Life Happenings: the Best Sea Glass Haul!

Thursday's morning walk was full of nice surprises! I woke up feeling a little cranky because I'm in the 3rd week of the Whole30 program, but I decided to walk off my frustrations. I'm glad I did, because the ocean waves were fabulous today. 

My favorite finds of the day:

• A lime-green glass piece with swirls 
• A triangular mint piece
• A nice chunky piece of light blue sea glass
• A piece of red sea glass

I'm especially stoked with the red piece. When I took a trip to Fort Bragg, I stopped by a Sea Glass Museum, and I read that red sea glass is especially rare, because most of the red glass comes from old taillights from cars. Nowadays most taillights are plastic, so it's very rare to find a nice, pitted piece of red glass. HOW EXCITING~~

Solitude in the Magnificent Redwoods of San Mateo

A Grove of Gorgeous Greens

This weekend my friend Jess and I took a morning hike to Portola Redwoods State Park in San Mateo, CA.
We took the Iverson Falls trail, which runs along a creek (my favorite type of trails!). I'd post a picture of the waterfall, buuuuut I didn't check the website and the "waterfall" was really more of a trickling kiddie pool. Lesson learned: next time I'll do my research and check the best times to visit waterfalls. Even though the waterfall wasn't mindblowing, the trail to the falls is gorgeous--not too strenuous, but tons of beautiful sights, lots of solitude, and no cell phone reception. I did not realize how important this would be. The phone has no place in the forest (with the exception of taking pictures!). I'm really gaining a new sense of appreciation for nature, especially now that my free time is much more limited.

It's been several months since starting my new non-profit job, and transitioning from a student to a full-timer has definitely been an exciting but sometimes challenging transition. I do miss the free time I once had during the weeks, when I could go on morning hikes during the weekdays, but sadly, that's no longer a possibility.
I also work in the heart of the city, meaning it's noisy as f*ck. Ambulances, honking horns, collisions, police sirens, protests, I hear it all. Not a moment of silence. I love my job, but the city sounds are jarring and stress-inducing.

One thing that has kept me sane is my weekly walks/hikes. For anyone who is constantly sitting indoors in an office, Monday through Friday, I seriously encourage you to take a walk. Just one. To the beach, to a nearby park, but whenever possible, go to the forests. Experience the solitude, surround yourself by the sounds of birds, rustling leaves and babbling creeks. It. is. so. therapeutic.

On our way to Iverson Falls

Lush foliage as tall as me! (I'm 5'1)

No mushrooms in sight, so I spent most of my time looking up.

Luscious Ferns

My friend told me that if you lick their bellies, you get calories. Can someone verify this? (I did not try, in case you're wondering.)

I hope this encourages folks to get out into the forests. We need more places without Wi-Fi.

Surprising Find of the Day: I also found this beautiful feather on our way to Portola State Redwoods. I just got a Western Bird Field Guide, so I'll post an update once I identify where this SF Giants-colored feather came from. Another gorgeous feather added to my collection!

Well, that was my weekend. Next weekend I'm taking surfboarding lessons with a friend. SURFBORT. Sorry. Actually, I'm not. 

~Toodles and have a wonderful week!

An update on my life...

I'm still here. This past month I've been job hunting, trying to finish the last of my thesis, and hike/forage for just about anything.

Good news: I am now employed! I found a wonderful nonprofit organization in the Bay Area, and I feel like it is such a great fit. I'm slowly adjusting to a full-time schedule, which is unlike the past couple of years as a student with a fairly flexible schedule.

Sort-of-OKAY-news: I have a feeling that the future blog posts here will be much shorter, of course there will be tons of photos from my trips, but much more abbreviated, I suppose. If you'd like a more current feed of my adventures, go to my instagram: @Terrariumtherapy

Anywho, here are some photos from my last trek to Glass Beach this year. Remember when I went last year? Well, last month I made it a point to return to Fort Bragg, and I spent HOURS beachcombing! It was wonderful, I tell ya! So many colors, so much history behind the broken glass and tableware that washes ashore...

SEA GLASS. SO MUCH SEA GLASS.

Post sorting...I love those blues and greens.

My favorites of the day: broken pottery, jadeite, milk glass, blue sea glass, and even an old apothecary bottle stopper!

In addition to beautiful sea glass, I also spotted some natural beauties on our way home...

