I am observing the loss of a Historical Icon this past week and the feeling of loss for my friends, my partner and myself and for the city of San Francisco. I took this picture of the Cliff House Restaurant in San Francisco on New Year’s Day last year. Our tradition, Jo and I, was to have breakfast there every New Year’s Day. We get there early and sit at the Zinc Bar for Breakfast, Bloody Mary’s, and share conversation with others who would come and do the same. Then we would walk the beach and hike around the park and the Sutro Ruins. For over 3 decades, we have had many dinners, anniversaries, celebrations, Mother’s Days, and just because meals there. That building talks to me. The grounds that this building stands on has it’s own feel and personality. Its history is rich and full and now it is gone.
Many restaurants are gone right now due to COVID-19 and the financial strain that it has caused. This building and land is part of the National Park Service that has leased it to the owners of the Cliff House for many, many years. But, due to poor negotiations between the two, the restaurant could not survive. I am unsure what will happen to this building and the rich historical artifacts that were displayed in this building from the Sutro’s Bath House. It is just a sad moment for me and all history buffs who love of this part of San Francisco. You can also go to http://www.cliffhouse.com to read more. I don’t need to put those details here as they are explained very well on their website.
Other favorite pictures from visits to the Cliff House:
I have been thinking about writing something that would be beneficial and not be the same old stuff we are seeing being posted on social media sites and definitely not what has been broadcasted over the media 24/7. Yes, we all have been affected in one way or another and to quote a friend of mine, “it doesn’t matter what our specific belief systems are or what philosophy we hold, we have been stirred and fake news and pseudo facts are not helpful.”
Situations always seem more monstrous when we suffering from fear, depression, or anxiety. If you don’t know who to call, you can call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA): 1-800-662-HELP (4357). They are there 24/7.
Look for the good in your moment, right where you are. Look for the good that is happening around you. Focus on the good you would like to see, what you may do once we are over this hump. What are some of the things you are grateful for? Ponder them. Write about them. Who are you grateful for? Call them. Text them a love note. Create a ripple of Good right were you are. You can change your vibration and that good vibration can change other people’s vibrations.
people and seeing how other cultures live. Their world view is much bigger and their hearts and minds are noticeably expansive in that they are more excepting and aware and able to go with the flow when their surroundings change. I like this about them and it also challenges me. Peggy Lee sang a song in 1969 called “Is That All There Is?” It is a song about experiences and wondering after one experience is over, is that all there is? 
There is a reference of feeling like something is missing and wondering if there is anything more to this thing called life. Yes!!! There is something more. There is always something more. But we need to be curious and look for it or choose to step out on a whim and try something new and stretch ourselves.
like cooking classes, painting, or planting vegetables. Observe what comes to your mind as you ask “what would I like to try?” Listen for the clues that lead you to that answer and then engage yourself. Continue to observe the clues. More will show up as you are being led by your curiosity… which is really just your intuition guiding you to your greater path.
I remember when my pencil / pen addiction began. It was in grammar school in the early 70’s. I saw that blue and white pen that had four sliding color switches around the top of the barrel; red, blue, black, and green. Four colors with a cool way of switching between them. I remember envying the kid who got one for their stocking stuffer. Regular pens with caps were bland and besides, the cap always got lost. But, I did get good at converting the tube pens with lost caps into paper wad shooters. A little puff of air and we could hit a classmate in the back of the head with a little wad of damp paper. Maybe this is why I enjoy Nerf darts to this day? But, that pen with four colors intrigued me. I loved the magic of it and the mechanical way it worked. Pentel puts out a fabulous dry
highlighter with eight multiple colors that can be switched from one to another. I have been using one of them for at least ten years for classes and person study and just last month, in my small town on the Southern Oregon Coast, I found a red and black version of the four color mechanical pen with a comfort grip! You bet I bought it! I love to write with tools that delight me. It makes the craft fun and joyful. Don’t get me wrong, I love to write, but there is a giddy joy when acquiring a new tool to scribe my thoughts and stories upon the pages of unique journals or electronic devises.
