Where There Once Was Water ... there is Fire

My heart goes out to all those who have been affected by the fires raging - locally in Big Sur and at Lake Nacimiento, and throughout all of California. Be safe out there, my friends, and hug a Firefighter - they are truly heroes. 

July & August have been tremendously full, and I am thrilled to take some time today to share all our recent adventures with you. Thank you for your continued support for this project. Much love!

In early July a crew of us headed out to the San Joaquin River Gorge to visit the Lodge family and to learn first-hand about the beauty of the region, and the dangers of the proposed Temperance Flat Dam. I encourage you to learn more about this issue HERE - And to join us in asking Sally Jewell to oppose the Temperance Flat dam HERE.

I spent an evening on the shores of Huntington Lake, in the heart of the Sierras affected by bug kill, meditating and sitting with the trees... in the silence, listening... observing... feeling. Our forest... is dying. And for the first time, I sat and I cried with her. Maybe from exhaustion, perhaps sympathy, or even a passing wave of that oppressive feeling of helplessness... I don't know. But when you sit there, looking eye to eye with a dying forest - the lungs of our planet - for me at least, it was hard not to cry....

On a lighter note, my dear friend Mike Mariant and I flew the drone over Tablas Creek Vineyard, a local biodynamic winery in Paso Robles Wine Country, in preparation for filming a couple days of early morning harvest activity in the coming weeks. If you are on the lookout for delicious wine that is grown biodynamically, Tablas Creek is your place.

I traveled up to the South Fork of the American River to do some white water rafting with Friends of the River. Now let me just begin by saying that this crazy business was never on my to-do list, haha!, but alas, I went rafting on Class 2 & 3 rapids, and I managed to stay non-projectile and perma-grinning, the entire day.  Friends of the River is a state-wide river conservation group fighting to protect our rivers, and I definitely got to experience (and film!) some good fun "River Luv". You can join me next year!  Because, yeah, I'm hooked.

As always, thank you for your love and support! If you are interested in participating in this project, or if you know of anyone who might be a good contact, resource, or interview, please be in touch. Namaste.

Coming up...
The Heirloom Seed Expo : Santa Rosa, CA, September 6-8, 2016
SAWPA Riverwalk : Santa Ana River, CA, October 6, 2016

If you haven't yet, please sign up for our newsletter HERE - we send out updates about once a month, and if you're on the list, you'll never miss a thing!  :)

Personal Responsibility

Flooded rice fields are a common sight in the Sacramento Valley. The average pound of rice requires 449 gallons (1,700 liters) of water to produce.

It's heating up out there!

June is here. Yowza! El "None-yo" is in our past, it's HOT, record hot in some places, and Lake Mead is at an all time low. This is heavy stuff, my friends.

As I continue on this wild adventure, I am learning that the consequences of our personal choices are not as abstract & removed as they may seem. Our personal choices & habits are, in fact, at the root of our planet's struggle. I am learning that I must do everything in my power to minimize my footprint on this Earth. To use LESS. Less water. Less stuff. Less everything. We all must. And the good news is ... YES, it absolutely makes a difference.

In early May I had the opportunity to meet (and film!) one of my all-time favorite filmmakers, Josh Fox, as he visited SLO on his "How to Let Go & Love" tour. AMAZING. I traveled to Sacramento to participate in California Rivers Day at the State Capitol with Friends of the River, California's only statewide river conservation organization. I also spent a couple inspiring days at the Yisrael Family Farm, a 1/2 acre urban farm in Oak Park, whose mission is pure... to "Transform the Hood for GOOD." 

And I flew. Yew! Thanks to a long-time friend, and his shiny new pilot's license, I had the opportunity for a bird's eye view.... of thousands of nut trees in tidy little rows, sprawling urban developments, the intricate and delicate Delta, and freshly flooded rice fields stretching for miles.

Steven and I traveled to Yosemite Valley for a few days to celebrate two super fun years of marriage, and it was refreshing to hike amidst the roar of the waterfalls and to feel their cool mist on our faces. Mother Nature is wondrous indeed.

This film, this project, is already the biggest and most rewarding of my career.... and I still feel like I'm only just beginning. AMAZING. You may have caught my mug smiling at you from the cover of the Paso Robles Magazine recently, or perhaps from the Art pages of the New Times. Whee! I am honored and thrilled to be making headlines along the way. Thank you all for your continued support & care. Y'all are truly the BEST!  xo