KEN IN CALIFORNIA FOR WORK

It's always a pleasure to have Ken come to California for work. Sometimes the banks are in LA, but on occasion they are in Irvine. Either way, he makes it a point to come and spend at least one evening here and when we're lucky,

2 or 3 evenings.

This last time he was here during a heat wave. In SoCal we get the Santa Ana winds which are hot a dry and this was no exception. After a delightful meal at Baja Fish, (wonderful shrimp and beans and rice - thanks Ken) we went to Dana Point and took a walk around the harbor. 

 We saw a race between women's teams coming back into the harbor. It was fun to watch. They were paddling against those Santa Ana winds, and it was tough! 

(this is the channel back to the harbor. That's a breakwater wall in the background).

We also saw the statue honoring Richard Dana who wrote the wonderful story of Two Years Before the Mast. (Great book!) He spent time in this area cowboying and they would throw the hides of cattle off the cliffs above to the boats below.

The headland bluffs near Mission San Juan Capistrano presented an obstacle to taking the cow hides to the beach for subsequent loading onto the ship. So Dana, along with others of the Pilgrim's crew, tossed the hides from the bluffs, while spinning them like a frisbee. Some hides got stuck part way down the cliff and Dana was lowered with ropes to retrieve them. The headlands, along with the adjacent present day city, took on Dana's name as Dana Point.

 The next evening we went to San Clemente to walk along the board walk. It's always delightful there and has a lovely feeling. So many people vacationing and having a good time.  We happened upon a surfer's tribute to someone who passed away 3 years ago. Each year on this date, they come out with a rose between their teeth as they paddle out on their surfboards. They formed a circle and did some reminiscing. We watched for awhile and then continued on to the end of the board walk.

 On our way back all the "friends" who weren't in the water, but on the board walk tossed in their flowers as well. It was a delightful tribute. He must have been someone very special for so many people to make the effort each year.

Those are the roses in the water.