Life's a Beach

I had the opportunity to spend several quality days with my dear friend Boni who has a place in Avila Beach which is on the central coast of California and about a four hour drive from my house in Long Beach.  Although Boni is considerably younger than I am, we have so much in common and have been friends for years.  We met through our husband/partners, both pilots who hangered their planes at the Bakersfield airport.  Over the last 20 years, we have taken many flying trips together including several to San Ignacio Lagoon in Baja, Mexico to see the grey whales up close and even touch and kiss them (see pics at the bottom). Boni and I have developed a close and enduring friendship, she is a real gem.

What can be better than a girl's get together experiencing all of the senses.  We started our day with either mat pilates or yoga and then road e-bikes to hiking trails and paths over looking the ocean, soaked nude in a hot tub, had a fantastic facial, went wine tasting, to galleries and shops, played trivia at the local bar (the MC was amazed that I knew of the bar in Homer, Alaska that has dollar bills hanging from the ceiling), had some outrageous cocktails and meals, talked our heads off, sang and danced and enjoyed our time together even some quiet time reading out on the deck.

And of course we both wore some of my felted wares.

The bubble cocktail at the Oyster Loft in Pismo Beach was amazing.  Only sorry I didn't get a photo of the smoke emitting from it once the bubble bursted.

I reminisce of the days when we flew to Mexico for whale watching at San Ignacio Lagoon.  So glad I had the opportunity to do this countless times.

So many social media platforms have become mainstream since I started blogging in 2012.  For me, it's been a lot easier to post my felted creations on Instagram and Facebook than to keep up this old blog.  Nonetheless I wanted to update you on what I've been up to which is pretty much same ol', same ol' - mah jongg, book club, travel, being a foodie and a drinky (is that word), bike riding, pilates, yoga, walking, playing with my dogs which means 18 year old Olivier and my new darling puppy Darwin and if goes without saying, lots and lots of felting.  My poor boy Kiza, my gorgeous Weimaraner, had an inoperable huge tumor and I had to put him down.  I loved him so much and will always remember his beauty and the heavenly smell of his ears which I hope I can experience again in my lifetime.

Last year I got into drinking Bourbon and have become quite the mixologist creating and trying to modernize an Old Fashioned.  I have been adding different spirts to the Bourbon, like coffee amaro and mandarin Napolian liquor as well as special bitters like mole and habanero. And of course, I use the best cherries possible like Luxardo from Italy.

Here are some recent pics of some of my felted creations including caps for men as modeled by my partner Joe as well as my brother Alan and Joe's nephew Ben.  Ben's wife Cassidy is modeling a scarf and my SIL is wearing a beautiful shawl.  I am donning all of the other pieces.