zion

California to Utah (destination: Zion National Park) and back in 2 days. Crazy, I know, but it wasn't as bad as I thought. Beautiful scenery and good friends made the trip a joy.





autumn colors in springdale, utah















hiking the narrows, a.k.a the virgin river in zion canyon. 60% of the hike is in water.











on the road again

machu picchu

Everyone loves to say it. Machu Picchu. Machu Picchu. Machu Picchu. And it is just as fun as it sounds. My friends and I spent the first day there with the tour group (or getting separated from the tour group) and the second day exploring on our own. That's definitely the way to go.

Machu Picchu was the highlight of the trip, but Peru was such a fun country to visit. Lots to see, eat, and buy!


good eats. fried yucca with 3 kinds of aji. corn with cheese and aji. look how big the kernals are!










cuy (guinea pig) is a delicacy in peru














great shopping for textiles. we got to visit an alpaca factory











qoricancha. we saw a lot of ancient inca and spanish architecture.









we saw all sorts of llamas. they're so cute! i bought 3 llama finger puppets to take home with me :)










obligatory machu picchu shot

free-falling

My friend was telling me how she got into an altercation at the movie theater last night. The woman behind her had been talking and kicking her seat. My friend went to the restroom, and when she came back, the woman's feet were on the top of her chair. She moved the woman's feet and when she sat down, the lady kicked her in the head. My friend said something (I don't remember what) and as the woman left, she dumped her drink on my friend. My friend got up and they started fighting in the aisle ... hair-pulling, choking, scratching, the works. All this while the movie was going on. Theater security and the cops came, but neither pressed charges since they were both at fault. My friend looked clean today except for a little scratch on her forehead. She said her shins were bruised from banging into the seats.

I told her how I jumped off a 40' cliff on Monday (Labor Day). The water below was deep and I saw other people do it, so it looked safe. I felt fine about it until I read an article about how a girl, who was doing the same thing at the same place on the same day, missed the water and hit the rocks, injuring her legs and hips, and was transported to the hospital by helicopter. I watched the videos of my jump and my friends' jumps and concluded that the only way she could have gotten injured was if she had slipped and hit rocks on the way down. I only stepped off the cliff and I landed in the middle of the water. But still. What was I thinking? I retired from snowboarding and skiing once I started working because I didn't want to risk injury. Why did I think it was okay to jump off a cliff?

My friend asked me not to jump off any more cliffs. I asked her not to get into any more fights :).




hermit falls, big santa anita canyon, sierra madre, CA

yosemite

In early February, I decided this would be a good year to hike Half Dome. Five and a half months later, my wish came true. For once, the result was not anti-climactic. Training (it's a 10-14 hour hike, on average), adequate preparation (food, water, water pump), and pacing make the journey doable.




view from the summit
















on the way down via the John Muir Trail, a view of Nevada Falls with Half Dome in the background













young buck












photo walk the following day, a view of upper and lower yosemite falls. this is a LOT of water for mid-July

big bear

I spent Fourth of July weekend this year in Big Bear for a rock-climbing adventure. I missed out on the first day of climbing, but got plenty in on the second day. I feel that this trip has been the most instructive, as I pushed myself to bear more pain and discomfort on my ascents than I would on a man-made indoor rock wall, to trust my feet more, and to lean in different angles to make the holds more positive. I can't wait to climb again!

Probably the most "adventurous" part of the trip occurred after the climbing was done. The way from the main road to the climbing site was rocky, to say the least. The city folk and I parked our sedans in a safe place and ventured into the area better suited for jeeps and trucks. We hiked in, but on the way back hopped on the outside of the jeep of our fellow climbers. 4 passengers inside, one on outside of the passenger's side, two on the outside of the driver's side, and two on the back bumper. Maybe I should have been on the backside rather than the side. It was a bumpy ride. As I held on to the top bar of the jeep with my sweaty hands, I imagined slipping off and getting tire tracks on my body or the jeep tipping over and pinning me to the ground. All this while dodging low hanging branches. I tried to get my head low enough to peek at the speedometer, but the person next to me yelled for me to hold on tighter since I was swinging all over the place. All I know was that it was fast enough to bring a smile to the face of the driver.





