"DANCE TO THE MUSIC"

Let's see, where did we leave off? Ah yes - the trailer overlooking the cauliflower crops, dunes and Pacific Ocean. Well I am happy to report that I spoke with the owner and after a couple of days no cost couchsurfing at his place (most couchsurfing stays are 1-3 nights) I negotiated for a small fee and a pain treatment to rent the trailer for 10 more nights. AHHHH - another place to stop and not be on the go all the time. It gave me a chance to be a bit creative again.

THE EXTRA BATH

I had been thinking about Benjamin a lot and decided to put him onto paper. I also worked further with another character that I had started developing back in Santa Rosa when I also had private space. Where the sketches will lead only source knows for now. I consider it most enjoyable art therapy.

Each day while staying in Arroyo Grande I set off in a different direction to find out about the area. I checked out the Monarch Butterfly Grove, the various sand dune reserves, the small town of Guadalupe with their cool murals, and many more places. I drove from place to place. It was enough to know AG is not the area for me. It has nature spots but I am not a sandy dune type of person. I like more woods. I even drove the 40 minutes back to Los Osos to play at Montana de Oro State Park then commuted back to AG. I really love that park. It is diverse. It is also only 10 minutes from my former couchsurfing hosts who offered to house me again when my stay in AG was up. I don't get the apartment like before but I consider that setup to be an amazing circumstance/serendipity and gift.

I arrived at the house four days ago and was warned about a sleepover that was going to happen with the grand kids. I was looking forward to it. I was feeling a bit isolated up on the hill after awhile and I needed some activity and socialization. Susan sent me a link about contra dancing so I signed up for that and went by myself on Saturday night.

Also as I knew a 4 and 6 year old and a 12 year old too would be at the house I suggested that we drive over to the Morro Bay library for a free Afro Dance performance. It was great fun and Auntie Kim and I had hoped it would tire them all out a bit.

For Sunday I joined a MEETUP GROUP that let me post a GROUP ART EVENT at Montana de Oro's discovery beach where I had made one of the mandala videos in the previous blog post. I also made a CS event for the happening. There were no takers through those venues but the kids came and the beach was crowded on the weekend. I told passerbys both young and old that it was a PUBLIC GROUP ART DAY for VALENTINE'S DAY and to please feel free to add to the creations.

Several people did and it was so much fun. I really would like to get some other events happening and get people making art outside. That is what my website GETIN2NATURE.COM is all about. No one ever regrets participating, in fact they love it. It's just getting them off their duffs. Yikes - grownups are too grownup for their own bad sometimes. We need to remember those wonderful creative feelings of being a free range kid again. Ah but I will get off my soap box now and direct you to my websites instead.

THIS ONE - GETIN2NATURE.COM - check out the media page

AND THIS ONE - The link is a secret link that is not on the main menu. I am running a MONTH OF LOVE special on my weight loss course so...  http://bebest.com/4u/
WHAT R U WEIGHTING 4? Summer clothes season is coming very soon. Start preparing NOW.

That's it. I am supposed to be hiking with the 12 year old and Auntie Kim this afternoon. They went shopping and I am catching up here. Since I hate shopping and I have been behind in writing it seemed to be the perfect plan.

Where to next? I am working on. It is time for more exploration. In the meantime - from 1968...
"DANCE TO THE MUSIC" with SLY and the FAMILY STONE.

"BLOWING IN THE WIND"

It was absolutely wonderful to have a place to stop for two weeks. The time flew by so quickly. I only went into the small city of San Luis Obispo twice and quickly at that. I stayed by the shore and created art. Having the Gordon's in the house downstairs made me feel safe and secure and surrounded by family yet still with my privacy in Jesse's apartment upstairs. I got into nature almost every day to explore, walk trails, breathe, make some art and simply enjoy peace and non-travel. What a blessing!

LOS OSOS OAKS RESERVE

THE TREE BRANCH WON

SWEET SPRINGS RESERVE

Monday was Jesse's return so I headed down the coast to Ventura. I had three couchsurfing hosts and a lot of activity. More on that after this photo and video wrap up of Los Osos Days. Oh and don't worry about the blood. Platinum hair can be so dramatic. I scraped my head while crawling through a tree tunnel by the beach. A messy ouch but worth it.

