Haunted House 2011

I always have a defining moment at the Coastside Young Actors Workshop Haunted House. This year was  no different. I had one little boy that checked in with me, it was his first year at Haunted House. I signed him up to act because that's what my list said he was trained to do. His mom came up to me a little while later and said he really didn't want to do any acting, he had signed up for this acting group because he was told he could always work behind the scenes.

I would describe getting the doors open for that first tour a little chaotic, so hunting down the director was impossible at that moment. I told the mom and student I would get back to them after I got the first crew in the house and see what I could do about his request. Behind the scenes at Haunted House are a little more complicated than acting the scenes and I didn't know if he had been trained or not. So I found an older student and hooked them up. I told him to take him in and show him the ropes and let me know how it goes. Since the younger student looked terrified of acting, I had to do something. As I suspected they came out of their shift and he learned control rooms and did just fine. He went through a second shift and as soon as he got out he came up to me with one of his friend and said he wanted to act! So I signed him up and he acted most of the day. Later in the day I was out of control room people, so recruited this kid and another one that had never done it before and had him show him the ropes. Lot's of good things there. I've seen so many students come through this program and have the same thing happen. Everyone has talent, everyone has it in them to get up in front of a crowd. You just have to have an encouraging, fun environment. That's what this program is all about. I think his mom was a little shocked. I know when my son went into the program umpteen years ago, I was shocked when he got on stage. It changed his life.

Arrrrgh...it's good to be a pirate!

Boston

Boston

Boston, who would have known it was such a fun place to visit? We spent our 29th wedding anniversary there and had a great time. A walking city full of history and food. Oh the food!

Standing with our forefathers

I've never visited that part of the east coast. Just walking into some of those buildings that our forefathers stood in as they created this great republic that we live in. Chills.






Marliave's/sunday gravy gnnocci/lamb/beef/pork with gravy!/Italian meatball sliders

Omni Parker House Hotel/drinks in the whiskey bar/champagne and choc covered strawberries


Mike's Pastries-canolies!

Coffee Shop- /ginger/vanilla latte The Thinking Cup

Irish Pub by hotel-Shepards pie

Little hole in the wall italian place/pizza/kianti/bread/salad


Bean Town Pub-Irish breakfast/corned beef hash/bloody mary's

Horse drawn Carriage

Horse drawn carriage through Boston

North side of Boston-italian

cigar bar

walking in the rain

paul revere's house was 90 years old when he moved into it and it became a museum in 1908

San Francisco

I’ve been keeping a list! Here are some of my favorite places in San Francisco:





Chinatown walking tour:
http://www.chinatownwalk.com/page1/page1.html but sign-up at www.goldstar.com and you can get the tickets half off. My friends just went on this and said it was fascinating.

Restaurants:
The Tipsy Pig-the mac and cheese is to die for! (North Beach)
http://www.thetipsypigsf.com/

The Irish House (Union Square)-Guiness Beef stew! Stay for the entertainment-never know what you’ll see! It’s in Union Square where there is lots of shopping, bars, restaurants.
http://www.johnnyfoleys.com/aboutus.html

Rose’s Café-Great food, eat outside. Breakfast/Lunch-go in off hours Lot’s of locals. On Union St-great shopping in smaller shops, other bars and restaurants nearby.
http://www.rosescafesf.com/

Hotel Griffon (Financial District)
http://www.hotelgriffon.com/hotel.php

The Ferry Building is across the street. The Cable Car museum is a block away. Waterfront is right there. It would be a nice central place to stay. Easy to take public transportation to the ballpark from here.

