counting blessings – Page 2 – The Boring Old Man

A Successful Backup Plan!

The Mrs. and I turned lemons into lemonade today when we couldn’t take our planned camping trip.

We hit Hwy 17 to Felton, CA and took a trip to Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park. Only 40 minutes away from home, yet it’s like stepping into another world. Stunning, just stunning.

The feel of the air in the Redwood Grove just feels different. You can breath better in there, I swear. You can feel it in your lungs, on your skin… It smells better. It smells like the real world in there. Pictures can do it no justice, and neither do my meager words.

We hiked around a bit, it was by no means a strenuous, adrenaline inducing hike. We walked around 2 miles through these magnificent, ancient trees and then parked it for a while on a little bench and just ABSORBED the atmosphere. Not to sound like some dirty hippie, but places like that are just transformative to me.

After our time in the woods, we continued south to Santa Cruz, our old stompin’ grounds. We had a nice lunch at Ideal Bar & Grill, right between the Boardwalk and the Santa Cruz Wharf. Don’t let the tourist trap location fool you, the food is fantastic there. Not terribly expensive, especially considering it’s right on the beach. AND you get to watch a nonstop parade of weirdos strolling by while you dine! What’s not to love?!?

After a slow, leisurely lunch, we took a stroll down the Wharf. We dipped into Marini’s to satisfy the Mrs’ sweet tooth after lunch which is always nice. This candyshop has been there since 1915 and is always fun to visit. I’ve only been going there since about 1972, but it never disappoints!

Below are some other fun sights from the Wharf…

The famous Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

Sure, it’s no campout, but it’s been a great day and it sure beat hanging around the house watching movies or some such.

So glad Spring is upon us and the outdoors are inviting once again!

Thanks for stopping by by!

A Blur of a Weekend!

First weekend after the new job and it was a lot of fun, if short!

As mentioned in my previous post, we started off the weekend Friday night in San Francisco with the #CandlelightConcerts which was a great start!

Saturday we (the Mrs., the Kids and I) made our way to Downtown Los Gatos for their annual Wine Walk, which was much nicer than last year. Primarily because it was less crowded and the missing patrons seemed to be from the douchebag and party tramp camps, so it was much more subdued and easy going, with perfect weather to boot! We finished up our walk at a nice Asian noodle place on Santa Cruz Ave. I can’t recall the name off-hand, but it was delicious and we’ll certainly be back for more!

After we and the Kids parted ways, the Mrs. and I had a “date night” and went to the foot spa for a little relaxation. After all the miles I put on my feet during the week, this was a welcome respite! Once sufficiently relaxed, we stopped off at the ice cream shop by our house and indulged is some hot fudge sundaes! It was a darn near perfect day!

Sunday morning I went and picked up my Pops and we went down to Kelly Park in San Jose for the annual VW show. My parents had the first VW I ever rode in (and would later drive) and a love for VWs is something my Pops and I have shared for decades. Between us I believe we’ve owned 7 VWs over the years, just really great cars since forever!And I’m not sure I won’t own one again!

After the car show, I had to make a run to Felton, up in the Santa Cruz Mountains and ordinarily on a Sunday the traffic over the hill would be treacherous, but I somehow lucked out and zipped over there in about half an hour, again in perfect Spring weather! If you’ve never been through the Santa Cruz Mountains, I HIGHLY recommend it. It is truly gorgeous out there!

Once I got back from the Felton errand, our daughter came over and we had a pizza and watched a really bizarr-o documentary.

And just like that – poof – the weekend was over!

Then I got to come back to beautiful Portola Valley to a great job!

Feeling pretty good about now!

Thanks for stopping by!

What a Week!!

Started the new job on Monday and the week has just flown by!

I’ve been loving it so far and I expect that this is gonna be a good gig for me, at least for the foreseeable future. Yes, I did take a pay cut for this job but the lack of stress more than makes up for it. If nothing else it will force me back into my frugal ways, which is long overdue. Having more than enough pocket money changes a guy, and not necessarily for the better! Probably a few less shows and long weekend trips in the coming year, but that is a price I’m willing to pay to stay out of the meat grinder!! Can you put a price on mental health?!?

