gonzoaesthetic

No filter necessary this evening 💕 #pinkmoment

Step 1. Get sick (#sinusinfection) Step 2. Denial (#gohiking) Step 3. Try to work through it (#ouch) Step 4. Lay down (#teaislife) Step 5. Take selfie with Mr. Moose (#applewatchpromo?) Step 6. Nap until the debate comes on (#😱)

Yesterday I had a really rough day. It was HARD. Today, I took a class with a friend and it filled me back up. It smoothed some rough edges and made me feel calm again. Everything isn't perfect now. It wasn't magic... or maybe it was. The power of creativity cannot be underestimated. When I'm feeling raw and emotional and tired it would be easier to stay home. It would be easier to just say no to things. But doing that means accepting that I am not strong enough to overcome dark days and I DO NOT accept that. I am powerful. I am also blue...

Some mornings I don't just not want to run. Some mornings I REALLY don't want to get out of bed. Some mornings I just don't want to see what's out there. So I promise myself things. I promise myself that I can go run a trail I love even though I need to drive there and it will take longer. Sometimes I promise myself when I'm done I can get a breakfast sandwich with cheese and a giant coffee. Sometimes I even promise myself that if I go and I run, and I still don't want to do the day, I don't need to. I can give up and go back to bed. I've never gone back to bed. Not. Once. #getupandgo #promiseyourself

I give this evening a 10/10 score. 🏆 Well done all around. (at Ojai, California)

Today's color inspiration is issue 5 of @collectivequarterly :Penobscot and I'm so in love with it. These are some of the most inspirational and creative people around and I highly encourage people to follow them and order their magazine. Even more than issue 3, which was on the place I now live, I'm emotional over the newest issue. Growing up in New England is something I'm incredibly grateful for. I went for my first sail at four years old and the rocky coastline and fall colors are so much a part of my soul. It never occurred to me that there were places without harsh winters, ice storms and snow days. Places where the salt from the roads and off the ocean didn't eat through everything. Living where I am now in California is a whole new adventure and one that suits me. I was blessed to grow up with the four extremes though. Thanks to the guys at CQ for really getting to the heart of New England, Maine specifically, and all its rough glory.

Oh, helloooooo most adorable and stylish reading corner in the world. Love. ☕️@beaconcoffee #Ojai (at Beacon Ojai)

Happy weekend people 💕🍻

Herb harvest today was basically sensory overload. I put my face in these. It was a good thing to do. Take time to stop and smell the rosemary!

I've been sitting at a work desk all day being frustrated with art. That's a good frustration to feel. However, I realized haven't taken many photos lately because I've been busy with other stuff. One of the things I did do recently though was pull a bunch of old photos for my AppleTV slideshow. I hate some of my old photos but some I could never stop loving. This one was taken in the dark during a full moon on St. John. It was a good night and I drank a lot of rum. It's a long exposure not a double exposure. I'm thinking perhaps next full moon I do this again. Why haven't I?! What's wrong with me?! This is cool! Get it together woman... (at Saint John, U.S. Virgin Islands)

After having a rough year of feeling rotten I've now tried lots of different things I'd never thought I'd try to feel good. I've even changed my feelings about some of the stuff I was sure was a good idea (not much though). From herbal medicine and acupuncture to antibiotics and lab tests. I feel really good lately. I'm really committed more than ever to self care though. Think just relaxing, eating healthy and staying positive is some kind of luxury? Think again. It takes work to stop your brain. Calm your worry and just try to BE HEALTHY. I don't care who you are or what you do, happiness is more of a choice than we give ourselves credit for. It comes WAY easier to some but as someone who gets up every day with the dark eyes of depression watching and waiting to drag me under, I feel empowered by every step I take away from that monster. I still know he's going to be there tomorrow when I wake up, but the bigger I make myself, the smaller he gets. Tonight's experiment? Sweating A LOT. If the people of Finland love it so much, why shouldn't I?

Someone said the average population here is 150. That's just about right for me. Love this tiny town. Excited to go back to mine today though! (at Two Harbors, California)

I head back to life tomorrow. For now my biggest decision will be when to walk all the way down to the beach and get a taco. Also, I'm drinking a glass of wine with a straw out of a plastic cup because I'm extraordinarily classy. Honestly, I'm super thankful for this week and cannot wait to get home and back to the projects I started before I left. I miss my art projects sometimes like they were my babies.

Pardon me. Excuse me? Sir? (at Santa Catalina Island)

Sorry. I think it's possible I won't be able to ever go home. Please forward my mail to Catalina 😱

I almost moved to the Midwest once. I have no idea how long I would have lasted without the ocean. I love the desert. I love mountains and long stretches of farmland. I just need to know I can get to the ocean on a day when my heart really needs it. Nothing recharges quite the same way I think. You don't need a boat or anything at all. You just need to be able to smell it and hear it. 🌊💙 (at Avalon Harbor, Catalina Island)

Partners on the path. It's so wonderful to find someone to explore life with. (at Mount Pinos (near The Summit))