You probably know that I love to sing and play my guitar. One of my happiest college memories was with a group of fellow musicians singing in parties, weddings and even in a few concerts. Through the years I've been practicing alone hoping one day I'd find a group just like that one. Well, I think I've finally got my band. I have a lead guitar, bass guitar, keyboard player, drummer, and a female vocalist. We're definitely amateurs but I'm imagining the possibilities. We're so ambitious, we're practicing a variety of songs by the Eagles, Toto, Mama Cass, Linda Rondstat, America, Hall 'n Oates, Dean Martin, Fleetwood Mack, Neil Young, James Taylor … at least that's the plan. I'm as giddy as a kid opening his Christmas present.

I’ve been a tree-lover most of my life. The observation of, and communion with trees has added much pleasure to my existence. So when it became clear that a trip from my home in Seattle to the San Francisco Bay area was in the near future, I decided to drive and see some sights along the way. I planned to …

With human activity on hold, Mother Earth has been allowed to heal and we are reaping the rewards. For the first time, many of us are basking in pristine, crystal clear  images of Natural Wonders as if we’ve never seen them before. Profound, majestic, ethereal; no words can describe their unmatched magnificence.

I feel like I made it home… but in a strange way. The welcome at the airport lobby, the nauseating drive through the hills, the exhaustion of climbing up only two flights of stairs to my new living area (I like to blame it on the 10,000 ft. elevation), walking up to the roof and seeing patches of clear stars between clouds, waking up to the constant sound of dogs barking and car horns honking through the window...