In an odd turn of events, I’m back working at a site where I spent 5 years as the facilities Director, and it was the worst job I’ve ever had. Well, maybe second worst as I spent a couple years as a roofer some 25+ years ago, but I digress…

This place was TERRIBLE to be an employee of, but working for a contractor here is all good. No stress, no BS, no dealing with the health care regulations and all that entails, it is a night and day difference. And the cherry on top, the reason I stuck it out here for 5 years, is this place is GORGEOUS! 44 acres of beautiful scenery, wildlife EVERYWHERE. It is truly a spectacular place to spend your day and I feel beyond fortunate to have a landed a gig that puts me back here!

Looking ahead at the schedule, it looks like I’ll be here through July at least, but according to the boss, they keep throwing new projects at him every time one finishes up, so I could be here for a long haul. Let’s hope!!

Aside from the distinct lack of stress, I’m getting a good “workout” at work, which is a nice fringe benefit. The first day I clocked over 7 miles of walking, and the “easiest” physical day put me at just over 4 miles walked. Not too shabby! Five to six miles appears to be the average. Plus some lifting here and there, pushing some material carts around and such, it’s been good for the body, no doubt! And I’ve been sleeping like a baby. Better sleep than I’ve had in well over a decade! I haven’t woken up at 3am in a panic all week, which is a welcome change of pace, as it was happening at least 3 times a week at the old job…

Life can be strange sometimes. Two weeks ago I was overwhelmed by a sense of certain doom, and now here I am happier than I’ve been in I don’t know how long.

I guess it’s true, sometimes a change will do ya good! Even when that change is thrust upon you…

Thanks for stopping by!

A New Day Dawns…

Hi folks, it’s been awhile…

So, I found myself out of a job this week… Unexpected, and yet I’ve felt under the microscope for the last several months. Regardless of how much I did, regardless of the extra hours put in, nothing was ever good enough for TPTB. “So, you only completed 99 things today? What about that 100th thing?!?”

Word to the wise, if you want to keep your job, don’t tell the boss he’s being ridiculous when he’s being ridiculous. The ONLY thing coming from that is a nice big target in your back…

So this week I’ve been through all kinds of emotional crap, from bitterness to hostility, fear, self doubt…depression. It’s been a rough week to say the least.

To make matters worse, the Mrs. and our daughter have been on a Girl’s Trip all week, hundreds of miles and a few time zones away, so I’ve been left to my own devices and the voices in my head all week. Considering I’m my own harshest critic and my own worst enemy, this hasn’t been a good place to be. To say the least. I haven’t slept much or eaten much, but I DID completely avoid “the bottle” 100%. Now, I’m not much of a drinker – generally less than once a month, but dang! My old friend Mr. Jack Daniels has been calling to me repeatedly, especially in the dark of night when I couldn’t sleep.

Truth be told, I mostly hated my job. I was already looking around and putting out feelers, nonetheless getting sacked was a major shocker. I took my first “real” job (schedules and paycheck job) at 15 years old and I’m now 55 and I’ve NEVER been “fired” before. Still, I wanted it to be MY choice to leave that pressure cooker, not have it thrust upon me. I’ve been in essentially the same job, just at 3 different facilities, for 17 years and I’m BURNED. OUT. It wasn’t a career choice, it was something I fell ass-backward into all those years ago. And while I’ve learned a TON over the years, I have gained no satisfaction from it and in a way wished I’d never gotten into this line of work in the first place. I never had any love for it. No paycheck is worth the constant, unending stress my job entailed, I was just too scared to try something new – even when it was strongly suggested by my Doctor due to stress induced health issues. Yeah, that’s right. Rather than find a new career, I just stopped going to the doctor for about 8 years!

But now the choice was made for me. And all the fear aside, I’m actually relieved in a weird way.

But then, something amazing happened. I landed a new job! I start on MONDAY! The beauty of it is that the new gig is essentially doing the ONLY part of my old job(s) that I DID like! And NONE of the crap that I loathed! No more dealing with HR issues, no more accounting reports, no more dealing with City, State and Federal regulations and all that entails, no more corporate bullcrap. I almost can’t believe it! It sounds too good to be true, but it’s a company I have a long relationship with, I know the owners and they do outstanding work that I know I’ll be proud to be part of. They basically created a new position for me because they desperately need help and they know what I’m capable of. I gotta say, that feels pretty good.

