that I still have trouble with this. Many times I’ve said things in anger that I can never take back. 

But I’m getting better. With a more cheerful attitude I can sustain powerful responses.

It’s also my intention to appreciate more of what is, instead of wanting things to be different. (My way). If I can’t control something, I can work on my breathing, and remember to have patience with myself as I learn to let go, to embrace calm. I want to control my thoughts and actions. Controlling myself is a big job, and a good focus for me. Most of the time I have less distortion, and I accept the small joys of being alive.

What is sobriety? Not drinking. Yes. But in these sober years, I stop to notice how much better I feel. I savor my life now. I want to be more loving and slower to anger, to take longer to eat my meals, to taste before I swallow. Now I realize how precious and rewarding living a sober life can be—it’s pure freedom. I can be as happy as I allow myself to be.

If you think drinking has become a problem and you’ve been toying with the idea of sobriety, there is a lot of help out there. Many 12 step programs, including AA. Give it a shot. You have everything to gain by giving up that one thing—alcohol.

The miriad of things I am grateful for range from the extraordinary to the everyday moments. We took a trip with friends to Magdalena Bay in Southern Baja with Explora Baja, owned by some dear friends of ours. The whole trip was magical. Being so close to gray whales that you can touch them is the thrill of a lifetime.

Our lives are magical and there isn’t a day that goes by that we don’t comment on that.

The trip included a lovely morning on the Pacific side. We went through mangroves and ended up on the sand dunes and then the ocean. Wow.

———————————————

Whale trips are life changing, but every day brings us something special. The times we spend walking on the beaches here where we live in Baja are tremendous blessings.

I delight in watching the waves crash up onto the rocks.

We are most grateful for the generosity of our family and friends and the people here in the Baja that are part of the community. We have met many wonderful Mexicans who have shown us what it means to be part of this magical place. While it is being developed at a fast pace now, which is not to the liking of many who call this home, we can’t help but be grateful for our lives here every single day.

11-26-23

Dear Alcohol,

You do not hold sway with me anymore. I used to drink like a fish. No more. Good-bye, good riddance. 

You were in my life before I realized how good and lovable I am. Yes, you heard me. I am lovable, but with you I wasn’t. In fact, I was a different person. A completely different person, almost unrecognizable as being me. 

Thank goodness I broke it off with you so many years ago. For awhile I missed you. I really did. But then I got to thinking about how the people around me acted who were still hanging in there with you. Many of them looked and acted pretty awful. I thought, “Oh my! That was me!” 

Now I just stay with my new friend, Sobriety. What a relief. Now I look healthier, feel lighter and so much happier. Even when things go wrong, I keep hanging with my new friend, Sobriety, and that means I can function on a whole  different level, ready to face whatever the day may bring.

Oh, and I have a new tribe of other friends now too. We meet and greet each other quite often. It feels good to know that there are a lot of people who have broken up with you. Together, one day at a time, we can stick with our new friend, Sobriety. 

While breaking up may be hard to do, as the old song goes,  it has been the right thing for me. Good-bye, good riddance, Alcohol. I don’t miss you anymore. 

Susie

With alcohol you choose one thing over everything. With sobriety you chose everything over one thing. I choose sobriety!