WEEKEND IN THE LOST COAST OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

This was a wonderful weekend spent in the north coast of California.With a new convertible , we hopped in the car heading north for a weekend in california's LOST COAST.First stop was Redding , 160 miles north of Yuba City where we live.Redding as i discovered is an upscale and rustic town without the snobbish feel that is usually associated with other upscale towns in California .City slickers that we are ( or at least that's how i feel) we were impressed with the humlility that this town exudes.MOVE OVER- MONTEREY AND CARMEL OR EVEN SAN FRANCISCO, REDDING ROCKS! HA HA HA! We made a pit stop at a bowling alley and was surprised to find it full and crowded mostly elderly people and the senior citizen league cranking up the bowling lanes.We continued on to criss cross the Shasta and Siskiyou Mountains.I have to tell you this place is almost close to heaven. The landscape is magnificent beyond belief and no amount of words or even pictures can do justice to the this place. 2 hours crisscrossing the mountains and rivers and the lush greenery, some of it affected by the monstrous California wildfires, we arrived in Crescent City and close to the Oregon border.We finally reached the part of the lost coast of california .Well, the pictures will have to suffice for the undescribably magnificent northern california coastline.

THOUGHTS ,MUSINGS AND CONTEMPLATION

It is a beautiful weekend here in Yuba City.It was agreably hot and pleasant with a light breeze of air.Armed with my laptop and a book on Taoism by Wayne Dyer, I headed to Starbucks for my daily caffeine free fix.MP3 plugged in and Sting crooning about the Russians, I am ready to roll and write.These rare moments of having my chai tea latte venti within the confines of Starbucks ambiance are priceless.This is an indispensable ritual for me to regroup and collect my thoughts.WELCOME TO STARBUCKS COUNTRY! !
This week i have been reading a book on TAOISM by WAYNE DYER titled CHANGE YOUR THOUGHTS CHANGE YOUR LIFE - LIVING THE WISDOM OF THE TAO.I have to admit I am a proponent of spiritual thinking and living . I would not know how to live my life without the guidelines I learn from these kinds of reading material. As i think and ponder my next life, yes there is a life beyond, difficult to believe but irrevocably true, i could not help but ponder what is it like living on the other side of the fence.This has been a question that has been clouding my mind and have been compelled to find the answer but never lucky enough to find a clear cut answer to the question. It would be wonderful if someone thoroughly dissected the question and found the answer. Call it coincidence but as i think about my future spiritual life, the newsflash in AOL about the death of hundreds of Indians in a religious pilgrimage flashed in my laptop screen. We do have a limited time here on earth , so my question is , what about the life after? What is it like there? What am I here for? I often wondered about the purpose of the frivolity of my physical life here on earth.As I age and come to terms with my temporary stay here , the meaning of death becomes clearer .The fragility of my physical life seem to come at a speed faster than I anticipate. Such speed is so volatile that i can see my life passing by in a whiff. Somehow this pushes me to accomplish much more worthwhile deeds that i have never or have thought of to accomplish in my much younger days. Gone are the days when the focal point of my priorities revolve around much more mundane things. Getting ahead financially, acquiring material things that eventually fade away ... pushing extremely hard to chase the dollar and then what? These i cannot take it all with me anyway . I realize these goals are transient but yet the pull and influence they exert in my human conciousness is beyond my peony comprehension and rationality.I feel defeated trying to absorb and understand the purpose of it all. There are times when I wish there is a genie in a bottle that can explain to me the reason of this all. Why ,why, why? Meditation and prayer had been my constant companion in my journey to life.Without these , I honestly don't know how to live and conduct my life.But yet, even with these arsenal of roadmap to life, there are still questions left unanswered.

BIG SUR COAST LINE

FRAGILE

If blood will flow when flesh and steel are one

Drying in the colour of the evening sun

Tomorrow’s rain will wash the stains away

But something in our minds will always stay

Perhaps this final act was meant

To clinch a lifetime’s argument

That nothing comes from violence and nothing ever could

For all those born beneath an angry star

Lest we forget how fragile we are.

