Day 617 OUT OF Beijing: Precis and the very early days of my blog.


Issue 6, Edition 1 of Precis.

Issue 6, Edition 1 of Precis.


Jill and I woke up, checked our email, and had a very nice surprise this morning: Some of my first few blog posts were in my friend, Chris Stecher’s, online magazine, Precis.

Chris is a rather amazing fellow: He’s traveled pretty much everywhere, is an incredible photographer, lives outside the box in more ways than I can ever imagine, just got married to the woman of his dreams (shout out to Kat Tosi!) and lives in Beijing.

We met both he and his wife, Kat, in Beijing about a year ago. They are two wild and crazy people, which Beijing seems to bring out in expatriates, and really are fun to hang out with and discuss life since we have a lot of the same views and the conversations are always lively and go on very strange tangents.

When Jill and I were about to leave China, Chris told me about Precis and I told him about my blog. Somehow I had forgotten to tell him, early on, and he said, “Dude, I need to have that in my magazine!”  I was honored and humbled  that he would want my stories and I immediately accepted.

Precis is now on its 6th issue and it is getting more and more press.

There are stories from people all over the world, including another friend of mine who runs an eco-resort in the Dominican Republic, and so much more.

I suggest you have a look at it, and my blogs, and you can see where my trip to Beijing started and how much I’ve changed, learned, traveled and realized about the world, myself, and how I was before Jill and I truly became a couple since we had only met about 2 weeks before these first few blog posts were written and I was still trying to get my bearings as I started a 1.5 year journey in a new country, at a new job, and with very little expectations or ideas of what was going to happen.



Day 614 OUT OF Beijing: Why We Walk, Part 8.

Take a book/Leave a book.  A wonderful little free library.



Jill and I took a side road, after passing the off-leash dog and human park, and noticed this interesting bookshelf near an intersection.

As we walked closer we noticed the sign on top, “Free Library”.

We kept getting closer and then saw the “Take a book/Leave a book” sign underneath it.

We love walking around, seeing little surprises like this, that would bring together a community, and how people are always thinking up something new and surprising.

It is part of what we want our new website, to be unveiled soon, to help others do.

We want people to be inspire, and then inspire others, to be more, do more, and live more.

We’ve seen how wonderful it is to travel, experience new cultures and people, and hope to help others do the same.

This may not mean giving up your job and becoming minimalists like we have, but it may allow you to change something that you’ve always wanted to change, or visit somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit, or think about yourself in a new way that allows you more peace and contentment.

I’ve been working on an ebook to help people change their attitude, and life, at this very moment and it is almost ready.

My mom, who is an excellent writer and editor, has been helping me figure out exactly what I want to have come across in the most clear, simple and most useful format possible.

It is a combination of all my years of being a cognitive behavioral therapist, my dabbling in Buddhism and use of acceptance and gratitude, and my sense of humor and joy of living a life that is truly wonderful.

It is exciting to think that I’ll be putting this out into the world and what the reactions might be from the people that read it.

It is also a little bit scary.

I’m hoping that most people will like my book, and give me good reviews while also suggesting other points that they would like clarity or more support on. If so, I can then write more sequels or even do personal online training with them to help them achieve their goals more quickly.  It is an exciting new part of our lives!

However, I’m sure there will be people that will give me negative reviews and it will be hurtful.  However, if this happens, I will be able to use the tools that I’ve taught so many others to help me figure out how to adapt, learn and not let that become a set back to a new adventure and way of life that Jill and I want to achieve.

When we actually arrived at the little free library, we noticed the basket for free hollyhock seeds nailed to the side of it.  The little bit of randomness made us smile and laugh.

Maybe someday, if enough people buy my book, it will end up on a little free library like this and reach many more people than I can even imagine.

That is why we walk.

Not just books but hollyhock seeds are available.

Not just books but hollyhock seeds are available.

Day 613 OUT OF Beijing: Why We Walk, Part 7.


We didn't see any on-leash humans when we walked by the park.

We didn’t see any on-leash humans when we walked by the park.


After Jill and I passed by “The House of Bliss” we started downhill and back to our home.

There is a gorgeous little park, right after the peak of the hill where “The House of Bliss” is located and we noticed a woman sitting there, relaxing and reading a book, who smiled at us as we sauntered by.

There was a fence set up around a part of the fence, and the quotation on it made me laugh.

I’m pretty sure that the off-leash humans would be welcome and I’m wondering if there had been some issues with on-leash humans walking around.

This is, after all, the San Francisco Bay Area and we are known for being different and fun.

I’m guessing what the author of this sign meant was actually, “Off-Leash Pets, And Humans, Welcome” compared to what was printed.

I’m a big fan of using commas, and probably over use them, and this made me smile because it might have been the intention of the author to make it comedic and humorous.

I’m guessing that he or she did intend it and I appreciate subtle punctuation and grammar humor wherever I can find it.

That is why we walk.

Day 612 OUT OF Beijing: Why We Walk, Part 6.


This house definitely looks blissful.

This house definitely looks blissful.


After passing the truck, Jill and I continued up the little hill in Petaluma.