The Ferry Building-brunch at restaurant outside, Market Bar http://www.ferrybuildingmarketplace.com/marketbar.php

Perry’s (Financial District) -We had a great lunch here. It’s right on the Embarcadero near the Bay Bridge and next to the Hotel Griffon which looked like a great place to stay
http://www.perryssf.com/directions_embarcadero.htm

Mark Hopkins Hotel-Great views, grand old hotel, but expensive, probably $250 and up. But it’s near everything. Close to Chinatown. Had friends that stayed there and they loved it. The views are phenomenal.
http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/intercontinental/en/gb/locations/overview/sfoha


Tommy’s Tequila Bar-Hole in the wall. Been there for years. Any kind of tequila you can imagine. Did you know there was sipping tequila? Best Mexican food I’ve ever had and I’ve had a lot! Or maybe it was the best tequila I’ve ever had. http://www.tommystequila.com/

Kuletos: Love this restaurant. Need reservations for dinner. We went there for lunch at an off hour and walked right in. Fantastic food and atmosphere.
http://www.kuletos.com/index.shtml

Villa Florence Hotel- Next to Kuletos Restaurant. Looked very elegant, very old and very San Francisco. Prices about $200+ a night.
http://larkspurhotels.com/collection/villa-florence

ATT Park-Giants Baseball- tacos, bring your lunch, garlic chicken sandwiches, hot fudge sundaes!, pastrami sandwiches

Lands End-hiking

Aquatic Park and Maritime Museum

SFMOMA- make sure to go all the way to the roof top café, the restaurant on the main floor is great for a snack or lunch too.

Teatro Zinzanni-expensive but worth it. Food ok, show is extraordinary, funny, and changes all the time

http://www.sfcablecar.com/Buy a pass for the day or weekend

http://lifeisagrainofsand.blogspot.com/2009/02/in-search-of-sea-glass-aquatic-park-san.html This is me!

Golden Gate Bridge-Fort Point underneath it. Very cool to walk through-free.
Great hot dogs at stand outside state park visitor center. Visitor center has a great collection of local tourist areas, walks, books, etc.

District-Wine bar with small plates. Excellent place to have dinner and a really good bottle of wine before yo go to the ballpark.

Dueling Grandmas

My boss and I are grandmas at the same time. Well my grandbaby is 8 months old and hers will be born in June. Close enough.

Today a car seat was delivered. My boss thought it was for her daughter and called her and told her it was here. Then she looked at the shipping label and realized it had my name on it. I accused her of trying to steal my car seat. I called us the "dueling grandmas." The office staff chuckled at our bantering. I'm sure there will be many future arguments about "my grandbaby is cuter than yours." Just to be clear the fused Photoshopped baby picture my boss put together does not count as a cute baby picture. The baby has to be born first in order that a photo count.

OMG I have a Ford Taurus with a car seat in it.

A bird in the shoe....

A bird in the shoe is worth two in the bush. Hmmm...or maybe it's worth a new pair of tennis shoes.

My husband went to Open Mic last night and I met him there after yoga. I had dinner and watched several performers and my husband play. We stayed for a couple more performances. My husband kept fiddling with his shoe all evening. He said it didn't feel right. He thought maybe he stepped in something but didn't see anything.

Anyways....we got home and he took off his shoes. He was horrified. There was a squished bird in his shoe. We were totally grossed out. The shoe was ruined. I was laughing and trying not to gag all at the same time. The thought that went through my head was thank God it wasn't in my shoe and how the hell do you go all evening and not realize there's a dead bird in your shoe? My husband really wasn't amused with my laughing. (Sorry honey!)

I routinely look in my shoes and shake them out before I put them on. It's my greatest fear that a live (or dead) animal will be hiding in my shoe waiting to clamp onto my big toe. Our cats are the great hunters and there is always a rodent or lizard in our house. Occasionally a bird will be brought in. But you just wouldn't expect a bird in your shoe. A lizard or rodent, yes, good hiding place. The bird must have been placed there by a kitty leaving gifts for daddy. Or maybe it was like the crows on the television commercial with the window cleaner. They wait for someone to run into the clean sliding glass door and laugh at them. Maybe the cat was hiding underneath bed laughing when Boyd slid his unknowing foot into the mayhem hiding in his shoe.

But now I know I am not being paranoid to shake my shoes out every morning. I have been vindicated.

Updates

I haven't posted to this blog in awhile. I've been busy over at my yoga blog "Doing Nothing." I will now attempt to post to both blogs at least weekly. But please don't hold me to that. LOL

I had to empty my studio out for awhile as my son, his wife and my granddaughter will be moving in with us this summer while they transition from Navy life to civilian life. I so look forward to bonding with my granddaughter. I'm sure I will have a million pictures of her before they find their next destination. How thrilling for them to have another path to take in their life. How grand for me to be able to be part of that path.

