Off the Grid

I'm technology challenged in the wilderness.

I've been here since yesterday evening and was unable to publish last night. I spent the day in transit. The constantly changing landscape mirrored my own inner space. The westering sun threw enormous beams through the clouds and the sky was illuminated with an unusual silvery blue.

The difference between here and the beach towns is a bit surreal. I'm staying on a horse ranch in Ranchita. Conditions are primitive. And wonderful. I spend the mornings working with the horses and the afternoons hiking in the desert. I go to bed with the sun and rise with the sun.

There's something very clarifying about spending some time this way.

I drove through mist, fog, and storm to get here. California's been dry for a year, so this is unusual. It made rivers in the desert. When I arrived, a cloud settled over the place.

Literally.

There was no visibility. I could not see my next step. The night was cold and damp. It was a misty morning until all that burned off and revealed crystal blue skies and brilliant sun.

In the afternoon as I drive my bright red Jeep Renegade down the road, I am met with sweeping views of chapparal before descending 4000 feet into the desert bowl, where the heat bakes out whatever ails. It never fails to take my breath away.

The day is beautiful - all sunshine and shadows of clouds on mountains.

Back at the ranch in the evening, the setting sun turns big, puffy white clouds deep pink and glows behind the mountains, setting the sky on fire. It darkens quickly and a late waxing crescent moon appears suddenly in the sky. Jupiter and Mars attend her. As the hours progress, more stars appear, until the skies are filled with them. I'm hoping to see the Milky Way.

My phone is acting up and the camera's not working. My words are going to have to carry the experience. We make do and discover unexpected treasure.

Into the Beams is an approximately 40-day wilderness writing journey during the period of the 2018 Venus retrograde. The only agenda is to show up and discover the  treasure buried there.