"wilbur's tombstone"

the mud, take 2

Having ran the World Famous (there are many others which are not so famous) Mud Run in Camp Pendleton last year, I felt like a veteran this time around. My friends and I ran on Day 2 this year and noticed a big difference from last year. First, where's the support? No marines at the wall climbs and no cut oranges and bananas at the end. Did they all work Day 1 and decide to take the next day off? Boooo! Next, the hill at the end is much more slippery on Day 2. I guess 5,500+ wet bodies climbing on smelly dirt the day before will do that. If you're looking to get the best time, definitely sign up for Day 1. And, I forgot about the colored duct tape. Pink and purple duct tape on the shoes ... hot. Other than that, another fun time.

*edit* I was told there were oranges and bananas at the end. i guess we didn't go far enough. too eager to hit the showers. also, the marines are not required to work on the weekends, so thanks to all who volunteered to make this another great race!

canyoneering

I spent Memorial Day exploring Razorback Trail and two large waterfalls at Eaton Canyon. My rock-climbing friends and I hiked up the scary trail attached to one another with harnesses and a rope. The rope would have corrected minor slips, but certainly not falls. It was mostly used as a confidence booster and was effective at that. I don't think I would have attempted this hike in the past, as I never felt very sure-footed, but rock-climbing has greatly improved my balance and my confidence. Also, I went with someone who knew the trail and whom I trust with my life.

The hiking, climbing, and rock-hopping was all right, but the best part of the day was sliding down the 30-foot waterfall, a natural waterslide. We started by rappelling down, which wasn't all that enjoyable. There was a lot of water when we went, which is good for pictures and waterslides, but not good for rappelling. Imagine trying to lower yourself down a rope in a controlled manner while water pounds down at you from above. One guy said he didn't like drowning above water. Everyone but I complained about the water being so cold. It helped me a lot when my hand got caught in the belay device. My hand was numb, otherwise I might have screamed from the pain and let go of the rope (someone was safety at the bottom), but I remained calm and was able to climb up a little and get my hand out. The cold might have also helped me while rappelling down the second waterfall when I slipped on moss and got slammed into the rock wall, but I think the helmet and adrenaline are mostly responsible for me not hurting.

So, back to the first waterfall, the natural waterslide. I'm afraid of heights and free-falling, but I figured, I was there, I might as well seize the moment. The water in the pool was deep and I had watched my friend do it earlier. When we were above the fall, this big guy sat at the top, in position to go, but he sat there for 20+ minutes, unable to make the leap. Later, he went up again and froze again. I guess it doesn't get easier with practice. It reminds me of when I was a kid taking swim lessons and the instructor had the students jump off the high diving board. I walked to the edge and stood there for a while as my instructor kept telling me to jump. Once you jump, it's over in a second, but the anticipation can be paralyzing. I'm happy to say that today I had no problems pushing off the edge this time. Maybe rock-climbing has made me more reckless as well :P.







eaton canyon, alta dena












eaton canyon second waterfall

















i might have enjoyed rappelling more if i wasn't looking up at . . .









this!







photos courtesy of jduke

trail running

I went trail running for the first time yesterday. My running group does trail runs once a month and only in the summer months, so I went despite a nagging cramp in my left foot. It was one of those rare occasions that I was able to leave work early. I seized the moment and it was worth it. I don't know how people run without a camera :P. I was thankful for the beautiful views and time to rest during the run.

My foot is still achy today, a little worse for the wear. I'm going to avoid high-impact exercises, but I'm more fearful of the time I'll be spending in heels this weekend :o.


chantry flat, angeles national forest













sturtevant falls

smelling the roses

I got the inside scoop that the roses at the Tournament House Rose Garden are in full bloom, so I went to check it out.


this mansion was donated by the Wrigley family to be the permanent headquarters for the Tournament of Roses









rose garden



























i still prefer calla lilies

kitchen experiments

It's loquat season and our tree is heavy with fruit. I love home-grown fruit and this would normally not be a problem for me except that in recent years I've found that eating large amounts of loquats causes me to itch all over. Sometimes I stop eating before this happens; other times I continue eating and tell myself the itching is all in my head :P.