My creative process has shifted for the time being to learning yoga and Pilate's and baby proofing our house. But watch for more posts and photos here as I really need this creative outlet too.

Baby proofing our house has been cleansing for us. Of course all the extra has ended up in the garage. My husband will be happy when we have that huge garage sale in a couple of weeks and he can have his space back. I'm sure he can't wait to work out on that weight set we set up out there. :)

Serendipitous

I found a blog today Serendipitous. It was like finding a piece of poetry I connected with. It was snippets in words and photos, leaving you with an essence of the author's life. I felt an immediate kinship with someone I have never met.

Serendipitous (adjective)

1. Discovering something fortunate;
the accidental discovery of something pleasant, valuable, or useful

Sometimes I wander too far into a subject. Writing too much, giving too much away. Maybe my blogging should be more like poetry, leaving the reader with whatever viewpoint or essence they get from the images invoked.

Sometimes we need to leave a little more white space between the words.

Social Media

Social media has changed society as we know it both good and bad. Families and friends are using it to communicate instantly, strengthening relationships. We can instantly let you know that little Johnny has just taken his first step and present you with a video or photos. You can find people you have lost track of and pick up where you left off. But then, companies are having to write policies to deal with it at work and they can and will use it against you if they want to. News is disseminated before we have time to check the facts causing countless more stories about the same subject as it's updated over and over, the facts diluted. Are we deluged with too much instant information? The under thirty crowd seems to think it a right to know everything right now and not a second later. Some think nothing of airing every little bit of their lives publicly. Reputations and relationships are ruined at the thoughtless stroke of the enter key. Political campaigns are won or lost on the internet. Views and arguments aired on blogs for all to see.

The younger generation seems to be putting their life out there without thinking who can see their words or photos for that matter. Are they hardened? Are they just so inundated with instant information they think it's normal to blast another relative or cuss out a person without thinking about who else is looking? Is it becoming normal to say anything you want without thinking first?

For me I think about what I'm putting out there in the cyber world. I want to present my spin on the world and pass on some of my experience to do good in the world. I'm not a fan of negative anything and if I read something inappropriate that ends up in my view on any of my social media links, I may comment on its inappropriateness and I may delete you as "my friend." Life is too short to waste on naysayers. You get to choose who you put in your life and how you present yourself as a human being. Choose wisely.

The Holidays

How will I spend the holidays this year? For some just mentioning “the holidays” can bring a shudder with all the stress, planning, traveling and overspending. But with some thought I think we can alleviate some of the bad vibes that come along with the entire hubbub of the holidays.

My yoga instructor said to try and take the holidays easier this year. Make it simple as part of our practice. Make that your gift to yourself and those around you. The wintertime should be a time to hunker down, stay warm and take care of yourself for the coming spring. There’s a lot to be said in that. I’m taking heed in her advice this year.

We are spreading things out over November and December. While we have a lot of traveling to do we aren’t doing it all in the same couple of weeks. I won’t get out all my decorations, just my favorite ones. I am choosing to do those things I love to do for the holidays. I also plan to create whenever I can fit it in and I will continue with my yoga practice and my exercise regime. That will keep me calm and centered. I will also remember to drink lots of water. Keeping hydrated is important and then you won’t fill up and overeat.

We opted to have Thanksgiving at home with my daughter and her boyfriend with all the trimmings. We will have all of our favorites. Turkey, stuffing, gravy, mash potatoes and pumpkin pie are on my list. I love the smells of Thanksgiving and the warmth of the kitchen while everything is cooking. Then we will celebrate with friends with our “Saturday after Thanksgiving” party. A tradition we have done for the past few years. All of our friends get together from all over and we have another giant feast. People make great effort to get there sometimes. It’s a lovely way to get together before everyone scatters for December. It’s great to carve out time to see our friends and celebrate with them.




