Spring Break 2023. Mary Lynn has been wanting to go to Hawai’i, had never been. 60th birthday present realized! We thought about Oahu, the big island and all that, but focused on Maui & Kauai. Our first AirBnB was at the “Shores of Maui” in Kihei. Perhaps one of the best we’ve stayed at, fully equipped, including beach chairs, snorkeling equipment, long board, stocked & styled. Pool & hot tub daily, after arduous days of tropical adventuring. First up, digs & neighboring vittles…

So close, a great restaurant, hangout, garden/nursery: Kitoko Maui. Lots of inspirations for the yard, and an interesting dining arrangement with different vendors for different courses (an in-house variation on the popular food truck court)…

ML wanted to go snorkeling, so we drove up to Honolua Bay and were not disappointed. Got a great parking spot and walked through a beautiful forest glen to a rocky cove. I was in the water for almost two hours oogling the fish and hangin’ with the turtles. Fun & beautiful, and sunburn & snorkelips. Unfortunately, did not have an underwater camera (google it)…

The next day, Sunday, we went on the “Road to Hana.” Started early, the rain – and the traffic – didn’t appear until much later in the day, so it was rather glorious. A new waterfall around every bend…

Some odd bygone hydrologic (illogic?) endeavors, interesting signage, and the occasional view up the coast. In the extra part of this batch at the end, some studies in far away and close up…

Made it to Hana, went to the decrepit wharf in the bay. Then kept going…

After Hana, you kinda round the corner of the island, and it keeps getting better. Went to one of the more appealing road side farm stands that had a lovely garden walk.

Serendipitously, I’d been reading “American Stories,” a series of interviews with famous historians about more famous people. One of them was A. Scott Berg on Charles Lindbergh. It was great, illuminating, I learned a lot – including that Lindbergh was buried at a little church near Hana on Maui! Who knew? So we went there – during the Sunday morning service – and it was great.

The next day we tried to go up to Haleakala, but didn’t have enough gas, and it was very cloudy. Took a pic and turned around. Then, ML wanted to hit a nice beach so we did. She finally got to see a turtle whilst snorkeling. More around Kihei…

I like exploring, so ML hung out while I went to Ahihi and saw the big lava flow – and you can too…

Next up: Kaua’i! Another great accommodation – a Vacasa in Kapa’a. Check it out…

Just a walk away was an ancient Hawaiian cultural site – surrounded by fancy hotels (looks like a putting green with low walls). Please read the signs. There’s more: more signage, a cute church kinda near the lighthouse, a locals-only beach, and some stunning classic Kaua’i views…

Below: kooky Kaua’i – an old chimney, a junk store, local warning signs, geckos, and other historical remnants…

ML wanted another all day beach day, so I dropped her off for a while and went to explore the south east corner of the island. The next day we explored the north side, but our late start precluded a good parking spot. Nonetheless, we checked out some cool spots – beaches, caves, and a nature preserve featuring a Chinese cemetery with Buddhist shrines.

Art at the airport, on purpose, and there to be found. Mahalo for your patience and perspicacity. Aloha…

First edition of the photo-documentation of 2023…

As y’all know, it’s been quite a winter here in California. How many atmospheric rivers? We had two trees go down in the back yard, more than a couple of power outages, many blocked roads, and it’s been pretty cold.

Worse, they keep sayin’ the drought’s not over. Can’t a problem be a solution? Anywayz, this batch starts with one day trying to get to work, and another day at work – the extreme high water mark of Pescadero Creek…

More rain incidents – washed out road, fallen trees, high water marks, and the aftermath of tree that fell on a car at Heritage Grove.

RandomVail – here we go. A bike ride at sunset from Wilder Ranch north along the coast cliff. Chard abundance from last summer. Trees in Pescadero Creek. A local cat. Charlie & I at UCSC. Ruby & Boman at Pasta Moon in HMB…

Nature explorations. OK, I’ll admit it, I explored the Cloverdale Coastal Ranches one day after school before they belonged to MROSD. But I kayaked the marsh before the cutoff date. And maybe I’m not too close to an elephant seal…?

