I might as well mention this now because you'll soon notice that those in charge of naming the National parks in this country are among the least imaginative people ever. This picture and those to come adequately demonstrate why I've come to this conclusion. After lunch and some dune cruising, I made my way to Tucson. The next day was spent stretching my legs on a good ten mile walk around Saguaro National Park (a little imagination people!). I was quite enthralled by this landscape. It was incredibly different than the deserts of Southern Utah that I love so dearly. These desert valleys were teaming with such a diversity of cactus species, the most distinct being the saguaro itself which up until this point I had never encountered. 
The uniqueness of this environment was soon attested to as I began to identify the birds around me: every single one was a species new to me, species that only range in a small area around Southern Arizona and Mexico. It was like visiting a foreign country: without the stagnation of familiarity everything seemed strange and fascinating. After drinking in the new surroundings, I drove outside of town and found a great spot to set up camp. With the sun going down over the nearby mountains, I turned on the radio and was pleasantly surprised by the best blues segment I've ever heard played on the air. It even paid tribute to Chicago blues specifically. With the stars overhead, I fell asleep in a blissful state. 
Then I woke up with a very sore back and the traveling ensued. This morning the reality of winter finally struck me
as strong winds dropped temperatures to a more reasonable january level. So I decided to halt all hiking attempts and just drive on. I crossed into California and stopped at Joshua Tree National Park. It was even colder here, sapping all my enthusiasm for being outdoors. Still, I drove through the park, walked around here and there among some interesting rock formations, followed a coyote for awhile, snapped a few pictures and was on my way.
I've never felt so touristy before! It was gross. Anyway, after a hotel stay and half a day of driving I began to recognize my surroundings. Past the bay and on the 101, familiar exits passed by. Curving through the hills and valleys, the turns still familiar to me the wineries rolled by and soon the craggy coastline appeared. This area truly is a sight to see. Coming from the featureless plains of Lubbock, I appreciated it all the more. I was lucky to arrive back in Mendocino during a warm spell and had a few days of sunshine to reacquaint myself with favorite spots. Now that we're settled in, the rains have begun in typical winter fashion. I could try to explain where we live, but words don't do it justice. If you go to : this website you'll get to explore our house. Our friend Sarah owns the place and used to rent out the back apartment as a bed and breakfast. So all the guest areas are part of our place, fully furnished and decorated with Sarah's art. Our backyard connects to trails leading into state park forest and a river trail which I frequent when the rains let up. We walked yesterday afternoon a little ways away from the house and collected a bounty of gourmet mushrooms for dinner. Earlier that day, I saw these mushrooms being sold at the grocery store for $17.00/lb. We probably gathered a couple lbs in the span of 30 minutes. Talk about the good life.