Jill noticed this beautiful house, and then said to me, “Do you see what that house is called?”

I didn’t see any sign so I wrinkled my forehead and said, “I don’t see anything.”

Now, I’ve been tested and I have 20/10 vision so I can see just about anything, anywhere as long as humans can see it.

Jill has better vision than I do, if that is even possible.  And, since she does, I guess it is.

She pointed to a sign that was hanging over the doorway.

The words on the sign stated that this was the “The House of Bliss.”

Looking at the cool blue paint job, accented with teal/light blue trim, the house did look quite blissful.

Everything around it was manicured perfectly and it seemed as if the owners take a lot of pride in their home.

I was guessing this was a bed and breakfast but, after searching online, I found it is just someone’s home and they obviously love it.

I’m guessing that when the owners arrive home that they feel quite relaxed, calm and full of bliss.

Isn’t that the way a house should be?

By the way, “The House of Bliss” was about 150 feet away from the truck with the anti-Obama and Stars and Bars bumper stickers.  In reality. this blissful little home was a world away from it.

That is why we walk.


The House of Bliss. Just in case you missed it.

The House of Bliss. Just in case you missed it.


Day 611 OUT OF Beijing: Why We Walk, Part 5.


Notice the "Merica" scrawled into the mud on the windshield.

Notice the “Merica” scrawled into the mud on the windshield.


Jill’s and my walk continued back into more of the city part of Petaluma.

Petaluma, in case you aren’t from Sonoma County, was not the upscale town it looks like now just about 10-15 years ago.

The rush to move north of San Francisco, whether to Healdsburg (my hometown), Cloverdale or Petaluma, has brought in a brand new group of people.

It used to be mostly farmers, and people like my family that didn’t want to live in the big city but still wanted to drive down to see family, but not a lot of commuters and extremely wealthy people.

Petaluma, and Healdsburg, is now loaded with wealthy people and this has changed the demographic considerably.

Not saying this is better or worse, just different.

I know I like some of the new in Healdsburg, and Petaluma, but I also like some of the old.

There is a balance, just like what is happening in San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley, that can be unsettling and upsetting to long time residents who are now being priced out, pushed out, and excluded from the cities and towns they were raised in and belonged to just a few short years ago.

Progress is just that, progress.

As Jill and I walked, I saw a bit of of “Old Petaluma.”

It was a 4×4 truck, definitely meant for “4 Wheelin'” in the mud and streams, and it had been used accordingly.

When I grew up, there was a definite faction of people that used to go 4 wheelin’ a lot.  They were mostly good folk and seemed to enjoy themselvecs and not bother anyone else.

There were also some of them that were racist and would harass me for being Jewish.  I can’t imagine that happening in Petaluma or Healdsburg of today.

Progress is just that, progress.

This truck brought me back to my high school days and what it was like growing up in a “hick” town, as Healdsburg used to be called.  There is, in no way, any chance it could be called that now.  My personal nickname for it is “Hamptons West” because of the money and skin tone of most of the people that live there.

Stopping to photograph the truck, I noticed the mud and how, “Merica” was scrawled into it on the windshield.  There is a definite statement being made by the person who wrote this in the mud of this truck.  You can figure out what they were stating.

I then walked around the back and notice the folded up American flag, 12 pack of Budweiser and other assorted junk thrown around the bed of the truck.

I also checked out the bumper stickers.

Bumper stickers are an intriguing way to show your beliefs and inform others of who you are without actually having any type of conversation or discourse.

This person, obviously, is not an Obama fan since one of his says, “Does your Obama bumper sticker make you feel stupid yet?” and “4×4” filled in with the Stars and Bars, which, no matter what anyone states, is a definitive statement for slavery, and lastly, “The 2nd Amendment: America’s original homeland security.”

My mom once gave me a t-shirt that has 4 Native American men, holding rifles, with the statement, “Homeland Security: Protecting America’s borders since 1492.”  I would tend to think they’d have had a whole different opinion on the 2nd Amendment.  Just a thought.

Anyway, I just thought this truck, and the owner, were fairly hilarious since he/she had a very nice house, a few other nice cars, and probably lived a very nice life.  And yet, he/she was still angry at Obama and the mostly liberal elected government around this area.

It made me think, again, of the privilege that most people living in the USA have and how little they travel, see other cultures, or truly live outside of their own little bubble.  Beliefs become simplistic and black and white, which, in reality, nothing is black and white.

I reflected on Bill and Rosemary from the UK, who we had just met a day or two ago.  They had done two different 2 year trips in their truck, and in opposition to this truck, their bumper stickers showed their willingness to see the world, see what else is out there, and learn about so many foreign cultures and people.  We tend to know so many more people like Bill and Rosemary, and unlike this truck owner, because of our choices.

This dichotomy reminds me that I  choose not to be stuck in black and white world, to stay stuck in one location, to speak only one language, or to live in a world where everything is explained in a single bumper sticker proclaiming other people’s stupidity.

That is why we walk.


He, or she, made her opinions very well known.

He, or she, made her opinions very well known. Which is their right.




