Die Trying

To change the world,
Start with one step.
However small,
The first step is hardest of all.

Once you get your gate,
You’ll be walkin tall.
You said you never did,
Cause you might die trying,
Cause you might die trying.
Cause you—

If you close your eyes,
Cause the house is on fire.
And think you couldn’t move,
Until the fire dies.
The things you never did,
Oh, cause you might die trying,
Cause you might die trying.
You’d be as good as dead,
Cause you might die trying,
Cause you might die trying.

If you give, you, you begin to live.
If you give, you begin to live.
You begin, you get the world.
If you give, you begin to give
You get the world, you get the world.
If you give, you begin to live.

You might die trying.
Oh, you might die trying.
Yeah, you might die trying.

The things you never did,
Cause you might die trying;
You’d be as good as dead.
You never did.

Dave Mathews

The Californian

While in San Diego this weekend, touring the Midway Aircraft Carrier, this beauty floated by. The Californian is the official Tall Ship of the State of California. Designed for speed, Californian has nine sails, carries 7,000 square feet of canvas and is armed with four six-pound deck guns. The ship hosts students from all over the Southwest in overnight Living History programs. Californian was built from the ground up in 1984 at Spanish Landing in San Diego Bay and launched (with great fanfare) for the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles. I can only add… the Pirate in me was very excited to see her.

Having Class

I’m taking classes to be certified in Herbalogy (study of herbs) for my own personal use (and any Family, Friend or sickie not afraid of my up and coming arsenal of plant medicine). Yes, soon you may even call me a “witch” without having to be stitched up. It’s held at a nearby Homeopathic School, where at times, I feel like a Republican at a Hippie convention. The people are all very enthusiastic, young, beautiful and friendly. I’m the quiet, mysterious, older women writing down every word  the instructor says…I swear. I type my notes later and I’m lucky if I can read them. I’m still trying to figure out what zapsmere means.

Tonight, I almost swallowed my tongue trying not to laugh at the notice on the board and the Instructor’s mention of the “found belly ring”. The article itself was then taped to the note for the owner to claim. I waited half afraid and half anticipation for whoever lost it to reclaim it… knowing full well my snorting would disgrace me. They don’t tell you learning can be so entertaining but I think that’s why they make you pay. I don’t want to think about how it got lost…or found.

At one point, a young woman came in late with her dog. Just when I thought it must be stuffed because it just laid there on her lap in a coma, I overheard the dog was “in training”…for what, I never did find out. I did watch people try to pet the poor dear and she had to keep repeating “in training”. It was the cutest dang thing I ever saw…well except for that sock monkey commercial.

Tonight after passing a boatload of vodka around the room (medicinal use people) we made our first “tincture” (which I had to look up the previous week). Everyone else was up on them and the proper pronunciation. I realized it was the stuff in my health food store with the eye dropper. Another mystery over. Now if I could just learn to make marshmallows…

I’m totally looking forward to the field-trip coming up. I believe it’s illegal to “harvest” wild plants in a National or State Park. I’m definitely bringing my camera for when the authorities come to get us. After a few journalist worthy shots I’m gonna run like Hell.

Pink Abandon

The Bolsa Chica

I’m fortunate enough to live behind a natural wetlands (The Talbert Marsh)…but they don’t let you walk on it. It’s a total “Look but don’t touch” and I get that. If I drive up the coast just a couple of miles to the Bolsa Chica, they have areas where you’ll find mass bird watchers flocking the banks and the walking trails with binocks and tripods. I do know a bird from a squirrel but I’m definitely aviary challenged. Even so… it’s a beautiful place (whatever you know) and really cool to watch the birds dive-bomb the fish and skim water.

OMG

While I was working on some photos, I happened to turn the Tele on for background noise. I swear I’m never more dumbfounded by what passes for entertainment. Tonight I actually stopped to say OMG!!! It was some game show (I think Family Feud?) and while color correcting… I was mindlessly answering the questions under my breath. I heard one question called out “name one food that you should eat at least 5 servings a day but may not like“. I SWEAR someone said CHEESE!!!!  I looked up at the screen horrified thinking surely the American  public would know about grains, greens, fruits and such. Both sides got it wrong and both sides were obesely overweight. The next question was to name a rock band from the 60’s. I swear to GOD someone said “Kiss”…then someone said “Aerosmith”…and it took 2 more wrongs before someone even mentioned the Beatles for GOD sake. I had totally given up on any hope of the Stones. I turned the Tele back off when I heard “Sonny and Cher“….

Am I still on Earth? Did cheese become a necessary food staple?…if so…let me know when Haagen-Dazs chocolate ice cream becomes mandatory for great digestion…