Redwood Re-Ignition

This will count as our 4th time driving across the country. All of which, including this one, are for great reasons. This time in particular is for a much needed month long sojourn to reignite our souls. At this time we live in Key West FL., a small island on the southern most tip of the Continental United States. Living on an island sounds very grandiose and at moments it truly is. The gift it has given me in our almost 2 years of being here has been the gift of refocusing as well as enormous growth personally and professionally. However, I wake up dreaming about my old home in the redwoods of Northern California and in a few weeks we will be there again.

When my husband and I take trips, each one takes on a character of its own. Last year we traversed the entire east coast and spent a month in Acadia National Park and Camden Maine. We camped out of our tent and took amazing hikes and paddle board adventures.

This one too will become its own entity and we are hoping for an adventure unlike any other.
We leave in less then a week and will begin our drive from Key West to the coast of Ventura CA. We will then drive north until we reach our old home in Humboldt County CA. Our friends are excited to see us and we are excited to see our old friend, the Pacific Ocean.

Rain Reminds Me of....

We finally have rain today! I had forgotten how much I truly enjoy the rain. It is fantastic to listen to and to watch. Our island doesn't always particularly smell great with all the tourists mess but with the rain it has freshened everything up nicely. However, what the rain does most for me is it takes me back into the recesses of my mind and sends me into a flood of memories.


Rain reminds me of crisp mornings and crisp evenings with constant umbrella use or none at all. It reminds me of windshield wipers, from scratch chicken pot pies, nudging closer to the heater, and movies during the day. Rain reminds me of the redwood forests, elk, waterfalls, lagoons cloaked in fog, and creeks running strong with fish. Rain reminds me of fresh air, my fuzzy hair, and a wonderfully hoppy IPA with dinner. Rain reminds me of warm fleece vests, perching to watch the waves, and braving the ocean for a short surfing session. The rain truly reminds me of my life in California and makes me miss it so.

Wow... customer service?

I am continually dumbfounded at the lack of care or concern business owners have for the public here. How is it that in a place that reaches 100 + degrees daily can have faulty air conditioner servicemen? By faulty I mean the absolute inability to communicate with customers or fix things in a timely manner. In fact, the company I use here.. there aren't many to choose from... decided to forget about me and my air conditioning problems for about 2 weeks until I haunted him with phone calls and an attitude. I didn't WANT to get an attitude with these people but no one could give a straight answer as to why I am sweating and sleeping in a hot box all the while the part to fix my air conditioner is rolling around in the back of their work van.

I am praying that today.. he means what he says and will come by to do his job. Thankfully this $600.00 that is about to be headed his way isn't my actual own money and the owners of the Spa and our apartment are happy to foot the bill.

I also have had problems in this area when it comes to tree trimmers, eye Dr's, Dr's in general. The only people who care about what they do here are the bartenders. Something is wrong with that maybe.

The days seem to be getting hotter and hotter and my mind is wandering towards cooler climates. I never thought I would actually long for a climate where I could sit next to a piping hot fire with winter clothes on and sip soup. I often wondered if I would prefer being cold over being warm or the other way around. I think I have finally decided that I would rather be cold! CRAZY!

Crossing my fingers, crossing my braids, everything... I need this air conditioner fixed!

Just call me lonely lonesome pants.

A delicious, strong, and intoxicating cocktail has a nice ring to it right now. It is only 12:30 in the afternoon. What am I thinking? I am nearing the end of my work week soon. It is Friday today and my official "Friday" is tomorrow. One of the main facets of a good life are friendships and best of all friends to share in after work drinks. I have many friendships and friends that would love to meet me out for a drink tonight. However, none of those amazing friends of mine live here. I feel sad often when I think about how I don't have any soul busting girlfriends where I live right now. I know it is partly because I never have any time to be out of this spa. I wake up here, I work here, I end my day here and at night I am still doing work for the spa. This has taught me some serious lessons in living in the same place I work. It gets very tough mentally do deal with. So, since I don't have any friends that would either be calling me to go have a drink or that I can call... I will still have a beer or 4 but with my next to human best friend Sparky dog.

Ready to Go!

I am itching to get out and run around today! It is so hot though. It has been hot since January. I am NOT complaining. I know there is worse weather out there. Today I will do my usual after work thing. I take Sparky out for a LONG walk that he and I both desperately need by the end of each day. We people watch together and he sniffs and pees on things. When we get back and wait for Ben to get off work, I flip on some tunes and cook a nice little meal for dinner. I will make Sparky's dinner too. Oh he is so spoiled. Then I will probably take him out again for an after dinner digestion walk. We both love those. By the time I am through with that excitement, Ben will be home shortly and then we can finally catch up on our days together by sitting together on the porch and sipping either a brewskie or a COLD glass of water. Nothing is more refreshing then either of those when you live so close to the equator. My day is almost done and I cannot wait.

Flip Down and Dip It

My last explanation of how things are here hasn't changed really since last June when I wrote. Like I said before, it is very much like the movie "Groundhog Day". It is just the same things over and over again. Tourism is what makes this town and that in turn creates a very odd environment to live in. I am sure that my entire life could not be spent here. I always tell people when they ask that it fits our life "right now". However there are plenty of positives about Key West. I believe I mentioned most of them already. So life goes on and Ben and I continue to foster our ideas about how we want to spend our lives. Most of those ponderings shall remain a secret for now. One thing we do know and that I can share is that we often miss beautiful landscapes, rolling hills, crystal clear rivers, and salt air from a roaring ocean.

Last week we were able to visit our families in Indiana and attend our dear friends Chris and Laurels wedding! It was wonderful and we are so happy for them. We saw our niece Elise turn 1 year old and we also got to spend some much needed down time at the lake. Our families are so great and so supportive of our dreams. That is pretty awesome to have that.

Ben will be getting his Captain's License soon with a 100 ton sailing endorsement. This new title will open many different doors for him I hope. My job continues on and I have gained so much by being the manager and director of Prana Spa. The greatest part about my job is the security and also making everyone who comes in these doors happy. The hardest part about my job is that I am inside almost all hours of every day. My free time is so lacking that I still feel somewhat lost in all of this. For now I am dealing with that sacrifice but at times I need to take deep breathes about it.

September arrives soon... aka... hurricane season. We will board up the Spa/house and head out on an adventure somewhere. As summer draws nearer, the weather is sure to get even hotter, muggier, and mosquitoier! My weekend starts in 3 hours or so and I cannot wait for it! Lazying around here I come.