Noe Valley: Rin’s Thai Restaurant

San Francisco, CA – Noe Valley’s 24^th Street is a sweet spot in the city with charm to spare—Victorian row houses, flower shops, antique stores and an overlooked Thai restaurant: Rin’s.  This Zen themed eatery is a sanctuary of grace and relaxation tucked away at the corner of 24^th and Douglass.  Low-lighting, soft terra cotta-colored walls, and photographs of Buddhist monks add to the serenity of this fairly priced restaurant. 

Kim, my friend from Humboldt State and I marveled at the diversity of their hand-picked wine selection—she chose a 2008 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, and I stayed true to California, selecting a 2007 Taz Pinot Noir from Santa Barbara which was soft and silky with a floral undertone and a red-fruit finish. 

            “Tonight I want it to be about you,” Kim said to me, “you’ve been through a lot and I want to listen.”  She was right.  My mom suffered a stroke in early September and I’d been away from Basecamp for over five weeks.  Still, I was grateful for the gift of a true friend, and a flavorful meal in a lemon-grass, ginger-scented restaurant with low-key jazz playing in the background.

            Over a green papaya salad with egg, grilled pork, mint and peanuts I told her about hiring two caregivers to support my mom around the clock.  Soothing my frazzled nerves was an aromatic dose of chicken soup and mushrooms in coconut broth.  A healthy serving of chicken satay with cucumber salad, peanut sauce and brown rice strengthened my resolve to continue caring for an aging parent. 

            The evening ended too quickly, but the memory of a loving friend and a gentle meal at Rin’s remained in my heart. 

Newport Beach: A U-Turn To Re-Turn

Newport Beach, CA – Sometimes on the road of life there are U-Turns, a chance to return on the same path where we came from.  For me that place is at the end of 32^nd Street in Newport Beach at the Pacific Ocean.  This U-Turn began more than a week ago when I received the dreaded phone call that my mom suffered a stroke.  I left Basecamp near San Francisco and went straight to Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach to visit my mom.  Luckily, since my brother was with her at the time of the stroke, she came through with minimal injuries—mostly spaghetti legs and left-side weakness.  Still, we’ll have to step up her care to round-the-clock vigilance for the next month.  Now I am eye-ball deep in strategic planning for her estate, retrofitting her home to accommodate a wheelchair and walker, and interviewing full-time caregivers.  One Southern California evening when it had been a 100-degree day I gave in to the endless task of caring for an aging parent and gifted myself with a beach trip to watch the sunset.  I went back to my childhood place—32^nd Street, and stood knee-deep in the warm ocean water and melted into the watercolor painting that was my life.  As the sun drifted down on the water, my spirits began to soar and take flight like the seagulls on the horizon.  Suddenly, there it was—the gift of grace, the U-Turn, the sunset on the water enveloped in air so light and warm that if I was a feather, I would have floated on the breeze to Catalina Island which on this day I could see the outline with clarity.  I began to twirl and dance in the water, on the sand, with immense gratitude at the gift of life without regard to how it presents itself—in sickness and in health.  There is only one time and it is now.  Carpe diem—seize the day.

Two Years Later: Every Step of the Journey is Still the Journey

The things I carried with me on a
one-year journey of California.

Basecamp, CA – Two years ago I packed up six suitcases, put them into my car and launched on a one-year pilgrimage across California.  I lived in one California city per month for a year.  My desire was to discover the meaning of my life—the overarching goal was to write a book about this experience. 

            On the journey, I learned so many lessons—the most important was to release attachment to outcome.   Allow things to be what they are, rather than what I think they should be.  All suffering comes from holding on to a certain way of being in the world.  This holding on creates a rigidity that can often break a person in half.  There are many broken people in the world.

            After the journey—which was one long daytrip, is when I learned more about the meaning of my life, which is to help others through their process of transformation.  Visit my new website and you’ll see that I am now a “personal project manager” – helping make my client’s dreams come true. 

            Now, about that book…I’m happy to report that the first draft of the manuscript is complete.  Since I embody the lesson learned about releasing attachment to outcome, it has been made very clear to me that the book will not be just about the one-year pilgrimage through California, but rather about my own process of transformation from ages 48 – 52.  I release attachment to what I once thought the book should be, and accept what it will reveal itself to be. 

            This gentle release creates a sense of well-being because it’s based on faith and trust that all is as it should be.  We are all on a journey and I believe if we treat this journey as one-long daytrip, we would discover that it can be joyful.  Further, if we release attachment to outcome and allow it to be what it is, we would once again be made whole.

Tahoe City: the first place I lived on

the journey.  Everything was bright, shiny

and new...so grateful.

            Here’s to wherever you are on your journey, may it be divine.

In A Daze at Pinot Days

Pinot Days in San Francisco

San Francisco, CA – When it comes to drinking I have the heart of an alcoholic, but sadly not the stomach for it—after two drinks, I’m quickly done-in.  Luckily, wine is meant for sipping and Pinot, the delightful thin-skinned grape is one to savor, so my heart and stomach were in communion for Pinot Days, a wine festival held at Fort Mason on June 16.   

This event calls itself the largest gathering of Pinot Noir producers in the world and I believe it—the place was packed.  My college roommate from 30 years ago invited me to go with her and our goal was to find the best wine of the event, a huge challenge considering there were over 140 exhibitors there.  Still, we were up to the task and here’s our unscientific strategy.  First: we only tasted California wines; second: we isolated two geographic areas including the Central Coast and the Napa Valley; and third: we asked random people, mostly cute single guys, whom they recommended. 