I love to go into San Francisco’s Union Square at night when all the Christmas lights are up and people are shopping. There’s a chill in the air and puppies and kittens in the windows at Macy’s. Hot chocolate and window shopping bundled up in my wool coat. I don’t necessarily buy anything, I just like to go observe and breathe in the spirit wherever I can find it, take a few photos and people watch. I love big cities. I find a comfortable place to sit and watch all the people buzzing by. I find calmness and rhythm while sitting in the middle of chaos just observing.




We will be celebrating in early December with my son and his family in the Seattle area. We are bringing my parents and they will be meeting their first great-grandchild. We have rented an apartment at a retro-motel in their town and plan on making it a mini vacation. We will take in all the sites of Seattle and the surrounding area and have a lovely family dinner at my son’s house. Early December allows my daughter-in-law time with her family when they come to visit at Christmas and it allows us to attend my mom’s Christmas Eve celebration in Southern California. Hence, I get to do all my favorite things. Hug my new grandbaby, visit a big city, connect with family, continue and start traditions.

I’m thinking a fun New’s Years Eve party at our house with our friends might be fun. But I’m leaving that up in the air right now. Whatever happens, happens. Go with the flow.

I want to thank Cynthia Morris for her post that inspired me and reminded me of how to enjoy the holiday season.

Journey Down the Block

We are remodeling our offices at work. At the present moment we have no restroom. The whole remodel has been a challenge to work in. We've had to deal with hammering, sawing, jackhammers, dust, dirt. I thought the bathroom being gone was going to be the biggest problem, but maybe not. As I've written about before, everyone deals with the construction and change in a different way.





We have several choices at this point for using a restroom. We can use the porta-potty with the construction workers, go across the street to Mac Dutra Park where the day laborers hang out or take a walk about a block away to a restroom in a small shopping center, you could also take a quick drive home if you live close enough or drive over to Starbucks or McDonalds. I have chosen to walk the block away.

So you're probably asking why I'm blogging about walking to the restroom everyday. I thought I would take the opportunity to make it a positive experience. I brought my camera and decided to look through my lens on my way there every day and see what I come up with. I walk by the familiar every day, but people come to this town as a destination. I thought I would record some of the details and find the beauty and uniqueness of downtown Half Moon Bay on my journey down the block to the restroom.

I hoping to post several times a week with what I find on my walks.

Lyra

I'm a grandma! The instant I saw this little bundle my heart melted. She is beautiful. Lyra Adele Ritner, born September 12, 2009, 7 pounds, 14 oz.

The second we heard my daughter-in-law was headed to the hospital, Boyd and I jumped in the car and drove 14 hours to see our new grandchild. We were exhausted by the time we got to Washington. We didn't get to the hospital until 10:30pm. We had to go through security, have our car searched and then we got lost inside the hospital. But opening that door and seeing my son's new family was life changing. I can't even put it in words. They were all exhausted but beaming. Lyra was calm and comfortable snuggled into her mom. My heart melted as I looked into little Lyra's face. My granddaughter, a new person, a new branch to our family. The love was instant. My son is a father. Can't wait to get back over to the hospital this morning.

It's Time!

My daughter-in-law's water just broke! We are on our way to Washington. We are going to be grandparents and their lives will be forever changed. Can't wait to get there. I'll update with photos when I can.

The Silence of Noise

The pounding of hammers inside, the rumble of the bulldozer outside, you could say it wasn’t the best atmosphere to try and conduct work. But I found myself tapping my foot to the time of the hammer. The rhythm of all the work around me was making a symphony of white noise. I was actually finding myself enjoying it. I felt insulated. I could feel the beat that it was making.

Our office is in the middle of a remodel and we are in the midst of all the construction trying to conduct business. Maybe it was my upbringing of being around construction and construction workers as a girl. Maybe it was my parents always telling us and showing us to make the best of situation, but the noise wasn’t bothering me. Maybe it’s all the yoga and inner reflection I’ve been experiencing over the last six months. Maybe it’s the fact that one of the offices they are working on is going to be my new space and not everyone is getting a new space.