So, I've been looking for ways to use up the loquats when a friend showed me a recipe from Cafe Liz. I'm going to make that for a party in a couple of weeks, but what to do with the oodles of loquats now? Ooh, brandied loquats!


i think loquats aren't more popular because people find them a hassle to peel and then have a low yield due to the large seeds. eh, i don't mind, but i do peel them with a knife to keep the bottom of my nails from turning brown







2 ingredients ... loquats and sugar


















after only one night. okay, see you in 3 months!

running stadium to the sea

I've so been busy reading other people's race recaps for the LA Marathon that I forgot to write about my own experience.

26.2 miles. I never thought I'd do it, but now it's done. It was hard, much harder than the long runs I did for my training, but it was my first full marathon and I had nothing to compare it to. The new route started at Dodgers Stadium and went through Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and ended at Santa Monica pier. It was a net downhill, but it didn't feel that way. There were hills All along the way. I had a tough time at mile 12 and 20, but saw and heard a familiar face at mile 21 that kept me going. It was the Clif Bar pace leader, whom I ran with in Long Beach 2009. I picked up my pace managed to keep up, proving that "the Wall" I hit was more mental than physical. And, my friend came to run the last 2 miles with me. I might have ended up walking otherwise.

It was a wonderful race with landmarks, volunteers, ideal weather (partly cloudy) and amazing supporters throughout the route. I love LA and this is the only marathon I would have considered. I'm so happy to have been a part of something so much bigger than myself and to have finished something I never would have considered a year ago. Still, I won't be doing any more full marathons. Instead, I'm going to volunteer or support other runners. From a runner's point of view, this is what I liked and plan to do:

- be encouraging. "strong" "keep going" "you can do it" are good words to use. do not say "you're almost there!" unless you're at mile 26. we know it's a lie.
- cheer on runners by name. i'm glad i wasn't more creative with the nickname on my race bib because i liked hearing my name. heck, i was totally oblivious to the drag queen cheerleaders in WeHo because some buff guy without a shirt said my name.
- take pictures. i'm glad i got to see what i missed, like the drag queen cheerleaders
- make funny signs, e.g. "your feet hurt because you're kicking so much butt" "the kenyons are at mile 15. you are at mile 5"
- impart useful information. woman at mile 26: "the finish line is blue, not orange." when i thought the end was in sight, i focused on the mile 26 marker, forgetting that there was still 0.2 miles left of the race. doh!
- be patient. i was moving pretty slowly after the race, but happy :)

3D

I finally made it out to see Avatar 3D since I was told this was the last weekend to see it in IMAX. I can see what all the hype is about. The visual effects were spectacular and I felt like I was right there next the palm fronds and charging beasts, but I'm not sure that's what I really want. Before the movie, they showed a trailer for Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland in 3D IMAX. Yikes! I don't want the Cheshire cat or Johnny Depp's Mad Hatter in my face. Am I the only one who was freaked out by the evil witch in Captain EO?

I love watching movies as a mental break, a temporary escape from reality, but mostly as entertainment. I heard people are suffering from "Avatar Depression" after watching the movie because they wish they could live on the beautiful planet Pandora. Wow. At least they can find a community online to help them cope.

So, when Alice in Wonderland comes out, I won't be rushing to the theater. I'll wait for it to come out on DVD . I guess I'll pass the time by reading a book. in paperback. with the lights on.

mixing and matching

Certain brands of General Mills cereal is on sale at my local supermarket. Save $4 when you purchase 4 - mix and match. Oh good, I think, I can get more Cheerios. The savings only applies to the small size.

So I'm in the cereal aisle and I see all these different flavors of Cheerios. Some I knew about . . . original, honey nut, multigrain . . . but frosted (I passed), banana nut, and chocolate?! Wow! Cheerios is brilliant, in an evil way. I thought I was somewhat healthy when I mixed original with honey nut. Now I'm mixing banana nut with chocolate. Not so healthy. At least it's good for my cholesterol?