Swell Life

After a week of being in the high desert, I decided a trip to the Los Angeles area was in store?especially since it was during my b-day week.
First stop, hair. Yes, it was past time to get my hair done. Way past due, actually I?m embarrassed to say. Maui living and surfing doesn?t require much hair maintence?thank goddess! I had the absolute pleasure to go to Mimosa Hair Salon in Hermosa Beach. It was an absolute pleasure because my old roomie, Shari Cridland, did my cut and color. It was also an absolute pleasure to see her following her Bliss. Shari and I use to teach elementary school together in Redondo Beach and she always spoke of her dream to be a hair dresser. Years later, she followed that dream and has one year under her belt as a professional hair stylist and colorist. Don?t you love it! Another person in this world that is taking their passion and creating a livelihood from it. Shari does a kick ass job and I think I will need to fly back to Hermosa Beach to get my hair done. Check us out eating sushi afterwards at Paradise Sushi in Hermosa Beach. If ever in the south bay area and need your hair done, check out my old roomie, Shari Cridland! Call her Critlands?she likes that.

My Pal Shari…who followed her bliss.

Sushi Time.

Wow, being home (my parents) is really strange but also fun. Some things have changed, some things will never change. We went to a housewarming party for a ?girl? I use to babysit when I was in high school. Her name is Rebecca Kenneally and six children later she is a beautiful mom and wife. I don?t know how she does it with six kids though?I was quite shocked at how genuinely happy she is. Check out some shots below of her children and friends. Needless to say, Rebecca has been e-mailing us about a trip to SwellWomen?she deserves it! Hope you make it out to Maui.

Becky and my mom…don’t get any ideas Mom!

Cute kids all over the place.

I get red eyes when I eat chicken.

Ahhhh….

As odd as it may seem, Monica and I headed to Las Vegas immediately following the Yoga Journal Conference. I like to keep a balance?ha ha. Actually, we met our parents there for a family visit and Vegas was a nice point to meet up. I?m not sure how to describe this rather drastic transition from centeredness, groundedness and an inner peace connection to lights, gambling, and tons of people in a desert surrounding. Let?s just say that it was interesting. I did feel quite open though and noticed even amongst the sounds of the slots and buzz of people a sense of lightness and joy. As you can see from the photos, my sister and I were still in yoga ?mode??I certainly hope yoga ?mode? becomes life ?mode??I believe it will.

Shopping, again…Outlets, outlets, outlets! They certainly don?t have these in Maui. I didn?t go crazy though?just one summer dress, a present for my husband and a gift for my friend.
120 outlet stores in one place. That?s a scary thought.
My parents were in a slot machine contest where you get 15 minutes to keep pressing the button and whoever gets the most points wins?they won $50.
Another highlight was in the evening when our family met up with some family friends that have moved to Vegas. Lupita, Roger and Al have been our friends for about 30 years or more and it has been 4 or so years since we saw them. It was so nice to reconnect ?.

My Parents, Bernice and Hank Barnas…aren’t they cute! They just celebrated their 42 anniversary.

More buffets…my sister and I thought the Yoga Journal Conference buffet was much better.

Even in Vegas, yoga is needed.

Lucky Mom!

A Family that plays Bingo together, stays together.

Our friends.

We didn?t sleep. Well, with the 4 hour difference and, I imagine, the excitement of a new day both of us (my sister and I) were fast asleep at about 2:00am. We woke up to a cloudy day and to a severe drop in the weather temperature. Definitely not bikini weather. UH OH. What are two girls from Maui going to do? Go shopping of course. Registration wasn?t until 4:00pm so we hoped on the ?shopping shuttle? (yes, it even said that on the side of the bus) and rode into the big city of Estes Park.
After making some small purchases that consisted of ?yoga items? we headed back on the ?shopping shuttle? just in time to eat lunch. You see when you stay at the Estes Park YMCA Lodge you pay for your room and a meal ticket. It?s actually not a bad set up especially if you are without a vehicle and attending a conference. BUFFET GONE WRONG. Oh my, Oh my, Oh my?the buffet was worse than I expected a buffet to be. Our lunch choice was fried corn dogs, French fries, fried chicken wings and fried tater tots. Oh yeah, they had a vegetarian plate. A salad and cold canned vegetables. Oh my?how in the world is this going to work out for the entire week. As you may guess, my sister and I were quite nervous about the food situation and were praying that the food would get better?especially for the Yoga Journal Conference.

We have arrived?10+ hours later and only one layover but WE have arrived. Estes Park is Beautiful with 800 acres of national forest and tons of wildlife. The sky was blue when I lifted my 54lb duffle bag (jeez what did I bring?) off of the shuttle service and attempted to carry it without pulling any muscles to our very simple yet practical room in the Mt. Ypsilon Lodge with my sister ahead of me rolling her suitcase. Yes, I envied her wheels and made a mental note to get a suitcase with wheels. We are here a day early to ward off all signs of jet lag (little did we know our jet lag would last for 5 days). A far cry from being on Maui at sea level, at 9,000 feet we were left with static hair, dry skin and dried up nostrils. It wasn?t a pretty sight and to top it off my sinuses decided to travel with me too. But yes, it?s definitely worth the trek and the dry body parts?registration for our yoga conference begins tomorrow?YIPPEEE!

Our VERY simple room…feels like kid’s camp.

We are here!

Monica checking out our beautiful surroundings.

The month long trip finally begins. People often ask me if I get land locked on Maui but I always say no?at least is doesn?t feel like I am. However, I was excited to hop on the plane to my first destination, Estes Park Colorado, for the 12th Annual Yoga Journal conference. Just to add to the excitement, I am going to make this journey across the waters with my sister and one of our retreat?s yoga instructors, Monica Barnas.

Excited about our Sister Trip!

Last night was great here in Maui. The surf was a 6-8′ and the crowd was pretty mellow for the first real winter north swell. Here is the forecast for today’s surf. Have fun and get wet!

This shot is from Joem Costes on the North Shore of Oahu. Thought the photo was pretty cool. You can see more of his work at surferpix.com

NORTH SHORE’S REGIONAL OVERVIEW:
NNW (330) swell peaked yesterday and is on the decline today but still has plenty of fun waves to be had. Most spots on the north shore have solid waves in the shoulder to head high range with the standout locations having sets in the near overhead range. Ocean surface is pretty smooth/glassy, as not much wind is blowing early this morning. ENE Trades will fill back in by midday, so expect normal side/offshore conditions at the more exposed areas this afternoon. Best time to surf is during mid-day due to dropping tide, nice sunny conditions, and less crowds!
FORECAST SUMMARY:
FRIDAY:Fading but still fun NNW groundswell with shoulder-head high plus surf and some better sets, best early in the morning.

Wind: E Trades around 10-13kts.