The Wild Turkeys of Petaluma.

The Wild Turkeys of Petaluma.













That is why we walk.



Bill and Rosemary with their Land Rover.

Bill and Rosemary with their Land Rover.


























Africa Road Trip

Latin America Road Trip

That is why we walk.

Day 608 OUT OF Beijing: Why We Walk, Part 2.


The view of Petaluma on one of our walks.

The view of Petaluma on one of our walks.


Jill and I kept talking to Mitch and discussing life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

It seems, and this may just be confirmation bias but Jill and I both think that more and more people are trying to figure out how to do more with less.

I’ve been getting a lot of friends asking me how to minimize their possessions to maximize their life.

I’ve helped them figure out how to live on less, travel with less, take up less space in the world, and figure out how to own things instead of having things own them.

Last night, in fact, Jill and I spent an hour going through each of our check in bags and discarded about half of what we had in them.

We doubt we can get down to one check and two carry ons between us each check in will be very light since they are both only about half full.

Once we figure out where we are going to settle, in about a year, we will be able to unload more of it since I’ll know if I need my cycling gear.

Cycling gear?  Yep, I have my cycling spandex and cycling shoes (with clip-less pedals) that I’m dragging around everywhere.

This takes up about 1/4 of my bag and seems like a waste.

However, it will allow me to get around easily, when we settle down, and the cost of carrying it is much less than having to purchase it again.

This is a cost benefit analysis that I’ve done and the benefits far outweigh the costs.

My friend, Christopher Rubin, is also going to open a bike store in the next few months.

I want to help him and we plan to ride our bikes to work together and that means I’ll be needing these clothes sooner rather than later.  It is also a free way to get healthy and lose weight which I want to do also.

Mitch seems to want to have a simpler life and we all talked about how that could happen, for both him and us, and what we are doing to accomplish that goal.

This doesn’t just mean minimizing but doing what you want, when you want and knowing that you could die, at any moment, and how do you want to live until that happens.

For Jill and me, it is traveling, seeing friends and family, and exploring the world.

We’ve both simplified our lives enough that we can make this happen.

We can help you do the same if you want.

When we walk, we talk about how to accomplish this and share our knowledge.

That is why we walk.





Day 606 OUT OF Beijing: The Wave Organ of San Francisco.


Some of the pipes that allow for the sound to be created at the Wave Organ.



The final destination for our SF Tourism Tips update journey today was The Wave Organ.

The wave organ is exactly as it sounds: an organ that produces sounds as waves go into its tubes.

It is a pretty strange experience but a lot of fun.

It is part of the Exploratorium and I would suggest people check it out.

How can it be part of the Exploratorium since it is about 2 miles away from the actual Exploratorium?

Let me answer that:  The Exploratorium used to be housed in part of the Palace of Fine Arts before it moved to the Embarcadero a few years ago.

This outdoor exhibits was made by Peter Richards and George Gonzales and it has continued to survive through the years.

The Exploratorium has a number of other outdoor exhibits also and you can find out more by checking out the SF Tourism Tips Exploratorium page.

We walked out to the Wave Organ, located on a jetty in the bay, and hung out for about 10 minutes.  We listened to the sounds and the music being made by this piece of art and the ocean and enjoyed it.  We had to catch our bus back to Petaluma or we would have stayed longer.  It is definitely a strange, but fun, way to hear music if you’ve never done it.  It is also very relaxing and it affords a magnificent view of the bay, Alcatraz and the Marina District.

We were lucky enough to visit it when the tide was almost at its highest, since that is when the most noises are made and it is the loudest.

As we walked away towards our bus stop, two elderly Caucasian women were walking up.  One of them, who looked to be in her 70s or 80s, said, “How is it today?  Can you hear anything?”

Jill and I both answered that the high tide was coming and the music was getting louder.

The lady then said, “Great!  My nephew designed this and I can’t wait to hear it!”

We would guess that it was Peter Richards that was her nephew and found it to be such a stroke of luck to be there at the time as a relative of one of the designers and artists.

This is why we love walking, exploring and talking to random people as we continue our journey around the world!


Day 605 OUT OF Beijing: Crissy Field.


The Golden Gate Bridge peaks out from behind trees at Crissy Field.



After Jill and I left Fort Point we walked across Crissy Field.

The Presidio Trust has done a fantastic job of making Crissy Field a peaceful, calm and gorgeous place to enjoy yourself in nature.

The beauty of Crissy Field is the ability to get to this park by so many different modes of transportation from anywhere in the city.

I used to ride my bike through the park when I lived in San Francisco and always enjoyed the peace and tranquility that I was afforded as I cruised through as I was working out.


The Golden Gate Bridge from Crissy Field.

The Golden Gate Bridge from Crissy Field.


I rarely stopped, because I was trying to get the best workout possible, but now that I can walk through it, I’m glad that I’ve had this chance with Jill.

It is a magical place and everyone we passed, whether they were cycling, running or walking, seemed to be happy and content.

Many people also had dogs and there were a lot of dog sitters with up to 8 or 9 dogs having a great time!