So wish me luck! Things will probably be a little quiet on the ol’ blog while I get my bearings, but never fear, I’ll be back! Hopefully, better than ever now that I won’t be on-call 24/7/365 while trying to stave off an ulcer!

And the cherry on top is that the Mrs. comes home tonight!! Oh, how I’ve missed her! Six days apart is a LONG time when you’ve been with someone for 35 years!

Have a great weekend y’all. Thanks for stopping by!

Out and About: Spring has Sprung at Filoli Gardens!

Not gonna lie, last week was rough. Ugly in fact. But Sunday was a beautiful day and we made our way up north to Filoli Botanical Gardens for the Spring bloom.

The Mrs., being Dutch, has a soft spot for Tulips and this was the prefect time to catch the tulips (and Daffodils) in their prime.

Filoli is a spectacular garden, just gorgeous from one end to the other. I’ve been to a number of gardens such at this, but I’ve never seen anyone do it better.

Not much else to say other than Hooray for Spring!! I’ll let the pictures to the talking from here on out…

Thanks for stopping by!

Road Trip: Big Sur, CA… Back Where I Belong

Most of the best times of my early years were spent in the woods. Camping and backpacking treks were where I found myself, where I felt most at ease and at “home”. Then in my late teens I traded that all in for band practices, night clubs and recording studios. A stark contrast, I assure you.

I managed to get back out there every now and again but nothing like when I was young and gung-ho about it. Then came marriage and a young’en, getting involved in her school stuff, coaching soccer, trying to establish a career… All the adult stuff that nobody warns you about. And my time in the woods became a distant memory.

I’d been grousing over the last few years to the Mrs., that we needed to go camping “one of these days” and I even started gearing up for it since right before “the Plague” hit, but still we never made it out.

Well, finally, FINALLY it happened! As a Christmas gift, the Mrs. made arrangements for a stay in Big Sur, one of my favorite places in California.

A lot of people talk crap about California and Californians (and rightfully so, in most regards), but we have some AWESOME wilderness out here folks.

A perfect little waterfall 10 feet from our tent!

Now, full disclosure, this was more “glamping” than camping. Our accommodations was an “outfitters” tent, about 10′ x 12′, on a wooden deck, with a 10′ x 10′ porch with an awning. We had some minimal power and running water, and most exciting for these old bones, an actual bed! Super swanky digs for out in the woods, let me tell ya!

Otherwise, it was like an actual “car camping” excursion. We brought in our food, cooked over wood fires, and just chilled out in the woods next to a quickly moving creek with a couple nice falls. It was HEAVEN!

Our time there was short, just Saturday afternoon through late Monday morning, but we ate like royalty, slept like babies and had the most relaxing 48ish hours we’ve had in a long, long time. It was absolutely glorious.

While I fully comprehend that this was not a “real” campout, it was an awesome way to dip our toes back into the outdoors without sending ourselves into shock. And it was a great shakeout run to prep us for an actual real camping trip we have scheduled with the kids at the end of April. We did pretty great staying comfortable and well fed, but we learned a few lessons too that will make the next trip even better!

Now that I’ve gotten a taste for it again, I hope this becomes a regular part of our adventures, as I haven’t felt this good in years!

Special thanks to the Mrs. for getting outside her comfort zone and planning a trip that made this Boring Old Man feel like a kid again!

Thanks for stopping by!

Flashback Friday! Springing Forward edition.

In “honor” of Daylight Saving Time happening this weekend, I thought I’d bust out some sunny, feel good tunes. My condolences to all my readers that still have snow on the ground!

I myself (and the Mrs.) will be heading out into the coastal woods for some nature time this weekend, hoping the seemingly non-stop rain gives us a break!

Wishing you all fair skies and easy sailing this weekend!

Turn up the volume and let the happy grooves move ya!

Thanks for stopping by!