It’s interesting to watch my co-workers reactions to handling the noise, the dust and the chaos. You can almost see into their minds by the way they handle it. Some go inward, put their headphones on and carry on. Others have to find ways to get out of the office to conduct their work. Some get angry, sarcastic or even sick. Some are completely oblivious.

I watched a program the other day about a rock star that is trying to find new rhythms by traveling the world and seeking other cultures, new adventures. He was delving deep into himself to discover what kind of direction his music might take next. What does it sound like in another country? The music, the food, the occupations, the people, the landscape all have their own sounds. Maybe that’s what I’m experiencing with these foreign sounds in my office. It’s different, a new beat, the fresh smell of cut wood. The sounds of heavy equipment, the buzz of a saw, the hammer connecting the wood to the building making something new. For me it has helped reach inside myself, it becomes a white noise, a type of meditative silence helping me to concentrate. I actually think I’ve accomplished more during this remodel as I’ve had to adapt and change the way I’ve always done things.

Change is always hard, for some much harder. Change can be compared to the death of something. You mourn for the loss, but if you choose to look at it in a positive light and of new opportunities you might just be able to look deeper into yourself and open new paths. Out of chaos, creativity explodes.

Becoming a grandma

Here at my son's house in Bremerton, Washington. I watched him and my husband put together a crib for the baby due in September. Watched my daughter-in-law's belly contort as little Lyra squirmed around trying to find some more room in there. It all brings back so many memories. Seems like it was just yesterday I was experiencing all that first hand and now here is my little boy as a man about to be a daddy. Can't wait to hold my granddaughter in my arms. I already love her.

The Power of Now

How do you live in the now? You must have a passion, something to focus on, a goal, a dream, something to strive for.

The gentle rocking of a sleeping baby in your arms, the sweet baby smell, your breathing synchronized with his as his warm little body melds into yours. You can think of nothing else but keeping them warm and safe. People are talking around you but you can only hear the breathing and the heartbeat of the little child in your arms. You feel as one with the child as you glide back and forth in the chair. You must provide for them, they are your center, your passion. Your every waking moment is to care for this child.That is living in the now.

My children are in their twenties now. One of them is going to be a parent soon. It seems so long ago that they were babies. My sister just had a baby, he is seven months old. I just spent five days with my little nephew taking care of him. That mother instinct never leaves. The care is constant. I had no time to worry about what I left behind at work or the projects I had undone or when my next exercise class was or what I was eating or drinking. It was quite eye-opening to me. You never stop until it’s feeding time and then you can sit down in that rocker, darken the room and slowly rock as the baby touches your hand and you feed him. I had forgotten all that. That’s why it all goes by so fast; you are in the moment thinking of nothing else but what is happening in front of your eyes.. That’s living in the moment, living in the now.

I’ve experienced the same passage of time as I’m creating a piece of artwork or walking on the beach looking for treasures. When you do something you have a passion for you don’t have time to notice what time it is or think about your bills or problems. You are just in the moment, nothing else matters. The dishes can wait, the pot can boil over, the laundry can pile up you don’t care because you are rocking a child or painting a picture or writing a song or petting your cat. You are living in the now.

I can remember how hard it was to be sleep deprived, exhausted, and unshowered when my kids were little and thinking how hard this is. But one look or touch or new thing learned always made up for it. It went by so fast and then they are grown and you have this empty spot that you have to fill. Find that passion. Your second life after kids is just as important as the first half but this time you are experienced, older, wiser. Make good use of your knowledge. Volunteer to spend a few hours, days or a week with a baby you love, relive those moments, it will bring you joy and a new understanding of self and what’s important. Live in the now.

Power Tools and Pilates

I had to bring the Mikita to work with me this week. Nothing like a change of pace and power tools to make your job interesting. We moved our business into one building because we sold the other building. We had to empty it out and get everyone and everything into a smaller pace. Not an impossible task, just a lot of work. Our budget is small and my boss and I are the labor. We put on our jeans and brought our power drills from home and took on the task. Not that I don’t wear jeans everyday anyways but I got to wear my tennis shoes and sweatshirt too. That’s the beauty of living and working in a small town. Everything is casual. Good times!

