04.05.11
Posted in travel at 10:37 pm by heidihoho7
After so many days of flowers, both Barb and I decided to take the morning off on our last day to catch up on things before heading off in different directions. So Barb caught up on email while i finished editing and posting the blog up to that point. It was a nice last morning together…
We finally packed up an started our way back to LA, nothing grabbed our attention from the road so we made it in good time. We were gabbing so much on the way that we totally missed our exit, BUT as things turn out that worked out better for us. After a quick iPhone confirmation we determined we were even closer to her son’s new house and we’d wanted to do a driveby anyways… couldn’t have planned it much better 
So after checking out his cute new home we grabbed a nice little lunch near her son’s current house then continued on so i could meet the whole fam.
They all seemed so sweet, friendly, and a little bit nutty – just like Barb haha! I had a lovely time visiting and getting to know them all a bit better. Barb’s grandson was so full of energy and wit, reminding me a little of tom cruise when he jumped on the couch hehe… her granddaughter was a bit more shy but adorable and on the move as well… that family has their hands full
I knew i needed to get on the road to attempt to miss traffic, so i got on my way even though i probably could have just hung out most of the afternoon… I was glad i left when i did as i did hit some traffic, but nothing too overwhelming on my way to San Clemente to visit my boss Holly (and now friend) and her son. Her other son unfortunately had just gotten sick and was spending some time at the grandparents.
I arrived to her cute house that resides just a few blocks from the beach and got to meet her sister who doubles as the nanny/tutor for her little ones… just as nice as Holly
Just as i was getting my new credit card (yay!) her son comes in… a bit shy, but curious to see who was there… I was a little surprised as i thought he’d be in “face down” time (he recently incurred an eye injury, coupled with being sick which re-injured the eye a bit, means no running and attempting to let the eye heal which means – you guessed it lying face down a majority of the time). I remembered he does get breaks, thankfully, i can’t imagine trying to keep a 5-6 yr old face down 24/7, what a feat!
We decided to join him in FD time and headed back to his massage table to hang out… he watched some wiley coyote while Holly and I caught up a bit… eventually we decided to play some games and boy can that kid whoop my butt in mario cart! On the flip side i found out they had just gotten World of Goo and i got to flip the tables a bit and show him a few things about that game… but i’m sure in a few weeks he’ll have figured that out too 
It was getting close to dinner time so we decided to give M a longer break to grab some pizza and check out SC’s beachfront real quickly. We timed it perfectly for sunset… M wanted to show me the mariner’s memorial, but really i think he wanted to show me his ” Sour Flower” I’m not sure how they found it, but it is sour and it is yummy! After enjoying a few of those we took in the lovely sunset right on the beach, then headed off to grab some artichoke pizza, YUM!
We finished off the night with some more racing once Holly’s hubby got home, yep i lost bigtime yet again. It was getting late so I got on the road yet again. I stayed near LAX for a very short night’s sleep to catch my early morning flight.
Another great day, this time meeting such great people and wonderful little ones that are living life to its fullest despite what life is throwing at them!
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04.03.11
Posted in Road Trip, travel at 12:15 pm by heidihoho7
Sunday morning Barb and I decided to head north on the coast a bit and do something a bit touristy, so we decided to tour Hearst Castle. While this isn’t something i normally sign up for, i did like the idea as it broke up our type of photography… and the countryside is beautiful and you never know with these home tours… sometimes i find them intersting like Beauport in MA, and somtimes not (too many to mention haha).
Most of the tour we were too busy snapping photos to get most of the details, but i did really love the pools… the grecian pool is just spectacular with its view and overall layout and the roman pool’s 3m diving platform that basically floats and which also has gold all throughout the floor and thruout the room sparkled and the reflections of the works of art made it hard to imagine living in a place like this let alone designing it… such extravegance…
Many of the rooms had amazing ceilings and intricate carvings and just works of art everywhere… the sculptures were my favorite.. they were in the pool, in the gardens, and just everywhere throughout the house. We got yelled at a few times for taking too long, but were were in a big group and we weren’t the only photogs there… after the tour we decided to check out San Simeon as we’d both heard about it.. and were both very suprised to find the tiniest little town ever (for those elizabethians think woodbine but possibly smaller but with bigger homes).
After our morning of walking and touring we had built up an appetite and decided this was the right time to snag some yummy fish back in Morro Bay… i got some excellent fish, chips, and chowder while barb had some halibut… we both were extremely happy with our meal and our view out of the bay. With our tummies full we decided to say we were done for the day and decided to head home with no more stops for photos…. 4 hours later we were back in our old hotel in lancaster and it felt like home… we’re happily snuggling up for a good night’s rest and gearing up for a few more rounds of poppies. Overall it was a nice change from our past couple of days and made for a fun overnight on the coast.