Next, we conjured a strategy.  One of us would sit at a table and take notes, while the other would go to a booth and ask the winemaker to “pour me the best stuff you have—you’re in a contest to win winemaker of Pinot Days.”  We’d taste the wine at the table and use the Robert Parker 100 point rating system. 

Bob Wait, Grand Prize Winner

Luckily for our grand prize winner, I immediately violated our unscientific strategy and asked a big, burly, bearded guy who had a camera around his neck and a spiral notepad in his hand what his favorite wine was and he told me to try Wait Cellars and he was right. Owner and winemaker Bob Wait’s 2009 Green Valley Pinot Noir is made from 100 percent hand-picked and hand-sorted fruit from the Russian River Valley in Sonoma County.  Plus, he melted our heart by pouring his prize-winning wine from his grandmother’s decanter. At $36 a bottle, it’s a steal.  We gave him 99 points. 

Kevin Deschamp (l) and winemaker
Gary Brookman (r) First Place Winner

Our first place winner was Miner Family Winery, the very first wine that my roommate tried at the event, even before we devised our scheme to run the unofficial event contest.  I was busy eating French bread and Kerrygold white cheddar cheese at the time—starving as usual.  Winemaker Gary Brookman’s 2010 Rosella’s 777 is made from grapes grown along the southwest facing slopes of the Santa Lucia Mountain Range on the Central Coast.  At $75 a bottle, it’s an investment that will last until 2018—if you can wait that long!  We gave him 97 points.   

Honorable mention goes to Manzoni EstateVineyard, mostly because my roommate is good friends with the owner, Mark Manzoni.  But we do recommend their 2010 Manzoni Home Vineyard Pinot Noir.  

At the conclusion of the event, both of us had a good buzz going, but we were ready to pay the piper.  We went to the volunteer booth, put on our day-glo orange vests, and began our jobs as closing logistic technicians.  This was the price to pay for a free entrance to the event—picking up used wine glasses, breaking down tables and collecting garbage.  Still, we had a blast and look forward to doing it again next year. Cheers.

California Legend: David Brower

Berkeley, CA – One of the best parts about living in the East Bay is the access to the intellectual capitol of California—Berkeley. It’s always such a treat to be among the mature radicals of the 60s, men and women who once held the lantern lighting the way into our future.  One of these pioneers was the late David Brower, father of the environmental movement.  His son Ken Brower has penned a new book The Wildness Within:Remembering David Brower—written about his legendary father.  I was on-hand and at the edge of my seat listening to my favorite publisher Malcolm Margolin pepper Ken Brower with questions about the book.

            My favorite story was about the dam at Glen Canyon along the Colorado River, the one that broke the heart of David Brower, who on behalf of the Sierra Club fought a protracted battle against the Bureau of Reclamation and in the end lost.  Its reservoir is called Lake Powell or Lake “Foul” as Ken called it and is the second largest artificial lake in the country. The dam, finished in 1966 inundated a natural cathedral of gorges, sheer-cliff sculptured walls of Navajo sandstone that once radiated warm earth tones of tangerine reflecting a rosy golden light. 

            In 2005, five years after the death of his father, Ken finally had the courage to visit Glen Canyon bringing along his own beloved son.  As Ken tells it, he was dismayed at the destruction of the dam especially since the water level was so low and the tell-tale bathtub ring veiled the once exquisite integrity of the canyon walls.  I’m sure there was a lot of head-shaking going on as Ken reflected on the lost beauty of this once magnificent canyon.  His son piped up and told his dad, “It’s still beautiful to me,” affirming that while things get taken away from us, every generation still finds beauty.

Much to my surprise, Ken’s son was in the audience along with his own child who appeared less than a year old, a baby still.  What began as sweet cooing soon turned to fussing and then frustrating squawks.   The audience was patient.   Eventually the baby was escorted out of the venue by a considerate mother.  It dawned on me that this was the great grandchild of David Brower, who this year would have been 100-years-old.   That his generational legacy would continue to have a impact because in our midst was a future environmentalist who had his great-grandfather's gift of making a lot of noise and getting attention, just what the movement needs in an ever-changing world. 

On the cusp of Father's Day, I honor the late, great David Brower and the loving tribute of his son Ken.  Thanks to you both for making the world a better place. 

Earth Angels Alive at Earth House

Oakland, CA -- Hope abounds for healthy, just, and sustainable communities through education—the mission of Earth House, spearheaded by Harvard grad Dr. Margaret Paloma Pavel and resident Zeus Carl Anthony.  My friend Steve Blackwell who just received his Master’s degree from Holy Names University invited me to a celebration of his internship completion at Earth House.  I was delighted to be part of this special event heavy on ceremony and accolades including a certificate of completion and a medal with a green and white ribbon.  This reverence for the whole person—both private and public renewed my faith in building a healthy community, one person at a time.  Congratulations Steve, you’re officially an Earth House Earth Angel. 

Mill Valley Fundraiser: The Fourth Messenger

Mill Valley, CA -- What if the Buddha were a woman and she was alive today? How would the world view her life and teachings differently? The Fourth Messenger is a new musical that asks these questions.  Playwright Tanya Shaffer held a fundraiser to promote her upcoming production on a spring afternoon at Hillside Gardens, a sweet spot in über-hip Mill Valley.  I joined about 80 people, most of whom were wearing wide-brim hats for this joyful outdoor event celebrating music, great food catered by Savory Thymes and the life of Buddha—who was both enlightened and flawed.  Tanya’s a pillar of dedication—she’s been working on this production for almost 13 years.  When I asked what kept her inspired she said, “It’s like raising your children, you don’t have a choice.”   Awe shucks Tanya, we all have a choice...right?   Still, I salute your unwavering dedication to following your dream.  We are the lucky ones.  Namaste.