the bay area run

one of their first solo trips together ever.

the actual first? a "test run" to teton valley earlier in the spring. a familiar place, quiet, feels like home there. snow drifts up to the roofs and 4ft walls of snow on each side of the road. "i love this place so much but how do you survive 9 months of this every year? different way of living i guess. grandparents did it just fine. built different for sure. sorry driggs."

this was in november, a few months after a global parasite plagued the area. faces covered, a bubble of "get tf away from me" but a lot of free time with the ride or dies. she got one real estate commission and immediately started packing her vacation fits for california. not a new place but new areas. their last chance before the cold weather really hit.

one of their favorite trips throughout the legend of driggs. smooth sailing until leaving the city. not bad though. just... *drives in silence for 4 hours* 

late night car camping

chilly, rainy, high vibes

they got in late, reserved a site in the rain, and canceled the tent plan. a paid site with wifi at the reservation cabin. "just in time! we close in 10 minutes." after 14 hours driving through a barren "wasteland." yeah... lay the seats down and call it a night.

the borrowed jetboil

a friend caught wind of our travel plans. said here take this. sold forever. she got a gifted one a couple years later. an occasional bring along in the hiking pack for tea on the trail or summit warmth. a cozy morning. full skincare routine. makeup and hair in the car. caffeinated tea for the full beach day planned ahead. 

closed beaches

the beach options they picked out were all closed from earlier fires. nearly the whole area. a bummer. one of the best and most famous scenic drives. music on blast with the windows down. absolute zero complaints.

south blows north

"I wonder how you get down there... eh we have a good one picked out already." indie surf along the pch. "i wish we could live here. it's not dark and depressing and actually breathable here." what she thought about the city here in the winter only. "last night was cold though..."

pre-diagnosis support

her diagnosis didn't come until the following spring. at the time, he was classified as an emotional support animal (esa) with an "official" letter from somewhere online. it was better than nothing until the symptoms lined up right.

they were both young, recently moved home again from the plague, working from home with showings just for the gram to show off the current market with no clients until the fall. she had her first 2 million dollar clients, then everyone freaked out and we never got them back again.

she started lagom that year though, was getting by off of watercolor portaits and finally landed a family deal. whew. rough year. well deserved. "just keep it cheap driggs this thing's gotta last us awhile."

work day at the beach

the daily vacation selfie

no tripod, no one else to take a photo for them, just a 21yr old adult and her dog enjoying the beach for themselves. art journals ready for after the much needed beach nap. she woke up to driggs sitting in the biggest trench he ever dug himself with a long dried seaweed stick he was trying to bury for later. "hell yeah nice job. you havin' fun bud?"

wine + a new book

recommended. she read 10 pages before zoning out on the sound of the waves. soothing repetitions for the nervous system. the edible hit by then too. "i could just lay here forever my god this is heaven." waves were too rough for swimming though. she dunked herself and body surfed a wave back while driggs cried bloody murder from land. he was jealous but wouldn't have survived that swim on his own yet. forgotten corkscrew... pointless.

we can't get over the dumb poses either

a couple drawings done and the sun came out. "driggs lets get it while the lighting's good." slap a paid vlogger's filter on and call it a day. adjustments down as necessary. easy work done but a bit much for this particular photo. the response to her mom's text "how is it?! send me a pic!!"

we still think about this sunset sometimes

only the top half of the short trail was open. a bucket list stop. she almost cried at how beautiful it was. didnt want to hog the best view spot while she was at it. "i guess we'll just have to come back since everythings closed. its been awhile since the fires, it's not like the beach is burning up rn. i'm gonna cry its so pretty here."

an airbnb that night, in a cute seaside town with a local coffee shop on the way to a dog-friendly surf beach the following morning. followed by thrifting a new shirt for $15 instead of a $90 aquarium ticket. "another time when we're more official driggs."

the road to wine valley

a new plan

the road was literally closed down there. so they pulled up directions and routed to wine country. "not bad." but first, fast food on the pacific ocean. no cheese of course. people in surfing lessons. bigger waves than she thought. "don't you get like 40ft waves here?" the cove further south. this one's more friendly.

cocktails on the pier

"driggs lets do some desensitization with the sea lions" while they waited for a seat on the patio. some sweet peach mix with truffle fries. driggs was very confused. it was dark but he knew many things were closeby. a silent good boy ready for his single fry reward. a quick drive to a gifted night at a hotel for night 3. their final.

"omggg just you two today?! i love thatt"

their first and only official wine tasting. some roots grow down, some grow out, affects the flavor entirely. served an extra flight "on the house." they bought an $80 bottle to open when they move out again. it sat for over a year before she said "whatever i'll just get another one later."

the sunset was so good over the red bridge they pulled over at a park on the other side to enjoy it. dreading the drive back to the other salty place, after the winery though. focus on now, not the ending of the fun. enjoy the moment while it lasts. as always.

the dark, long road home

they took the northern route on the way in, so they thought they'd take the southern route on the way out. they'd never seen the lake before then. barely there after sunset but before dark. just in time for some barely there pics.

they filled up for gas in a border town before the last 8 hours of nothing in the dark. holding back tears for so long she forgot she never took the gas pump out. away they went with no sound or alert.

strange cars tailgating, matching her speed, flashing brights in the middle of a 60mi straight stretch. she pulled over in the next town, with the same car still following. "you ready to fight driggs?" *rolls the window down with driggs at her side. "i just thought you might wanna know about that." .... *throws it away, google search, food secured* "i wasn't planning on driving all the way home tonight bud. why didn't you say anything..."

no damage, no ticket, just laughs a couple weeks later when the embarrassment wore off. lucky dog that time. never happened again.

no woods on this one. definitely not out of them yet either though...