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10.18.10
Posted in Climbing, travel at 8:52 pm by heidihoho7
Flew in Thursday night and right from the get go, it was clear that I should not be operating motor vehicles. Driving according to Grand Theft Auto rules, I managed to skip traffic lights, pull across traffic for a delayed three point turn, and later proceeded to hang a left from the hotel into oncoming traffic. But don’t worry. I pulled all the way around in a full circle hopping the edge of the curb. Who would have thought that Andy should be the one behind the wheel?
The first day of climbing started with a couple small hiccups as I slipped off the first pitch of the day, twice. Having just put in my second piece of pro, my foot popped, giving Andy a good reason to stay awake for the rest of the trip. Andy, having made a wonderful catch to keep me off the deck, went back to his dual duty of photographer and belayer as only he can.
Dismissing a less than inviting route description from the guidebook, Andy cast off on DungFu next and, wouldn’t you know, it turned out to one of the coolest climbs we did all weekend. As climbing company started to roll in, we moved over the Dairy Queen wall and dusted off a couple more beautiful routes to complete our first day. The weather had been toasty in the sun, but quite beautiful in the shade. We figured going forward that if we paid attention to the guide book for sun exposure, we’d be able to hit the best climbs and avoid prolonged exposure to the sun.
I was hurting from the sun on Friday afternoon, and while I lay down with a washcloth over my face trying to quell a pounding headache (which made me puke up all the water in my system all over the parking lot) Andy ran across the street to make sure we had food and beer for the next couple days. After some recovery time, it was on to the night-life of Joshua Tree which consisted of either Sizzler or Applebees. Tough choice that it was, we went with Applebees. Local talent was out in full form and we enjoyed hanging at the bar with intellectually stimulation conversation all around us.
Saturday morning we returned to the rock and Andy led the SW Corner of Headstone wall. It was a truly exposed, headstrong lead with just enough protection in tough spots to make you pucker up a bit. Right next to that climb was a little sport route with nice thin moves and thin feet that I led. There was a couple that had just gotten off the route and their draws were already hung, and they offered to leave em, and well, how could I say no to that?
We drove over to another new area for us and hopped on a route called Fote Hog. A cool two-pitch climb with really committing moves over pretty thin pro, Andy led the first pitch and let me mop up the enjoyable softer second pitch. By then the sun was really creeping over the route and we moved our way down to a series of well traveled and very popular single pitch climbs along a freestanding wall of rock that rises out of the desert as if someone put up the first wall of a stone castle and said, nah, I changed my mind.
I had originally left this part out of the first draft of the recap, but Andy was too kind to remind me that while we were walking towards the second set of climbs, I decided to pet a cactus. Actually, it looked squishy so I squeezed it. In hindsight, not such a smart idea. I had put about 100 little cactus needles into my thumb and pointer finger. These little buggers are hard to see and even harder to get out. I never claimed to be a bright man, so we’ll just move along.
Using the eyeball test, Andy picked out a fun climb called Butterfingers Make Me Horny. I joked that he was taking far too much gear for the length of the climb as he was only going to place 7 or 8 pieces, he reminded me that we’d been sewing up most of the climbs so far and he’d need more gear than one would normally place. For the record, he made the climb look ridiculously easy and placed only 6 pieces. Once I’d cleaned up his fine lead, it was my turn a bit further down the wall on a soft 5.6 called Ain’t Nothing But a J-Tree Thing. And yep, I put in six pieces as well.
Done with another fine day of climbing, we grabbed a bite to eat at a little café, checked out a small gear shop next door, and headed back to the hotel for a well deserved nap. Then, but of course, it was off to Applebees for another great night of sports watching from the bar. While Andy chatted up the locals, drank his vodka, and spewed every ounce of sports knowledge he had in him, I happily sat back and sipped my drink enjoying a headache-less evening.
We woke on Sunday at 5:30am to drive out and catch the sunrise in Joshua Tree. As expected, we were anything but disappointed. Orange, pink, and yellow hues cast over rocks painting the horizon and enveloping the desert in a glowing silhouette as we sat back practicing our amateur photographic skills. As it turns out, we weren’t the only ones waking up for the morning. As we approached the first rock of the day, we were greeted with the howls of the coyotes. For a few minutes, a choir of coyotes sang to the valley reminding us that we were on their turf. And just to hammer the wilderness point across, right at the base of our climb was a cute brown and white snake. Andy was soooo happy. I told him he should pet it as it would be softer than the cactus. Instead, he walked away and I took a photo with my feet dangling over him.
Focus quickly turned back to climbing, and we hopped on a warm up climb called Toe Jam and finished our short morning with a great 2 pitch climb called Overhang Bypass. Andy led the first pitch, about 70 feet of gulley crack giving way to an exposed bulge with some big commitment moves up and around a blind corner. Of course Andy wanted to protect the section well before pulling through, and of course, the protection is exactly where you want you best hands. But he cranked through it with no drama and I led the abbreviated second pitch that took us underneath a pumpy roof traverse to a welcomed bolt and a couple little slab moves to the top.
That’s all we had time for. Packed up and feeling quite content with ourselves, I’m writing this on our drive back to LAX. Hope you enjoyed the recap.
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