ELFIN 

HARMONY HEADLANDS STATE PARK

My first place to stay in Ventura was with an artist who rents out his front house, lives in a lofted guest house with art studio that he built in the back and lets couchsurfers stay in a zen style lanai by the meditation gardens. I had a wonderful peaceful time there. When I arrived Mark was feeling "off" and coming down with a cold. Well.. have treatment mat will travel. I gave him immune boosting treatments two nights in a row and although he still sounded a little raspy he felt fine.

ZEN LANAI

PRE-HIKING ON JIM'S BACK DECK

POST HIKE AT LOS PADRES NATIONAL FOREST

A LABYRINTH WAY HIGH UP PIEDRAS BLANCAS

LOS PADRES NATIONAL FOREST

LOS PADRES NATIONAL FOREST

The first full day in Ventura I went up into the hills of Ojai to look around. Later in my stay when Jim the cyclist/hiker hosted me, we went for a serious hike in Los Padres National Forest. Great stuff.
So much to cover in this post... Two nights in zen space, two nights in porch space overlooking the city and ocean then one night en route to Arroyo Grande (where I am now). Inland above Santa Barbara and en route to here I stayed with John in his double wide. He toured me through kitschy Solvang and we checked out a winery. I kind of breezed through town.

TASTING AT SUNSTONE WINERY

Speaking of breezing...it is hard to concentrate to write at the moment. I am staying in a trailer on an avocado farm overlooking the valley and there's a serious wind storm right now. The whole trailer is shaking and I am laughing. WHAT FUN! It beats an earthquake (I suppose) but I am not going out and getting in my car until this whole thing passes. I bet more than a few avocados and lemons have fallen off the trees. How the goats and chickens deal with this is beyond me.

THE DECK IN FRONT OF MY TEMPORARY TRAILER

oh oh - there goes a goat flying by...

Well that's it for now. Enjoy the videos and photos. I have to go pull the door shut or I too will be BLOWING IN THE WIND. And where will Patt be next?

"The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind. The answer is blowing in the wind." 

FAREWELL BENJITO - YOU CONTINUE TO HIKE WITH ME IN SPIRIT

ON A SAD NOTE: My best four legged friend BENJI passed on up to doggie heaven on the 23rd of this month. It is still hard to write about it but I know he is up there hiking in a perfect little healthy young bijon body loving his freedom and sending us his love. My forever love for you Sr. Benjito! As we say in Argentina it is not goodbye, it is merely farewell.

"LISTEN TO THE MUSIC PLAYING IN YOUR HEAD"

"Lady Madonna, children at your feet - Wonder how you manage to make ends meet.
Who finds the money? When you pay the rent? Did you think that money was Heaven sent?"

What's UP Patt? Everything is UP. It is all in your perspective. What is the point of looking down? Well except in Buenos Aires where you need POOH-DAR to maneuver through the city streets but that is another topic of my past. I am living more in the NOW doing my best to take this gift of "chill out - creative - don't think too much" time.

THE HILLS ARE ALIVE...

MAN CAVE URINAL

Last weekend I had a great tour by Susan and Kim, my CS hosts. They took me first to the Madonna Inn, a kitschy place and so much fun. Kim really wanted me to check out the men's bathroom. It is a famous photo opp. While in there (we waited so that no men actually needed its use) a few more ladies popped in to snap photos. Talk about a MAN'S CAVE - haaaaaa. The woman's bathroom needed a few snaps and also the dining room and bar. It reminded me of the Barbie shop in BA only much, much bigger!

MADONNA INN DINING ROOM

MADONNA INN BAR

After our stop into elegant kitsch we went into San Luis Obispo city so that we could all experience a SLO delectable - TRI TIP. WOW! It was excellent, so tender. The restaurant that we ate in was quite crowded so the locals all know it well (remind me to get the name). The sandwiches were massive but I still managed to almost finish it. I toted the leftovers around attracting various dogs along my path. We went window and real shopping. I was drawn into an art store to look for something of which I have already forgotten. Sorry, the smell of an art supply sale short circuited my brain but I now have a new brand of watercolor paper (buy 1 pad and get the 2nd for $.01) and paints along with an immediate goal of bringing some new designs into fruition. Onward 2016!

