…Is a candy store that has been at the Barnyard for as long as I can remember.  And the Barnyard I’m referring to is a rustic and beautiful shopping center in Carmel-by-the-Sea, known for its beautiful gardens and this time of year it’s fairy-land Christmas decor.

Above and below, some of those “pieces of heaven”.

Yes, I bought a few!

But that phrase…pieces of heaven….is so much more than a candy store.  Pieces of heaven …are…is….every glimps of the beautiful Pacific Ocean, crashing against the shore and the sight of the sea gulls above, riding the wind.

It’s  visiting with friends and family in their homes, or over coffee  (or…umm…a margarita 😀) in some of my favorite haunts.

Deetjens serves brown sugar chunks with coffee, and always has soy milk on hand.

It’s the towering redwoods, the dramatic coastal views, and the magical quality of Big Sur.

It’s  the Big Sur Lighthouse, Point Lobos, the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, and long, lonely stretches of beach with no one on them, amazingly.  It’s the white sand, dog friendly Carmel Beach, and the walking trails along the ocean in Pacific Grove.  It’s comparably easy access to vegan food.

Part of the menu at Abha Indian Cuisine, a newer restaurant at the Barnyard.

It’s the foot trails down to the ocean throughout Garrapata State Park, with unexpected bench’s placed for spectacular views along the way.

And I could go on.  And on.  And on.  You get my drift…I love it here, and I feel so SO blessed and fortunate to be able to partake of this extraordinary place.  Through trouble and strife I found my way to this magnificence some 30 years ago, but it’s when I leave it that I discover it really is my home place.  Even the weather suits me to a T….the fog and generally cool temperatures that happen here are perfect.  For Joy and Shiloh and I.

So I am thankful and full of gratitude that I can Be Here Now….and the plan is to come back soon.

In a few days we will be heading back to Caballo Loco Ranch…and yes, happily!  I’m looking forward to being there for the rest of the winter!  When it gets too hot at the ranch…and I’m not sure when that will be but sometime in March or April I expect….we will come back to California’s central coast for the summer.  Mary is retired now and itching to travel, but not anxious to leave her house empty and then there is the cat that adopted her, who needs care.  The dogs and I are needing a travel break.  So….I’ll stay at her house and she can travel and come and go as she pleases.  We’ll see how it works out….

For now,  I pray that your New Year…2018 (how can that be??), will find you full of peace and love and joy, and yeah, that this beautiful planet gift that we have been given will survive the atrocities we continue to shower upon it and it’s flora and fauna.  May humanity wake up!

May the power of love overcome the love of power!  Thinking positive for 2018!