Adventures

There are moments you just know things.  Like when you know something is right or when something is wrong.  There are moments you see things clearly and it all makes sense and you don't have to fight the blur of distraction of life. There are moments when you can see a bigger picture, unhindered by the tunnel-vision of the task-driven day-to-day routine.  There are moments, when the clouds break, you stop and see things, realize things and bask in a simple reality, even if ever so briefly. Today as the sun broke through several days of rain and gloom to shine some light on the beauty being born beneath the darkness of the clouds, today became a day of clarity, of stepping back and seeing a bigger picture, of seeing the beauty and renewal of the heavy rains and dark clouds.  And it was a beautiful and calmly serene day.  The hills are brilliantly emerald green, dotted with little orange poppies and yellow mustard flowers.  The trees are blooming their flow...

Two Thousand Eleven?!  Oh my! My brother always says the key to a good blog is to have something to write about.  Yep, I would say that's true.  I have no big stories to tell.  January and 2011 has held work, a day trip to Sonoma, some time in the City (San Fran) and a head cold, like the rest of the Bay Area.  This last week, however, included the exploration of the town of Sonoma and Sonoma Valley.  Sonoma is where the Bear Flag Revolt occurred and Californians declared independence from Mexico in 1846.  California was even it's own republic for less than a month before it was annexed to the States!  But, Sonoma has much to offer the history buff, with preserved hotels during the mining days, old barracks, the last Spanish Mission built, and General Vallejo's home, who was a very prominent and prestigious figure in Sonoma after the revolt.  If you ever come to Northern California and are looking for a nice day of learning about the histo...