A Sunny Sunday!

I know it’s still only February, but we woke up to shining sun and nice, mild temps so we changed up our Sunday morning routine and went for a nice long walk OUTSIDE, rather than going to the gym. (We did hit the gym yesterday, but Sunday gym time is usually “written in stone” unless we’re traveling.)

Today we hit the Los Gatos Creek Trail, which was a little crowded, but it was glorious to be outdoors, hearing the birds chirppin’ away, the sounds of the rushing water, feeling the sun on our skin… 10,000X better than the best day at the gym!

Two of my goals for this year were to get outdoors more and to improve my overall health, so doing both at the same time was a real nice change of pace.

Sometimes a change will do you good!

Looking forward to Spring, it feels like it’s right around the corner. This Winter hasn’t been particularly cold, but we’ve had wet, dreary weather more often than not and I’m ready to move on to some sun and fresh air!

Have a great day y’all! Thanks for stopping by!

Road Trip: Monterey, CA

This trip marks a very special occasion, our “baby” is celebrating her 30th birthday this week! Hard to believe…

We’ve always been a “beach” family, as you might have gathered if you’ve read any of my earlier posts, but Monterey has ALWAYS been our daughter’s favorite. While my wife and I grew up haunting the Santa Cruz Soquel and Capitola areas, if we ever asked the kid where she wanted to go, it was always Monterey.

This time around we stayed at the Portola Hotel and Spa, and it was really nice. Beyond expectations even. We had booked weeks ago and much to our surprise and delight, they gave us an unexpected “upgrade” to one of the Presidential Suites. No kidding. The room was bonkers.

I haven’t stayed in a room this nice since the 90’s when I was lucky enough to be on the road crew with Dogstar in Australia and New Zealand. It was off the charts for a hotel room, certainly bigger than our apartment!!

The trip was pretty mild and rather uneventful, in a good way. Mostly, we ate really fancy foods in nice restaurants (Jack’s & Schooner’s amongst others) and just hung out. We also hit the touristy spots – Fisherman’s Wharf and the Monterey Bay Aquarium – too. They were nothing new as we’ve been to both more times than we can count, but it was a good time nonetheless. The Aquarium is truly spectacular. If you’ve never been and you enjoy wildlife, you should definitely check it out once in your life.

All in all, it was a really nice time. The forecast had called for rain, all day, every day for the time we were there, but luckily the weather people were waaay off and we had really mild weather. Very little rain and even a touch of sun. As a bonus, the weather kept the crowds down to a level that didn’t drive me out of my skin!

Still coming to grips with our daughter turning 30, but this nice, mellow weekend sure helped keep smiles on our faces! And we can’t help be feel grateful that our kid still likes to hang out with us! We must have done something right along the way…

Thanks for stopping by!

The End of an Era…

Today was a very sad day at the ol’ J.O.B. One of my favorite employees of all time, heck one of my favorite PEOPLE, has resigned and today was his last day.

It’s hitting me right in the feelz..

I’ve been managing buildings and running maintenance crews for over 20 years now. I’ve had maybe 3 dozen different employees working for me over the years. Out of that 3 dozen, I’d say 5 were outstanding. Guys I’d take with me to the ends of the earth. My guy leaving today is in the Top 3 of that 5. The kind of employee you wish you could clone, so you could have a dozen just like him. It’s a big, no, HUGE loss. In a way, and I could never say this, lest the HR Harpies make my life a living hell, he’s kind of like the son I never had and he’s ready to leave the nest.

I’m 100% behind his decision to leave, and I actually think he’s doing the right thing in doing so. It’s absolutely the best thing for his family and himself, so I hold no ill will or bitterness toward him. In fact, I wish him nothing but the best. It’s only for purely selfish reasons that I wish he weren’t leaving us. But life is funny that way… those you never want to be without go, and those you wish would go, stay forever…

I’m gonna miss you Mr. Z, but I wish you continued success and a happily ever after! These last 6 years working with you have been a real pleasure. You’re one in a million, don’t let your new employer forget that!

I may be a little quiet for a bit while I process all this… but I’ll be back soon.

Thanks for stopping by.