Stormy weather's beautiful skies

I've been super into skies lately. As summer melts (quite literally) into fall, wildfire haze and slightly stormy weather has made for simple sunsets of which I can't get enough. 

The photos below are from my drive home. There's something to be said about a scenic drive to and from work - it almost makes it worth the 9 hours in an office. "Why am I here?" "Oh! Right... THAT'S why!"

What an ab workout can teach you about life.

A winter photo shoot I did in June Lake
with Jessie Leigh Photography

After my yoga class the other day - where we paused our flow for some ab work - my very dear friend Becca asked if I had ever done the Pilates 100 (a set of 100 crunches with specific breathing). It sounded awesome, and I've since tried it, and love it. However, Becca's reasoning for doing it was that the point was to count to 100, so she knew when the end was near.

And that got me thinking. Of course.

A) I felt really bad because during my yoga ab set, I NEVER count. Basically, I wait until people start quitting because their abs are seizing. Then I will occasionally say "5 more!" There are reasons behind my madness. One thing I love about yoga is the mental aspect. Not knowing how long you will be instructed to stay in a posture may lead to breakthroughs. It may lead to "Wow, I didn't know my body was capable of this!" It may also lead to "Wow, I need to work on this!" But either way, you are learning about yourself. You can see change. You can see weakness. Doing something for the same count every time does give you a control, but the mental side seems so... easy.

B) So how does this apply to life? Let me tell you: I got married last year. My husband and I were shocked by how many people, upon our engagement, immediately asked us when the wedding was. Luckily Becca (she gets full credit on this one!) had also recently gotten engaged and gave me the advice to hold off on planning for a while. What a concept: enjoying your engagement! BE PRESENT (yes, silly yogi term, but gosh darn it! So relevant!).

And then we got married. It was a great celebration with tons of friends, food, and family. Before the night was over ... "When are you two going to start having kids?" ARE YOU FREAKIN' KIDDING?! We haven't even gone to our honeymoon suite yet! Give me a chance to be present and enjoy my brand-new-as-of-3-hours-ago husband!! Let's talk about babies later.

Later meant about 2 weeks for grandma, and about a month for mom (I believe she spent that silent month redecorating my childhood bedroom into the grandchildren's nursery). Everyone seemed so disappointed when I said "I don't know. We are happy as we are right now."

Don't get me wrong. I'm a planner and a go-getter, but sometimes not knowing what the next step is going to be brings beauty to life. Just like not knowing how much longer your set of crunches will last, not planning how long your healthy-eating kick will go (btw, no gluten, no sugar, not dairy, no booze is going great, thanks for asking, and I may do it forever, I don't know), not knowing your next big step in life can be ... relaxing, pleasant even. Being present, loving who you're with and where you are can be wonderful. You don't need to be a yogi to recognize the calm. No need to hurry. Challenges will find you where you are, there's no need to bring them upon yourself.

Right? Perhaps.

June Lake summers

This summer June Lake (and the Eastern Sierra in general) has been keeping me particularly busy. My social media business has been keeping me up late nights, toiling away on my laptop, but the days... ah, the days! They have been nothing short of spectacular. Trusty Maxdog and I have been romping through sagebrush and rabbitbrush (which makes Max sneeze).

Admittedly, there have been some fairly serious fires that have obscured scenery at times (like, when my parents visited, for example). But, as my dad always says, you just can't make this stuff up. I live here. Wow.

Not even kidding, people. An unedited sunset a few days ago!

A hazy view of the June Lake loop from a hike with my parental units.

Mono Lake on a still day. With clouds.

iPhone mania, and the attached natural history dilemma

You were sending a text message. Meanwhile an Osprey crooked back strong raptor wings, turned rigid into a controlled free fall dive from far above a trout-stocked lake. The splash as the Osprey entered the water, and the splash as the bird exited were both graceful. Doing a flyby to shake off water and boast the catch of the day, Osprey chicks were being fed in the distance when you hit "send."

You were posting a photo of yourself in front of a sign to Instagram. The entire field of Belding's ground squirrel females go into estrus for a constant 6 hours a year. Belding's mate above ground - the only ground squirrels to do so - in a terrible, but terribly interesting, frenzy of nature. Done, they go about their day.

You were checking Facebook on your iPhone. In the perfectly clear night sky, silent pop, pop pop pop, pop pop of light, nature's fireworks, a meteor shower.

Your phone started ringing, and you tear apart your backpack to find it. On a Mariposa lily, a butterfly alights, slowly beats its wings, the flowering grass sways back and forth with the breeze. Pollination occurs.

Nature's moments are just that; moment after moment, all special, but all there to experience. More often than not, nature viewing happens past the length of your arm, very unlike iPhone interactions. The digital world blurs vision, intent, and acknowledgement of our surroundings, and I fear our natural places will only be respected by a "like" via a screen, largely obscured by a "filter". Blame cannot be placed on the younger generation, because grandparents and parents are worse: they pay the cell phone bills and have the same gadgets, perhaps less expertly, attached to palms.

Put them down. Not in a natural place? PUT THEM DOWN! Put them down and talk. Put them down and observe. PUT THEM DOWN and drink a cup of coffee without taking a picture of it. Just try. Try to remember something by cataloging in your brain, not your photo stream. Try to look someone in the eye. Try to talk to someone face to face. TRY TO NOT GIVE A SHIT what others think about your current location. You are there. That used to be enough.