A guide to improving life by implementing a bit of kook behavior. Keeping things respectful, but embracing failure and running head first toward anything that brings you joy.
Blurry through the pollen, our goldenrod-smeared view featured wooden cabins and front lawns strewn with dirt bikes, mountain bikes, and hints of feral childhoods. We were in Mammoth for the weekend, and our morning had been spent lollygagging and enjoying a hearty breakfast. I’m not usually one to sleep in, but pollen wasn’t the only thing blurring my vision that morning. The evening before had…
The straps of the Osprey backpack weigh on my shoulders with our new hammer, one of its sides a sharp hatchet, hooked onto the side strap. I don’t mind the weight. My eyes graze the ground. I’m searching. There are hundreds in front of me, but I’m looking for something more. Something special. I realized Easter was on Sunday. Miles from my childhood home (Hawaii) and nephews (also in Hawaii), I…
The wind roared as cars raced past, their speed accelerating to our right. To our left, the bay shimmered, deep blues melting into emeralds while white peaks formed as waves crashed onto rocks. Kirby beach peeked out from behind Hawk Hill, a dun-colored half-moon, barely visible yet beckoning. It was hard to imagine anything more beautiful, and for a moment, I thought myself brave enough to slow…
What to know about hiking the Dipsea Trail from Muir Woods Trailhead Parking: If you start at Muir Woods National Monument (like we did), you’ll need to reserve a parking spot. Make the reservation at least a few days in advance on the Muir Woods website Parking is $10 per vehicle The trailhead is located outside of the park, so you don’t need to have a park pass or pay an entrance fee (though I…
Salt clung to my skin, almost starting to itch. I moved across the padded seat so that my toasted shoulders were hidden under the sunshade set up over the ship’s helm. Looking out across the eye-watering cerulean of the Mediterranean Sea, my gaze rested on sun-bleached rocks that rose from the water like a giant’s fists. A group of three boys practiced flips off the side of these rocks, while a…
The yowling call of my cousin’s Bengal cat was enough to stir me from beneath the fuzzy blanket that I cozied up under on her sectional sofa. I blinked my eyes a few times before sitting up to stare out through the windows at the birch trees. Their white skin and eerie black eyes staring back at me. I love birch trees, but the black knots always make me feel like they’re watching me. Swallows…
I tested my left knee with my hand, pressing into it with my fingers to make sure no pain erupted from the side. At around mile 8 of Saturday’s half marathon it had started to ache, and I didn’t want to injure myself by not listening to my body. At the same time, I was eager to make the most of my last full day in Jackson, Wyoming, and also wanted to flush out my legs after the long run the…
To our left, the mountains rose up like faces, watching as we waited in line for the port-o-potties. It was 6:15am and the race was starting at 6:30am. The sun had already raised its arms above its head in a giant stretch as the earth awakened, and we were excited to run through the bucolic landscapes of Wyoming. The only problem? I, of course, had to poo first… The two port-o-potties were set up…
Since reading Terry Galvin’s “The Last Great Sea,” I’ve been fascinated by the idea that all legends and myths are routed in some truth. They offer us a way to learn about our world, though this can often get lost over time. In “The Last Great Sea,” Gilvan shares one of the myths of the Git x san people. They say a great bear spirit came “crashing down out of high country.” When geologists look…
“What is a meadow?” She asked, the hiking boots I bought her walking down the path past wildflowers, “why don’t trees grow here?” It was a question I’d never thought to ask, but now that it was out there, floating in the air fresh and delicious to sip as we moved, I had to know.
With my Cotopaxi backpack strapped tight to my back and my hiking boots on my feet, I made my way to the Zipcar I’d booked for the weekend to embark on a family trip to Mount Shasta. Travel Tip: When planning a trip to Mount Shasta (or Tahoe or anywhere) from San Francisco, avoid Friday afternoons. Opt for sunrise on Saturday morning (this worked great for the wakeboarding trip on Lake Shasta I…
The fog was heavy in San Francisco, blocking the sun and layering over the streets in cold waves. It was Saturday, and the second day of the Outside Lands Music Festival, and I wanted to get out of the city. Two of my friends had agreed to my plan of heading to Santa Cruz early in the morning for a quick day trip (I had to get back to the city before dinner). I caught the N to their apartment in…
A small golden brown bird runs quickly across the dirt in front of me, racing toward grass on stick legs. I am five years old and have no interest in birds. I want to pretend to be a unicorn on the playground, but I like the look of this one. His small stature, wide brown eyes, and spottled feathers make him look friendly as he shifts on those chopstick legs and bolts into the sky after pecking…
Even with the hot desert sun pressing its radiating heat against my face and my backpack stuck against my back with a sheen of sweat, I felt nothing but joy.
How can we distinguish between that which is given by the earth and that which is not? When does taking become outright theft? I think my elders would counsel there is no one path, that each of us must find our own way. In my wandering with this question, I’ve found dead ends and clear openings. Discerning all that it might mean is like bush-whacking through dense undergrowth. Sometimes I get…
The woman stood in the dark cover of the room. A green animal draped itself over her shoulders, winding from her chest up over her shoulder and down her back. Dum, dum, dum! Okay, so the animal was a stuffed toy and the woman was standing in a dark corner because that’s where the real creature (an electric eel) swam in its tank. I was downstairs inside the California Academy of Sciences museum…
On my 35th birthday, I led a group of friends down the wide path to Tennessee Beach Cove in Marin. It’s one of my favorite easy hikes in the Bay Area . At the end of the hike, you arrive at a beach cove where a sandy shoreline stretches between two swaths of cliffs. Stepping onto the taupe-colored sand, crossing a stream of water that had flowed up onto the shore, I couldn’t help but stare up at…
My cousin disappeared into her garage to pack up her inflatable stand-up paddle board, the paddles, and an emergency safety kit which included a fire starter and a safety blanket. When she told me she was packing this emergency kit, my initial response was that I, too, was packing for emergencies. I pulled out a protein bar from my pocket. Needless to say, my provisions were far less useful than…
I was somewhat desperate for it, that casual walk in nature. I’d been feeling untethered as of late, all the parts of me pulling apart while I tried, with lost fingers, to pull them back together again into a new form; one that felt more like who I was than who I had been.
A shaggy looking Saint Bernard trotted over to us. The lower half of his body was caked in mud, his face an expression of that classic Saint Bernard droop which turned hopeful as he neared us, leaning against our legs for cuddles. A few paces away, rows of horses in varying shades of browns, golds, speckles, and palamino, swatted flies with their tales and stomped their hooves.