Beautiful coastal succulents I found growing along a cliff...

And some interesting fungi...

More updates to come...I'm sort of backlogged right now, but I promise, this blog is not dead. 

It's December Already?

I spent the first day of December in my backyard planting and re-potting my plants. I initially woke up in a panic upon realizing it's already December, but I was determined to finish my project: Plant All of the Succulents. I started this planting project several months ago and now I have to re-pot some of my plants because they're getting too big! 

Here is a little re-cap of my day and some of the plantings I made...

Some succulents that got too big for their pots.

Sweet, sweet Poochie kept me company outside.

Cuttings and little babies

My bowl of succulent babies

Echeverias, Sedum and a Kalanchoe planting

A forest-like succulent arrangement

Today was so relaxing. What a nice end to my Thanksgiving break! In addition to planting, I also made some new terrarium necklaces! Check out my Etsy later this week, I'm listing new items!

My First Trip to a Gem Show

Today my mom and I stopped by the San Mateo Gem Show (going on this weekend!) and got some goodies! Today's mission: find raw, uncut minerals and Herkimer diamonds. I've been wanting to make more mineral terrariums and I ended up with some quartz points, so keep a lookout for those!

My lively herkimer diamonds! They aren't actually diamonds, they're double-terminated quartz, which basically means they have two faceted ends. 

Pictured (although not in order): peridot, quarts, smokey quartz, rose quartz, opal, tourmaline, ruby, neon apatipe, amethyst, iolite, pyrite, gypsum rose, citrine, copper, turquoise, and a mound of zeolite.

When I got home I sorted all of my mineral specimens. I plan on putting some of the specimens in terrarium necklaces, but most if them are going into my collection. So far, I have a sizeable collection but I'd like to expand it. I am also trying to brainstorm ways I could openly display all of them besides in jars. Any ideas? 

[Those Little Moments] The Ocean is my Life Force

I love the beach. I don't know if it's just my Piscean nature (and I kind of laugh at myself when I refer to my astrological sign) or just the sense of peace I get from the ocean, but whatever-- I love the ocean. There is something about watching the waves afar and at the shoreline that just centers me whenever I feel out of place, tense, or anxious. The water constantly moves, as should I.

I love walking along the shoreline where I can beach-comb, and see what washes up on shore. I am always in search of blue sea glass--my eyes just spot them and I get super excited because blue glass is a rarity.  Just from walking along the beach in search of the coveted blue sea glass, I realized something: everything you're looking for, whether it be questions or things, they already exist. You just have to place yourself in the situation and be ready. Hah, I get these moments of clarity when I'm alone in nature.

I've been pretty inactive on this blog lately. I recently started working full-time, and I need to make more time to stop at the beach and write. Yesterday I walked along the shore and it felt so refreshing to be outside, breathing fresh air, feeling the air against my face, and watching those gorgeous waves. The experience of being outside is so liberating for me, and I need to make more time to go outside. I'm starting to feel the energy being sucked out of me, my creative juices need to start flowing again! In addition to being outside, I want to paint more mushrooms. I need inspiration. This weekend I'm heading back to the redwoods to go mushroom spotting. It's supposed to rain tomorrow, hopefully mushrooms will come out and I'll have something to blog about.

Even as the rains are about to arrive, the beach is a beautiful place on an overcast day.

~Toodles

On Keeping Handwritten Notebooks

Notebooks. I love 'em. I've had sketchbooks, journals, and notebooks since I was able to draw/write and that hasn't changed in the last 20 years. In fact, when I was younger, I had a habit of collecting notebooks but leaving them half-filled (such a waste). I still do that to this day, but I've gotten a lot better about conserving paper and taking more time to write. I've always been a dreamer and a thinker and I get extremely frustrated when I don't have an outlet to express myself or jot down ideas, projects, thoughts, or conversations, so I always carry a notebook with me. 

 Pocket Moleskine notebooks for travelling

Sure, I can type out notes on my iphone, laptop, or blogspot--but it's really not the same. There's something about taking a pen, watching the ink hit the paper, and words appear. It's a whole different physiological response that excites my brain. Austin Kleon and other artists prefer analog to digital (and sometimes balancing with a bit of both while they work) and I plan on keeping it that way. I can tell when I'm upset--my handwriting even looks frantic and traces of last week's writing is still embossed on several pages thereafter. I can look at that page and instantly remember the happenings of that day. One a happy day, my handwriting is light and airy with a lot of exclamation points and LOTS OF CAPITALIZATION BECAUSE I'M SO HAPPY AND EXCITED! Other days you can actually see dried up tears on the paper (yep, I was in grad school--didn't anyone tell you that it's full of tears and despair?). The point is, writing is much different than writing.

