flickr pix & some updates

loaded some new pix up on Flickr - 1/2 were taken on a roadtrip I took with friends along the Big Sur coast Sunday which was a beautiful funny sunny day that left me with almost no voice at all from singing, rapping and generally yelling random crazy things at the top of my lungs for the heck of it and a stomach that ached from laughing so hard - the other half are random "U" shots I have taken here and there over the past few months. Most of the posted Big Sur pix are actually the handy work of a friend - who has a great photog eye, and who initially tried to help me up the gravelly hill to get the shots myself, but upon realizing it was me, who has been "miss graceful" this year, we just decided that he should take my camera and take them, good thing too, they are lovely and it is nice to have a different perspective.

I have been working a lot, trying to establish myself at the new job, there is just so much to learn and perhaps in my quest to insure diligence and attention, I have been a little too focused. I thought I would have all this extra time, and in some ways I do (catching up on laundry during the day, etc) but in some ways there is even less time. For example, I can't remember the last time I was able to log into and actually chat on IM, since my new job has an internal one they have us use and I don't really have personal chats with them, just business. I have also been doing a fair amount of side work and just trying to catch up on loose ends as possible, so hopefully I will find the right balance sooner than later. But it is still just WAY less stressful than the last place.

In the free time I have been able to create, it has been an incredible summer, full of so many fun random adventures that I often forgot to take pictures and sometimes didn't even know and/or remember to bring my camera, so there just haven't been that many pictures this year. We had a beach bonfire at least once almost every weekend this summer (excluding road trips to the bay area for work and family gatherings) I golfed a lot, spent a lot of time walking the beach and in the water surfing and boogie boarding, caught up with old friends from home, made treasured new ones unexpectedly, made peace with difficult things from the past and myself, learned so much, created a ton of artwork, attended many tasty BBQ's, just hung out, entertained many "framily" visitors and general tourists, tasted and consumed so much great wine my mouth might be permanently stained purple - essentially, whenever possible I have been outside and truly living my life. It feels full, rich, happy and I don't have the words to convey my gratitude.

As much as I am a sun girl and love the summer, I can just start to feel the stirrings of fall in the air and am looking forward to it, both because it is a beautiful time of year and because the tourists will finally go back to where they came from and give us our town back. But also because fall is the best time of year here for sunsets (and thus sunset pictures) they are gorgeous and set right into the ocean.

And, if I get the new house I just applied to rent, I will have an (only slightly obstructed) ocean view from the deck and will be only a short block to the pier, beach and heart of town. This would be epic for so many reasons...taking pictures, walking to town, (walking home if consuming adult beverages) a better set up for working from home, a kitchen I can actually cook in...so much goodness! I do love the little hobbit house on the creek, but honestly less so now that I am in it 10 hours a day working and have been in it for over 2 years. plus, I have already done the creek living, the mountain living, I can live that way and there are things about it that appeal to me, but I am kind of over it at the moment, I want electricity and plumming that work right regularly, I want a kitchen that allows me to create delicious meals, I want less spiders, less wild vegetation taking over my yard, less icky things that live in my laundry shed that i don't want to think about too much...ya know!?

I'll keep you posted =)