Memorial Day

After the Rain Comes Summer

Finally.

Not only has the rain ended, the temperatures are going up to their normal late spring/early summer levels.

Just in time for the official start of America's unofficial summer season.

I don't know about you, but I'm expecting a brilliant summer here on the West Coast.

Have a great Memorial weekend. And happy summer!

Give Us a Break

Arthur Frommer has found himself responding to critics on own blog about his ideas on social tourism, or the idea that everyone, even the poor, has the right to a vacation.

As is so often the case, I'm totally with Arthur on this one.

For that matter, I'm totally with the United Nations who proclaimed in 1948:

Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitations of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

Vacations, holidays, getaways, breaks, whatever you want to call them, are absolutely necessary to all of us.

We need time to see nature, to experience other cultures, to explore, or just to spend with our families playing cards and walking along the beach. We need time to see ourselves and others in a different light if we're to retain any perspective at all in our own lives.

We innkeepers know that better than anyone.

So what's the gripe? Beats me.

We Americans are a generous lot when we want to be. Why not want for others what we want for ourselves?

I'm sure there's an explanation for that. But right now, I've got cookies to bake for neighbors and friends.

Luxuriating

One last bout of winter rain.

You know what that means. Yep, it's another extravaganza day. This time, cookies.

Thank you happy California cows for the delicious butter.

Who do we thank for the chocolate?

Rainbows Expected

Not exactly a sunny day today.

More like a rainbow day. Some sun, some rain.

Just checking but this is May isn't it?

The weather seems to think it's still March.

Love These

Great little hanging planters from the folks at Flowerbox. They come in ceramic, aluminum, or cardboard in assorted colors.

Small planter with a big impact.

Perfect for a guest room or hallway.

H/T Living Walls and Vertical Gardens

Surely

The weather will change back to California weather soon.

Meanwhile, we've taken to singing out the window "rain, rain, go away" which, so far, does not seem to be working.

Relax

Having a relaxing weekend at home for the first time in a really long time.

It sure is nice.

Hope wherever you are, there's a bit of relaxation on the agenda.

Ommmmmmmmmm.

Closed

I hate to be a party pooper. Really I do.

But shouldn't all of the gulf beaches be closed until the water and air can definitively be determined to be safe?

Just sayin'.

Sure, it's hard to admit that your entire tourist season is over before it even starts.

But here's the thing. It is.

How to Create a Wave

This is how it's done.

1. Involve everyone.

2. Get widespread support for a focused plan of action.

3. Get the word out.

4. Catch the wave when it rolls in.

5. Get everyone together again and plan the next wave.



H/T Arthur Frommer

After the Rain

We're back in Sonoma County where the sun is out in full force. The grapes and apples are all happy about that. We all are.

But the misty memory of the rain on Mt Tam earlier in the week is still close enough to keep us mindful of our changing climate.

Like they say, after the rain, comes sun. And after the sun, comes rain again.

If it's just a misty topping, that's okay with me.

The grapes? I think they've had enough rain this year, thankyouverymuch.

Density of Life

One of the joys of innkeeping is the great privilege of living smack-dab in the middle of some of the most glorious places on the planet.

Where there is natural beauty, tourists will surely follow.

Of course, there are many days when we barely have time to look up from all the work to enjoy it. But those moments when we do? Ahhhh.

Of all of the magical landscapes in all of the places I've lived, none has more impressed me than the marsh.

The marsh is so dense with life you can almost feel its rhythmic heartbeat even in its most quiet moments. There is always something moving, something living, something being swallowed whole in a marsh.

It is, you discover each day in living at a marsh's edge, a myriad of wonders. It is the cleanser of toxins that wash down the streams. It is the protector of the land from storms.

It is the foodchain in its most rich diversity.

It is the liver of the planet earth.

The loss of one marsh is a loss for all of us. The loss of an entire region of marshes?

Well, that's just too much death for any of us to even begin to contemplate.

Nature's Temple

From my perch here in the redwoods, it's hard to complain about the late-season rain.

There's a mist that rises from the treetops and blocks my otherwise brilliant view of Mt Tam.

The best part is knowing the mist will lift and the Sleeping Maiden will be there, looking after us all.

Meanwhile, time to start a fire. And make some hot chocolate.

All things considered, the rain's not so bad. Any excuse for chocolate can't be bad.

Say What?

Yep, there's more rain on the horizon for the West Coast.

This rainy season just won't end.

The good news? More green than I've ever seen this late in spring.

This handsome Steller's Jay certainly isn't complaining.

Yet.

Gas Cards?

Seriously? Gas cards are the plan to get tourists to go to the Gulf and what, hope to catch a tarball as it rolls ashore?

Talk about a poorly thought-out campaign.

How Much Does A Boycott Cost?

How about 90 million buckaroos?

And that's just Phoenix.

Hold the Vapors

Please.

Sunny California

After 2 days of rain, the sun's finally come back out.

We've had the longest running rainy season ever this year.

But each little bout of rain just makes us appreciate the sunshine all that much more.

And the flowers are just loving it all around. Rain, sunshine, rain, sunshine. What's not to love?

Month of the Fox

Saw this beauty here in Sonoma County, out next to our compost bin one evening. She went right in, got what she wanted to eat, and left.

Next day, she was back.



Amazingly, we're seeing foxes in our own backyard just about everywhere this May.

This lovely fox was walking along the fence in our backyard in Marin.



Maybe it's the crazy May weather with the rains that just won't end.

Or maybe it's just the month of the fox. Whatever it is, now we're expecting to see them everywhere.

And maybe that's it.

It's A Matter of Trust

It really does work.

Talk to your hairstylist. Tell them to send their hair to Matter of Trust out here in San Fran. They'll take it from there.

The clock is ticking even as the spill is growing. Every single one of us can help in some way.

This is really a time when none of us can afford to be complacent.

There's simply too much at stake for all of us.

Spreading Out

Still hoping against hope that they'll all just fly away.

But where would they go? It's spreading everywhere.

They're Counting On Us

To clean up our own mess.

They're going to be heartbreakingly disappointed.

We all are.

Gulf Coast Blues

With so much at risk, it's difficult to understand why profits could ever matter more than life itself.

Except that some folks will easily buy the hype that oil company profits can be spread around easily and that the risk is small.

The risk is enormous. The consequences just too damaging to be considered reasonable.

And now watching it all unfold we find that reality is too compelling to ignore, too ugly to watch.

I would personally like to see a ban on offshoring drilling within 200 miles of any tourist destination.

And even that's a little too close for comfort for me.

How can you help? Give to Global Green. They're right there, they'll be working to save birds as well as assist families whose livelihoods will have been lost for a generation.

Be as generous as you can.