President’s Week = Ski Week…

Here’s a picture of a picture of the Cuesta La Honda Guild – before the landslides of 1998. Lots to explore here…

Local nature: deer, coyote, turkeys, the sun…

Chess explorations at Pescadero High School…

RandomVail – here we go again. Window view from man cave #1. My newly built culvert cover. Some art (probably from the Ocean Vault in HMB). Skylawn Cemetery Buddha and view of the SF Bay. And a pic of Steve, Dan, and me in SaMo…

Finally, on March 16th I participated in a “Creative Residency” sponsored by the SMCOE VAPA coordinator. Great event, so much better than other PD, and the setting – Miramar Farms – was particularly lovely. Some pics of the place…

Thanks again for getting this far! More coming from 2023 soon…

Whether or not Dr. Seuss actually wrote it, the phrase, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened,” is something we’d quote and discuss, regarding our Dad and other aspects of our lives that had moved on, ended, but still resonated in our lives.

Thus, in the fullness of time and the inevitability of the stages of life and death, do I lament with pride and happiness the passing of our dear mother, Joanne Vail, on January 3rd 2023. She was 93, as she said, “a big number.”

Mom took a turn for the worse in 2022 following a blood transfusion for anemia. She did a second stint in the hospital and wound up in Pacific Coast Manor for a month – not good. This resulted in moving her from Independent to Assisted Living at Dominican Oaks. She went from a balcony to a nice porch, and our visits involved some wheelchair walks and bedside sitting…

Here’s a brief black & white summary of her childhood with father Frank, mother Guinevere, and brother Byrns; graduation from high school & college, marriage to Evan, and the eventual arrival of me…

Here’s our family in front of 1375 Tareyton Drive in Riverside (probably around 1970), the family home for 45 years…

Mom loved her garden…

…and our Dad.

Note: in bed at the cabin in Montana, a rare photo with Alicia (from Frances’s Mexican Restaurant), and some hilarious laughter at their 50th anniversary event in Sun Valley…

Here are some pix with Charlie & Veronica, myself & Nancy, her brother Byrns, etc…

In spite of her struggles this last summer, she aspired to “thinking happy thoughts.” Can you tell? “Be happy, go lucky!”

“I’m OK if you’re OK.” Some pleasant moments in her assisted living apartment…

Not only were we able to attend the Thanksgiving Buffet Dinner at Dominican Oaks, after two years of Covid, we were able to do it again at Christmas time.

However, while Mom put out place cards at Thanksgiving, she was not strong enough to come to dinner at Christmas. But we were able to hang out with her in bed…

Amazingly, she was able to hang on beyond Christmas until Ron E. arrived from New Zealand just after the New Year.

The end of one’s stay at Dominican Oaks comes when one’s picture is “on the piano” near the lobby (and, as it turns out, a couple other places thereabouts). Here was Mom’s picture on the piano and in the Assisted Living section…

While of course it is sad to lose one’s mother, it was wonderful to experience the event with my brother and sister, Ron E. and Nancy Anne. Special thanks to Jered for his help and support during the whole process!

We were able to spend three days together sorting through Mom’s stuff and attending to the various necessities of closing out a life – a kind, joyful, generous, and very precious one…

I’m still processing the passing of my Mom. So grateful, so blessed, so happy, yet sad, but more content, fulfilled, basking in the afterglow of her wonderful life, that led to my wonderful life, and to other wonderful lives, and other wonders…

This first collection is from the Santa Cruz Art & History Museum, with a special exhibit at the end of 2022 about farm workers. In that section, the very first photo here has a design made of beans grown at Pie Ranch on the floor below 12 sciency botanical pictures (bean plants?). Lots of other great stuff here, but don’t miss the corn cob made of human teeth! Enjoy…

This next batch is along one my favorite dirt roads above town that goes by our quarry (pictured), and these are rock images made by my fellow hikers, bikers, and neighbors in the Cuesta La Honda Guild…

Here is just a sampling of the signage made by my Art students for the “Hoop Dreams” basketball tournament (donor/sponsors). We also made four new banners for teams from new schools. We only had a couple of days, but the kids pulled it off…