TRI TRP - A WOW EXPERIENCE

These days I feel as if my angels are close by me though sometimes I need to get my mind out of the way and my heart centered. I am staying in Jesse's apartment upstairs from my CS hosts. It gives me the time and space that is much needed in the creative process. I find that when I force with too much thinking not only does my design ability suffer but my also my flow in general. In other words, I need to get out of my own way. How appreciative I am that getting out of my own way includes daily jaunts and romps in nature. We have had some 60F + days with afternoons of hazy sunshine. I'm less than 5 miles from a huge state park with gorgeous coastline plus there are several other parks and reserves in the area.


Here's a video of one such spot and some spontaneous creativity. I have gotten away from the paper and pen and too much thinking and into the sand more than once this week. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! 

"Wonder how you manage to make ends meet. Who finds the money? When you pay the rent? Did you think that money was Heaven sent?"

No - I didn't win at PowerBall but I did win with a beautiful sunrise this morning. I feel really blessed to have this temporary apartment in such a lovely area with great people nearby. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! 

Awaiting the fog to burn off... time for other web work on my online courses. If you need help with those New Year's resolutions remember I am offering my friends and friends of friends a major discount on the regular $89 course prices. Each course is only $12 but you must click through the links on this secret page to access the discount because it's not for the general public. LOOK AND FEEL GREAT THiS YEAR and HAVE FUN! 

Click on this link to the page - http://bebest.com/FRIENDS/

Then click on the photo of the course you want to take to receive the huge discount.

And now here is a YOUTUBE musical interlude for your listening pleasure. Recorded in 1968...

"ONE DAY UP NEAR SALINAS"

"One day up near Salinas, Lord, I let him slip away,
He's looking for that home and I hope he finds it,"

A few days ago while in Santa Rosa I got on craigslist and looked at rooms in the San Luis Obispo area to rent for a month. I wanted to stay put and really check out the county. I made one inquiry with no response. In the meantime, as my Santa Cruz couchsurf fell through (surprising me - the new dates didn't work) I arranged one night in Salinas with an artist who's profile I had bookmarked months ago, and then three nights with Los Osos hosts that my Argentine friends Maty and Denise had stayed with in November. Los Osos is on the coast of SLO county.  I also contacted my San Luis Obispo host Keith from my October stop and he granted me four more nights in the city. I thought FANTASTIC, I could search for a room while in the area and if I didn't find one decide from there. It is in the hands of the divine.

AND THE DIVINE MAKES MAGIC!

HAHN WINERY - STEINBECK REGION

Backing up... Rain and lots of it, hard and soft and not what I would choose to drive in. This turned out ok as Anne, my CS house/dog sitting gig - owner was back from traveling and not feeling well. She had no problem with me staying at her place in Santa Rosa until a nice travel day. In fact, I could have stayed longer but she needed the rest and private time and I needed to go exploring again.

SALINAS VISITOR CENTER BATHROOM

I called around for where I could get a new camera, stopped and got one on sale and got on the road to Berkeley. I had thought to stop there on the way to Salinas but when I got near the city I decided not to stop. Maybe I will visit there someday but I could already tell that a place with that many over and underpasses and boxes on hills was not where I want to live. With clear skies to the west and dark clouds to the east over the hills I headed south, slowly enjoying the drive. I arrived to Salinas at 6pm and met my hosts. Trish and Dan own the visitor center there and are so much fun. We stayed up until midnight and all agreed that we should meet again for more playtime in the future.

The next day was still cold but there wasn't any threat of rain at all. There was sun! I decided to bypass the Steinbeck Center and be more outside. Trish told me about the scenic River Road which was the inspiration for Steinbeck's novels. It was a much better choice on a sunny day. I went to the Hahn Winery (also by suggestion) to get a clear view of the valley. There are now so many fields with fresh tilled dirt and beautiful hills finally green after a long hard drought. It smelled so fresh through my lowered car windows. The darker clouds started to roll in just as I was rejoining HWY 101. I joined up with the side route to the coast and arrived to warm hearts and home just in time to go to the shore for sunset.

MONTANA DE ORO BEACH - LOS OSOS, CA

Susan, Mike and daughter Kim are active couchsurfing hosts and are instantly like family. A more welcoming group is hard to find (though Trish and Dan have a similar more urban vibe). They live in a small knotty pine house with a wood burning stove and five dogs and a cat but nothing feels cramped. It feels big. That's what good vibes do. They expand the energy in a good way.

I knew I was going to be sleeping in the living area which can sometimes be a little uncomfortable but not here. It was perfect. I was right in front of the hearth and with electric remote control luminaries to light my way in the middle of the night.

Lets get to the really fun magic...

