It's My Birthday!

It's my birthday today so I thought I would share some facts about myself that you may or may not know about me.  Since I am on a 39 goals on my 39th year kick, I put a list of 39 little tidbits about myself.  Can you relate to any of these?  I mean...haven't you sat in your trash can filled with cold water on a hot summer day?  Was I the only one?

Here are a few other fun facts about yours truly.

1. I used to be a synchronized swimmer
2. I love old school rap music
3. My dream is to own an airstream and put it on a piece of land and live off grid
4. I am horrible at math
5. I was an assistant basketball coach for a college team
6. I sold girl scout cookies
7. I have the entire star wars figure collection
8. My all time favorite musician is Elvis Costello and met him once.
9. I’ve never broken a bone
10. I don’t have tonsils
11. I had stitches between my toes
12. I slept as my neighbors house burned down
13. I was a lifeguard
14. I won an apple peeling contest
15. Public speaking is my worst fear
16. I don’t have a tattoo
17. I bite my nails
18. I don’t like crowds
19. I haven’t used a blow dryer in years
20. I don’t iron
21. I dread shopping
22. Coconut is my favorite scent
23. I drink coffee everyday
24. I grew up camping under the Hollywood sign
25. I’ve never traveled to Europe
26. I want to adopt every dog I see at the shelter
27. I played college basketball
28. I was a fencer
29. I haven’t eaten a mammal in over 15 years
30. I would rather text than talk on the phone
31. 32 is my favorite number
32. I am allergic to eggplant
33. My first job was to tell people not to touch the plants at a county fair
34. Since I didn’t have a pool growing up, I filled our trash cans and sat in them during  summer months
35. I love all things weird
36. In 5 days It will mark one year without alcohol
37. King Crab legs are my favorite meal
38. I like to take pictures (can you tell?)
39. I love brussel sprouts

The Salton Sea Revisited

Every now and then I visit a place that stays with me enough that I feel the need to explore it again.  This was the case of the Salton Sea.  I've always wanted to go to this "sea" in the middle of the desert but didn't really have a reason to.  It's out in the middle of nowhere, but has a rich history that you wouldn't know about unless you sought it out.

It's beautiful and a bit sad at the same time.  Bombay Beach is one of my favorite places since it looks like it stands in time.  There are wrecked buildings everywhere that stay put from where they were built, old chairs, computers, water towers...all in their place among the wreckage.

Nearby is a town called Nyland where you can find Salvation Mountain and Slab City.  Slab City is a not really a city at all but a small community of drifters living on the land together.  I would describe it as a mini burning man that stays there year round.

I loved it.

If you are thinking about touring a place that you won't soon forget, visit the Salton Sea.  You can see more pictures from my visit HERE.

Salvation Mountain "God Is Love"

Over the weekend, I took another tour of the Salton Sea and surrounding cities.  This time, the tour took me to Niland to visit Slab City and Salvation Mountain.  What a sight to see!  You will know you have arrived when you see an entire mountain covered in paint with "God is Love" etched everywhere. The artist is Leonard Knight and I was lucky enough to meet him and get a personal guided tour of his creation.  Right when you walk up to the mountain, you will be greeted by a gentleman saying, "Hello, make yourself at home."  That gentleman would be Leonard Knight.

Please take a visit if you are in the area.  Leonard will greet you and make you feel at home.


This was truly a sight to see.  For more pictures of my visit, click
HERE.

Las Olas Surf School and La Playa

I blogged about what a wonderful experience I had when I decided to surf with a bunch of strangers in my "Stepping out of Comfort and Into Growth" blog.

Las Olas (Surf Safaris for Women) has a new blog in town!  You can learn more about the wonderful women behind the scenes on their new blog, La Playa (A Community Of Women Who Love To Surf).

Lucky for me, I was featured under their "Saluting Surf Sisters" tab with my story.  Thank you Bev for creating such a wonderful community where women can come together, learn to surf, make new friends and leave home with the belief that anything is possible.

To read my story and others in the Las Olas community, please click HERE.

We Can Do It Too!

I love stories of women achieving their dreams.  There really isn't anything we can't do once we put our mind to it.  We are so fortunate in America to be able to do what we want to do.  We can set forth and achieve any goal we wish with hard work and determination, unlike many women in other countries.