By: Sting

RED SUNSET

Today, i spent a good time making entries and constructing my entries. John Denver music blasting in my Rhapsody( my online music machine) he he he! I need music to get me in the mood of writing.It is essential for me to get the ideas to write down. TAKE ME HOME COUNTRY ROADS, ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH , LEAVING ON A JET PLANE . Sounds familiar? Classic John Denver songs.There is something in music that changes your thinking and emotions. I honestly believe that sound exerts a tremendous amount of influence on how you feel and how you think. Carl Jung , if he were alive today can probably attest to this.Carl Jung , are you listening? Hahaha!!!!

Anyway, the energy of sound especially the sound of music is a force to contend with and not be taken lightly. It is something surreal that i find difficult to explain.I feel i am flying up above the clouds given the appropriate music i am listening to at any given moment.It is not difficult for me to be transported to a different time and space when i listen to a certain music that easily woes my soul.

I went out for my daily 3.5 mile walk today and i swear, i have seen the most beautiful red sunset .Luckily, i brought my camera with me and i was able to take a shot .Of course , my cheap Canon camera does not do justice to the picture but anyhow, i wanted to share it with you.

EUROPE 2006

A few more pictures from Europe.Amsterdam,

Paris ,Brussels and Germany.

EUROPE 2005

Some pictures from Europe trip in 2005. Cinque Terre Italy is unique with all the 5 little villages.Lugano lake in Switzerland.

Philippines June 2008

Arrived in Manila via Taipeh after a 14 hour direct flight from San Francisco to Taipeh।Connecting flight from Taipeh was not so bad with a 2 hour flight to Manila.Landing at the Ninoy Aquino Airport makes me feel that I am home even after 25 years of being away and making California as my adopted home.It was good to be home and seeing the familiar places I know even after 25 years of absence here.The heat is excruciating once I got off the plane with 100 % humidity drenching my entire body with sweat.I came home for my Mom's 85th birthday.I looked forward to this big event.After all, how many people can claim they live to be 85? This day and age, that is a gift and I sure would love to have that same gift to grow old like my mom.

My First Blog Entry

Today I finally sat down and exert my energy into creating my first blog entry.I am still trying to learn the ropes how to post a blog or make a blog.As much as it sounds daunting to make my first blog as this is a totally unfamiliar territory to me,I am thanking my nephew Andrew Hughes (who normally lives in Indiana but is currently in Indonesia doing a very noble work being a novice missionary helping the poor and displaced people in the outbacks of Indonesia) for giving me the inspiration and idea to create my own blog site.Andrew is such a prolific writer as I am discovering in his blog.Here is Andrew's blog site if you are interested to read it.http://andrewinindo.blogspot.com//.
I have dreamed of being a writer but the circumstances of my past and present life has not allowed me to follow that path.Coupled with the fact, that writing as a serious way of making a living in the Philipines was not strongly encouraged nor rewarded at the time i was contemplating of being a serious writer.Being the writer wanna be in me, that dream has not died and the thrill of writing has not left me.At the back of my mind, I always have the inclination to write for my own fulfillment and joy.I have envisioned the purpose of this blog mainly for my travels- I am passionate about travelling as it is something that is innate to my being and a necessity in my existence. I thrive on adventure .I live and breath it. Without it, it would be impossible for me to live any other kind of life.I dream of seeing the whole world and I do intend to share my travels here in this blog.Paging Christopher Columbus and Jacques Costeau!!!.Time to give you a run for your money!!! just to infuse a little joke here...Ha ha ha!
Travel has always excited me- the thought of seeing far flung places beyond my wildest imagination ,the road less travelled and visiting places far from the madding crowd has given me enough adrenaline to pursue this goal. I am committed to fulfill that dream before the end of my lifetime. Ha ha ha! THY DREAM WILL BE DONE.AMEN

site under construction

Dear Friends,
I am in the process of creating my blog. I will be posting pictures and entries soon.Please come back and check.