The pencil that had my attention as a child was the plastic one that had about twelve leads in them, all sharp and all encased in a little plastic housing. As one dulled, I would pull it out from the bottom, push it back into the top of the pencil which then pushed out a fresh pointed lead to write with until it became dull and short. These pencils were colorful with either flowers, animals, or shapes decorating the plastic tubes. We also had to put an eraser caps on the end of it or use a cube eraser if needed. I finally got one around the fifth grade and thought it was the coolest thing. I used it proudly. The mechanical pencil with .05 or .07 retractable leads has since replaced that plastic pencil with the little lead pods, but I am always on the prowl for a writing tool that sparks a little joy in my heart.
When I was a child, there was this thing called pen pals. A pen pal was someone you didn’t know at first, but started to write back and forth with and become long distant friends. There were ads in the TV Guides and the newspapers that help children around the country to become pen pals with other children of the same age. It helped strengthen writing skills and foster learning about other ways of living. I think my parents had to give their consent / signature to allow me to become a pen pal.
look forward to every few weeks. I would look forward to replying and taking my letter to the local mail box on the corner. I thought it was magic. I would place a letter in the blue mail box at the end of the street and several weeks later a letter showed up in our mail box on the front porch. I even remember our mailman’s name… Tony. He delivered our mail for 10 or more years. Eventually, the letters waned and we no longer stayed connected. But this did not stop me from writing. When I entered high school, letter writing made a comeback. I would see my friends every day at school and we would go over to each other’s homes to visit, but writing our thoughts on paper and mailing them or dropping them through the slots of our lockers at school was special.
Presently, I stay in contact with many friends via social media rather than pen and paper and yet, I may not really know what is going on in their lives and hearts. It is my experience that Facebook and Twitter pages show only what we want to reveal and I 
don’t often expose the inner workings of my life in cyber land. I save that for heart to heart talks in person or on the phone. Also, my perceptions and observations of how a friend is doing can only be based on my last real conversation that took place with them; a conversation beyond sharing emojis and pictures of sunsets and plates of gourmet food. And, just like my pen pal from so long ago, I only know the last thing that was shared unless a newer connection is made.
moving in the directions of our dreams. It is the type of distraction that is used as a smoke screen so we don’t deal with the hard questions about who we are, what we really love to do, what excites us, and what will it take to motivate us to climb out of a routine that stagnates our minds? We have become so mechanical in our patterns of living that days turn to weeks and weeks turn into years until two or three decades have past and the only thing that has changed is either the girth of our waist or the color of our hair or both.
Why wait? What is it that you love to do? What has been distracting you from doing it? What fears have kept you from pursuing the creative ideas that rattle around in your mind? What can you change to begin to feel like you are living again instead of surrendering yourself to someone else’s dream? Make the space!!! Make a list of what you miss doing and how you can start making room for it in your life now. Observe how it feels to imagine doing what you love and follow that feeling.
because you have used that exit many times before? Unconsciously, your body made the same decision and took you on the path you have gone before so many times. This happens to me we I get on a local freeway, but from a different location. I have the GPS set for my desired destination, but I take that familiar exit which I had no intention of taking. ARGH! I, then, maneuver myself back on the freeway and continue my way as the GPS is doing course corrections.
minutes into a conversation in our minds or with someone else. Words and thoughts are so powerful. They evoke emotions and perpetuate the same actions and reactions for which we are trying to free ourselves. I know that I have conversations in my mind… conversations that have never happened in real life. But, inside my mind, my thoughts and words are churning me into a fit of undesired emotions which cause physical reactions in my body. Why do we do this? PATTERNS! Patterns are very comforting even if they are unhealthy. They are known, reliable, and familiar. It is easier to stay in a pattern that is unhealthy than create a new path for the mind to learn and thus, create change.
and words I wish to no longer practice in my life. I need to stay mindful about what I want in my life so that I have mastery over my thoughts, words and actions. This is also a time where I can look at how I think about different topics and why I believe the way I do. Is it a habit? Do I truly believe what I think? Do I enjoy the outcome of my thoughts, i.e., do they make me feel better or contribute goodness and peace? Taking the wrong exit off the freeway doesn’t make me feel good. I lose time and it shows me that I was not being mindful. The same is true when I speak or think in old familiar ways. It doesn’t make me feel good, it wastes time, and it can cause needless pain to myself or someone I care about.
in the stillness for a bit today and tomorrow and ask yourself, “what it is that I desire to lean into?” Where would I like to shift and welcome into my next expression of my perfect Self? Plant that seed and in that, it will be as if you are waving your wand… casting your word out into that which is greater than you to act upon as you do what is yours to do in the present moment.
Observation Expressed 