At this moment, 16 year old Abby Sunderland is setting sail to reach her personal goal; to sail around the world solo.  You can read about her journey on her blog by clicking here.

How inspiring to young women!  She realized her dream and is living it at such a young age. Also, how great is it that her parents are supportive of that?  At 16, I was crossing my fingers and hoping to pass classes so I could graduate high school.

I always played sports growing up and my family enjoyed camping together when I was young.  I have one brother who is 7 years older so as I child I learned how to entertain myself and explore on my own.  It could be a reason why I enjoy wandering and exploring new places today, at 38.  It's just inside of me.

The thing is...it's never too late to do what you have always dreamed of doing.  I have to admit that it is easier for me since I chose not to have kids.  Instead, I worked right out of college and continued to work hard and climb a corporate ladder until I just couldn't stand it anymore.  The suits and heels weren't me.  I was pushing a product that didn't inspire or excite me.  Don't get me wrong, I am thankful for the opportunity I had and I learned a lot in the process but even as I left the company, most people knew and commented that the job just wasn't a reflection of who I was.

Who am I?  Well, I am a work in progress, as we all are.  I know that I am enjoying taking pictures and traveling.  Camping and being in nature rank high on my list of things that bring me joy.  As I mentioned with a previous blog, I met up with a group of strangers with one thing in common: we all had silver trailers and a love of the outdoors and camping.  A common topic of discussion among the group was how great it was for them to ditch their "normal" lives to come and spend a weekend with other women to talk about ideas, life and support each other with the belief of yes, we can do it too!  There were stories of how men would be in control of hitching and towing and that they never had the chance to do it or the opportunity to learn how to do it.  This was their chance to learn something new, feel empowered and leave with a sense of hope that they can achieve anything they set their mind to.

I am thankful to all of the women who paved the way for title 9 so I was able to have the opportunity to play basketball in college.  There are so many women who stuck their neck out to be trailblazers for a realization that yes, we can do it too.

I started a group on facebook for women who have a shared interest in camping and the outdoors.  If this is you, please click here to join (there is also a widget on the right of the blog).  No fees, just fun.

Today I am thankful for all of the women who took a chance so we are able to do the same.

Humans In Their Habitat

I love people watching.  There are some great places to people watch like the airport, county fair, festivals, cities and most any place where there is a gathering of humans.  As you know, I was in New York City over the weekend and that could be the top place to sit and watch people living their lives.

Of course, I love to snap pictures of all people doing their thing.  Most of the time, I go unnoticed but on occasion, they spot me taking their photograph.  I wonder what they do and what their life is like.  You can sit there and imagine how people live their lives and a lot of the time, you might be right according to the way they dress or carry themselves.

I love it especially when someone is dressed up...different from the crowd.  The fashion trends vary from state to state and when you get to New York, you have everything mixed together.  I picked up a rental sheet from one of the blocks I wandered on and after seeing the housing costs, I wondered how people can even afford to live there.

When I am home, I like to sit in a coffee shop and watch people come and go.  It's what I am doing right now. I wonder what they are working on, what they do, where they live.  It's all so interesting to me.

Perhaps I've had too much coffee writing this post, but when was the last time you took a moment to sit and observe?  It's a great form of entertainment and best of all, it's FREE!  Here are a few pictures I took of people living their life in their own habitat.  I have more from my travels HERE.  Perhaps you are in one of them.

Music On The Street

There are artists everywhere.  As much as I enjoy going to art shows on the street, I also love to listen to solo performers and bands jam outside on corners or busy intersections.
I especially enjoy it when the performer is just hanging out by himself/herself and is there for the music and perhaps some cash if you can spare a buck or two.

Music is life.  Sometimes I get in a rut and listen to the same artist over or the same station on Pandora that usually plays the same songs.  It's refreshing to hear something new that you wouldn't listen to otherwise.  You can change your entire mood by putting something different on in your home.  Try classical or jazz if you like rap (I know I do...I'm a big fan of old school rap), or opera if you usually listen to country. You get the drift. When you're not plugged into your ipod, there is music all around us...especially in the city.