I use Michael Rogers' Decomposition notebooks for academic writing and note-taking. They're basically the same as the classic composition notebook except they have creative covers.

As I started drawing again, I bought several sketchbooks for creating:

One sketchbook for painting...(that's one of my best friends, Mel!)

Another sketchbook for [water]color pencil and ink (Northern Lights)

I also have a ton of fun notepads. You might be able to tell from my previous post that I am in love with post-its and cute/witty stationary.

My favorite notebook is actually a planner/organizer. I already have a planner, so I use this as a diary/journal. The Slingshot organizer is great for jotting down notes and also learning about historical moments. You can purchase the Slingshot Organizer from Urban Bazaar SF or AK Press.

By the way, here are some other reasons why folks keep notebooks:

• Joan Didion on Keeping a Notebook
•  Elizabeth Spiers on Keeping a Notebook in the Digital Age

New finds: Shells and Bones

My collections keep growing larger by the month and I'm starting to run out of space to store them! My fantasy is to have a little museum in my house where I showcase all of the stuff I collected or found throughout the years. Just last week I added another piece to my shell collection and started a bone collection. In general I prefer finding items but in some cases I will buy them if I take a special liking to them.

Clear Sundial (architectonica perspectiva Linnaeus)

Coyote atlas from The Bone Room

Aerium on Display at Devil's Teeth in San Francisco, CA

 

Last week I made this forest-themed aerium for my favorite neighborhood bakery Devil's Teeth.

I love making terrariums and aeriums but I don't exactly have the space to house them, so I often give them away as gifts. I make terrariums as a hobby and I'd prefer to keep it that way because I don't have the time to make this a sustainable business, but I love sharing my work, and I'm so excited that the folks at Devil's Teeth are currently displaying one of my aeriums at their business! 

Plant Lady Life: Another Flowering Tillandsia!

 tillandsia funckiana

I'm very happy that some of my air plants are beginning to flower, it is a sign that I am taking good care of them. I used to water my air plants every two weeks by soaking them in water for 20 minutes, but I noticed some of my air plants began to brown at the tips. I figured they were drying because my heat is always on this season but I went to a specialist in Pacifica, CA to get some feedback. She suggested I water more frequently with some epiphyte food because 2 weeks may be too long of a dry spell, especially with so much heat in the area. Air plants absorb water and nutrients from the air, soaking them for more than 10 minutes can be somewhat traumatic for them, especially if left in water for too long. From my own understanding of tillandsias, they continue to absorb water until they get swollen and fall apart. That's actually what happened to my gorgeous tillandsia xerographica a year ago. RIP, but I will get a new one soon. Anyway, I switched up my watering schedule last month and so far all of my tillandsias are beginning to look bright, vivid, and healthy with little to no brown tips. 10 green thumb points for me!

Adventures: Glass Beach in Fort Bragg, CA

 Lately I've been craving more beach time, so my partner and I made a (very unplanned) day trip to Glass Beach in Fort Bragg, CA. We planned on waking up early so we could also visit the Botanical Gardens and the Pygmy Forest in Jughandle State Reserve, but we ended up arriving around 4pm. Nevertheless, the beach was beautiful and we got to watch the sun set. We thought about spending the night there but after getting spooked by strange folks at the local Safeway, we decided to return home for the evening. I still enjoyed the trip and we'll definitely return later this month.

On hwy 20-- 3 hours North from San Francisco and the scenery completely changes...

 

...and so does the leaf "litter"

Mushrooms: little surprises in places you normally overlook!

Glass Beach at dusk

 Collecting is not allowed in at Glass Beach, however there are areas right outside the state park boundary where you can look for sea glass. 

Glass Beach is comprised of mostly sea glass and occasional pottery that came about from years of dumping garbage over the cliffs of Fort Bragg.

 My handmade collection jar necklace filled with sea glass collected near Fort Bragg, CA

 Looking forward to tomorrow's adventure: Muir Woods!