We managed to get the building sold fast even in the face of the economy. However, we discovered the building we still owned needed extensive emergency repairs so the remodel is much more than we anticipated but in the long run will be a much better and usable building. I always say things happen for a reason. I think this all fell into place so I could get in shape and improve my overall health. At least that’s what I’m choosing to believe.

I’ve been moving stuff from building to building to storage. I’ve ripped out counters and moved furniture up and down stairs. On top of all this I’ve been going to Pilates and working out on a cross trainer machine or treadmill every other day. I also signed up for Weight Watchers and have been studying the Law of Attraction. I think synchronicity is in place. I’ve released 10 pounds since January and I feel really good. I’m living in the now and I’m in a very peaceful place.

Last night I was really considering not going to Pilates because I was so sore from moving all day. But I went to class and lay down on a roller and was immediately transformed. I could feel my back relaxing and stretching out. By the end of the hour I was exhausted, exhilarated and I felt taller. Today I wasn’t stiff. I had a few sore muscles but I felt really good, not crippled like I had feared I might be. I went home and had a couple of glasses of wine and a hot shower. It was an excellent day. Not sure everyone would agree with me about that. I’m sorry to report my boss went home and discovered she only had one glass of wine left in her house. She promptly poured it in her glass and spilled it. She should have went to Pilates with me. Clearly my energy was in a much better place and I belong to many wine clubs and was in no danger of a wine shortage. Life is good!

Early Bird Gets the Sea Glass

Early bird gets the sea glass or so I thought. My husband and I headed out at 6:40 am this morning to hike down to our favorite sea glass spot before work. There was a negative tide and we thought by getting there so early we would be the only ones on the beach.

We hike down to our spot, out of breath before our caffeine fix in the morning and look down at the beach…there are already three people down there, heads down digging through the gravel. Uggghhhhhh! People more crazy than us.

Undeterred, we head for the gravel. I’m sure this is to the annoyance of the three hunters already there. We find a small amount of sea glass. Nothing really worthy of the shard of the day, except maybe a piece of Vaseline glass. I’ve found better. But I could tell one woman had already sent her husband down the beach in search of the big pieces as she methodically dug through the gravel in a grid. The other woman was on her own and was digging through her own piles. I did a hit and miss in the gravel and found a few pieces. We didn’t really have a lot of time so we gathered the pieces we found in a ziplock bag and headed back up the hill.

The photo shows our catch for today vs our find the day we found the marble.

I guess the find of the day was really the exercise we got so early in the morning on a beautiful sunny day. I wonder what the tide is like tomorrow? If we get there at 6…..

Looking for Lizards

I cringe every time I pick something up off the floor in my bedroom or when I slip on a pair of shoes that's been laying on the floor. Why? Lizards, snakes and rodents find their way into our house on a regular basis. All thanks to my lovely kitties. They tend to end up under my shoe rack hiding under a boot or inside a shoe that didn't get put back. I shake each shoe out before I put it on. My vision is that I'll put my foot in a shoe and a lizard will bite my big toe. I'll scream and fling it across the room. I shiver just thinking about it.

Right now I'm waiting for Boyd to get back from one of his weekend trips to the hardware store. He needs to look through my sock basket. It has a funny smell emanating from it. I got a whiff of dead something. I am not dumping that basket out myself. No way, no how. I'm sure Darryl the boy cat thinks it's a nice gesture to bring me a gopher or mole and put it with my socks so I could thank him later. Sigh....eeewwwwwww.

Good thing my cats are cute and cuddly. Thought it was time to listen to my kitties theme song again:


Ray Wylie Hubbard - Snake Farm
Video Codes at www.blastro.com

Shard of the Day-May 17, 2009

Marble! Not just your regular small marble but a giant marble. The shooter. Cool! It's light green when you hold it up to the light and it's got that twirly thing inside it. Ok, I didn't find it, but my husband did. It rolled up at his feet in the surf in Half Moon Bay. Talk about awesome.

Update on Molly the Dog

My parent's went out to dinner last night; she ate two trees.
Hmmmm.........