My New York trip was unforgettable.  There is so much energy coming from the streets, it's hard not to feel a buzz flow through your body when you find a quiet space at the end of the day.  For me, it can be a little overwhelming since there is so much stimulation everywhere you look.  In fact, it would take me about 30 minutes to walk 3 blocks with my camera out...snapping away at everything that seems interesting. In the city, everything seems interesting to me. There is something going on in every direction at every moment.

Complete coordinated chaos.

You can find street musicians everywhere.  I've heard them on the streets of Los Angeles, Austin, New Orleans, New York and Boston...just to name a few on my travels.  I've included some photographs of my favorite performers on this blog.

Get out.  Listen.  You might find something you really enjoy.

Life In New York City

Yesterday, I spent the day walking around the city.  I've done it a few times before, but yesterday was a different experience.  What I loved to do best was to sit in a park, on a bench, or a stoop somewhere and just watch people and feel the energy all around.  Of course there are tourist spots and places where locals only go and I hope to do a little of both.

The day was spent in the Bryant Park area and Times Square.  I look forward to doing it all over again today.  Here are a few pictures I took as I wandered around.  To see more, please click HERE.  

Life In A Silver Airstream

As with my previous post, I am still in love with these silver trailers.  My camping trip with the silver sister's has come to an end, but it was a trip I will never forget.

I love being a part of a group which supports and empowers women to be independent.  A group after my heart.  It was a weekend for these ladies to get away from their jobs, husbands, kids (or bring the young girls to start in the experience), and just an escape from their "normal" lives.  It was also a chance to rig up a trailer alone without someone telling us what to do or how to do it.  All about growth and sharing a common love for all things silver and shiny.

As much as I enjoyed learning more about these woman and having fun by the fire, delicious meals and swapping stores...I loved taking pictures of these beautiful rigs and their owners.  I look forward to adding to this collection of female owners in the future to perhaps share in a book someday.  Along with the women, there were some happy dogs at the campsite.  It was picture heaven for me!

If you are unsure of the feeling I am describing, there is no doubt you will get the bug once you step foot in one of these rigs.  In fact, if you are Southern California, you can rent Meredith's trailer by clicking HERE.  If you are located in Northern California, you can rent out one of many beautiful trailers through Kristiana by clicking HERE.

Kristiana is a veteran to the airstream way of life.  She is also a beautiful jewlery designer.  If you can't get away and leave the house for an airstream vacation, bring the trailer to you by purchasing a one of a kind piece of jewelry inspired by silver trailers.  Please visit her shop at www.SilverTrailer.com

I know I will be on another trip soon with "trailie" to join these women and other groups that have the same love for silver trailers, including teardrops.  I look forward to sharing more with you soon.  I tried to capture the beauty of these trailers and their owners.  Please click HERE to see more photographs of this trip.

Thank you ladies!  I look forward to the next time!

A Silver Trailer Lifestyle

What a lifestyle it is to own a silver trailer.  I love my teardrop trailer, "trailie" and I haven't taken her out for about a year and a half so it was about time that I did.  This is Max's first time in "trailie" and I think he is loving it a bit more than the tent.

I decided to join a bunch of women and their airstream trailers for a weekend of camping.  I'm glad they allowed me to stay even though I don't have an airstream, but I have a silver trailer so I am going to say that counts. I toured all of their rigs and I have to say...it sure is nice to be able to stand up inside.  What a luxury!

All of their trailers are so put together and fancy.  I love them all.  I do have a little trailer envy seeing how beautiful they are and one even has a bed that you can walk around.  No joke...it's like a condo on wheels.  I very stylish condo, I might add.

It's been a fun weekend meeting new friends, all from different parts of California and Arizona.  All with a common love for all things shiny.  Especially things that are shiny that you can live in and pull with your car.

I dream of owning one of these someday and setting it on some land somewhere with solar panels and live there, in the middle of nowhere.  Ahhh, to dream.  Taking Max out in "trailie" was one of my 39 goals this year so I can check that off.

It can seem a little scary to join a bunch of strangers for the weekend, but that is exactly what I am doing.  I am so glad that I did.  For the past few days, I have been taking a lot of pictures of these beautiful airstreams, click HERE to see more photos.