While viewing the sunset Susan, Kim and I were chatting about travels and Susan told me about Hawaii. They have a relative living there and her nephew was going to visit the islands for two weeks. He happens to live in the apartment over their living space. I didn't even know there was a second floor yet. So... in their minds they could double up on couchsurfers with the additional space. I am already confirmed with Keith for the first four days of her nephew's absence and I do want to check out the city of SLO more deeply.  This morning I asked if I could take the apartment for the last 10 days of Jesse's trip. OF COURSE. (insert happy face). Then we spoke of how Jesse's back has been out of whack with sciatica. He has been in pretty bad pain. I begged to let me help. It had nothing to do with an equal exchange. I have it listed on my CS profile to please let me help if you have pain. I travel with everything that I need to do treatments. Soon after Jesse stopped in. We were introduced and Susan piped up that I am a therapist. I explained that I work with a Japanese version of...well it's like physical therapy. Wincing in pain he asked me what I charged. I replied, "Ten days in your apartment while you are gone." Susan and I were laughing because we could both see how perfect magic is. Magic is always WIN WIN WIN WIN.

And that is where I am at right now, writing and waiting to give a treatment. Rain is on its way and... believe in magic. Be OK to let it in.

And for your musical pleasure today's title is from Me & Bobby McGee. Here's Janis' version.

"NOTHING LIKE THE MIGHTY QUINN"

No - in this case Quinn is not an eskimo though at times I have felt like one bundled up in lots of sweaters. It's cold this year in Sonoma county.

So who is QUINN? Quinn is a dog, a super intelligent OCD ball catching dog. I have been Quinn and Mollie's trusted guardian for the last two weeks. They have shadowed me, pestered me to play, ridden in the car and snuggled up in bed with me each night. I have been dogsitting. I will miss them. The homeowner returned yesterday.

In a couple of days I am packing up and beginning my incremental journey southward through the state of California beginning with Santa Cruz. The whole state is colder than usual but the southern counties may be a bit warmer. As long as it is cold up here north of San Francisco I might as well get in my car and check out life and locations to the south. Maybe I will see my bare arms and legs again. I can always swing back up to Santa Rosa in the spring.

BY THE TIME I GOT TO WOODSTOCK 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I thought I should throw that in. Both were quiet for me. I stayed in with the pups and cooked and ate, watched movies and did some internet searches. When it was not raining I would take the dogs to the dog park and then take myself out for longer trail walks and exploring. On one four hour walk between Christmas and New Year's I strolled an hour over to a Santa Rosa labyrinth. It had been cold when I left the house and as the sun more fully appeared it warmed up. Layer after layer of clothing was shed and tied onto my waist. My trusty CANON ELPH sat in the pocket of my fleece vest which I still wore normally. The ELPH sat until it decided not to sit anymore. It fell out some time after the first hour's stop at the labyrinth never to be seen again.

YES - NOOOOOOOOOOOO! Patt has been camera-less for several days and she is sad and frustrated. (insert sad face). I need to go replacement shopping soon. I have been out and about but shopping this time of year with the lonnnnnnng weekends is not much fun. And going over budget from the get go for the year is also not much fun. But I live an abundant life and all is well. A new camera is on the horizon if I can find one in stock. Remember I am on the road so online ordering and shipping is not at present in my repertoire. I like to feel and touch the cameras and also have on-site return options in case I open the box and find my unit to have dust behind the sealed lens.

PATT'S CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS - GOOD GRIEF!

BUT.... not many photos to share this time. Except my Charlie Brown Christmas. As I was alone and the streets would be quiet I decided to do a little fun photo shoot. My house sit is close to downtown and I had been walking around the main library there. I had found statues of Charlie Brown characters and one day I stopped some volunteer police officers and asked where I could find more. When I was living in San Telmo I used to go out with friends and snap photos of us with the cartoon characters. The Buenos Aires city government has placed many all throughout Puerto Madero and San Telmo. The residents and tourists love their photos taken too.

BUENOS AIRES 2015

The officers told me to check with the area tourist office which I did and I picked up a list of locations far and wide. The characters are not centralised like Buenos Aires. To see Santa Rosa's statues one needs to drive.

