12 Dec Day two: hike and cirque de face
Waking up at 5:30 AM isn’t fair on so many levels. It’s dark. You lay there anticipating its arrival–half awake, half asleep. You know it’s coming and you can’t avoid it.
However, hiking for five miles to a peak that overlooks the Peninsular Range in southern California is worth it: we walk past avocado and fig trees, and giant oval tombstone-like rocks. Palms and aloe vera plants are so quintessentially dessert landscape. We sidestep over coyote poo. (This picture is actually day two! Eagle’s Rock).
I’m thrilled to chat with a fellow lulu-wearing funky lady named Ivy from Boston. “Lulu is the stay-at-home-mom’s tuxedo.”
We bond over Lulu and our shock at aging: “I can’t drink as much wine,” we cry in unison. Ivy sums it up well: “It’s not about looking good in jeans anymore, I want to be one of those women who can still hike and be active when I’m older. And it’s not something that you can decide when you’re 65, you have to start now.”
Breakfast was served at 7:30 in room–avec strong coffee. This is heaven.
Then, off to the gym with Ellen for some work: lots of rows and lat pulls that would strengthen my rhomboids. Bad posture and marking excessive amounts of student papers are the cause–at times my arm goes numb (note to self: no more marking!) Next, I was in the pool with Ellen as she tweaked my front crawl. Instead of a thrashing fish out of water (me), with a few tips, Ellen reveals how to glide smoothly through the water.
Lunch with David and Ivy, and two other ladies, sisters. David asks for another round of grain cookies topped with apricot jam.”You can do that? Have extras?”
At the beginning of the week, guests, myself included, have an option of reducing their portions and eating at a consistent calorie count every day. But, that doesn’t mean you can’t ask for it. It’s not militant here. Whef.
Deep clean facial with Zoom. “This is the torture part,” she tells me. Extractions (a.k.a: zit zappers). I left with a red face. And to combat this, I thought a make over would be cool. Yikes. Cirque de face. I am just not a make-up girl.
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