Christmas morning I got bundled up and donned a red glitter hat and top from my traveling costume bag and also decided to add some clown white face just for a little bit more fun sharing. I headed out in my car to find some of the statues. With my trusty tripod my "selfie" Charlie Brown Christmas began and true to form it ended in a GOOD GRIEF! At my sixth location I checked my previous shots and the camera was messed up displaying just white like a white Christmas, except for the first four shots. Yes - GOOD GRIEF CHARLIE BROWN. At that point I went back to the house, removed the glitter and white face and put my feet up for the day and relaxed. I gave myself an A+++ for effort.

And that's it. No more photos, no camera. More rain is here. I will go shopping later. In the meantime I am getting this blog caught up and engaging in watercolor while I wait for couchsurfing host responses. Oh and planning my next cooksurf too. I should slide this photo in here - before house sitting I stayed a few nights in Petaluma (south of Santa Rosa). My host Michael and I both like to cook thus cooksurfing. :) Delicious!

MICHAEL'S SHRIMP, ROASTED BRUSSEL SPROUTS AND THE BEST SQUASH EVAHHH!

And for listening pleasure from 1967 - Manfred Mann's version of Mighty Quinn...

"RUNNING INTO THE SUN BUT I AM RUNNING BEHIND"

Coughing, spitting, hesitating - "But Matilda don't you want to get out of the heavy torrential rains and cold?"

"YES - I was ready last week and now I have the flu."

PATRICK AMIOT'S JUNK ART

Not me, not Patt. Matilda. Matilda is the name of my car and she finally short circuited. Thursday I went out to do some errands. The car had sat all day the day before in heavy winds and torrential sideways rains. Soon out of the inn's driveway she began bucking. At first I thought with the severe weather some water had gotten under the hood and was shorting out the wires but the local tire shop where I had my oil changed a few weeks earlier found a spent coil pack. Luckily they could get the part the next morning, make the fix and send me on my way to Santa Rosa.

I pulled into Sacha and John and Rose's house at 6 pm. They have a daughter Zoe and a high school exchange student from China living there PLUS a few more people. This was to be one of my few times in couchsurfing I actually slept on a couch. Sacha had told me that had I waited two more evenings she could have given me a private sleep space but I really wanted to come on Friday so I took a couch. I adored the pellet stove and Charles Eames chair.

MOLLIE

QUINN

Saturday I visited redwood-filled Armstrong State Park. It was cold in that forest. I vowed to come back more bundled up. On my way back to the house the CHECK ENGINE light came back on and the bucking started again. MATILDA! I had to go the entire weekend without knowing why and what was happening. SIGH Monday Sacha's husband John connected me with his mechanic and I got things fixed. The coil pack that they put in in FB was faulty. I got a new one, mailed the old one back to the shop to get reimbursed on the warranty and actually ran into John at the post office. Small world. I then went over to another part of town to meet my two holiday dog wards. I begin dog sitting on Sunday so I will not be alone for Christmas. I will have Mollie and Quinn.

Onward to Sebastopol to stay at Big Bob's house. Again there are many people around this property. I was greeted with a smile and transport to a friend's place for a small dinner of homemade turkey soup, then we headed to a bar with live music and dancing. This helped me to put aside the annoying fact that as I was driving to Sebastopol my CHECK ENGINE light went on again. At least the car is running fine and not bucking. I will be back near the second repair shop tomorrow to have them look at it again. It is driveable this time. In fact, I went over to Bodega Bay yesterday. It was magically beautiful with full sun and no wind. I could have hiked it in a t-shirt. "RUNNING INTO THE SUN..."

STEPHEN SQUARED

I met a few super interesting people of like minds in Bodega. Stephen squared (two fellows with the same love of nature as myself) and Larry the Whale Watcher (he's out there almost every day). All told me I had to stop and eat clam chowder on my way home. I did and they were correct. Even this native New Englander ranks the chowdah as SUPER GOOD!

Ok- so I have to finish this up. There is more live music tonight. Tomorrow I am leaving Sebastopol and going to Petaluma for two nights. It's raining and I am just hoping that the forecast and weather changes for the better. "RUNNING ON, RUNNING INTO THE SUN."

Bob's place has a nice fire too. That's Mocha the black lab and my buddy. This is my office today. I was cold so had someone build me a fire.

Below are more photos of Patrick Amiot's Junk Art. These pieces can be found on Florence St. in Sebastopol. There are more but just how much fun can you have reading a blog? ;) CLick to enlarge at the blog site.

Enjoy!

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Are you Running on Empty? Then get fueled with Jackson Browne from 1977...